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There was a lot to like about Ford’s “Fox Body” Mustang of the 1980’s. Though lacking the attractive lines or brutish character of the first generation, it was a substantial aesthetic improvement over the Pinto-derived second generation ‘stang. It was also somewhat unique in pony car history for offering a 2.3 L turbo four alongside the usual assortment of V6’s and V8’s, purporting to offer the right combination of performance and economy.

So it’s no wonder the Ol’ Fox is popular with pony car enthusiasts. Now, Kurgan Motorsports of Atlanta has taken one of these semi-classics and retrofitted it with the barnstorming 5.0 L “Coyote” V8 and drivetrain from a wrecked 2011 Ford Mustang GT.

Kurgan Motorsports owner Bob Kurgan explains:

“The engine just dropped right in. It was everything else that was difficult. With this engine only being out for just a little while, everything had to be custom built for it to swap over. Getting the engine running was easy. We had to custom make the motor mounts, air conditioning brackets, power steering brackets ourselves. But it’s a friggin’ animal on the streets.”

“What do you do when the power of an engine is no longer sufficient?” asks Stephan Lenior, the man behind Squadra Tuning, on his company’s website. While the solution for the majority would have been a heavily modified or perhaps a completely different engine altogether, for the owner of the Alfa Romeo tuning company based in Holland, the answer to that question was far more radical and complex.

To make a very long story short, Stephan’s solution to u the performance of his Alfa Romeo GTV V6 involved the fitment of a second six-cylinder engine at the back. Easier said than done of course, with the project turning out to be a rather complicated and time-consuming process.

Stephan documented the entire build on his company’s website and if our Google’s translation is correct (any help from our Dutch speaking readers would be appreciated, especially on the matter of the transmission), Stephan took a 3.2-liter V6 along with the sub frame and suspension bits from an Alfa Romeo 166 and placed them in the rear section of the Italian coupe. Together with the GTV’s front-mounted 3.0-liter V6, the two engines produce a combined output of 487-horsepower.

Rolls-Royce and MINI may have the same owner, but the two iconic British brands have never been intended to cross paths. That was until a Texas-based firm called BMP Design decided to squeeze a Rolls-Royce Allison 250-C20B jet engine sourced from a helicopter in the back of a MINI Cooper S. Yes, that's right, just behind the front seats.

The consequences of this action are easy to imagine: the 420-horsepower, 400 lb-ft of torque RR engine drives the rear wheels, turning the MINI into a 4WD monster. Managing to drive the car is a major achievement, since the driver needs to balance the conventional controls with the separate levers that command the jet engine.

As you are about to see, the speed and the acceleration of this little rocket are mind-blowing. As is the noise coming from the turbine engine. Watch the videos after the break.

Let us introduce you to our find of the day; a 1980 Toyota Corolla TE71 Coupe retrofitted with a big brawny classic American V8 powerplant. This wolf in sheep's clothing was once powered by a small four-cylinder engine but now comes with a 454 cubic inch (equal to 7.4-liters) big block Chevrolet V8 powerhouse that drives the wheels through GM's Turbo-Hydramatic 400 transmission.

Now here's something you don't see every day. Sent in by Carscoop reader Łukasz Ż, this enjoyable time-waster of the day pits a motorcycle against a rear-wheel drive sports car in an out of the ordinary drift challenge. In one corner we have Nick "Apex" Brocha of Icon Motorsports piloting a 2005 Kawasaki ZX10 with 175HP and an extended swingarm. In the other corner is professional racecar driver Jim Guthrie in a 1993 Mazda RX-7 powered by a 375HP Corvette V8 engine. The result? Follow the jump to find out.

Now that Pontiac is officially gone, one way of keeping the heritage alive is to salvage whatever parts you can find. We don’t know if that’s what the owner of this 1979 Chevrolet Malibu thought, but, nevertheless, he did swap the original engine with a modern 5.7-liter LS1 V8, sourced from a wrecked GTO, while keeping the styling of the car pretty much stock.

Owning a mint condition E28 BMW 5 Series would be a dream come true for most bimmer fans. However, the owner of this Euro-spec 1985 528i was probably not impressed by the stock 2.8-liter powerplant’s 184-ponies, so he performed an engine swap.

If it was up to me and money wasn't an object, I would've probably tried to fit a V12, but the 1999 Chevy LS1 V8 isn’t a bad fit either - that is, if you really feel the need to hear an American V8 burbling under the hood of a vintage German sedan.

I don’t know if the word Dacia gives James May that fizzing sensation he often talks about, but the Top Gear host seems pretty fond of the Romanian brand. Same goes for low-budget European buyers who see the Renault-era Dacias as well priced models with affordable maintenance costs. One of the Romanian firm's latest cars, the Duster was even nominated for the 2011 COTY award.

However, the brand's models aren't exactly exciting, even more so when it comes to sheer performance with their mundane, small displacement petrol and diesel engines. But as always, for every problem there's a fix. This man's answer was to ditch the Logan sedan's four-cylinder and throw in a 2.8-liter VR6 Volkswagen engine.