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Fabulous Fords Forever 2012 - Old's CoolFox Mustangs made a strong showing at Knott’s Berry Farm From the November, 2012 issue of 5.0 Mustang & Super Fords By Tom Wilson Photography by Tom Wilson
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When Billy Moose finally quit working in NASCAR, it was good to get off the road and find some normalcy in life. Even so, it left a void that wasn't easy to fill. Moose had always had a passion for cars--and working in racing was a good fix for that. Yet, finding another creative outlet was the order of the day if he was going to find happiness in semi-retirement. Fabulous Fords Forever--the foremost Ford show west of the Mississippi--likes to celebrate Ford anniversaries; this year it was the 80th anniversary of the '32 Ford, the 50th year of the Cobra and 45th of the Cougar, and there were plentiful examples of each present. But we also couldn't help noticing the strong showing of Fox Mustangs in the Knott's Berry Farm parking lots. Certainly it was nothing organized and may well prove a one-off fluke, but whatever the reason, Fox Mustangs were in their glory. Almost as noticeable were the relative paucity of SN-95/New Edge Mustangs. It's not as if there weren't any there, but the squads of Mach 1s, the Legend Lime Registry, and many of those daily drivers that make up the bulk of the Fabulous Fords show field seemed to take the year off. That said, the organizers reported an increased car count over last year, with a reported 1,800-plus cars registered and a guessed-at 35,000 spectators. That's a big show to put on every year, especially as well as Fab Fords does it.  Probably just by chance, but...  Probably just by chance, but Foxes were out in force at Fabulous Fords Forever 2012. Even better, we noticed a notch upward in the quality of these cars.  Eddie Zapata is a tech at...  Eddie Zapata is a tech at GTR and, as expected, his smooth-skin SN-95 benefits from his off-hours handiwork. His current combination is a Four-Valve with a Vortech V3 pullied to 11 pounds and 480 rwhp on the GTR Dynojet. Corbeau seats and harness seatbelts help when autocrossing, the latest rage with the GTR crowd.  Many owners elect not to display...  Many owners elect not to display an information card at Fab Fords, so often what we see is what we get, but in the case of this white Fox coupe, we like what we saw. With the hood down, who knows what good or evil lay within, but generally this Fox displays the whole-car treatment that better Foxes are showing these days, and while there's nothing inexpensive here, this isn't a budget-killing show car, either. The monochromatic white respray, black-out wheel treatment, and handsomely upgraded interior reflect attention to car-building basics that can be enjoyed daily. Leather seats with upgraded bolstering and contrast stitching, plus custom door panels, definitely make the vintage Fox interior a nicer place. With approximately 900 Mustangs on hand, there was no shortage of ponies in the corral. And, again, it is the later models that continue to gain traction at the show. Maybe it's because the newer owners are more enthusiastic about showing, but if nothing else, the “newer” cars have simply been available longer than any other group at this point. After all, the classic '60s Mustangs were built for just five years before bloating into the now fairly neglected '71-'73 era; the five-year run of Mustang IIs has never made a big showing; then the Foxes consume the long 14-year passage from '79 to '93. At this point, the SN-95 and New Edge cars are transitional, spanning the relatively long nine-year gap from '94 to '04, while the S197 and later 'Stangs have already been with us a little over eight model years. If you see the SN-95s and S197s as the later-model Mustangs, you're talking a 17-year run that is sure to dominate any gathering of the herd. That, and they are still making more of them, thank goodness. While not standard fare in this magazine, we should also tip our crash hat to the 50-year run (yikes!) of the Cobra. Yep, it was your granddad's hot rod, but this writer was lucky enough to spend 1,000 miles behind the wheel of an original 427 Cobra, and rest assured, they are as hairy-chested as they come. And, because the Cobra is a Southern California car, assembled a bare 25 miles away at LAX airport, sidepipe rumbling is a given any year at Knott's, but especially so this year. That's because the day before Knott's the NHRA Museum put on a 50th Anniversary of the Cobra celebration not 25 miles away in Pomona, so there was a larger and more exotic gathering of snakes than normal at Knott's this year.  Vintage hot-rodding pieces...  Vintage hot-rodding pieces are always fun, and it seems folks are seeing old power-adders in a new light. Chances are this ball-drive Paxton Fox has been this way for 20 years; it's gone from new, to hopelessly out-of-date, and now to cool retro. Even with a tired drive and 4 pounds of boost, the 302 is still fun to drive, don't you bet?  Wheel maker Kompression had...  Wheel maker Kompression had two cars at Knott's, a slick coupe and this rather red SN-95. Again, not a lot of info available other than there's a Vortech-assisted Two-Valve under the hood, but Kompression's core competency of bespoke (we couldn't resist) three-piece wheels was definitely on display.  The clean rims and subtle...  The clean rims and subtle fender flaring yielded a welcome fashion upgrade while paying homage to the Cobra R wheels that started it all. Those are 345/25R-20 Toyos in back on 13.5x20-inch hoops, and 19s in front. Show regulars saw no major changes to the show, which is just fine with us. The layout followed the now-standard format of Mustangs in one lot, all other Fords in the other large lot, and the SVT Mustang Cobras in the garden surrounding the Independence Hall attraction. Show day was mainly overcast but dry. Still, there was enough sun to burn our bald spot, the crowd was thick, and with rumors of Fab Fords possibly migrating to the Pomona Fairplex, we were enjoying what we believe to be the superior venue at Knott's. Perhaps the best news came to us just after the show, when we confirmed Fabulous Fords Forever will definitely be at Knott's next year--the car council has already voted--so we'll see you there April 2013. Horse Sense: We caught a few words with Steve Saleen, fresh off his announcement that he had regained the use of the Saleen name after a protracted legal fight. Steve noted he is keeping both SMS and Saleen names active, and that both will likely appear on his cars. We thought he might reserve the Saleen name for his Ford offerings and SMS for all others, but he says no, both SMS and Saleen could appear on the same car.  One glance at the race-car...  One glance at the race-car graphics and towering engine and we knew Eric Cheney couldn't be far away. Sure enough, there he was, talking up his build of the eBay ride for drifter/road-racer/stunt-driver/movie-driver Tony Brakohiapa. That's a Vortech V-7 YSi blower with a super-stout, drift-proof double-idler belt drive dominating the scene. Eric says the 5.0 Three-Valve with "crazy head work" will spend its working life at around 900 hp, but it's capable of much more.  California's twisting canyon...  California's twisting canyon roads, endless freeways, and tough smog laws have meant a preponderance of road-oriented Mustang builds, so this classic drag-oriented S197 caught our eye. A Saleen supercharger and spit-polish black paint over big-and-little rolling stock with tall sidewalls and chrome rims had us thinking of the heartland, and sure enough, South Dakota plates and a military ID sticker told the rest of the story. This is an impressively clean ride, especially considering it was likely done on a military budget. And when we say big-and-little, we mean 275/60R-15 M&H drag slicks coupled with M&H Racemaster fronts.  At the epicenter of SoCal's...  At the epicenter of SoCal's hot rod industry and media-rich environment, Knott's gets more than it's share of pro-built project cars. Here's a good example courtesy of Hotchkis and owner Michael Heintz, an '11 GT built to the nines with a Magnuson supercharger, complete Hotchkiss TVS suspension, a Vaughn Gittin Jr. RTR body and wheel kit, and Wilwood brakes. The Grabber Blue paint, open hood, and SEMA show information stand helped grab attention.  John Heermann brought his...  John Heermann brought his stunning '11 GT retromod to Knott's for it's first true public viewing. Not unexpectedly, it drew a constant stream of admirers. John installed new much-improved quarter-windows in the car since we featured it, so it looks better than ever.  If Foxes were an ad-hoc sub-theme...  If Foxes were an ad-hoc sub-theme this year, then plain white wrappers were an underground theme. Here Chad Mason's '12 GT demonstrates the clean and hungry look, proving once again that a good eye for design basics, attention to cleanliness, and detailing can carry a car a long way on the show field.  Here's another of several...  Here's another of several stand-out white-themed Mustangs. This one features a blacked-out roof and wing, but also a bit of flash in the polished wheel rims and discrete chrome accents in the taillights and elsewhere.  A rarity just two years ago,...  A rarity just two years ago, the Coyote-powered Mustang GT is now a Fabulous Fords mainstay. There was a whole row of them at Knott's.  Taking our California award...  Taking our California award was Sam Neer of Placentia, California (not far from Knott's). There's no way to photographically do justice to this Lizstick Red Saleen S281 Extreme's paint job with ghost flames, but in person, it is a standout.  Sam has all the options on...  Sam has all the options on his Extreme, including the GlassRoof, plus a boat load of custom touches, from trick hand-fabbed gauge pods to custom-embroidered floormats. Not just a show car, Sam uses the Saleen as a weekend toy.  By now we figure you’ve seen...  By now we figure you’ve seen pictures of Steve Saleen signing autographs—he was at Knott’s with a pen in his hand—so we thought a shot of his daughter Molly working the crowd on behalf of her clothing line would be a change of pace.  It's not a common paint theme...  It's not a common paint theme on later Mustangs, but the black-and-gold treatment on this Saleen Three-Valve engine evokes some of the earliest Mustang engine compartment treatments. It's a classy look, especially on this all-black car.  Bob Kurgan flew to Cali to...  Bob Kurgan flew to Cali to pump up the tunes on some of GTR customer cars the week before Fab Fords. One standout result was Jeremy Aliaga's LX, which, besides its obvious visual appeal, put 806 hp to the GTR Dynojet rollers with Bob's tune and E85 fuel. Bob used the stock processor and SCT chip, along with one of his blower cams, to make the number. Important hardware is the Vortech Si blower pullied for 23 pounds at 6,300 rpm and Trick Flow heads. He says there's more if he could raise the rpm to 7,500 where the cam really works, but he needs new "crystals" for the ECU to do it. GTR says they're playing with E85 more now that there's a pump dispensing the stuff close by.  Minimal displays and no direct...  Minimal displays and no direct sales keep the Fab Ford gathering focused on the cars, but obviously the Ford and Ford Racing displays are welcome. As usual, the large Ford display featured the latest showroom iron and was mobbed the entire day. Ford also had the drag racing Force family on hand at the booth. Other major displays included Ford Racing, Roush, Saleen and Shelby.  We only ran by this rat-rod...  We only ran by this rat-rod Probe with its rusty roof and pea-soup-green flat primer, but couldn't help but notice the engine was wearing an Eaton supercharger and a turbo. Give 'em an A for effort.  We got our first look at the...  We got our first look at the upcoming Focus ST five-door hatch at Knott's. This sole example was locked, but peering through the windows we could see the car is as expressively styled inside as out. Under the plastic engine shroud is an EcoBoosted 2.0-liter pumping 252 hp and 270 lb-ft of torque to the front wheels.  Computer-controlled electric...  Computer-controlled electric power steering calms torque steer, and a $24,495 base price, including SYNC, push-button starting, 18-inch alloys, foglights, and a leather-trimmed steering wheel as standard. Leather Recaros, heated mirrors, and nav are major options. We're looking forward to this one, but it's sort of sad to figure our '91 5.0 is now slower than a Focus.  Despite California's $4.30-per-gallon...  Despite California's $4.30-per-gallon regular gas, Chad Moon joined two other San Francisco Bay-area Mustangs to make the haul down to Knott's. Chad's '12 GT is relatively stock, but we like his Coyote-badged Saleen grille. Chad admits his Mustang sits a lot because he has a work-supplied van for daily duty.  Fab Fords is jammed with lightly...  Fab Fords is jammed with lightly pampered real-world cars, including this pair of Competition Orange and Screaming Yellow Terminators belonging to Carl "Pete" Peterson and his wife, Heather (she owns two Cobras and Pete owns one, so not all their cars were at Knott's). Both Petersens are in the army, stationed at Fort Irwin, "37 miles from the interstate," says Pete, and they came down to Knott's to get out of the desert, cruise Huntington Beach the night before, and generally relax.  Mustang Cobras coil on the...  Mustang Cobras coil on the grass around Knott's replica Independence Hall. It's a real garden spot compared to the regular parking lot venue, as demo'd by this '93 Cobra. A fine specimen of the breed, it showed a bare 7,789 miles on the clock, a virginal interior, and clean detailing throughout.  Sam Davis owns a sign shop...  Sam Davis owns a sign shop and used his skills to make simple plastic SVT inserts to his '03 Cobra's vented hood. Hailing from San Francisco, Sam and his local friends made a long weekend out of the cruise to Knott's.  Looking alone is this '04...  Looking alone is this '04 Cobra convert, but it's really a trick because behind the camera was the Cobra corral bulging with cars. Across the street in the Knott's amusement park is the 118-foot-tall Ghost Rider roller coaster, while a minuteman statue stands guard. With a 655-rwhp dyno sheet on display, the '04 Terminator can probably take care of itself, however.  One of the best ways to experience...  One of the best ways to experience the diversity of Fab Fords is to stand at the entrance as the nearly 1,900 participants cars roll in. This is just a portion of the incoming line which strings around the block. It runs like this for hours.  Of course, there are always...  Of course, there are always the odds and sods at Knott's. We never did catch up with the owner of this uniquely curved removable hardtop, but we're sure there's a character behind it--or under.  No one seems to mind if you...  No one seems to mind if you run your unmuffled race car down the street a bit to get it in the Knott's show. But then again, in a cut-backdoor USRRC Cobra, you can probably get away with this trick almost anywhere.  Saleens show in large numbers...  Saleens show in large numbers at Knott's as--like Shelbys--they were and are built just a few miles away. Typical of Saleens, this Fox convertible showed a few modifications and was perfectly clean.  Speaking of Saleens, we saw...  Speaking of Saleens, we saw a Knott's first: an S7. The privately owned, naturally aspirated model was parked in the Saleen corporate display after conferring with Saleen public affairs honcho Jim Dvorak in the white shirt. An incredible car, the S7 is something of a curiosity as it is not a Ford nor Ford-powered, but such is the pull of the Saleen name.  Making an entrance at Knott's...  Making an entrance at Knott's was this Roush Stage 3 convertible. Definitely an early build with serial number 13-0002, it boasts 565 hp and 505 lb-ft of torque from its supercharged Coyote Four-Valve.  It's easy to spot the Shelby...  It's easy to spot the Shelby area at Knott's thanks to the squadrons of late-model GT500s. But there are other Shelbys there, as evidenced by this handsome but somewhat lonely Shelby GT. Like most of the breed, it exhibits a strong dose of cosmetic improvements as its claim to fame.  Knott's lets the dogs out...  Knott's lets the dogs out at 3 p.m., and at 2:30 we came across this trench of old men sitting behind their GT500s, conserving their strength for the drive home. And we're not being rude--we're just jealous because we're still hoofing our way through the show!
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