There are Mustang builds, and then there are Mustang builds that make you stop scrolling. This 1967 fastback falls firmly into the second category — a C-code car that started life as a garden-variety Mustang and has spent the better part of two decades being transformed into something far more serious.

The current seller picked up this car back in 2007, and what's followed is a nearly twenty-year labor of love culminating in a fully realized, Eleanor-inspired build. If you know, you know — that particular silhouette, the Pepper Grey Metallic paint laid down with black stripes, the aggressive stance — it's impossible not to think of the movie that turned this exact recipe into a cultural icon. But this isn't a shallow tribute. Underneath the widely recognized aesthetic sits a genuinely modern performance machine.

The Heart of the Build: 408 Cubic Inches of Fuel-Injected Muscle

Pop the pinned hood and you're greeted by a 408ci ATK V8 that's been built to actually be driven, not just admired. This isn't a numbers-matching restoration — it's a purpose-built stroker motor with a serious parts list:

• SCAT forged crankshaft
• Forged pistons
• Hydraulic roller camshaft
• Dart cylinder heads
• Melling oil pump and double-row timing chain

Feeding it is a FiTech Go EFI 4 self-tuning fuel injection system sitting on an Edelbrock aluminum intake — meaning you get carb-look simplicity with modern EFI drivability. No choke, no flooding on a hot restart, no fussing. Just turn the key.

Behind the engine is a Tremec T56 six-speed manual paired with a McLeod twin-disc clutch and hydraulic release bearing, sending power back to a Ford 9-inch rear end with a limited-slip differential. That's a serious drivetrain combo — the T56 is the same gearbox found behind modern V8 muscle cars, and pairing it with a 9-inch is about as classic-meets-modern as it gets.

Cooling is handled by an aluminum radiator and electric fan, with a Monte Carlo bar up front to keep the chassis tight under load. According to the seller, the car has around 1,000 miles on it since completion, and the recommended engine break-in period has just wrapped up — so this is a build that's ready to be driven hard, not one that's been sitting under a cover.

Stopping and Handling to Match the Power

A big engine swap is only half the equation, and whoever built this car clearly understood that. Wilwood disc brakes with four-piston calipers sit at all four corners, giving this fastback stopping power that's leagues beyond what left the factory in 1967.

On the handling side:

• Borgeson power steering conversion
• SPC control arms
• Heavy-duty springs with a 1" drop

The result should be a Mustang that goes, stops, and turns like a car built decades later — while still wearing a body style that's instantly recognizable from a block away.

Rolling Stock

The staggered wheel setup uses 17" Legendary Wheel Company HB45s — a Halibrand-look alloy wheel that pairs beautifully with the Eleanor aesthetic without looking like an aftermarket afterthought. It's a detail that a lot of tribute builds get wrong, and this one gets right.

Exterior Details Worth a Second Look

Beyond the Pepper Grey Metallic paint and black stripes, there's a lot of care in the small stuff:

• Pinned hood
• Auxiliary lights mounted inboard of the H4 headlights
• Shelby-style rear lights and badges
• Side-exit exhaust running through the rockers

That side-exit exhaust in particular is a detail enthusiasts will appreciate — it's as much about sound and presence as it is about looks.

Inside the Cabin

Step inside and the theme continues. Black bucket seats and a matching center console keep things clean, while digital gauges and a Shelby-style tilt steering wheel bring the interior into the modern era without looking out of place. The Hurst shifter is the exclamation point on that T56 six-speed, and Old Air Hurricane air conditioning means this isn't a fair-weather-only build — you can actually enjoy it on a hot day. A Pioneer head unit with rear-mounted speakers rounds out the cabin for good measure.

The Paperwork

The car comes with build records and in-progress photos documenting the transformation, along with a clean California title (noted as a duplicate). For a build this extensive, having documentation of the process adds real value and confidence for the next owner.

Why This One Matters

Eleanor tributes are not rare in the Mustang world — but well-executed ones, with real engineering behind the looks, are harder to come by. This car isn't just a Pepper Grey paint job and a set of stripes. It's a genuinely capable driver's car: modern EFI power, a six-speed manual, four-wheel disc brakes, and a chassis that's been sorted for actual road use, all wrapped in one of the most recognizable silhouettes in American muscle car history.

If you've been searching for a Mustang that can turn heads at a cars-and-coffee and still hang on a back road, this one deserves a close look. It's live now on BIDR Auctions.

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