[War_Wagon]

That 302 would just be a regular hydraulic lifter motor. If you really want a drivetrain for a future project, any '85 and newer 5.0L H.O. motor would be a much better choice, then you get the benefit of a roller camshaft. There are hundreds of thousands of cars and trucks running around with them. If you are stuck on modding this car, check craigslist etc for used 5.0L Mustang exhaust parts. Some factory headers, mated to an aftermarket 2.5 inch H pipe might work - though you may have to modify your transmission crossmember to clear it.

To save some weight, you could gut window motors and mechanisms out of the rear doors and just make the windows permanently closed. Those flattish side windows could be easy to copy out of some flat plexiglass sheet too. Yank the carpet and remove the sound deadener/underlay then put the carpet back in. That stuff is heavy, especially if you have any water coming into the car, it acts as a big sponge. We could talk about removing the side impact beams in the rear doors (if you never have rear passengers that is) but that sounds like skirting the edge of liability issues.

That car has 5 x 4 1/2 inch bolt pattern, there are lots of cheap lightweight used aftermarket wheels around that would fit it, probably even at the wrecking yards you go to. Thunderbird Turbo Coupes have some super lightweight wheels if you can find them, though you'd have to see if the backspacing would work on your car. Lots of guides online to compare them.

I don't know about the Ford bumper brackets, but GMs from that era use a gas charged cylinder like a shock absorber. Drilling into a pressurized cylinder is never a good idea, but I have seen it done. Once the pressure is gone, the cylinder can be compressed (shortened) and tack welded in that position. This will relocate the bumpers closer to the car by whatever amount the bracket is compressed. You lose any low speed crash absorbtion of course.