photos (and some text) by: P.J. Rentie
“The sound of a herd of classic V-8s is reason enough to want to attend a show like this. Thanks to California Mustang Parts for throwing such a great party!”
Mustangs from all around Southern California descended upon the California Mustang Parts headquarters in City of Industry, California, as they hosted over 200 Mustangs at their fifth-annual Mustang Meet-Up. Having just recently been purchased by Classic Industries, the two businesses collaborated to make it the best Mustang Meet-Up to date!
There were coffee and donuts for everyone when the show kicked off first thing in the morning. A wide range of Mustang-related door prizes were handed out throughout the event.
Other cool Mustang raffle prizes from California Mustang Parts included full upholstery kits, aluminum radiators, and two complete sets of wheels.
The event was definitely one for all ages, as there was something for everyone. Look for bigger and better things to come at future Mustang Meet-Ups from the newly-empowered team of Classic Industries and California Mustang Parts!
This red ’65 coupe is owned by Larry and Judy Rhinehart, Upland, Ca., who are the cars original owners. Larry drove the car until he needed a station wagon, but he chose to keep the Mustang because they didn’t want to give him a good trade-in value. The Rhineharts finally restored the car, but with a 347ci Windsor, Tremec 5-speed manual transmission, Wilwood disc brakes all the way around, and 17×8-inch American Racing Torq-Thrust wheels.
This Phoenician Yellow ’65 coupe sports the original paint, which happens to be pretty rare! Owner Michael Bowers autocrosses it as often as possible and sports a full-tilt 347ci Windsor V-8 and T-5 manual transmission. The addition of Wilwood brakes all around ensure it stops as well as it goes. Suspension goodies from Maier Racing keep it stuck in the tight corners. We’re confident it’s a blast to drive on the street.
Joe Parks is friends with Michael, and he also enjoys autocrossing his early Mustang. His white ’68 coupe features Maier Racing front fenders, California Special tail lights and spoiler treatment in the rear, and runs a pretty nasty sounding 331ci small-block backed by a T-5 stick.
This ’66 Shelby GT-350H tribute has all the right stuff: arrow-straight body panels, black paint with gold stripes, that fastback roofline, wheel wells stuffed with vintage-style rolling stock, a tasteful lowering job, and an engine compartment crammed full of well-detailed small-block V-8 power (below). It looks like a notrous kit found it’s way on there too. We’re in love! Does anyone care that it’s not a genuine rent-a-racer? What a beauty.
The 67 Mustang started as a Dynacorn body. It was built to debut at the ’07 SEMA Show and showcase how nice the new bodies are. It’s got a Boss 347 crate motor and Tremec TKO 550. This beauty is proudly owned by Craig Kamanski.
The Pro-Touring style really suits early Mustang coupes. This ’65 features a tasteful mix of new and old. The stance might look like a vintage Trans-Am competitor, but that modular engine upgrade (below) gives it late-model reliability, fuel economy, and an RPM redline north of 7 grand…
Over 200 Mustangs filled the parking lot at California Mustang Parts for this event. What a great turnout! The overall quality of the cars was very high, and a wide range of styles, colors, and vintages made for an enjoyable Saturday morning get-together.
It’s far from being a Pro Touring Mustang, isn’t it? This gasser-style Maverick represents how far-reaching the classic gas-class style is becoming. Since the class folded up in the late ’60s, there’s no chance and Maverick ever competed then, but the wild nose-up style makes for a real attention-grabber.
Mustangs are one of the very few cars that can seamlessly mix old and new at the same event. Many fans of the original ’60s pony car appreciate the late-model incarnations as well. The performance numbers and affordable buy-in make it justifiable- if you liked what the early cars offered, the new ones deliver more of the same.
This Wimbledon White ’66 coupe typifies the California enthusiast. It’s been tastefully updated with some bolt-on goodies, but still retains all the memorable bits and pieces that made it legendary. There’s just enough dazzle under the hood (below) to garner a second look.
This might seem strange to some, but the Fox body Mustang is almost 40 years old. Many of us always thought of these as the ‘new’ Mustangs because they were the first to have EFI and 5-speed manual transmissions. Now they are being viewed as classics.
The Mercury Cougar was the Mustangs longer-wheelbase stablemate. The two cars shared a lot of engineering underneath, with the Cougar being marketed as a more upscale, luxury level pony car. This beautiful example shows why many enthusiasts preferred the Mercury.
Special guest Camilo Pardo, (2004 Ford GT designer and winner of Motor City Masters) showed up in his personal Ford GT (below) to sign autographs, and he also donated a custom painting of a ’67 Mustang as the grand prize for the raffle . He had a wide range of his beautiful posters available, all of which featured high performance Ford products as their subject matter.
While the mid-’70s Mustang II is remembered as a low spot in Mustang history, it was the right car at the time. Ford sold a lot of them and kept the nameplate alive until the debut of the Fox body in 1979. This silver example is exceptionally clean, and hiding behind a more-beloved ’67 ragtop.
Seeing a lineup of classic Mustangs ready to hit the road sure gets our heart rates up! The sound of a herd of classic V-8s is reason enough to want to attend a show like this. Thanks to California Mustang Parts for throwing such a great party! We’ll make sure to be back next year.
After spending almost a decade in the aerospace industry, Scott Parkhurst chose to learn about racing engines by working in some of Southern California’s most respected engine shops. He took on the role of Tech Editor at Popular Hot Rodding magazine back in 1998, and was instrumental in the development of both the Engine Masters Challenge competition and Engine Masters Quarterly magazine. He was also the founding Editor of Street Thunder magazine and Author of the V8 Horsepower Performance Handbook before he arrived at Timeless Muscle.
