Featured-June2007

Farouk's Story:

I have always had a passion for collecting and restoring classic cars, especially that I have studied auto engineering too,
but I was living/working overseas, so had little chance of indulging.
Never the less, I had acquired 3 Mercedes 61 cars a 56 Desoto and a 66 Mustang, and managed to have them restored
during trips to and from Lebanon. My pride was the 61 Mercedes 190SL.
I finally moved back to Lebanon in 2002 and wanted to give this hobby more of my time.
I met a friend who shares the same passion, Elie who pointed me in the direction of muscle cars.
Already having a certain passion for them (memories of my youth), I went along and he showed me my first Challenger, a
71 convertible 4 gear 383 Magnum. I simply fell in love with it and bought it, only to discover that it was a rare one of 41
exported, and bought from the local dealer in Lebanon.

Then he showed me another 71 coupe R/T 383 Magnum automatic which is still 100% original, imported from the States,
and even has the build sheet with it. I had to keep that too. A few months later, Elie showed me yet another 71 coupe
which is what this story is about.

This car was purchased in 71 from the agent in Lebanon, used to have a six cyl engine manual gear, was orange with white
vinyl top and trim and had white stripes. It was kept by the same owner for 29 years. The owner was not using it for many
years and had offered it for sale.
A mechanic bought it, replaced the engine with a 400 engine including a performance cam and auto trans, changed its
colors to its current ones and sold it at a good profit, as then it became a real muscle car.
Unfortunately not every one here knows about originality, and they buy cars for looks and performance.
During most of its life, the car was kept in the mountains (very low humidity) and as such it is still perfectly intact with no
rust. The interior was painted black and the seats were re covered in black.
When I bought it from its third owner, who did not use the car much, it was in a poor mechanical state. The engine vibrating
like mad, transmission leaking badly and its interior needs a lot of grooming.
It took me 4 months to sort all the problems which included rebuilding the engine, new B&M Flexplate, new transmission,
new converter, starter and front suspension.
Having concluded the breaking in of the engine, I now took it back to install a new set of headers "Flow Tech" and finish off
all other items that need attention such as rear springs' bushings, wheel bearings etc till the car becomes 100%.
The car when I drove it last was absolutely amazing with a lot of power, and can go up to 7000 rpm. I will also be changing
the steering wheel to the correct one and replace the current carburetor with a more adequate one.
Some of the pictures shown of the car were taken during the breaking in of the engine, which was completed mid Feb 2007.
I import most of my parts from the states, mainly from "Yearone" who offer me excellent service. I have placed extensive
orders for my other 2 Challys that will go for full restoration soon after concluding this one. But that will yet be another
story.
I have taken literally thousands of pictures of each car before, during and after all the work, but here sharing with you some
nice scenes. Nothing really technical.

One thing though, that I really suffer from whilst driving this car in Lebanon, and that is the number of people that stop me
to ask if the car is for sale, or what year is it, or the current value of it. Fortunately, I don't mind being noticed :

The best one was when I was approaching an intersection controlled by a young traffic warden, he stopped me to let the
other traffic flow, and then just before letting me move again, he approached me and said, please let me hear you spin the
wheels!!

Thank you JJ for making our hobby that much more enjoyable and giving us the chance to share our stories.

"I also wish to thank my soul mate Giselle for encouraging me to indulge in this hobby. Without her support, my journey would be a very slow one."
Farouk