The Blue Beast is something of a junkyard dog.
She was originally a '74 2000 automatic, but the previous owner, former Ferrari mechanic, now IRL transmission builder Chaz Long, transplanted a V-6 into her. (1974 wasn't a great year for 2000s anyway). The V-6 and much of the interior came from a rusted '74 2800 that once belonged to Capri Club of Chicago member Jim Brozynski. The V-6 had an Offenhauser intake manifold, with a modified Holley 390 4-barrel carburetor. The mechanical fuel pump was replaced by an electric pump, mounted near the gas tank. It also has a set of tubular headers, leading to a set of dual exhausts. Chaz also put one of his durable modified Hurst shifters into the car, as well as a set of camber plates, and a set of RS-2600 style monoleaf rear springs. The battery has been moved to the trunk to improve balance.
Somewhere along the line, she was given really atrocious white paint job, with a black hood bulge. The bumpers were still blue, but they were the wrong shade.
The car was raced for a couple of years, but still managed to commute regularly in Northern Illinois.
I bought the car in 1992.
I immediately removed the aircraft-style seatbelts, and replaced them with stock items. I also removed the flagrantly illegal aircraft landing lights that were in the place of the high beams. I also added a pair of sun visors and a dash bezel from my spare parts collection. The car had a nice set of speakers, but no radio, so I bought an AM/FM cassette from Crutchfield, and installed it.
Since then, she has been repainted in her original blue color, the carburetor has been replaced with a more streetable Holley 390. (the previous one had a fixed choke!!) The interior has been made more stock for street use. (it used to have lots of weird racing parts in it) We added a 1977 spec. Ford electronic ignition, which improved around-town drivability considerably. The aluminum rims that she used to race on were not included when I bought the car, so I'm currently using a set of 14"x6" steel rims from a Mustang. (works for me!) The home-made aluminum camber plates cracked, so I now have a set of steel ones.
She's still a junkyard dog, but now she's been to obediance school. She's streetable enough to be driven to work on nice days. Of course, she'll still run with my 1989 V-8 Mustang in a straight line!
She's about due for another restoration, and my plan is to make her appear even more stock on the outside, but keep her wild, untamed spirit beneath the surface.