photos by: Grant Cox
A Father and Son Bond Grows Stronger, Through a Barn Find Mustang
A father and son car project, it’s the thing every dad dreams about having with his kid when they’re old enough. As fewer and fewer kids and teens are becoming interested in the idea of building a muscle car, you’re lucky if you ever get to wrench on a car with your child nowadays. This generation’s attention span for the automobile is a bit short, and it’s young gearheads who are so few and far between!
Dylan Darbyshire’s dad, Jon, hit the jackpot with his son. Dylan is a true bred enthusiast, and his dad encouraged that and nourished that side of him with their hobby car — smart move, dad!
When Dylan turned 15-years old, Jon knew it was time to get their first project car moving along. He searched and searched for months, until he found the right one on eBay. Finding it was the first step on the five-year long journey that would end with a stunning end product.
What did Dylan’s dad decide on? As it turned out, it was an eBay barn find – a 1966 Mustang coupe – that had been sitting in an old bard since 1988. If we’re doing the math right, that means the car had been sitting in storage since before Dylan was even born. The boys are located in Kansas, and the car was in Oklahoma.
This father and son team had a bit of work ahead to get the Mustang rolling again, and they wasted no time! Dylan fully disassembled the entire car, and then the body was media blasted. This was before the full rotisserie restoration using completely new parts and technology. Bodywork was done by Mustangs & More in Merriam, Kansas. The engine was assembled by a race shop in Wichita, Kansas, and Vintage and Fabrication in Independence, MO did the interior and final assembly.
The Mustang is powered by a 302, built on a Dart Iron Eagle block. Stuffed inside the engine are a set of aluminum rods, a steel crank and an Edelbrock Performer-Plus camshaft and lifters. The camshaft is a 0.460 intake/0.480 exhaust with 194 intake/204 exhaust @ 0.50 cut, and lifters are hydraulic flat tappet. Topping off the engine is a set of Edelbrock Performer RPM aluminum cylinder heads with Edelbrock Performer RPM valves. The valvetrain uses 1.6:1 roller rocker arms, 5/16 pushrods, and Edelbrock guide plates.
The intake is an aluminum endurashine Edelbrock Performer RPM series. A 600cfm Edelbrock Performer, square bore carb with electric choke and endurashine finish is used in the build.
Mechanical wise, it’s also got a MSD Street Pro billet distributor, Edelbrock fuel-pressure regulator and gauge, Edelbrock Performer RPM fuel pump, Fuel Safe 22-gallon fuel cell, and Griffin aluminum crossflow radiator.
The Mustang is rocking a color named Orange-Tangelo Pearl, created by House of Kolor, and Silver-Tungsten Gray by PPG. It’s also wearing a Unique Performance Eleanor kit, 4” Eleanor hood with locking pins, upper and lower Eleanor nose, Eleanor rocker panels. It’s got a Shelby upper and lower side scoops, Shelby trunk and end caps, front and rear fender flares, Rotunda racing mirrors, PIAA front lights, tri-bar headlights, Shelby rear lights, tinted glass, and it’s finished off with shaved door handles.
It’s interior is custom with black perforated inserts and ultra leather with suede inserts used throughout. The black carpet is made by Daytona Weave. Power seats are from a 2006 Mustang GT-500, as is the dash. Billet aluminum brake and accelerator pads cover the pedals. A Restomod brushed remote billet shifter handle and 14” mahogany wood 3-spoke steering wheel really set it off!
This Mustang’s entire interior and underside were sound proofed with Lizard Skin sound control and ceramic insulation. Other interior sound proofing and heat control is provided by Dynamat and Heatshield.
An Old Air Hurricane a/c system keeps the interior cool. The power window switches are console mounted, that control Haneline power windows. It also has remote door locks, remote power trunk release, and a rear backup camera. The Bluetooth adapter allows you to listen to tunes through a phone or mobile device. A trunk mounted Optima battery in Mustang billet battery box keeps it all powered.
Dylan also owns, or has owned, several other Mustangs, including a ’68 GT-500 convertible, ’69 GT-500 convertible and a ’71 Twister Edition GT-500. Of course, the Darbyshire’s are that brand loyal, as their garage also has provided room for a ’68 Camaro and a ’71 Chevelle SS. This 1966 Mustang is special, and so is the father and son duo behind it. It will carry on the legend of the people behind it, and it’s a helluva good looking car in the meantime!
Elizabeth is hardcore horsepower enthusiast with unmatched intensity for making things faster and louder. She wakes up for power and performance and only sleeps to charge up for the next project that’s heading to the track. From autocross to drag racing, Elizabeth is there with you, so stay tuned for her unique perspective on horsepower news, builds, tech info, and installs — with her, it’ll never be boring!
