Horse Sense: Jimmy Boston was a cop for 17 years, but then he went into the private sector chasing cable theft and cheating husbands, among other things. Along with his children, Matthew, Mandy, and Alyson, the job brings him great satisfaction.
Jimmy Boston grew up a Chevy fan. "Sad, but true," says the Arbutus, Maryland, resident. His dad always had Chevys around, so it was natural to follow in his footsteps. "I purchased a new '86 Pontiac Firebird at age 19," he says. Jimmy had just become a police officer at that time, so he had the finances to pull off a buy at such a young age. However, while having a few adult beverages with his fellow officers, one of them told Jimmy about his new purchase, a '90 Mustang 5.0 LX. "He said it was the fastest car he had ever driven and that I had to drive it," Jimmy adds. Like good officers, they found a closed highway where they could put his buddy's words to the test.
The exterior color on Jimmy's...
The exterior color on Jimmy's LX is called Bright Blue Metallic, and it's an '89 Chrysler color. However, to de different, painter Rob Pierpont calls it Boston Blue, and added Caribbean Night Mist down the Cervini's Auto Designs Cobra R hood. While Jimmy's primary reason for building the car was for show duty, he wanted to give the hatch an aggressive look with an Ed Quay aluminum race wing out back. The Weld Racing Draglites also contribute to the racy look.
Jimmy had driven plenty of stick-shift cars, so it didn't take long for him to get settled behind the wheel. "Pretty soon we were nearing 130 mph, and I was in awe."
Two weeks later, he traded the Firebird for this car at Towson Ford. "It's $14,000 of pure adrenaline," Jimmy says. At first he was scared of the car, but that didn't keep him from driving it hard all the time. "It was impossible to drive slow. The car wanted to run and I wanted to go along for the ride." Finally, he became comfortable-maybe too comfortable while turning onto a little road that had water on it. "The car sawed back and forth until I hit a retaining wall," he says. "So there I was, standing in the roadway with tears in my eyes."
However, Jimmy rebounded and had the car fixed, but not in the normal sense of the word. He had previously owned a black car that had problems, so he reasoned the black needed to go. While working part-time security at a Mitsubishi dealership, he came across a new Conquest TSi painted Bright Blue Metallic. That was the color he wanted, so the car was sprayed in that hue.
"I could've stopped right there," Jimmy says, "but I had the fever." The modifications came one right after another, beginning with a ram-air kit, an H-pipe, underdrive pulleys, and headers. He watched his bank account get smaller and smaller as his Mustang got faster and faster. He thought he had reached the limit until he attended the Ford Nationals at Maple Grove. "The sickness was back," he says. He wanted a show trophy.
Carrying Jimmy's show-heavy...
Carrying Jimmy's show-heavy theme into the engine compartment, the engine boast its fair share of polished chrome and painted components. However, Ace Automotive's Tim Logsdon added an FRPP E303 cam, a Pete Jackson geardrive, a Performance Product polished intake, and a likewise-polished Accufab 70mm throttle body. The engine has 145,000 miles on it. "She still runs great," Jimmy says.
Jimmy scoured the magazines and car shows to see what would take his LX to the next level. He learned how to polish metal and pay attention to detail. His most important lesson was learning that chrome is king on the car show field. "My UPS guy and I were on a first-name basis."
Jimmy thought he finally had the car show thing figured out, and he entered his first show. "Man, I didn't know that reality slapped so hard," he says. He didn't win a thing. Thankfully for Jimmy, his friends knew how to win, and they took him under their wings to show him the ropes. He sought advice on presentation and they were happy to oblige. Finally, he won a Second Place trophy, which put him on top of the world-but he still wasn't satisfied. Jimmy wanted his LX to be unique with different styles and parts, but it's hard to stand out in a sea of Mustangs.
Aside from the car show aspect, Jimmy had two problems: One was the fact he didn't have a garage, and the other problem was the car was still his daily driver. Since everyone knew Jimmy was a cop, no one messed with the car, but leaving it parked outside didn't sit well with him.
Getting married brought two incomes, but also the voice of reason; Jimmy's wife wanted a house, so that was first on the list. Fortunately for him, he found "a car guy's dream," a four-car garage with an attached house. With the newfound space, Jimmy's friend Rob Pierpont offered him the sweetest deal we've ever heard. If Jimmy let Rob store his '86 GT-a past 5.0&SF feature car- in his garage, he would paint Jimmy's LX. Seeing Rob's work in person, that's a great deal, and one that benefited Jimmy greatly.