Here is something rarely seen...
Here is something rarely seen --'69 Mustang headlight adjusters still sealed in the bag.
So when the Boss 429 Data Base announced it would help gather a complete variety of '69 and '70 colors for the 2008 Forge event, promoter Tim Lopata still needed a Candyapple Red '69. That's when Ed approached the Schwarz family about bringing their car out into public for the first time. At this point, the replacement engine had been installed for about 10 years. Though Bill had moved several times and his former careers included owning both a speed shop and a gas station, he had not driven the car with its replacement engine beyond a one-time trip down his country driveway.
Always a drag racer and never a collector, Bill had no compelling interest in reinstalling the "smog junk" until Ed came and did it himself just before the show last September. Ed also contributed a few other pieces that he knew would make the car absolutely right, but the ironic thing was that, as they finished it up, Bill said to him, "Do you think anybody would want to see these other blocks I've got?" That's when he showed Ed not one, but four spare Boss 429 blocks.
At Kar Kraft, the original...
At Kar Kraft, the original tire sticker on the driver-side door was removed and a new Boss 429 version added. Obviously, cleanliness and detail was not paramount. This was one of the early cars that began as a Q-code 428 SCJ.
"I started checking serial numbers," says Ed. "And there was the original block. Bill had gotten it back from the dealership. It was too late to do anything about it with the show just a day away and us already running late, but now we know the original block is there, too."
As the trio arrived in Tennessee and the car was being unloaded, Helen thought for a couple of minutes and said, "You know, I have never even sat inside that old car." She got her first ride as Ed drove the Boss 429 through the roll-up doors and onto the carpet of the Marriott MeadowView Resort's convention center. After all, thanks to her and Bill, the hobby at large had a chance to see what may be one of the most incredible muscle car finds in recent memory.
Editor's Note: Right before we went to press, Bill Schwartz sold his Boss 429 to a collector who plans to display the car in a musem dedicated to low-mileage muscle cars.
The expiration date of 4/23/69...
The expiration date of 4/23/69 is still barely visible on the Bill's temporary tag. Due to the car's warranty issues, it was never registered or licensed.
S versus T
The reason Bill Schwartz parked his Boss 429 is that he knew the replacement engine Ford was offering him was not the same as the engine that came in the car. According to Mike Mueller's reference book, Mustang 1964-1973, the first 279 Boss 429s received S-code engines with heavy-duty NASCAR rods with ½-inch bolts that rode on a cross-drilled forged crank. But many had warranty issues, reportedly due to faulty short-block assembly work. After these were gone, Ford switched to a T-code version that looked identical but used lighter bottom-end parts, including rods with 3/8-inch bolts. The T-code engine would be used for the remainder of '69 Boss 429 production with a handful of minor changes, and would be superseded by a new A-code engine (upgraded smog equipment and solid-lifter valvetrain) before '70 Boss 429 production ended.
Rare Mustangs Run Wild
There are thousands of car shows each year, but one in particular has become the standard when it comes to rare muscle cars. The Forge Invitational Musclecar Classic event is open to the public for only one day, held indoors, and often hosts cars that are not seen outside of collections or museums. When it was decided that 2008 would highlight Boss Mustangs, everyone knew the stops would be pulled out to make it truly memorable.
No event of this magnitude is the result of just one individual's effort, and promoter Tim Lopata was quick to point out that it was the cooperation of members of the Boss 429 Data Base, led by Jeremy Feller, that made it possible. Thanks to them, one of every color Boss 429 from both '69 and '70 was on hand from private collections around the country. To them was added a number of other Boss, Shelby, and Mach 1 models, to the extent that the 2008 running of the show featured more Fords than any other make.
The 2009 Forge Musclecar Classic will be held at the Marriott MeadowView Resort & Convention Center on September 12, 2009. Go to www.forgemusclecarshow.com for more info.
From left to right, original...
From left to right, original and current owners Bill and Helen Schwartz, Boss 429 expert Ed Meyer, Jeremy Fleer of the Boss 429 Data Base, and Forge Classic promoter Tim Lopata.
Sometimes tools got away from...
Sometimes tools got away from their operator during the changes required for the engine swap at Kar Kraft. Note the string of dents left by an errant drill bit being used to place a hole in the cowl for attaching the ground strap. Ed says, "As you can see, they were not building show cars on the assembly line."
This Thoroughbred-condition...
This Thoroughbred-condition '69 Boss 302, restored by Bob Perkins and now owned by Rick Campbell, was originally purchased by Chrysler in May 1969 and reportedly used as research for the Trans-Am-inspired '70 AAR 'Cuda and T/A Challenger.
Pastel Blue was a rare color...
Pastel Blue was a rare color on the '70 Boss 429; only 18 were made. This example, built in December 1969 and sold the following February by Gotham Ford in New York, is now owned by Ohio's Randy Haury.
Tom Hernquist's Wimbledon...
Tom Hernquist's Wimbledon White '69 was the only modified Boss 429 on hand. Raced back in the day by a Minnesota dealership, it features dual Holleys and headers, but the current lettering is magnetic and can be removed.
The number "45" were written...
The number "45" were written on both the hood and the cowl to ensure that the scooped hood went back on the correct car after the engine installation. This was the 45th Boss 429 built in a batch of 100.
There was also Mustang muscle...
There was also Mustang muscle other than Boss 429s. Billy Jay's '69 Shelby was the only prototype for a Boss 302-based GT350. Initial plans called for 200 to be built, but the program ended abruptly when Carroll Shelby ended his association with Ford in June 1969.