Top Dogs! Our Top 10 Picks from the 2019 Carlisle Ford Nationals

With nearly 3,200 cars and over 60,000 spectators at the Carlisle Ford Nationals in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, this past weekend, you can imagine it would be difficult to choose favorites. Over the three day weekend event, we tried our best to see everything there was to see. We gave it our best shot, and we think we chose ten of the most beautiful and unique builds in attendance.

Check them out (in no particular order), and let us know what you think!

  1. The “Hood Stang” 1970 “Q” Code 428 Cobra Jet Mach 1

According to the Mach 1’s most recent owner, John Spencer, this car was found in a rough neighborhood of West Philadelphia last year, having been parked in the same spot for three decades. It’s one of 364 “Q” Code automatic Mach 1’s. As you can see, the Mach is in rough shape, but that’s part of the reason we love it so much. Throughout the weekend, the car was surrounded by curious spectators, reveling in the car’s “barn find” appeal. Keep an eye out – this one might appear on FordMuscle.com again soon.

  1. The 2008/1968 Bullitt

Every once in a while, we come across a truly unique and interesting build, and Chuck and Renee Heath’s 2008 Bullitt is definitely one of them. No, that isn’t a typo. This Mustang began its life in 2008 as a 40thAnniversary Bullitt. Last year, the Heath’s decided to shake things up, and sent it to Retrobuilt Motors in Nixa, Missouri to have it converted to a 1968 Bullitt, retaining all of its modern amenities. The result is a seamless blending of old and new.

This photo truly doesn’t do this car justice, but its location didn’t make getting a good shot of it easy. Don’t worry though, you’ll be seeing more of this car very soon!

  1. 1963½ Galaxie Lightweight

If you read our full event coverage, you’ve heard that beside the massive swap meet at the Carlisle Ford Nationals, there is also a venue designated for cars for sale. That’s where we came across this 1963½ Galaxie Lightweight factory drag car. This beautiful unrestored Ford is one of only 211 built, and is powered by a 427 cubic inch medium riser engine. The hood, trunk, and fenders are fiberglass, while the bumpers and brackets are aluminum. The owners allowed us access to the glovebox where a factory-installed warning is located, proving that the Galaxie was “built specially as a lightweight competitive car” and ensuring that “all customers who purchase this car are aware of the deviation from the regular high-appearance quality standards of the Ford Motor Company.” It can be yours for the price of $145,000.

  1. Driven 1969 Boss 429

While the show field began to fill, we came across Joe and his 1969 Boss 429. While it was a beautiful car, it can be argued that it wasn’t the cleanest car in the field. Given the Weld wheels and Hoosier slicks on the back, we had to know more. Joe explained that his dad was the original owner of the Boss, and drove the hell out of it. The car saw daily driving responsibilities as well as drag strip use, before it retired to a barn for quite awhile. Unfortunately, a tornado would rip through the property the Boss sat on, dropping the barn’s roof onto the Boss. Joe has had the 429 repaired, and continues his dad’s legacy, driving and enjoying the Boss. Keep your eyes peeled for more on this beauty!

  1. Whipple Supercharged 1970 Mustang

While browsing Carlisle’s “Select Display” honorees, we spotted this stunning 1970 Ford Mustang. We were drawn in by its striking custom paint, and when we realized it was powered by a Coyote Aluminator, we were hooked. A Whipple supercharger sat atop the powerplant, and it also sported a complete TCI suspension, Mustangs to Fear interior, and disc brakes and coilovers all around. The Mustang is owned by Nick and Holly Hellums of Wellington, Ohio.

  1. Racin’ Jason

The addition of this Fox in our list may go without saying. If you haven’t heard of Racin’ Jason, you must not be a drag racing fan. Being that Carlisle is not a drag strip, the all-out drag cars are few and far between, so it’s cool to see them mixed in with the show cars. The “Racin’ Jason” 1987 Mustang GT Convertible is the World’s Fastest Pro 5.0 car, with a top e.t. of 7.56-seconds at 187 mph. It has claimed 15 world championships, ten magazine covers, and is owned by Joe Caldwell of Harrison, NY. If you’re not familiar with “Racin’ Jason” and its backstory, do yourself a favor and Google it.

  1. Blue “GRMPS69” Bronco

There was a pretty good showing of Broncos over the weekend, but this one stood out from the (very beautiful) herd. This particular 1969 Bronco has been in the same family since it was new, and went unchanged for 48 years before current owner, Phil Falconer, decided to rebuild it. Phil’s grandfather bought it new, and Phil has fond childhood memories with his grandfather in the truck. In early 2017, the transformation began, with more than half of the sheet metal being replaced. Phil pulled the 351W engine from his father’s Ford station wagon, and the truck now boasts 500 horsepower, with Edelbrock Sequential EFI and Wilwood disc brakes.

  1. Drag Fiesta

Here’s a great example of a car that we completely missed on the show field! We’re lucky to have spotted it at the parade at the end of the day on Saturday and snapped a few pictures. This 1988 Ford Fiesta drag car is powered by a 351W engine, and weighs 2,480 pounds. It features a 9-inch rear, C4 transmission, RacepPak digital gauge cluster, and is tub’d and caged. It has run a best quarter-mile time of 11.99 and a best eighth-mile of 7.76. It is owned by Landel Enterprises, and it had a very successful weekend at Carlisle, taking home the Celebrity Choice award from Mike Finnegan and a 1st place class award.

  1. 1969 Mustang 600

As Carlisle’s theme this year was “Summer of ‘69,” it was only fitting to include this groovy 1969 Mustang Limited Edition 600. The Mustang was released as part of a “Mustang Stampede” promotion, and sports the limited color “Flower Power Red” (the other color available in the promo was “Groovy Green”). The special edition pony came with reflective side stripes, full wheel covers, whitewall tires, a hood scoop, chrome remote side mirrors, AM radio, and special fender emblems. The cars came standard with a 200-1V engine, which could have been upgraded to a 250-1V V6, or 302-2V V8 engine. It is owned by Donald and Susan Hughmanick. When it was originally bought, it had been painted dark green, but the bright under-hood color led Donald to research the car’s origins, and it has since been returned to its former glory.

  1. 1982 Coyote Coupe

Finally, we had to include this beautiful example of a clean, Coyote-swapped coupe. The four-eyed beauty belongs to Sean Welling, and features a color-matched Coyote in a shaved engine bay. Every inch of the coupe was clean and straight, right down to the beautiful tan interior, and Weld wheels. This car brought us right back to the 1980’s, as it was probably in better condition than when it sat on a dealership floor.

Let us know what you think about our Top 10 picks, and show us your own top Carlisle picks!

About the author

Stephanie Davies-Bardekoff

Stephanie Davies-Bardekoff got her start in automotive media while attending Rutgers. She worked for Roush Performance for a while, before eventually landing here at Power Automedia. Her Coyote-swapped 1992 Fox-body drag car is her prized possession.
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