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I admit it. I'm am a car
nut! My wife calls it
an illness. My parents will
tell you, that I could name
every car on the road when I
was 3. I was promised
a 1960 Thunderbird when I
graduated from high school.
I'm still waiting for it.
 In 1996, I was finally in a
position to buy the old car
that I always wanted.
I wasn't sure what to get.
I hadn't owned an American
car in 15 years. I
looked at GTOs and
Firebirds, but couldn't find
one I liked. I found a
'66 Mustang, 6 cylinder
convertible in "Hemmings
Motor News", that was local.
When I saw it I knew that
this was it.
 Later the next year, I found
a product called a Saddle
Console, made by Classic
Consoles, then in
Tallahassee, FL. I
thought this was a pretty
cool little item, and I
thought, "I can sell these".
I became one their first
dealers in 1997. I
started by setting up at
local car shows, and they
sold really well.
Around that time, I found a
cool computer program
called, Microsoft FrontPage.
Having a little talent with
desktop publishing programs,
and 5 years on the yearbook
staff in school, I was
having a great time creating
web pages and selling on the
internet. That was the
beginning of "Mustang Jack's
and
mustangjack.com"
Soon, I contacted Scott
Drake Mustang Parts, and
became a dealer for their
products as well. I
needed a source for the
Mustang logos I was putting
on the front of the
consoles.
That little 66 Mustang I
had, still had the original
AM radio. Having been
in the Audio/Video business
for 15 years, I knew I
needed to change that.
Next, I became a dealer for
an aftermarket company that
made stereos for classic
cars.
 In 1999, I found a nice 1969
Mercury Cougar at a swap
meet in Kalamazoo. I
must have caught my wife off
guard, because she agreed to
let me buy it. It had
been many years since I had
driven a V8 car, but that
351 Windsor had me hooked.
I needed a V8 Mustang!
 I sold the Mustang and the
Cougar in 2000. I went
looking for a V8 convertible
that I could build into
something unique. I
came across a newly restored
1966 convertible that had
been painted like a Shelby
GT350. It had a 289 2
barrel. a 4 speed, manual
brakes, and manual steering.
I soon went about
transforming this car into a
one of a kind, Shelby Clone.
 During the next few years,
the car changed
dramatically. First
came the wood steering
wheel, the Shelby mirrors,
new seats, and
Kenwood/Rockford Fosgate
stereo system, and a 68
Shelby roll bar. The
the engine was rebuilt and
topped with 3 - 2 barrel
carburetors, and a 5 speed
transmission. Next
came power windows, door
locks, and AC. The
final modifications were a
power rack and pinion
steering conversion and
power disc brakes front and
rear.
 The car was featured in 2
national magazines, and was
on the cover of one.
Check them out on the keft.
In the spring of 2005, I
traveled a for a few days
with "The Great American
Pony Drive" though Illinois
and Indiana. On that
trip I saw a new Mustang
convertible in white with a
red interior. That was
it. I had to have one.
I sold the 66 in the summer
of 2005, to a man from
California. I didn't know
it at the time, but he had
some big plans. Read
about his story in the
article on the left.
Is it the "Shelby Clone"
they bought in the Midwest
for their prototype?
 In the summer of 05, Mustang
GT convertibles with 5 speeds
were on allocation to
dealers, and selling at a
premium. I had an X
plan from Ford, that no
Grand Rapids area dealer
would honor. I called
an old friend who had been
in Grand Rapids for years,
but was at a dealer north of
here in Big Rapids.
(There must have been a lot
of rapids at one time, in
Michigan.) He
accepted the X plan, and I
ordered my 2006 GT
Convertible.
 In the spring of 2006, I ran
across a 40,000 mile 65
Coupe that had been sitting
for 20 years. I
thought I was done with the
old Mustangs, but this one
looked like fun. I
purchased it (My wife
says "I snuck it in."),
and it has been undergoing
restoration ever since. It
came with a finished 221 V8
and a 302 block. The
302 turned out to be a
"Mexican" block, and I chose
to use it. Hopefully,
it will be on the
road in the summer of 2011.
There are pictures of the
restoration on a link on the
left.
On this page, I have
included links to pictures
of my cars, and links to
other websites that I find
interesting. I have
included auto news websites,
car show website, old
advertising sites, and other
automobile information.
Thanks for visiting, and I
hope you enjoy this website. |
