Modern Mashup 1965 Ford Mustang Wide-Body Heading To SEMA

In the world of car enthusiasts, interesting car mashups can usually be found while browsing eBay or any of the online classified sites. Some are creative and well-done, while others are just, well, creative. This particular 1965 Ford Mustang falls into the well-done category. The car was built to participate in the Young Guns Battle of the Builders during the SEMA show.

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Jacob Griffin of Griffin Design is a a 24-year-old fabricator and builder that builds cars alongside his dad. The father-son team built this crazy '65 Mustang that has been fused with a 1999 Mustang GT, a 1965-ish Mustang if you will.

The heart of the beast is a '99 Mustang GT. To fit over the '99, the '65 body was widened to fit over six inches in the front and eight inches out back. A custom hood was designed to fit over the stock 4.6-liter and shock towers. Even the doors were widened by about four-inches to make sure everything fits seamlessly. Also, glance at the unique side mirrors incorporated into the body of the car. Griffin ditched the catalytic converters and went with a Flowmaster 2.5-inch exhaust with downpipes. While it hasn't been numbered, the output is said to be between 350 to 400-horsepower. While still prepping for SEMA, he believes he can squeeze another 50-horsepower out of it by "detuning" it.

"If you get the side profile view of it rolling, it looks like it is sniffing the ground, and I always say it is sniffing the ground waiting for its next meal," Griffin laughs during an interview with AutotopiaLA. "This car just wants to go out and run."

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This idea of throwing on a Whipple supercharger was thrown around, but a non-carbureted naturally aspirated beast is the perfect fit for an older customer's  retirement car for cruising around the mountains. Even better, this car can be serviced anywhere, just like your run-of-the-mill New Edge GT Mustang.

The suspension is from the stock '99 GT with the exception of springs that gave the rear a 3-inch drop and the front by four inches. According to Griffin, it gives the car that road race feel and has it handling on rails. 18-inch US Mag wheels sit on all four corners and are wrapped with 10-inch rubber up front and 12-inch tires on the back.

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Opening the widened doors of a '65 Mustang and peering into a '99 model cockpit is incredibly interesting and creative.

From starting on the project with two running donor cars side by side, to get to this point has taken Griffin only 120 days! He says that there are still some bugs to work out, but it will be done when the car makes its appearance at this year's SEMA show. Even more, Griffin does pretty much everything himself from paint and body work down to the motor. He jokingly admits that the only thing he doesn't like working on is automatic transmissions due to the amount of springs.

The car will make an appearance at this year's SEMA (Specialty Equipment Market Association) starting Tuesday, November 5th and running through Friday, November 9th at the Las Vegas convention center.

Source: AutotopiaLA