Hunter Hayes Stays Busy Fixing Up His ’65 Mustang

Hunter Hayes may be the ultimate do-it-yourself guy. The 'Storm Warning' singer wrote and recorded every part on his self-titled debut album, and in his spare time he's overseeing the refurbishing of his '65 Ford Mustang. This isn't a guy who's likely to settle for whatever a salesman pitches him.

"I’m a huge Mustang fanatic," Hayes tells Taste of Country. "Over the next year, every time I come back to town I want sort of one more thing fixed on it, or one thing new on it, or new paint job -- all kinds of stuff. I’m hoping it’s going to be my project car."

Hayes is a self-described "car fanatic." "I mean, I can’t tell you what engine's in what, and I certainly can’t pull it apart and put it back together," he explains. "That would be pretty hopeless. But I’m a car buff in that I love the feeling of driving. I love driving. I’ve been obsessed with driving something since I was a kid. I love it. I love the practicality of a good car. You know what I mean? And when I say 'practicality,' I mean the complete practicality of a Ferrari 458, a wonderfully fantastic every day car [laughs]."

So far, Hayes hasn't stretched speed limits, at least not in a way he's willing to share. "I’m pretty disappointed in myself but I’ve never gotten an opportunity where I can really open the taps on anything. The only thing I’ve ever really rocked with is my Yukon XL in a non speed limit stretch of highway," he says.

According to his official website, Hayes will open his 2012 tour schedule with Rascal Flatts and Sara Evans on Jan. 12 in Charleston, W.V.