Tearing a classic car down to its bare bones and recreating it as a completely custom performance machine is a daunting task, even if you have the skills that Andy Krause developed over the years. When he bought this 1965 Mustang, he had plans to finally build one his way, but when his late brother, Mike, was diagnosed with cancer, he had the motivation he needed to create this radical reinterpretation of a classic pony car.

During the build, my brother was diagnosed with Stage 4 brain cancer. To give him something to look forward to. I told him I was going to finish the car… — Andy Krause, Owner

The result is a rolling work of art. At first glance, its visage seems like raw metal, but it is deceivingly painted to appear that way. It is a machine so meticulously engineered and crafted that it’s hard to categorize. It’s part race car, part street car, and part sculpture, but it’s completely personal. The roots of this build trace back to Krause’s early years in Dearborn, Michigan, where the Mustang was born.

“When I was five, our family moved to Dearborn, Michigan. I had an older brother, whose friends’ dads were all engineers at Ford who had all kinds of experimental and high-performance cars,” Krause recalled. “They would hang out at our house and work on them. The fastback Mustang always caught my eye.”

As you approach this Mustang, the first thing that grabs you is its raw metal look. That is painted on, but once you look closer, the litany of custom details boggles the mind. Andy Krause put his years of car-building experience to create a project that would give his late brother Mike something to look forward to while he battled cancer. “I designed, built, fabricated, painted, and did bodywork and the interior myself. The only thing I had help with was the wiring,” Krause told us.

That early exposure to fast Fords planted a seed that would eventually grow into something far greater. However, it would take decades for that dream to come to fruition in the fantastic form that you see here.

Krause acquired the fastback from a customer who had intended to build a Shelby look-alike but never got around to it. He painted the man’s exotic in trade for the Mustang. After that, it sat idle, but not forgotten, for years.

“I had a customer who was going to make a Hertz Shelby replica with this car, but never completed it,” Krause said. “He had a 308 Ferrari that I painted for him in trade for the car. The car sat for years until my brother Mike and I went to the Shelby museum in Boulder, Colorado. Seeing these cars inspired me to build one.”

That trip changed everything. But it wasn’t just about rekindling a dream. It became a race against time.

Brotherly Shove

“During the build, my brother was diagnosed with Stage 4 brain cancer. To give him something to look forward to. I told him I was going to finish the car for a show that September at the Shelby Museum in Boulder,” Krause said. “I would have to call him every day with pictures and an update on what I did on the car that day. This is what gave me the motivation to finish such an overwhelming project.”

From that point on, the car became a lifeline for both of them. Krause used his brother’s ailment as inspiration, and his brother relied on the car’s progress as a beacon in the darkness.

“I told him we were gonna go to that show with the car when it was finished. Every day, I’d call him and tell him, ‘I did this today,’ and he wanted to update,” Krause recalled. “I would have never finished this car because I didn’t have the drive. He didn’t make it, but I promised him I’d finish it. So I did. That’s why I’m gonna take it up there this year.”

The commitment to build it for his brother pushed Krause through late nights and long odds. It also gave the project a weight far beyond hardware and horsepower.

No Limits

The performance game isn’t new to Krause. His background in road racing and decades of building cars for others gave him the skills, but not always the freedom, to realize his full vision.

“The reason I did this is that I’ve always built cars for other people. They would tell me that my idea wasn’t good, and that maybe they thought better,” Krause said.

That experience shaped not only the craftsmanship in the Mustang but also the mindset behind its performance path.

“When I started building this Mustang, I wanted something no one else had with all my road racing influences,” Krause explained.

Forging A New Fastback

The car started life as a ’65 Mustang fastback, but little remains of that original ride. It rides on a completely custom frame that lays the foundation for a pony car longer, wider, and more balanced.

“I built this car 10 inches wider and 2 inches longer. I moved the motor back 10 inches and to the right 1 inch to offset the weight of me,” Krause said. “The car has a 50-50 weight balance, front and back, and right to left. It’s a true mid-engine car.”

Connecting the custom chassis to the road is a C7 Corvette front suspension system, including the upper and lower A-arms, spindles, and pickup points—specifically chosen for their lightweight aluminum design and favorable geometry.

“In the front, I took a C7 Corvette, and I measured the pickup points, and the whole front end is a Corvette,” Krause said. “So if I need to fix anything, when I do my alignments, it’s just a Corvette.”

If you can forgive him for the Brand X suspension, Krause stuck with the Blue Oval out back, adding a built Ford 9-inch rear with a three-link road race setup, complete with a Panhard rod and a NASCAR-style sway bar that passes through the frame.

Blended Body

The body features components from almost every Mustang era, including 2000 Mustang fender flares, 2005 taillights, 2014 quarter windows, a 1967 Shelby hood scoop flipped backward for airflow, and 1968 quarter panels.

“The rear window was dropped in the center to allow air to exit the cockpit,” Krause added. “…My wing is the bottom of the car. If you notice the plate on the rear center bottom moves with solenoids that open and shut under braking.”

The side scoops were flopped, while the fuel filler from a ’65 Shelby rises through the trunk lid to simplify fueling with the Waterman 22-gallon NASCAR fuel cell.

“The hood is a ’67 Shelby scoop put on backward to get air to the motor because it’s back so far,” Krause said. “…I moved the C part of the side in 2 inches and flopped the side scoops from left to right and made them functional.”

Krause shaped, sanded, and sculpted every inch of the body himself, and despite the polished craftsmanship of the finished product, this Mustang frequently confuses casual observers.

“As you observed at the show, everyone thinks the car is bare metal, and it’s kind of embarrassing being stared at all the time driving around,” Krause told us. “At other shows where you have a mixture of cars, people don’t realize the different body modifications that I’ve made. They think the car just came that way.”

Pushrod Power

While the popular powerplant option might be a modern Coyote swap, Krause wanted something with a classic feel and sound; An engine that echoes the Mustang’s legacy while embracing cutting-edge performance.

“I chose a 363 Windsor small-block because, in my opinion, it’s one of the best-sounding motors in the world,” Krause enthused. “Plus, the Coyote has been overdone, and I wanted a vintage-looking engine even though it’s not.”

The stroker in question was built by Watt’s Shop and based on a Dart SHP 4.125-inch bore block. It’s zero-decked, torque-plate honed, internally balanced, and fully machined. It is filled with rugged internals, including a Callies DragonSlayer crankshaft, Callies rods, custom CP pistons delivering a robust 11.7:1 compression, and a Bullet billet solid-roller camshaft with 260 degrees duration and .630-inch lift. That cam works with Harland Sharp rockers to control the valve events in CNC-ported AFR Renegade heads fitted with Ferrea valves and titanium retainers.

There are no overhead cams under the flip-open hood of this completely custom 1965 Mustang. It is powered by a 363-cube stroker constructed by Watts Shop LLC. It is based on a fully machined Dart SHP Windsor block filled with Callies rods, CP pistons, a custom solid-roller cam, and a Callies DragonSlayer crankshaft. Topped by a set of AFR Renegade aluminum cylinder heads and breathing through an individual-throttle body intake, this injected brawler takes its marching orders from an ECU Masters controller. Krause built the custom headers and finished the engine off with a vintage oil pan and valve covers from Shelby American. All told, the combination pumps out 600 horsepower.

Krause even textured and painted the AFR heads to make them resemble factory iron, even painting the block blue to mimic a classic 302, so it often fools casual observers, who think it is a classic 289.

The engine runs coil-on-plug ignition, a custom crank trigger system, and an ECU Masters Pro 8 with PMU and ADU digital displays. Bosch injectors and custom fuel rails work with a camouflaged individual-throttle-body intake that blends modern performance with classic style.

“This allows me to have traction control, no-lift shift, and launch control,” Krause said of the ECU Masters unit, which is popular in drifting machines. “I have an ethanol sensor, so I can run on premium pump gas or E85, and unlimited sensors to tell me all the information I ever need to know.”

Behind the built and injected small-block is a Richmond Super T-10 close-ratio four-speed that feeds the 600 horsepower on tap to a DTS-built Ford 9-inch rear filled with 4.11 gears and a Wavetrac differential. Continental Extreme Contact tires keep it all planted to the pavement.

“I widened the car 10 inches, and I lengthened the rearend 2 inches, so if you get here behind it, you don’t notice because of the way I tucked the tires with the fenderwells,” Krause said. “But see how those are 325s and the distance between the tires is not like a tub.”

A Powerful Promise

This exotic stallion is the culmination of a life spent dreaming, designing, and wrenching. When his talent aligned with a noble purpose, Krause lovingly worked over every detail, panel, and weld to create something he and his brother would be proud to cruise to Colorado. He may have built cars for others his whole life, but this one was something special.

“We didn’t make the (Boulder) show, but I promised him I would finish the car and take it around and show it all over the country,” Krause added.

And he’s doing just that. He brought the car to Mustang Week in Galveston, Texas, where we were immediately drawn to its metallic exterior and taken in by the depths of its detail. As a result, it earned a spot in the Ford Muscle Texas 10, a single-eliminator contest voted for on the Ford Muscle Facebook and Instagram pages. So, check out the stories on the other Texas 10 contestants, and be sure to vote for your favorites.

The Mustang that emerges victorious will be crowned the Ford Muscle Texas 10 Champion and receive a custom piece of wall art featuring their winning ride — an epic badge of honor for any Mustang enthusiast.