PHR's Third Annual Photo Contest - Hometown Heroes

Finalist
This is, by far, the cleanest '84 Mustang we've seen. Jeremie Wagner, owner of this car, has kept it in immaculate condition. This is a special GT350 Anniversary Edition, and as such, was the subject of a lawsuit between Carroll Shelby and Ford Motor Company for use of his name on the cars. The grounds of the suit were that Ford used the GT 350 name and Shelby stripe. The whole car's package was rushed into production in time for the 20th Anniversary Edition, but apparently some of the corporate paperwork was pencil-whipped. The options included the controversial Shelby name and striping, special emblems, SVO-style door molding, dash medallion, numbered plaque, performance seats, and special TRX wheels and tires. (Try finding a set of those tires today-they're worth their weight in gold.) This Mustang was one of only 2,604 V-8 five-speed versions of the GT 350, making it a sought-after piece. This is why so many of this car's parts were left original. The owner tells us the only thing he has changed is the battery.

Finalist
It's been a long journey for owner Tim Schmidt. He purchased his Falcon in November 2002 in nearly stock, really clean condition. He put that to rest and dove in, changing nearly every part of the car while keeping it period-looking. His focus was always on performance. He had a 351 Windsor motor bored and stroked to 427 cubic inches. Villages Racing in Castaic, California, treated this block to a 4340 stoker crank, H-beam rods, Clevite bearings, Venolia pistons, COMP Cams solid roller cam, and Edelbrock Victor Jr. heads and intake. This combination set him up nicely with 455 horsepower and 489 lb-ft of torque. To manage the power, he had the frame reinforced and a Mustang II suspension with a power rack installed. Out back, a Currie 9-inch Ford rearend takes the nearly 500 lb-ft of abuse. There are countless other goodies under this car, but most notably is its performance in a not-so-obvious package.