SN65 project

That's right, SN65. I know many of you are probably still bitter over the whole Horsepowered fiasco but, the "SN65 project car" thread is a must read. The amount of work going into the project, along with the planning is just amazing.

Here's a link directly to the thread for those of you who are interested:

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I don't care how evil some of you thought Horsepowered was/is that thread is worth reading. Personally I couldn't have cared less about the whole affair, sounded to me like one or two very big egos pushed the whole thing. Just my $0.02.

bill Car: '64.5 Mustang: 260 V8, 3 sp, factory a/c, SVO cam, Performer intake, Holley 390 cfm carb, Pertronix, Hi-Po exhaust manifolds, 1.5" front & 1" rear drop, Jacobs wires, Torq Thrust D's

Guns: Colt AR15, Sig P220, Moss. 590A1, Marlin 70P

Reply to
bill
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Bill,

A very nice, tho' beyond most of us project. Keep up the good work.

bradtx

Reply to
B2723m

Whoa, let me set the record straight. I'm not the guy doing the work, I just ran across it. While my wife and _most_ friends will attest to me being nuts, I'm not _that_ nuts!!

Truth be told, that project is WA-A-A-A-A-A-A-Y over my head, not mention way out of my budget.

What I'd truly like to know is if he thinks it's worth it after he's done. Seems to me it'd be easier to beef up the chassis, swap in coil overs and rack & pinion, IRS, engine, tranny, etc.... hmm, that's starting to look like a lot of work too...

bill Car: '64.5 Mustang: 260 V8, 3 sp, factory a/c, SVO cam, Performer intake, Holley 390 cfm carb, Pertronix, Hi-Po exhaust manifolds, 1.5" front & 1" rear drop, Jacobs wires, Torq Thrust D's

Guns: Colt AR15, Sig P220, Moss. 590A1, Marlin 70P

Reply to
bill

The guy who's doing that posted it here a couple months back. (check your favorite archive) Anyway he provided a number of details. The '65 wasn't in good condition to start with, the cobra was. He's doing the work at his brother's body shop. This is the kind of job where you have to have free or nearly free acess to such things to make it affordable if you don't already own such a shop.

Reply to
Brent P

Wow! What a project! Must be nice to have the money to be able to hack up an '03 Cobra.

Patrick '93 Cobra '83 LTD

Reply to
Patrick

bill, Thanks for setting me straight!

Patrick, These custom car guys spend ludicrus amounts of $ on their projects, I guess there's a payback if they win enough shows.

bradtx

Reply to
B2723m

bill opined in news: snipped-for-privacy@mb-m03.aol.com:

search for snipped-for-privacy@hydroflotech.com , this group on google..

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there are several threads on this project as he was putting the plan together

Here's his business site with early pix of his first mustang project.. which he still has

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Check the rest of his site... a real renaissance type

Reply to
Backyard Mechanic

SNIP...

I'm not _that_ nuts!!

Well... Only time will tell just how nuts you really are. Maybe we will meet one day at bellview. :-)

The actual budget for this build is currently at about 40K. We only need a few more odds and ends and we will be done save some nickle and dime stuff.

Well...

I have a bit to go before it is done, but right now I'm lovin it. If the car is anything close to my expectations I will be nothing less than thrilled. The build itself is turning out to be more fun that I ever could have hoped for. A once in a lifetime opportunity that I would not trade for anything.

Here is my responce to a similar question on one of the forums...

Quote: Originally Posted by Brad Forgive me for not spending too much time reading this thread, maybe you've answered this already, but wouldn't it have been worlds easier to just shoehorn in the cobra motor?

Hi Brad,

Actually, that was the original plan....

We were going to buy the 65 fastback, 03 cobra engine, R&P mustang II front, IRS rear, etc, etc etc....

When we totaled the cost of all the parts we suffered a slight sticker shock. All the specialty buy out items (added to the cost of the car) totaled close to 60K. And that did not cover any misc / unforseen expenses.

We realized that it would be much cheeper to buy a 03 Cobra and strip it for parts.

After we picked up the Cobra, we parked it next to the 65 and were surprised at how close the cars looked dimensionally. We took some quick mesurments and realized that the entire 65 body would fit over the 03 rolling chassis.

After getting into this project I have to say that this is (at least from my perspective) the best way to completely update a clasic car. This chassis is going to be lightweight and stiff. We were jacking the car up the other day with a jack placed at the very front of the rocker, right behind the front wheel. Well to our surprise, the entire side of the car went straight up with zero deflection or twist. I knew that it was going to be stiff, but I was really surprised by how stiff it is.

On top of that the 65 chassis has places where rust is hidden between lap joints. Even after blasting or dipping or whatever, this rust will still be there. I was not about to put a huge amount of time money and effort into somthing that had trapped rust. I have seen the effects of this type of rust way to many times. Beautifully restored cars that start to weep or bubble after 5 years or so.

Anyway... I digress.

That was how the project got started... in a nutshell.

SN65 __________________ SN65 When 65 and 03 collide

If you would like to see other comments and photos from other forums follow the following links...

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I will be monitering this thread on the newsgroup. If you have any comments or questions you can post them here or on any of the forums listed above.

Robert Julian Jr. SN65 When 65 and 03 collide

Reply to
Robert Julian Jr.

Hi Brad,

Please define "ludicrus". :-)

As far as this project goes, By the time I am done, I will not have spent that much more on materials as most of the typical restomods you find at the local cruise night.

Also, eventhough I am building a custom car, I don't really classify myself as a "custom car guy". This is only the second car project I have ever been envolved in. True, my brother owns a body shop, and even though he has worked on some beautiful restorations, a vast majority of the work in the shop is collision work.

Also, I believe that most of the real custom car guys get a large chunk of change from corporate sponsorship. At least they get a lot of the high dollar items free of charge.

SN65

Reply to
Robert Julian Jr.

SNIP...

Hi Bill

I have just posted some updates to the misc forums. If you would like to see other comments and photos follow the following links... The people on Stangnet have been very helpful and raised some interesting points.

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A question has come up in regard to "how stiff is it" and "can it be to stiff". I was always under the assumption that the chassis (we are talking about the chassis here) could never be to stiff. I have posted some photos showing that the chassis has zero deflection when supported at three of the four corners. Also, I have posted some photos showing the rear torque box reinforcement plates and supporting braces.

Can I make this chassis to stiff???

Bob

65 Fastback
Reply to
Robert Julian Jr.

A simple little question.... how will this car be registered? As the '03 cobra? The '65 mustang? A home built? Just curious how to handle something like this with the state of IL.

I would guess as the '65 would be the prefered one for emissions testing and all.

Reply to
Brent P

I will be registering it as a 65 for a number of reasons.

1) no emission testing (even though the car will pass all current standards) 2) Vehical tax puroses. Taxes on older cars are much less than newer modles, that is if I ever move to California. 3) If I am ever pulled over by the federalies, at least the car will look like a 65. I would not like to spend the night in jail as they try and figure out what the hell happened to the 03 Cobra. :-) 4) Antique car insurance and registaration are much cheeper for a 65 than regular insurance and registration for the 03. 5) It is much easier to retag a 65 than an 03. The 65 really does not have a VIN plate, so there is no need to have the state come in and retag the car along with all the explanations (these people are kind of hard to reason with especially on special vehicals that fall outside the normal couse of their daily grind).

Add on top of that, that it is much cooler owning a 65 fastback than an 03 Cobra (nothing against the 03, but really...)

I really can't wait to hit the car shows next year and see the expressions of passerbys as they try and figure out exacly what we have done.

Bob

65 Fastback SN65 Project car
Reply to
Robert Julian Jr.

Hi All,

Got a bit more finished ove the past week.

Follow the links for photos and details.

Bob

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Reply to
rj

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supporting

Hi Bill

I have just posted some updates to the misc forums. If you would like to see comments and photos follow the following links... The project is comming along nicely.

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Reply to
rj

Hi Bill

I have just posted some updates to the misc forums. If you would like to see comments and photos follow the following links... The project is comming along nicely.

We have photos of the trial fit of the dash.

How do you like the look of the 03 dash in the 65 fastback? I think it looks right at home there.

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Reply to
rj

Bob,

Hopefully you don't think I'm "one of those typical AOHell A-holes." I've been following your progress I'm just more of a lurker than a poster. Believe it or not, I'm one of the last computer/internet holdouts and only have access at work. Hell, it wasn't until a month ago that those cell phone bastards finally convinced me to sign my life away..... ;-P

Anyway, just finished checking out the updated threads at Horsepowered and once again I am awed. The project is really coming along and the interior is really gonna shock people when they open they door!

It amazes me that you've done an infinitely more complicated project than the mild resto-mod paint and body work I paid for, and yet MY project dragged on for 3 years and you haven't celebrated your first anniversary yet. It should also be noted that even though my guy did good, quality work it was nowhere near the quality you've been putting into your car.

If you and the car ever go on the road on any kind of tour you've got to let us know what the schedule is!

bill

Reply to
bill

Hi Bill,

We are shooting for the "big un-veiling" at this years Hot Rod Power Tour. We should have the car on the road in May and tuned up & ready to go on the first leg of the week long PT on June 4th.

Maybe we will see you there.

For a better choice than HP, check out the threads on the following links

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Reply to
rj

snipped-for-privacy@hydroflotech.com wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@g14g2000cwa.googlegroups.com:

I've been following this in the forums for a while now. This project has got to be one of the best if not _the_ best I've seen in years.

Bob, best of luck - can't wait to see the finished project.

Joe Calypso Green '93 5.0 LX AOD hatch with a few goodies Black '03 Dakota 5.9 R/T CC

Reply to
Joe

"We are shooting for the "big un-veiling" at this years Hot Rod Power Tour."

Hmmm, just checked Hot Rod's website and their Power Tour doesn't seem to have enough power to make it any farther west than Alabama. That's gonna cause me a problem living in Texas. I was really hoping to see the car in person too, pictures never do them justice.

After looking at Alsa Corp's website (MirraChrome) I think your chrome idea would be great. Chrome paint sure has come a l-o-n-g way! I wasn't able to see any samples of PPG's Liquid Metal. I've seen a couple Shelby Cobras and his new GR1 that have been finished as polished aluminum and I think it looks great. You can't be worried about fingerprints and smudges like reenmachine on Stangnet, I mean hell, I worry about that now with my "regular" Vintage Burgandy.

You might run into drivability issues on very sunny days though. I bet the glare & reflections would be a biatch!

bill

Reply to
bill

That's

chrome

Hi Bill,

We are still debaiting the "paint" to use. I am still wanting the "polished aluminum" look, but others are pushing toward black. The car has to be completely painted black before the application of the polished aluminum paint system.

Also, my brother is giving me a hard time about the power tour. He says the he will be really pissed if he spends a month painting this car just to have me chip it all up on a cross country jaunt. :-(

Bob

Reply to
rj

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