Fans of the Ford Mustang itching to get their hands on the latest special edition version of the muscle car will be delighted to know that Galpin Auto Sports, together with SPX Corporation, is building one exclusively for the Barrett-Jackson auction in Scottsdale, Arizona in January.
The proceeds of the sale will benefit the St. Jude Children’s Hospital so at the very least, your bids will go to a very worthy cause. But what should really get you going about this special edition Mustang is the number of improvements Galpin did to turn it into an even more powerful piece of muscle.
Inspired by the legendary Mustang Boss 429, this particular Mustang will carry a 5.0-liter V8 engine that has been taken to a whole new level thanks to upgrades that include a Ford Racing supercharger, Comp Cams camshafts, and a Bassani exhaust system. All that has taken the output of the Galpin Mustang to a staggering 700 horsepower.
On top of the massive engine upgrade, the Galpin Mustang will also carry aesthetic improvements, including a Candy Apple Red Pearl PPG paint scheme, a Roush billet aluminum grille, the original 1969 Boss 429 hood, a Boss 302 Laguna Seca rear spoiler, and a set of 21" and 22" Forgiato wheels wrapped in Pirelli P-Zero tires.
The car is interesting enough on its own merit to have active bidders when it goes under the hammer at Barrett-Jackson, but if you add that all your bids will end up being for a good cause, then you should have no problem shooting for the moon when bidding.
UPDATE 10/20/11: We’ve just learned that the 700-horsepower Mustang by Galpin Auto Sports will be making its world debut at the 2011 SEMA Auto Show ahead of its auction date at Barrett-Jackson next January. Be sure to check out this completely modded Mustang before a lucky bidder drives home with it next year.
UPDATE 12/29/11: After being announced as a prototype back in August, the Mustang SPX is finally ready and waiting for its new customer. For those interested, this car will be available at the Barrett-Jackson auction in January 2011. All proceeds will go to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital: "Cancer affects so many families across America and we’re very excited at the opportunity to utilize our talents to help raise money to fight this terrible disease," said GAS President Beau Boeckmann. "We’re honored SPX chose us as the shop to build this vehicle. Once completed, this car has tremendous potential to raise a lot of money for an organization that benefits a great cause."
Whatever you think of the Chevrolet Camaro, you know that at the deep recesses of its heart, it’s a muscle car that’s only waiting to be unleashed on a drag strip. After all, the COPO Camaro was one of the best stock cars back in the 60’s, a time when the Central Office Production Order (COPO) - Chevrolet’s vehicle special-order program - became famous for all the performance-minded Camaros that were made, mostly with intentions of turning them into Stock Eliminator racers.
Half a century later, the COPO Camaro is making a comeback as a concept vehicle designed to the specifications for NHRA Stock Eliminator drag racing competition. One of the unique things about this particular Camaro is that it was designed to accommodate a few engine options, including that of the 7.0-liter naturally-aspirated engine that was found in the original COPO Camaros from yesteryear.
In terms of design, the COPO Camaro Concept pretty much adhered to its set-up as a full-spec drag car. Gone are all the bells and whistles that usually come in a standard Camaro. In their place, Chevrolet added a full array of race equipment, including a full, chrome molly roll cage, a high-rise cowl-induction system, a set of 29" lightweight, COPO-specific racing wheels wrapped in 4.5x28x15 "inch front tires. Inside, the car receives a pair of racing bucket seats with no rear seat, a safety harness for the driver, a competition floor shifter, and Chevrolet Performance gauges by Auto Meter.
The muscle car’s overall handling and set-up were tweaked to give it even more capabilities on the track. A coil-over suspension with Strange Engineering adjustable struts can be found in the front while a custom suspension with Strange Engineering shocks, a Panhard bar. and a stabilizer bar complete the exterior set-up of the muscle car.
UPDATE 11/08/2011: The Camaro COPO Concept unveiled at the SEMA Show is proof that the Camaro can be customized in any way possible. Check out the live images we have added in the picture gallery and let us know if you agree.
UPDATE 12/16/2011: GM Performance Parts has unveiled a new video presenting the Camaro COPO during testing. Enjoy!
Japanese company Rauh-Welt Begriff (RWB) brought two impressive vehicle to the 2011 SEMA Auto Show. The first was a Porsche 911 RWB Pandora One and the second is this impressive 911 Turbo Hoonigan - a model based on a Porsche 964.
The 911 Turbo Hoonigan combines a white exterior paint job with a Lobster Red interior and red Fifteen52 wheels wearing Pirelli P Zero tires. The car’s ride was also lowered by an inch and a half thanks to a new sports suspension system.
The Porsche 964 presented at the show is currently owned by former 0-60 Magazine editor-in-chief, Brian Scotto. He drove the car for over 850 miles just to get to the 2011 SEMA Auto Show in time, where it celebrated the launch of the Ken Block’s new Hoonigan brand. With a maiden vehicle like this Porsche and Ken Block’s involvement, we expect to hear the name "Hoonigan" a lot in the upcoming months.
The 2011 SEMA Auto Show was undoubtedly a Mustang and Camaro free-for-all with tons of tuning packages for both models. Most were for the current generations of each, but there were some tuners with an eye for a classic, and Goolsby Customs was one of them. This tuning firm understand that an oldie is still a goodie so they based their "Pegasus" package on a 1971 Mustang.
The problem with trying to modernize a classic is that, most of the time, there isn’t much left of the original once the transformation if complete. In this case, the Pegasus has received a compete makeover. The old chassis has been replaced with a new one from the new Fast Track Mustang designed by the Roadster Shop. The front has been shortened by six inches, while the rear end has received a pass-through spoiler. The car has also been given a new set of Nutek wheels combined with Wilwood brakes.
The original 4.1 liter engine was also tossed out the window and replaced by a new 5.0 liter V8 Coyote engine. There is also a new Ford 6R80 6-speed automatic gearbox built by Sean Hyland Motorsports.
One of the vehicles to catch our attention at the 2011 SEMA Auto Show was the one-off Supercharged ZR-59, a tuning project mixing the classic 1959 Corvette with design elements and technology from the current Corvette ZR1. The project - spearheaded by Cal West Customs and Palmers Customs - was developed to give a classic sports car the feel and rumble of a modern day supercar.
The Chevrolet Supercharged ZR-59 took over a year to be created. It started as a chassis with a stock corvette body and then Art Morrison provided a custom chassis for the project which was then covered with a hand-built metal and fiber glass body. The body includes hand-built side and fender moldings shaped from brass and a custom built stainless gas tank. A set of Nutek three-piece forged aluminum rims complete the exterior look. The interior gets a hand-fabricated dash, center console, and gauge cluster. It took tons of planning and concept, but the final product is the slick sports car in these images.
The engine is also a masterpiece with the two developers opting for a Corvette ZR1 LS9 V8 engine producing a total of 750 HP. This engine was combined with a Tremec T56 six-speed transmission, a Corvette C6 front suspension, air ride shockwaves with auto-levelers, and Wilwood 6 piston front and rear brakes. A push button ignition system was also put in for added convenience.
