Stuart is the owner of Big Daddy’s Motor Cars, which specializes in building and modifying Ford Mustangs from the 1964-1970 era. The company’s motto, “When design meets desire,” is what fuels Stuart and his crew of three. “I can’t express enough how satisfying and how thrilling it is for me to not only do what I love, but to help some of these guys fulfill their dreams,” he said.
Learning to wrench
FAMOUS ‘STANG Les Stuart stands with the Pit Viper, a 1967 Ford Mustang that he rebuilt and modified from the ground up.
‘Design Meets Desire’ Morgan Hill car builder shares love of Mustangs with the world BY ERIK CHALHOUB
FEBRUARY 2021 | SOUTHVALLEY.COM | SANBENITO.COM
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Erik Chalhoub
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es Stuart has no shortage of stories from customers that come through his Morgan Hill shop. There is the almond farmer in Madera, who wants to drive his dream car before he dies. Another man from Kentucky, who purchased a 1969 Mustang Boss 429 when it was new but had to sell it to put himself through college, wants that car back. But he wants one with all the modern technology and safety features.
Stuart, who was born in Brooklyn after his parents immigrated from Trinidad, first learned to wrench at the age of 14. A close family friend had a 1959 MGA in need of a restoration, and he planned to give the vehicle to his daughter. After a year of work, Stuart helped the family get the car up and running. That experience gave him the wrenching bug, and at 15, Stuart’s father gifted him his own MGA to fix. “He figured it would keep me occupied because I was tearing everything apart and putting things back together,” he said. It did, but not for long. “In eight months I got the car running,” Stuart recalled. The problem was, Stuart couldn’t legally drive, so he sold the vehicle and turned his first profit. Then he bought his first Mustang. He later purchased a 1969 Mach 1 by saving up enough money from his $3.50 an hour salary. He was well-known in the local street racing scene, calling himself “untouchable” in his domain that stretched from Saratoga to San Jose and Fremont. ➝ 14
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