Matching Numbers Boss: 1970 Ford Mustang Boss 302
It doesn’t seem to matter how long I have been involved in the classic car scene, I still have to shake my head in wonderment when an iconic vehicle appears after decades spent residing in a barn. This 1970 Mustang Boss 302 is a perfect example because it has been in storage since 1982. It has now been unearthed and is begging for someone to take this numbers-matching classic and return it to its former glory. Located in Saint Paul, Minnesota, you will find the Boss listed for sale here on eBay. It probably isn’t any surprise that this Mustang has grabbed plenty of attention since the owner listed it for sale. Thirty-three bids have pushed the price along to $29,100, and now that the reserve is met, a new home is only days away for this beauty.
The owner admits that this Competition Yellow Boss will require a complete restoration, and it probably won’t come as a huge surprise that one of the tasks will be to tackle some rust repairs. However, these don’t look like they will be particularly extensive. The exterior carries plenty of areas of surface corrosion, but it is generally pretty promising. I think that there may have been a prior repair to the passenger side rear quarter panel, but if I’m right, it was only a small patch. The rest of the steel is original, with no further evidence of repairs. Below decks is nowhere near as bad as it could be. There is surface corrosion everywhere, and I suspect that the buyer will probably completely dismantle the car to achieve a perfect restoration. You never want to give any form of corrosion a chance to get a foothold in a 1st Generation Mustang, so stripping the underside completely will probably be on the buyer’s list. It looks like there might be some work required around the torque box region, and the trunk pan will need some repairs, but that appears to be about it. Some of the chrome will probably require a trip to the platers if it is to be returned to its best, but all of the trim is present, and there doesn’t appear to be any physical damage to it. The tinted glass looks really nice, and a couple of excellent factory additions are the Sport Slats and the Magnum 500 wheels.
The Mustang is a numbers-matching vehicle, but its mechanical state is unknown. A few original peripheral components are missing, but all of the big-ticket items are intact. The original shaker assembly and hood ring have gone, so there are non-genuine items in their place. The radiator shroud has also disappeared, but everything from the carburetor to the fuel pump and the remaining ancillaries is as they left the production line. The Boss 302 V8 would have pumped out 290hp, which was fed to the 3.50 Traction-Lok rear end by a 4-speed close-ratio manual transmission. The sprint down the ¼ mile would have taken 15.6 seconds when the Mustang was shiny and new. That was a long time ago, and it will probably take some work before this beast can threaten those times once again. It isn’t clear what state the engine is in, but I do have some slight concerns. The car was parked in 1982 with what is believed to be a genuine 32,000 miles on the clock. The missing radiator shroud, along with the missing cap and disconnected hoses, suggests that someone might have been in the process of swapping a faulty radiator, or worse, pulling that beautiful 302 for some reason. With that thought in mind, I would probably treat this V8 to a thorough inspection before I considered hitting the starter because there might be a chance that there are some deeper problems that need solving. The last thing that someone would need to do is rush in and fire up the engine to find that there is a hidden issue. That has the potential to make a bad situation considerably worse.
Apart from the dash pad, which has been replaced in the past, the rest of the interior trim and upholstery is believed to be original. It is hard to get an overview of its condition, but it generally looks quite promising. If I were to buy this Mustang, the first thing that I would be doing with the interior would be to clean it properly. There is a considerable amount of accumulated dust and dirt, which would need to be removed before an accurate assessment could be made of trim condition. One of the great strengths of 1st Generation Mustangs as project cars is the availability and affordability of replacement parts. The odds are good that any items that don’t cut the mustard could be replaced relatively easily.
There is always a fear amongst classic car enthusiasts that great barn finds will eventually slow to a trickle and eventually disappear altogether. Cars like this 1970 Boss 302 demonstrate that there are still some fantastic and desirable cars lurking in sheds around the country. I don’t see the supply ending any time soon because urban sprawl means that old rural barns and sheds will be demolished to make way for residential construction. That opens a world of possibilities for people like us, so this probably won’t be the last car of this type that we will see. Of course, if you would love to own a Boss 302, are you willing to take that chance, or are you going to consider bidding on this one?
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Comments
I’d like to see some pictures of the under side, but if this is a true #’s matching Boss it seems like this might be a decent buy.
I would like to see it as well. Staggered shocks need to be there.
It’s got cheese head plates on it. Good find for someone to bring back.
I think this may be my brothers old BOSS. Was sold out of Colorado to a Mn. buyer in 1973 for 2,500 bucks. Remember thinking this will be trash soon based on the winter road salt situation in Mn. back then. The mileage is what leads me to believe it was his, as well as the quarter panel damage…but might be worth trying to save, would need a good, close inspection first though.
Amen.
The right color. Three pedals. Yup.
My 1970 Boss 302 looked exactly like this after two Buffalo winters.
A coworker bought its twin in1982 from an obsessive compulsive owner. He then parked it in a dirt floor barn and drove it once a year. The last time I drove it, about 20 years ago, I told him I knew where Jimmy Hoffa was. He was in the trunk. You could smell the rot and corrosion, but he was convinced he was storing it properly.
Pardon my ignorance, but is it really that bad about being a dirt floor in a barn as long as it’s not resting on the ground? Or does the rot & breakdown occur faster than say parked outside with moving air along side a barn? I do like this one but of course out of my reach. When 16 in ’76, these were all over for $3k-$3500.
I know. I almost talked my dad into buying a 1969 GT500 in 1978. I was 18 and I was going to sell my 1970 Cougar to offset the cost of $3000. He could not get past the idea of selling a newer luxury car for a older ratty hot rod. He came from a different world and it was a different world then. I feel pains all over my body for failing to buy that car. My Unicorn
When I was 12 back in 1972, my fathers friend asked me if I wanted to go watch a stock car race . To my parents, a car was another appliance ,so I didn’t even know there was a race track 25 minutes from my house ! The first couple of weeks we drove up in his old Ford truck, but one day he and his son picked me up in his sons yellow 70 Boss 302. Now that was a cool car to go to the race track with ! Every time I see a yellow Boss, it takes me right back to the Speedbowl.
One of my favorites. Really an awesome performance muscle car! Missing rev limiter on the right shock tower. No surprise, most owners removed them. A replacement could run big money. I want this car!
So that’s why I blew the engine on mine up. On the shock tower you say?
Excuse my ignorance. Where is exactly
The numbers on the engine to find matching #’s on a Ford/Mercury?
Honestly pleasantly surprised this isn’t going for more.
BOSS 302’s don’t bring what they used to these days and I sure there are plenty of theories as to why. And this one need work underneath and I mean pronto or it’s going to be the Titanic rusting to sludge. Who ever buys it needs to take it down to a local shop that uses cryonic blast cleaner to the underside.
The good signs are shaker hood, louvers, magnums. It has the big block radiator and the shock towers have the big block steel wrap around supports, all good signs. Need to see that it has staggered rear shock to help with wheel hop and then you can say “If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck….” I did not look for the rev-limiter, that would be a big deal if it is still there. I am betting on a price of 40k-50k if people treat it like GameStop it may go higher. I love this car –Me wantem.
It’s a good thing that no one went Donny Disassembly on it.
I wonder how many garage sales, in the late 1970’s and 1980’s, had a BOSS 302 rev-limiter for sale as old car junk and very very few people caught on to what it was and how much it would be worth today? Cleveland, Cobra Jet and Pontiac exhaust manifolds got more play and nobody wanted them either. 6500 RPM Holy Mike get a steel crank.
Whoops!! BOSS 302’s all came with a forged steel cranks. Big stinky DUH! on my part. I was thinking about an 1985 GT I want to build, besides I am old and my memory is getting,….wait what are we talking about?
Love to see this as it progresses to a renewed life and the end result!
Sad part is,it will never see what it was built for again, now it’ll be in storage, when finished, so someone can say, ‘here my numbers matching, fully restored Boss 302 Mustang. It’s worth xxxx $$$.’
I am the person who had the winning bid last night. The intension is to not restore it, to stop the deterioration and make the car roadworthy. My opinion is: there are enough perfect cars, but few who display a half century of time.
Congratulations!
Truly one of my all-time favorites, and I’m more of a Chevy / Mopar guy.
Glad to hear that you are planning on enjoying it.
Congratulations Raymond!