Once Neglected, A Hopeful Owner Revived A South African Boss 302 Mustang Into His Dream Car

Owner: Rui Esteves

Location: Cape Town, South Africa


Year: 1970

Make & Model: Boss 302 Mustang

To Rui Esteves of Cape Town, South Africa, a Boss is the ultimate Mustang, because it was built for racing. Twelve year ago, he saw this car listed in a classified ad, but thought there was no way it could be a real Boss. Nevertheless, he called the seller right away and made an appointment to see the car. He did a lot of research and compiled a checklist.

When he arrived at the seller’s house, the first thing he saw was the car. It was very original and had been very neglected, but the interior was perfect, and there were only 38,000 miles on it. Rui only needed 30 minutes to inspect the car—everything on his checklist confirmed that the car was a legitimate Boss. There was already another potential buyer looking at the car, so Rui had to get assertive and tell the seller he should have the first choice, because he called about the car first. The other buyer turned out to be a serious collector who started throwing big numbers around, but it was too late—by this time, Rui had already shaken hands with the seller. The deal was done, and the Boss belonged to Rui.

With the help of his father, Manuel Esteves, it took ten years to finish the car—Rui has the original engine and gearbox stored safely away. Now he enjoys driving the car on the weekends. His favorite place to take it is through the winelands of the Western Cape and up the west coast where the roads are endless and dead straight.

Want to see your vintage car on Petrolicious? Click here for more information.

Photography by Rui Esteves