24-03-2025
Skip The LS Swap: 1965 Mustang Fastback Has A Built 427 Windsor
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This beautiful 1965 Mustang Fastback skips the trite and tired LS engine swap for something more special: a built 427 Windsor. While the pony car is clean as a whistle, the backstory on it might be even more owner wasn't the one who dreamed up the project or even started it. Instead, he came in partway through after his brother-in-law passed from a medical condition. The '65 Mustang was left in parts stored inside plastic bins and his sister said nobody knew what to make of the thing.
Wanting to honor his late brother-in-law's memory, the man hit up a buddy of his who owns a shop. He received a pleasant surprise when that friend seemed to understand the direction the Fastback build was going and wanted to champion it.
That Windsor has been stroked and bored, originally being a 351ci V8. Other upgrades have been added, including an intake, hydraulic lifter cam, multi-port fuel injection, etc. Power is about 500-whp. The engine is paired with a four-speed automatic transmission with low gearing, giving the car a lot of get-up-and-go off the line.
Originally, the brother-in-law envisioned the Mustang as an autocross competition car. That's why it's running a cantilever suspension and a custom tube chassis with a built-in roll cage. In other words, the Mustang has excellent torsional rigidity, making handling responsive.
As for the brakes, they're manual with 16-inch discs and six-piston calipers up front, 14-inch discs and four-piston calipers in the rear.
Watch the video and you'll see this pony car looks and sounds amazing. It seems to drive well, too. We're sure plenty of people will be drooling over it.
This Mustang is an excellent build and quite the way to honor the guy's brother-in-law. We're sure he's proud of how it turned out.
Images via Autotopia LA/YouTube
