In 2020, it’s becoming more and more difficult to shock the world with a project car. With social media build stories and videos running rampant, it’s not unusual to see wildly high-horsepower engines stuffed into bizarre chassis, or Frankenstein builds that are practically unreal. That’s not to say we don’t seek these kinds of builds out and drool over their progress, but just about everywhere you turn, you can track down a strange and unique build. This one might take the cake though. Behold a Barra-swapped GT350. This project is unique for two reasons: 1. We have yet to see anyone swap anything into a GT350. Let’s be honest — the engine it comes with it kind of “superior” to begin with. 2. We don’t see a ton of Barra builds, and we have a feeling that a pretty big portion of our readers aren’t even sure what a Barra is. There was a pretty cool Barra-swapped Fox-body built by The Skid Factory last year for Drag Week, but we digress.

Let’s start here. The Barra is a family of V8 and inline V6 engines built by Ford Australia between 2002 and 2016 for the Falcon and Territory vehicles. The particular engine being used for this swap is an inline-six 4.0L of the “FG” variety, which were produced between the middle of 2008 and late 2016. According to Adam, this generation of Barras had a better flowing head and is rear sump, making it ideal for the swap.

Who’s Adam you ask? YouTuber Adam LZ is the one performing the swap on his channel, utilizing a GT350 that encountered a very sad incident. Adam LZ has amassed nearly three million YouTube subscribers by documenting his wild builds and automotive adventures, and this GT350 is definitely drawing Ford fans in. While he previously was well known for building Japanese drift cars and riding BMX, a whole new audience is forming.

That very sad incident we mentioned was actually a pretty horrendous fire, which happened when the oil filter came loose during a day at the track. Nobody was hurt, but the front end of the GT350 was burnt to a crisp.

Watch the video above to see the GT350 moving under its own power once again post-fire with a Barra in the bay! You’ll also note that the Mustang now features an automatic transmission where the manual once lived, and has also been equipped with a Haltech plug and play kit and Elite 2500, along with a Garrett turbocharger, each coming with their own additional set of challenges. You can catch more videos of the S550’s progress (including the most recent video: a dyno session that unfortunately doesn’t go to plan, but we won’t ruin the story) by clicking here!