Few cars carry as direct a link between motorsports and the showroom as the Boss 302. Parnelli Jones drove a Mustang, powered by a canted-valve, hand built, 5 liter engine and four speed manual, and you could go to your local dealer and have one, too! Hey—the production cars even ran his stripes! A big carb, a big intake, big heads opened a lot of eyes to small block power, and the power waiting to be unleashed with a simple set of headers and an aggressive cam are the stuff of legend. This example here is quite the street fighter, packing the Boss engine, 3.91 gears and little else. It’s as close as you could get to a Mustang race car with license plates in 1970! Click on Read more for more!
Start outside with the beautiful, all original sheetmetal. That’s right—this is no rust bucket here! Panel gaps are excellent, flat surfaces are straight and the high quality paint job stands up to intense scrutiny. That paint is basecoat/clearcoat, buffed to an incredible shine after a careful color sanding. Fresh Boss 302 stripes were applied, and they look as awesome today as they did when the late, great Larry Shinoda designed them more than 40 years ago. The bumpers are spectacular, the stainless has been polished, and things like the door handles and mirrors are fresh pieces. Lenses and emblems are all nicely done, the glass is excellent, and it’s hard to tell what’s new and what’s original thanks to this car’s excellent care over the years.
Many feel that no Boss is complete without the satin black rear window slats, decklid wing, chin spoiler and a Shaker hood,but all of those were optional and this Boss is rare for having NONE of them! This car came through with 3.91 gears, a tinted windshield and an AM radio…That’s it! Most cars are rare for what they have…this one’s highly unusual for what it doesn’t.
Open the original hood and check out the understated 302 inside. People get excited about big block torque, but the sound and pull of a small V8 at high RPM’s is intoxicating! These were highly tuned engines that were just barely civilized enough for the street, and they’re incredibly stout pieces, with steel cranks, 4-bolt mains, and giant ports on the heads to flow a LOT of air at high speeds. Go ahead and run it to redline. Grab second and the fun starts all over again!
The engine bay is highly correct and detailed, from the chrome air cleaner lid down. There’s crisp blue paint on the ORIGINAL block, heads, and air cleaner. Hoses and clamps are correct, the wiring harness is new, and reproduction decals and labels have been used throughout. You’ll also notice the evaporative emissions control system is intact and functional. This is a beautifully done engine bay.
Underneath is just as nice and just as authentic. Properly restored cars do not have glossy, body-colored undercarriages that have been sanded and buffed to perfection. Instead, they look like this Boss, with factory style red oxide primer on the floors with appropriate amounts of undercoating and body-colored overspray. That’s the ORIGINAL 4-speed manual transmission under there, too, as specified when new. Out back there’s a durable Ford 9-inch rear with 3.91 gears and a Traction-Lok inside, hanging on heavy-duty leaf springs and controlled by staggered shocks. It rides on what might be the best looking of all muscle car wheels, the 15-inch Magnum 500 chrome wheels, fitted with F60-15 Goodyear Polyglas GT reproductions for a 100% authentic look and feel.
Mustang interiors are either classy places to while away miles or all-business offices of speed, and this Boss definitely falls into the latter category. Featuring code BA Black Rhino Corinthian vinyl bucket seats which are as comfortable as they look, though you better like the soundtrack coming from the engine room…no console, standard gauges…that extra stuff weighs something, right? The headliner and carpets were new at the time of restoration, the steering wheel and dash pad have been restored, and it is in very, very nice condition throughout.
