This 1975 Granada came to be when Dustin Fuhrer was looking for a project car. He wanted a classic Ford that must be 2 doors, V8 (or swappable), and had to be within his budget. Dustin and his father, Cory went on a hunt to search for anything such as a Mustang, Fairlane, Torino, and other popular muscle car types, however they were all out of reach for him. Soon, Cory found a Granada located in Chicago and gave this car to him as a gift.
Dustin enjoyed driving the car for about a year while he freshened up a 351W. After driving it for a while, soon came out the 6 cylinder engine in preparation of the 351W install. Then life made a change for Dustin which made it more difficult for him to finish his dream project car. Until he bought a new house in Missouri the engineless car was displaced the into outdoor storage, which further took its toll on its condition. Once Dustin got into his new house, he resumed the installation of the 351W, but found stripped bolt holes in the crank, for the flywheel.
Cory knew the condition of the 351, so he started a brand-new build of a 302, which ended up being .040” over, with flat tops, GT40P heads, Motorsports roller cam, Blue Thunder dual quad intake, and many other things to make this car come to life. It was time for him to surprise Dustin with a new motor but had to find a way to drive the motor down and install it in a weekend. Fortunately, when Dustin ran into problems getting the 351 in, due to the stripped holes, this gave Cory the opportunity to “steal” the car and bring it up to his own place to work on. Cory took a road trip to Missouri with a friend and brought the car back with them. Little did Dustin know that he was in for a big surprise!
In September of 2020, Cory and his friends quickly went to work to test fit the new 302 along with figuring out the motor mounts, flywheel, exhaust, and such to have it ready for Dustin by Christmas. However, they pulled the engine back out and went to work on the engine bay, stripping, sanding, painting, grinding, more sanding, then priming and painting it. They then re-installed the new engine and had it fired up.
After the new motor was installed, the car did a lot of traveling in a short amount of time. The first stop was the exhaust shop where they bent up 2-1/2 “exhaust and added a pair of Flow masters. Secondly, was the trans shop where it got a freshened-up AOD trans. Then came the third stop where the car began to pop. It started with much-needed bodywork followed by custom mixed blue and the 1969 Mustang Mach 1 hood scoop. Last and final destination was back at his dad’s house where he proceeded to finish the car with added details.
Part of the surprise was spoiled since Dustin came to visit before the car was done. Before it went to all those stops, he got to see and hear the new engine, his jaw dropped. After that, he had no further idea about what was going on. His dad barely had the car finished for his visit over Christmas, where he revealed the finished vehicle.
With the build being done, Dustin still has a list of features that he is looking to add to it. His vision is called the “70’s/80’s Street Machine Style”. This is where you see the American Racing wheels, dual quads, hood scoop, high stance in the rear, and even the factory Ford 8 track player. Cory stated, “it may look more like the 70’s-ish, but with the aid of the Auto Meter wideband, I was able to tune the carbs to work well. The AOD trans allows this car to cruise at a respectable RPM while keeping up with the modern-day traffic, even with the 4.10 gears in the rear.”
“It is important to know that my son is not a spoiled brat. I did this because of the man he has become, putting everyone in front of himself, taking care of their wants, and needs, and sometimes even strangers. From being a hard-working husband, a great father of his child, helping friends and neighbors, and coaching a kid’s football team, he deserves this and more”, Cory emphasized.Now, Dustin lives in Missouri about 500 miles from his father. But it doesn’t stop Cory from seeing his build regardless of the miles between them. About every couple of months, his son comes up to see him and in return, they even switch cars. Cory’s pride and joy is his 1980 Camaro Z28 where he lets his son bring back to Missouri to drive until he visits again.
1975 Ford Granada
- Engine: Fresh built 1987, 040” over, 302 with roller cam, and GT40P heads
- Transmission: Ford AOD
- Rear: 4.10 rear gear and posi fitted into the 8” rear axle
- Paint & body: by Jeffrey Jones of Monroe Center, IL.
- Gauges: Auto Meter 2-⅝ “gauges (oil pressure, water temp, volts) exterior, with Auto Meter 3-¾” tachometer, and 2-1/16” Wideband mounted interior.
- Other features: Has a Blue Thunder dual quad intake with a matching pair of Holley Carbs with custom-built 2-½” full dual exhaust with Flowmaster mufflers. Additionally, American Racing Aluminum slotted wheels along with a 1969 Mach 1 hood scoop
