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74NovaMan's 66 Mustang GT (Dad's first new car)

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  • 74NovaMan's 66 Mustang GT (Dad's first new car)

    Sometime in 1966 my dad ordered a 66 Mustang GT. This was his first brand new car. The first pictures that we have of the car are from 1967, where we can see that dad added some head rests to the original Pony interior. I do not remember ever seeing them but seem to recall the holes left behind.
    Attached Files
    Last edited by 74NovaMan; March 27, 2014, 01:36 PM.
    Chris - HRPT Long Haul 03, 04, 05, 13, 14, 15,16 & 18
    74 Nova Project
    66 Mustang GT Project

    92 Camaro RS Convertible Project
    79 Chevy Truck Project
    1956 Cadillac Project

  • #2
    Here are the original invoices. The salesman, Dave Lanthier, was my uncle (mom’s brother who was married to dad’s sister.) Total cost was just over $3,200. The GT package was $152.50, the pony interior was $94.13 and the full length console was $50.41. The note about the damage is in dad's handwriting. I wonder if that has anything to do with the "special discount"?





    Attached Files
    Last edited by 74NovaMan; March 27, 2014, 01:37 PM.
    Chris - HRPT Long Haul 03, 04, 05, 13, 14, 15,16 & 18
    74 Nova Project
    66 Mustang GT Project

    92 Camaro RS Convertible Project
    79 Chevy Truck Project
    1956 Cadillac Project

    Comment


    • #3
      Dad enjoyed driving the mustang for the next 14-15 years in Minnesota, year-round. I have all sorts of great memories with this car.
      • We drove it to the beach many times every summer
      • We strapped a canoe to the roof and went to the boundary waters in northern MN where it sat for a week while we camped, portaged and canoed
      • Getting pulled over for speeding, with dad at the wheel.
      • Driving down I-94 with dad, mom and my sister when dad pulled onto the gravel shoulder and put the hammer down to pass a few cars at about 70mph. I remember dad saying “I’ve always wanted to do that!”
      • Driving the car while sitting on his lap
      • Sitting on the console on the way to Dairy Queen and I bumped the shifter into neutral, it took dad a little bit to figure out what was going on.
      Here is a shot of me sometime in the early 80’s doing a Duke’s of Hazard impression. The crunched quarter panel was a replacement from an earlier accident.
      Attached Files
      Last edited by 74NovaMan; March 27, 2014, 01:37 PM.
      Chris - HRPT Long Haul 03, 04, 05, 13, 14, 15,16 & 18
      74 Nova Project
      66 Mustang GT Project

      92 Camaro RS Convertible Project
      79 Chevy Truck Project
      1956 Cadillac Project

      Comment


      • #4
        Somewhere in the early 80’s, Minnesota salt had taken its toll and dad took the car off the road to start a restoration. We pulled the motor using a come-along and an old swing set. Dad rebuilt the motor, transmission, and suspension. He spent a bunch of time and effort welding in new floor plans and frame pieces. Unfortunately he did not use stamped of reproduction pieces; he just used what he had laying around. At this point the project stalled out as body work was the next step. The car sat in his back garage stall gathering dust until about 2005 when dad decided he would rather have the space for a wood shop. He asked me if I was interested in some early inheritance and I took possession of the car.
        Chris - HRPT Long Haul 03, 04, 05, 13, 14, 15,16 & 18
        74 Nova Project
        66 Mustang GT Project

        92 Camaro RS Convertible Project
        79 Chevy Truck Project
        1956 Cadillac Project

        Comment


        • #5
          Great that you have it, Plans? Progress?
          Inquiry minds want to know.

          Comment


          • #6
            My wife wants to take it on the Power Tour next year (2014). I have a lot of work to do. Stay tuned for details on just how much work that will be.
            Chris - HRPT Long Haul 03, 04, 05, 13, 14, 15,16 & 18
            74 Nova Project
            66 Mustang GT Project

            92 Camaro RS Convertible Project
            79 Chevy Truck Project
            1956 Cadillac Project

            Comment


            • #7
              What a great heritage to have with such a great car. An original owner GT car. I'm with Mike. What are your plans for the build?
              Bakersfield, CA.

              Comment


              • #8
                Neat car and a great story will keep on looking to see the progress.
                Greg & Mendy Dayton, Ohio 2007LH 2008LH 2010LH 2011LH 2012 1st 2 stops 2013LH 2015 1st 2 stops2016LH 2017 first and last stops . 2018 LH ("It's better to be dead and cool than alive and uncool!! Harley Davidson!")

                Comment


                • #9
                  Thankfully everything you can possibly think of is available for these cars, and the reproductions are much much better quality, fit, and finish than they were in the 80's when he started the resto. How cool to have it in the family all this time!
                  There's always something new to learn.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    That's pretty awesome. Looking forward to seeing the rehab.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      With all this history with the car I want to make sure that it is done correctly. As mentioned earlier, the floor pans and frame rail patches were not reproduction pieces but whatever dad had readily available for cheap. If I want to use the original body and do it right, I would probably need to start with this:
                      Attached Files
                      Last edited by 74NovaMan; March 27, 2014, 01:38 PM.
                      Chris - HRPT Long Haul 03, 04, 05, 13, 14, 15,16 & 18
                      74 Nova Project
                      66 Mustang GT Project

                      92 Camaro RS Convertible Project
                      79 Chevy Truck Project
                      1956 Cadillac Project

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Add to that the front frame rails need patching, the roof is dented badly (I used it to climb up onto the shed roof in the 80’s) as well as the following list sheet metal: Inner and outer wheel wells (rear) Valence panels (front & rear) Doors Fenders Quarters Hood Decklid Rocker panels This overwhelming list leads me to the purchase of a new shell in 2008. Here is the ad for it:


                        Attached Files
                        Last edited by 74NovaMan; March 27, 2014, 01:38 PM.
                        Chris - HRPT Long Haul 03, 04, 05, 13, 14, 15,16 & 18
                        74 Nova Project
                        66 Mustang GT Project

                        92 Camaro RS Convertible Project
                        79 Chevy Truck Project
                        1956 Cadillac Project

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Here are a few shots of the mustangs side by side in the garage:
                          Attached Files
                          Last edited by 74NovaMan; March 28, 2014, 09:28 AM.
                          Chris - HRPT Long Haul 03, 04, 05, 13, 14, 15,16 & 18
                          74 Nova Project
                          66 Mustang GT Project

                          92 Camaro RS Convertible Project
                          79 Chevy Truck Project
                          1956 Cadillac Project

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Following on from milner's post above, the NPD Mustang catalogue is a veritable gold mine...from its pages I'm sure you could build a complete car from scratch.
                            Michael from Hampton Roads

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              HA, that's exactly what I did with my Javelin, new shell from Arizona. Huge time and money saver!

                              Comment

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