Hi all, my name's Nick Jones (nick69- AACI Forum name) and I live in Wiltshire with my wife Tash. I thought i'd better give her a mention as she has been very patient with me when it comes to cars and the like as you will find out.
Like most people on here my love and passion for American cars started at a very young age, so young I can't even remember when it started. Ever since I can remember my Father had American cars of all different types, the more the merrier as far as he was concerned which meant that as a school boy I was driven around in Mach 1 Mustang which was bright yellow with black stripes. When it came to school trips, some parents would help out by driving some of the kids and this started many a high school fight as everyone wanted to go in the Mustang which always put a huge grin on my face as you can imagine. I soon became the popular kid in school which was never a bad thing.
As the years passed the Mach 1 changed hands and a '69 coupe Mustang took its place, followed by a Corvette, another Mustang and then finally a 1977 Pontiac Trans Am.
If I could I would always help my Father work on these cars which fueled my growing love for these huge Beasts that made any other cars seem small and pathetic. My Father, knowingly or not, was planting a seed in my head that would grow in to what I have now, an everlasting and unforgiving love for all things relating to Muscle Cars.
 When I passed my driving test and finally had my license all that was available was a 1.1 Fiat Uno. This was good fun at the time but a grew out of the car very fast. Then came a Peugeot 405, this was a comfortable car but so heavy it was like driving a Tank powered by a motorbike engine! A Mini Cooper was next. This was a really fun car to drive as you could swing it round any corner at any speed you like, just like a Go Kart. A few other cars passed through my grubby mits but nothing worth talking about. Then i realised I was starting to get close to the dream as I bought a Ford Exlporer 4.0 V6i. As nice a car as it was i only had it for 6 months. Then came the real thing! My 1970 Mercury Cougar which is powered by a 351 Cleaveland. I fell in love with this car as soon as I saw it. The hidden headlights, the twin glasspack rumble and the shear power this car has stole my heart.
When I bought it, it needed a bit of work but nothing too major. All the work is pretty much done now, just a few bits of surface rust and some chrome and she will be done.
She started off with a box standard 2bbl carb and cast iron intake which were replaced with a Holley Street Avenger carb and an Edelbrock Perfomer intake which made a huge difference. She can finally breath as she's supposed to.
Well thats about it for the Cougar, hope I havn't rambled on too much. Later this year i'll be adding another write up for my 1977 Trans Am which my Father has given to me as a gift.
Later
Nick (AACI Member #191)
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