2006 NRMA Car Show Bradenton, Florida - Spring-Break Show Time

Richard Bakan's '68 fastback was our Editor's Choice winner on Saturday afternoon. A classically done vintage restomod, it sports a subtle pinstripe along the side and a set of 14-inch Cragar spoke wheels with 205/60R14 tires. Richard has gone the low-key restomod route with his '68 by incorporating several items that remain invisible to the casual observer. These include an 8.8-inch axle from a '94 Mustang and the rearend's factory disc brakes. A set of front brakes from a Granada and the '94's master cylinder round out the car's four-wheel disc setup. When not running his 10-second, 347-powered Fox 5.0 at the strip, Richard cruises his '68 around the environs of Sarasota, Florida.

Interior updates include a set of Dakota Digital gauges, seats from a '70 Mach 1, and a hump-hugger center console. A Grant steering wheel and the T5's stock shifter are other items of note. The car originally had an automatic until Richard converted to a manual with the T5 and a cable-operated clutch-engagement system.

The 289 in Richard's '68 is warmed up with a complete Edelbrock Performer package that includes a cam and lifters, a Performer 289 intake, and a 600-cfm carburetor. Full-length Hooker headers and an MSD 6AL ignition box hidden in the passenger-side front fender make up some of the other engine bits. With 3.55 gears in the 8.8, the car's T5 five-speed transmission, from the same '94 5.0 donor car that supplied the rearend, makes highway cruising effortless on the open road.

Editor Donald Farr (right) presents Richard with the Editors' Choice plaque at the awards ceremony on Saturday afternoon. Congrats Richard!