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Long known for its Chevy products, Texas Speed & Performance showed up to Ford Fest with an SN95 filled with one of its new Godzilla crate engines, showing off just one of the products in its recent expansion into the Ford market. Each of its 7.3L crate engines includes Texas Speed’s Stage 2 cam with 233/248 split duration and CNC ported heads. A Holley Terminator X engine management and wiring harness was chosen to simplify the tuning for its inaugural dragstrip runs. This one also uses Texas Speed’s Titan intake manifold. We spoke with Jesse Perkins, from Texas Speed’s R&D department, who said that the intake bumps up top-end power which should allow this combo to produce 660-670hp at the flywheel.
As you can see, despite its namesake, the Godzilla engine isn’t really that big, and it fits nicely in the SN95 engine bay. The engine’s 4.5-inch bore spacing is closer to a Windsor than an FE, so if you were worrying a Godzilla wouldn’t fit in your project, take a look at how it slips into this engine bay and consider giving it a second thought. Companies like Texas Speed and Holley are helping make these kinds of swaps easier all the time.
TredWear showed up to Ford Fest in its newest build, a 1979 Bronco with the chassis, powertrain, and interior from a 2003 Lincoln Navigator. The Bronco’s firewall was cut out and laid atop the Navigator’s firewall and floorpan. TredWear is familiar with this kind of build, so by now, they’re pros at the process. According to TredWear’s Michael Hunt, the only casualty in the swap was the Bronco’s windshield wiper motor and linkage. The bulky system was ditched for a new, streamlined wiper system that’s still not 100%.
The Navigator chassis was practically modular from the factory, with the front half shared with the F-150 and a rear section that used an independent rear suspension that was also used on the Expedition. The overlapped joint where the two halves meet was opened up and the chassis was shortened 15 inches to match the Bronco’s factory 104-inch wheelbase. The Navigator’s interior remains intact, and the front buckets have a stenciled red, orange, and yellow dye job in the center of the seat to add some houndstooth style that seems appropriate for the well-worn exterior.
The concept behind the build was a “what if” scenario: What if Ford tried to get a truck division in World Rally? This is what the guys at TredWear imagined Ford could have run in the 1979 East African Safari, which is why James Garner is listed as the driver.
Hunt reported that the four-wheel independent suspension gives it a great ride, and he should know as he’s got two stock Broncos to compare.
You may remember this noteworthy 1965 Mustang fastback that belongs to Dominic Farbo, from Buffalo, New York, who’s owned it since 2012. It debuted at SEMA 2014 after a 14-month build by the Ring Brothers where it got a complete transformation. The build represents a longtime dream for Farbo and the Ring Brothers worked with him over every aspect of the process, from the interior to the audio, to the NASCAR-surplus Clevor engine.
This was the first Mustang from the Ring Brothers that used carbon fiber this extensively in the body, with the roof, doors, rear bumper, quarter vents, hood, and decklid all in the lightweight composite. The satin carbon fiber roof is contrasted with gloss stripes, while the matte rocker stripes are set off by the gloss white of the body. Under the hood, a 351 Windsor block was stroked to 427 cubic inches and topped with Cleveland heads. It produces 710 horsepower at the wheels and has served Farbo as a fun cruiser and autocrosser, winning Goodguys Muscle Machine of the Year with help from its Detroit Speed suspension that includes a cast aluminum front cradle.
Since the car was completed over nine years ago, Farbo has racked up more than 5,000 miles on the custom Mustang. Lately, some of the car’s duties have been usurped by his Predator-powered GT500. Still, he has no plans to get rid of his dream machine, it offers a driving experience that the new cars can’t quite match.
Here’s an engine swap you probably didn’t expect. Mike Bozzelli thrashed on his 1969 Pontiac Trans Am clone to swap in a 7.3-liter Godzilla crate engine and make it to Ford Fest all the way from Toronto. We asked him why he picked the big, pushrod V8 for his Pontiac, “GM products have been thrown into Fords, I figured I’d switch things up,” Bozzelli said. Besides that, the value of the engine is tough to ignore. “Ever since they came out, I’ve wanted to buy one,” Pozzelli said.
The car spent most of its life in California, which meant that the body wasn’t subjected to harsh winters, and the previous owners did a decent job making it a clone, so the car has the look of a barn find original. Three weeks ago it got a Muncie four-speed swap, and the past two weeks were spent swapping in the new V8. We asked Bozzelli what the toughest part of the swap was, and he told us that the exhaust manifolds were in close proximity to the upper control arms and just positioning the powertrain to place the transmission where it belongs was a bit of a chore. “The Godzilla is a relatively tall engine by itself,” Bozzellis noted, but the new Holley intake mitigated that a bit. “It saves about two inches,” Bozzelli estimated, adding that the billet fuel rails also save space over the factory pieces.
A Holley Terminator X ECU and wiring harness were used to complete the swap, which will be fired up for the first time this weekend at Ford Fest. Eventually, the car might see a power adder,
With just 350 miles on its new engine, Josh Miller’s 1992 Mustang is making its Ford Fest debut. The Fox-body was Miller’s first car, purchased when he was just 13 years old. More than 20 years later it’s a completely different machine thanks to an eight-year chassis-up rebuild. After it was involved in an accident that damaged a quarter panel, Miller took the opportunity to make it better than ever. Its pushrod 5.0L V8 made way for a first-gen Coyote topped by a Boss 302 intake manifold. The whole car, including its Kaenan hood, Cervini Cobra R body kit, cam covers, and intake, were all painted in DeBeer Coca-Cola red by Terry Boggs at TJ Fab.
The 5.0L V8 uses BBK headers and runs a Holley Terminator Max ECU. “Right now, it’s all 100% Holley tuning,” Miller reported, as he just followed the installation prompts to get a base tune in the car and let the computer figure everything out on its own. Coyote engines didn’t come for the factory with power steering pumps, so Miller used a Volvo S40 electric pump to power both the SN95 steering rack and the hydroboost master cylinder.
Behind the Coyote is a Tremec TKO and an aluminum driveshaft that transmits power to a Ford 8.8-inch rear axle with 3.73:1 gears. Miller said that there are still a few bugs to work out, but he’s happy with the car’s performance so far, and with the kinds of looks it is getting from the Ford Fest spectators, they appreciate all of his efforts as well.
There’s something to appreciate with a classic, full-size Ford with simple modifications. It’s hard to pinpoint what’s more beautiful in this car. The color, the interior, the clean lines, or the fact that it has a Holman and Moody 428 under the hood. Maybe it’s all of that combined.
But don’t call it a Galaxy… this is a 1963 Ford 300. According to the owner, this one-year-only model was intended to compete with the Chevrolet Biscayne. A bare-bones full-size Ford priced as cheap as possible. There are no outside mirrors, no radio, and very little trim. It’s also a “Box Top” sedan, less valuable than the sleeker body lines.
Despite all this, famed hot rod builder and land-speed record holder George Poteet saw the car’s potential. He built this ’63 300 several years ago, “I’m now the current caretaker,” said owner Jerry Johns.
The car was purchased in Indiana with its original 260ci V8 automatic. George’s team stripped the car to the chassis, painted it in Rangoon Red, slammed it on the ground, and then called upon Craig Cooley, a Ford Galaxy expert, to help reassemble the car. They also added the stellar 428ci Cobra Jet engine backed by a C6 and topped with Holman and Moody goodies.
“…they added power steering, power brakes, and air conditioning. All the goodies,” said Jerry. George had special gauges made by Classic Instruments with Holman and Moody’s permission inside.
