1969 Ford Mustang Mach 1 Barn Find Is in Need of Rescue, Going for Cheap

And that's not always as easy to do in real life. You might not be mechanically inclined, you might have underestimated the scale of the project, or you may simply drag it out until you realize you no longer have the interest in finishing it anymore. Either way, project cars can be really difficult to live with. As big as the rewards may be at the end of the tunnel, some of these cars end up in a barn, where they may rot away forever.

But thanks to the wonders of eBay, they don't have to fade away into oblivion. And someone who's running a tight budget can accomplish his dreams of building the car that was on his bedroom wall when he was a child. Because if you've been dreaming of a 1969 Mustang Mach 1, you might have to pay $100,000 or more for one that is in mint condition. And that's more than a brand-new 2021 Shelby GT500.

But, where there's a will, there is a way. If you've got time on your hands, a decent budget, a garage where you can work, the Mach 1 dream is not completely unattainable. You just have to come across the right barn find. This 1969 Mustang Fastback was built in Metuchen, New Jersey, and was originally white, according to eBay seller tinman1995, with a red deluxe interior. But, as you can see from the pictures provided in the ad, the car is now red, and it features a black interior.

This Mustang has been in the seller's family for 35 years now, as it was acquired when he was 15 years old. Looking at the VIN on this car, this came out of the factory with a 4V 351 ci (5.7-liter) V8 engine, so it should have been good for about 290 horsepower, a respectable figure for that time. Although the car still has three pedals in it, the original manual transmission was swapped out in favor of an FMX automatic one. So this is a non-matching numbers Mach 1, in need of total restoration.

The good part about it all is that you might be able to get it rather cheap. And that's because with six days to go before the auction is over, the highest bid stands at $13,200. So now you just have to do the math, figure out your available budget, and most importantly, decide on where this project is headed.

Building it up to original spec might make it more valuable, and you might make a profit off of it, but building it with modern technology is bound to be more fun. Ford is selling a very interesting 572 ci (9.3-liter), big block, pushrod crate engine that's rated for 655 horsepower—that might be fun to swap in.