BLUE SKY HIGH

THIS CALIFORNIA-STYLE MUSTANG CRUISER WAS RESCUED FROM A RUSTY DEMISE AND NOW HIDES A BOOSTED AUSSIE HEART

- TAS MCMILLAN

MATT Roberts had his first encounter with an early Mustang as a wide-eyed apprentice mechanic. “I had to drive a ’66 GT coupe into the workshop, and I thought it was such a nice car. I’ve wanted one ever since,” he says. More than 20 years later, Matt has realised that dream and taken it quite a few steps further, turning this 1967 Mustang convertible into much more than just a nice resto.

This isn’t Matt’s first rodeo. He’s done a wide variety of engine conversions for other people, and even piloted a Mk1 Escort pano with a nitrous-huffing 202 and big tubs back in the day. But it wasn’t until 2016 that he decided it to revisit his desire for a Blue Oval pony car.

“I was originally looking for a coupe, but this convertible came up on eBay and my wife Tina said, ‘Put in a bid; let’s see what happens,’” Matt says.

The ’Stang arrived on a tilt-tray from Adelaide, but it was immediately apparent that what had been described as a car with “the usual rust spots” was, in fact, a Windsor-powered colander. “My brother gave me shit for buying a compliance plate, not a car, and he wasn’t far wrong!” Matt laughs.