1970 Ford Mustang Appropriately Named ‘Rusty’ Takes a Very Different Approach
Rather than fix the copious amounts of rust adorning this 1970 Ford Mustang, the owner opted to embrace it instead.
For a very long time now, most in the classic car world prefer their older vehicles to be in perfect condition – whether that be perfectly original and with low miles on the clock, or pristinely restored to a point where they might even be better than new. However, making an old car “perfect” is a time consuming, oftentimes incredibly expensive task, and when you’re done, you have to constantly worry about something bad happening to that vehicle. That’s precisely why Zeke – the owner of this 1970 Ford Mustang – decided to take a wildly different approach to customizing it.
Rather than spending countless hours fixing the big rust holes in this 1970 Ford Mustang, Zeke actually left them intact, adding a bit of character, even though much of the rest of the car has been modified, updated, or repaired in some way. When he found the car around a year and a half ago in Ford Myers, Florida, it was so rusted out that basically no one wanted to take on the massive project, however. He wasn’t swayed, as Zeke proceeded to replace the rusty front clip, shock towers, the firewall, floors, and various structural components.
However, Zeke stopped short when it came time to fix the “swiss cheese” bodywork on his 1970 Ford Mustang, which seems like an odd decision, but he does have a few reasons for doing so. For starters, he thinks it adds a bit of character, and he just got a bit impatient during the build process and simply wanted to enjoy the car without spending years repairing it. He’s also a “YouTube mechanic” who doesn’t exactly have the experience to do such things, and didn’t want to spend a fortune having someone else do it, either.
We can certainly respect that decision, and it’s clear that Zeke loves his car, flaws and all. He did have to replace the built 302 that was previously installed with a new one, though he wants to eventually swap it out with a newer Coyote powerplant. It’s currently utilizing a T5 gearbox, along with a unique green and gray paint job that Zeke performed in his own garage, too. It’s also equipped with some coilovers and more modern suspension bits to help it get down the road, too.
Zeke did do a comprehensive job upgrading the interior, which looks like brand new at this point, along with adding a set of nice wheels to his vintage pony car. To some, that may seem a bit strange given the fact that every single body panel on this 1970 Ford Mustang has some sort of rust on it, but we appreciate the fact that Zeke just wanted to do something a little different from the norm – proving that a car doesn’t have to be perfect for us to enjoy it.
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