Most car guys are usually satisfied having either a gorgeous hot rod that is fast and fun to drive on the street or a race car that kicks butt at the track. Grant Klohn has both. Grant is a guy whose dedication to the sport of street machines and drag racing goes above and beyond. Not only does he race and enjoy both of his cars as often as possible, he is also the goto-guy for other racers and car guys. If you need something for your car, chances are Grant can either find it for you or he has it in his spare parts bin.
His 1967 Fairlane is truly his pride and joy and he has owned it since his high school days in 1989. The car has taken on many transformations throughout the years but early on he changed it from a 289 automatic to a stick. Since then it has gone through many different engine and transmission combinations as well as chassis mods in order to get to its current level. It even had an engine from a Comp Eliminator car at one point. Although it was very fast, it proved to be a little too much as far as maintenance was concerned—after all it is a street car.
Always being a small block Ford guy, it’s not surprising that Grant has gone back and forth with engines based on the 351 Windsor motor. He also obviously has a love for rowing through the gears which has given him the opportunity to enjoy several different transmissions over the years. The famous OEM Ford Toploader 4-speed started off in the Fairlane, but soon a Liberty 4-speed sat in its place followed by a Jerico 4-speed, then a Doug Nash 5-speed, a Liberty 5-speed and eventually a Lenco ST-1200 5-speed trans that is considered to be Lenco’s “street” transmission.
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