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Garage Makeover Must-Haves

Andrew owns an amazing muscle car that lives in a not-so-amazing garage. We took on the job of making its home fit for purpose. It’s time to pimp this garage — and maybe go for a spin in Andrew’s hot wheels. With Andrew, of course.

10 October 2023

Garage Makeover Must-Haves

The 1966 GT350H Shelby Mustang is regarded as one of the sexiest muscle cars ever built. The H stands for Hertz — and this car is one of 1001 Ford Mustangs built by Texan Carroll Shelby for the vehicle rental company — to be used as rent-a-racers. After being thrashed around the track on weekends, they were returned to Ford, refurbished and sold to the public as GT350H models.

Of those 1001 cars, only 85 were four-speed manuals. This is one of them. Owned by a Hertz dealer principal in California, it was never rented or raced. It even comes with a receipt dated December 1965 from Shelby American Inc to Hertz for the sum of $3899.70. Today it’s worth more than $500,000.

Andrew Stedwell now owns this piece of motoring history and mechanical glory — but it definitely deserves a better garage than this.

Mate, hold the WD40. It’s time for a few garage upgrades.

Garage Storage Solutions

Let’s start with storage. Get things up off the floor, away from the precious metal and onto some shelving where we can see it. This SCA 5 Shelf Storage Unit is adjustable and every shelf can hold 70kg. That’s 350kg of car care goodness for the Mustang. To assemble this bad boy, just slot together and tap with a rubber mallet.

Storage boxes will be your best friend in the garage. They keep everything from the same family together. Oils in one box, degreasers in another, and another one for cleaning cloths. Just stick a label on each box so you know what’s inside without having to open it.

Stack the nasty chemicals high away from curious minds or, if space is at a premium, stack the boxes on top of one another. If something leaks, no drama — it won’t leak onto your pride and joy.

Spare parts come in all shapes and sizes, as do these removable organisers. We’re running a ToolPRO 12 Drawer Portable Organiser and ToolPRO Stackable 8 Drawer Organiser, both positioned above the workbench. In here we’ve got wiring terminals, screws, nuts, spark plugs, fuses and other small bits and pieces that can easily get lost. Because the organiser is removable, the parts can travel to wherever they’re needed.

Garage Workbench

Next to the garage door is the blue-collar section of the garage. This SCA Powder Coated Workbench is where the dirty work happens. It’s somewhere to work on any little projects that involve drilling, sanding or filing. The SCA Swivel Bench Vice compensates for Andrew’s two left thumbs. We don’t want any random parts flying across the garage to embed themselves in the glossy black duco of the Mustang. After all, he just paid $20,000 to return this beast to its original colour scheme

We’ve located the workbench next to the garage door to make cleaning a breeze. In the mess area, we’ve also got our fuel, oils and the Kärcher Pressure Washer.

Tool Chest

After the Mustang, the next best piece of engineering in this garage is a 28in ToolPRO Edge Tool Cabinet & Chest Combo with all the gear.

What’s in the box? Let’s turn the key and find out.

We’ve got a ToolPRO:

25 Piece Spanner Set
99 Piece Socket Set
35 Piece Screwdriver Set
Plus more pliers than Andrew will ever know what to do with.

183 pieces of chrome vanadium goodness — to fix any problem the Mustang throws at him. Every tool has its own moulded EVA foam trays and each drawer features a silky smooth auto return.

But wait, there’s more. The tool cabinet is equipped with optional extras, such as the magnetised paper towel/wipes holder and tool tray

It’s also on swivelling castor wheels that are lockable for when you don’t want your cabinet to go anywhere on its own. Under the clamshell lid is a workspace and ports for lighting or battery-powered tools.

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Service Cart

Speaking of tools, Andrew will only be using a few of them at a time. Here are our portable solutions so he can fix stuff on the fly. Complementing the chest is the ToolPRO Edge Series Service Cart.

For jobs on the road, there’s a ToolPRO Safe Case, but we recommend the ToolPRO Tool Bag Tradies Mate. The soft trimming won’t leave any marks behind.

Air Tools

Sir Winston Churchill once said, “Give us the tools, and we will finish the job”. Although he wasn’t a mechanic, obviously Blackridge had him in mind when they came up with this air compressor. The Blackridge BR 3000 Hi-Flow Air Compressor produces a maximum pressure of 115PSI and is capable of pumping 180 litres per minute of continuous air delivery. It’s ideal for driving the likes of impact wrenches, rattle guns, air inflators, spray guns, die grinders, nail guns, staplers, pop rivet kits, cutting tools, ratchet wrenches, grease guns, sand blasters, sanders and more.

In fact, you’ll find air-powered tools in almost every fair dinkum workshop. Why? Unlike electrical gear, air compressors — if designed for outdoor use — can be used in wet, humid or explosive conditions, and air tools can withstand extreme temperatures and environments. Air-powered tools typically have fewer moving parts and are lighter than their electrical equivalents.

If you’re concerned about using compressed air for the first time, never fear. This model is protected by an auto shut-off pressure switch, safety valve and thermal protection.

Car Trolley Jack

For basic car maintenance like changing the oil or maybe switching out the original 14in wheels to 15in lightweight racing wheels for track days, a hydraulic garage jack is a great investment.

With a starting height of less than 12cm (11.2cm) this ToolPRO 3000kg Low Profile Trolley Jack is perfect for the ‘Stang. It’s simple to use and requires less than one per cent of Andrew’s massive tricep strength to operate. Just slide it in and give it a few up-and-down motions — the dual-pump design lifts the car quickly. It can be raised to just over 50cm and is rated to three tonne.

A good trolley jack will save you a heap of time, energy and definitely reduce the frustration normally associated with scissor and bottle jacks. But keep in mind that a garage jack is for raising a vehicle, not bearing its weight for a long period of time. Always place car stands below the vehicle after lifting it off the ground.

Car Stands

Car stands are an essential safety item for keeping the car off the ground. These ToolPRO 3000kg Ratchet Stands feature a sturdy ratchet system with fast and fine adjustment to optimise the jack lifting height.

To raise, simply lift the red shank to the desired height. To lower, support the weight of the shank and lift the plastic-coated handle.

They work between 37cm and 52cm — ideal to complement the low-profile jack — and will hold up to three tonne. Be sure to position them under the recommended jacking points for your car — in this case, under the chassis rails.

Personal Touches

As much as we love hanging out in a Supercheap Auto store, we don’t want our garage to look like one. So, we’ve gone with some personal touches. Here’s a signed poster from the late, great Kiwi rally driver Possum Bourne. Andrew owned a similar WRX (of course he did) among several classic rides.

The Mustang’s trophies are on show — all three of them — but to be fair, Andrew would prefer to be doing burnouts (legally, of course) or cruising in his pride and joy rather than displaying it at a motor show all day long.

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