This ‘49 Ford Is Really A Bimmer

While it’s obvious this ’49 Ford Shoebox has been modified, few would expect that under the skin it’s really a 2008 BMW 335i. After all, the guy who built this car claims it’s the first of its kind and we believe him. This is a crazy project, just the kind we love the most.

This ’63 Lincoln Continental is another crazy build.

Who would build such a car? A shop called Maniacs Garage, of course. More of a side project than a professional outfit, they stated off with the Ford which had been partially chopped a couple of decades before, but never was finished.

Maniacs knew the plan was to swap the ‘49’s body onto a more modern, potent vehicle. When a friend crashed his BMW 335i, they made a move, buying the German coupe off the insurance company, then hacking it apart before dropping the Ford’s body onto it.

Of course, the fit wasn’t perfect but some things worked in the Maniacs’ favor. As you can see from the video chronicling the build’s progress, everyone had a lot of fun with figuring things out. That always made a tedious project far more enjoyable.

What most people have seen is the finished product, which might not look like much to the untrained eye. But we know these guys put in a lot of sweat, blood, and tears into this build.

Of course, these guys didn’t just leave the E92 BMW completely stock, as you can clearly see with the rather large turbo protruding above the hood. They ditched the small factory snails, replacing them with the beast 62mm Garrett that’s both oil and water cooled.

Plus, the exhaust exits out of the back of the turbo assembly, adding to the industrial vibe of this build. If you watch the Autotopia LA walkthrough, you get a good rundown on the build details, plus you get to see this ride in action – it’s a hoot.

But Ford fans aren’t going to like this build one bit.