Paul Zimmerman's ’78 Mustang II Hatchback

Paul did all the bodywork himself, but insists that it was only possible thanks to the tutelage of his father, Sherman, who has been teaching him the art of metal manipulation since he was a boy.

The rear bumpers were removed. A new front bumper was fabricated using the original back bar and a Chrysler minivan panel for the lower half of the front valance. The rear valance panel was completely hand-formed from sheetmetal. The stock taillights were recessed and covered with clear acrylic lenses with black horizontal lines painted on the inside for a “blacked-out” appearance.

The stock dash has been painted Grabber Orange to match the exterior of the car. Paul’s kids burn their buns on the stock black Naugahyde buckets during the summer, and they tune out the traffic with a Sony AM/FM/CD player. This car is a driver. It’s been to events in Illinois, Minnesota, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and a whole bunch in Wisconsin. Paul likes to go to shows to get ideas and to show others what a little imagination and hard work can create.

If you’re gonna drive a car that resembles a Pinto, you need to make sure you can back yourself up in case of an intersection confrontation. What better way to make a 2,800-pound car humiliate the competition than an Edelbrock Performer Package–equipped 302? Paul yanked the 302 out of his first car, a ’69 Fairlane, and added Performer aluminum heads, cam, and intake with Holley Projection 2 fuel injection, BlackJack 1-5/8-inch headers, and 2-1/4-inch exhaust with dual Flowmaster 3 chamber mufflers. The battery was moved to the trunk, er…hatchback, and the gas tank was removed and replaced with a Triangle Engineering 15-gallon aluminum fuel cell, which is mounted from underneath the car, isolated from the hatchback interior with an access door. Nifty.