If you're reading this story right now and there are pictures to accompany it, you're witnessing nothing short of a publishing miracle. First and foremost, the fact that this story made it into the magazine means we slipped it into Editor Fisher's office just seconds before the magazine was about to ship and it had time to get laid out and printed. Consequently, the printing of this story means I probably still have a job here at Circle Track (Editor's Note..."for now") which is great for me and pretty sweet for you if you're a fan of the City Boy project. Lastly, the printing of this story means Pete and I have reached a pinnacle moment in this build, as the City Boy actually looks like a Mustang again, which makes us a step closer to the track and a long way away from the tattered shell that we have been working on in the past.
So, how did we do it? Well, it all started with a quick look through this very magazine, with Pete and Rob working out which of the fine companies you see in here could supply the perfect body panel system for our old Mustang chassis. It didn't take long to find Performance Bodies, which is a company that started almost 30 years ago and has stuck by the idea of building quality, lightweight, and easy to install bodies and parts that ship quickly (like, the same day quickly!) and fit like a glove.
The two brains behind this operation ordered a ton of parts from Performance Bodies, but this issue we're focusing on installing the Mustang GT nose and tail section onto our project. At less than 300 bucks for the front and rear sections, including the quality headlight, taillight, grille, and Mustang logo emblem, it's a hard deal to beat and is certainly cheaper and lighter than buying stock stuff. Add to that that each bumper (nose and tail) is split in two pieces for ease of install and low cost of replacement and the Performance Bodies bumpers offer a bang for the buck and advantage that is tough to match.
Although it took us almost a full month to install the nose and tail section onto the City Boy, it's actually a very simple process if you have a full day to dedicate to the process. Pete and I are working on this as much as we can, but like everyone's life, sometimes life just seems to get in the way. Either way, assuming that these pages aren't blank and you're actually reading this story, follow along and check out how Pete and I (just Pete, really) installed the fantastic-looking front and rear bumpers on the City Boy using little more than a couple of cutting tools and a whole handful of rivets. Next time, we'll show you the rest of the bodywork and get moving on thinking up paint schemes. Actually, why don't you send in some of your paint ideas right now (Peter.Epple@sorc.com) and we'll include them in our ideas for the next phase of the project!
1 Performance Bodies builds...
1 Performance Bodies builds body panels for a ton of different applications but had the perfect GT-style Mustang nose and rear bumper section on hand and ready to ship at a moment’s notice. After letting the two-piece front bumper rest in the sun for a couple of hours to take shape, Pete dropped the assembly on our fabrication table and got to work.
2 The two-piece design makes...
2 The two-piece design makes for a simple install and makes the bumpers easy and cost effective to replace if they get damaged during a race. Not to say I’m going to damage this fine bodywork but, you know, Pete and Fisher might screw it up during their time behind the wheel (Editor’s Note “yeah, right”). Here you can see Pete clamping the two sections in place…
3 …while I was over at the...
3 …while I was over at the bench grinder building some custom washers to secure the two nosepieces together. A little time on the grinder and we had had a plethora of flat-on-one-side washers ready to go, which was exactly what Peter had ordered.
4 Here you can see the reason...
4 Here you can see the reason behind the madness, as the semi-flat washers allowed Pete to place the nuts and bolts of this operation very close to the nose and use a washer that would eliminate rotation and allow the nose gap to be tightly controlled, giving us a clean fit and finish that will be strong for seasons to come.
5 The rear bumper section...
5 The rear bumper section received the same treatment and you can see exactly how many bolts (10) we recommend using. Wondering why we didn’t use rivets? Bolting the bumper together will allow for easy removal at the track (should we need it) and the bolts allow a new piece to be slid in place easily and secured in place without having to drill out rivets in the pits.
6 Once the nose was ready,...
6 Once the nose was ready, the first step was to do a test fit and see how the stock sheetmetal lined up with the Performance Bodies’ front bumper. As you can see, Performance Bodies includes all of the factory lines and dimensions, which leads to a quality finish and a great-looking race car.
7 Of course, it wouldn’t...
7 Of course, it wouldn’t be racing without some sort of modification and Pete chose to install the new front nose pieces by cutting the factory fenders apart and sliding the Performance Bodies nose under the metal and riveting it in place. This will give us the most “OEM” type look and feel while maintaining clean lines and proper function.
8 The Performance Bodies...
8 The Performance Bodies nose piece comes pre-molded for the GT fenders and as such doesn’t use the stock fender’s sheetmetal to create the correct look. After measuring once and cutting twice, Pete hacked the bottom off of our stock fender and looked awfully proud when the new nose lined right up.
9 With the bottom of the...
9 With the bottom of the fender properly modified, Pete jumped over to the inner lip of the fender and began to remove it. Try to take your time here and get as close to the edge as possible without distorting the factory metal or cutting too deep into the outer edges of the fender.
10 It didn’t take much work...
10 It didn’t take much work and the Performance Bodies nose fit up under the stock fenders like a glove. The side bodywork is tucked up under the fender in this shot but lines up perfectly when in place. Without headlights we’re legal to run at almost any track in the country and our new nose is lightweight and sturdy.
11 No body panel installation...
11 No body panel installation is complete without breaking out the rivet gun and this install was no different. Surprisingly, Editor Fisher came up big at the last minute and showed up with this trick air-powered unit from Allstar Performance. (Editor’s Note: “I just stole it from Project DLM’s toolbox”) You could obviously do this manually as well, but we prefer the speed and efficiency of the air power while working in the Circle Track shop.
12 Installing the rivets...
12 Installing the rivets is as simple as drilling an appropriately sized hole in the correct location…
13 …and sliding the rivet...
13 …and sliding the rivet in place, backing it with the supplied washer and pulling the trigger. It’s a little more effort to install the washers to the backside of the sheetmetal, as opposed to the front, but the clean look is well worth the extra time.
14 Up front, you can see...
14 Up front, you can see how the rivets start to hold the new Performance Bodies nose in place and how nice they look when properly placed and installed. Also notice how well the bodylines still match up and the contours of the fender flow into the bumper. Obviously we need more rivets in this area, but two will hold it in place for now.
15 Turning our attention...
15 Turning our attention to the rear of the Mustang, Pete did a quick test fit, and made a quick trim adjustment to the top of the rear bumper. Believe it or not, this was the only portion of the bumper we found the need to adjust (both sides), so that speaks well for the quality control at the manufacturing facility.
16a Just like the front,...
16a Just like the front, Pete decided to slide the rear bumper in place under the factory sheetmetal to give it a nice, finished look...
16b ...A careful cut on both...
16b ...A careful cut on both sides of the body allowed for enough room to tuck the high-impact polypropylene bumper in place, which you can see in the next photograph.
17 Ta-da! It fits like a...
17 Ta-da! It fits like a glove! Pete jumped the gun on me here but you can see the upper most rivet in place and the bumper section in the correct area. Just like the front, all the bodylines looked correct and the bumper fit well with a nice finish. Of course, it needs paint and stickers still but we need your ideas before we get started!
18 Minus all the junk in...
18 Minus all the junk in the trunk, this is the view almost all of our competitors will have to get used to on the racetrack. Luckily, if anyone decides they want to trade paint with our rear bumper, we can count on the high-impact design to keep its form and stay in one piece. And, if it doesn’t, we can easily install one side at a time and roll out in time for the next race!