Baby Book: 13 Developmental Milestones of the Ford Mustang’s Formative Years

Like most enduring American icons, the Mustang’s history is littered with half-truths and myths. To separate truth from truthiness, we did a little legwork and uncovered 13 bona fide facts that all played a part in transforming the Mustang’s modest beginnings into the stuff of legend. When the Mustang I concept, a two-seat prototype powered by a mid-mounted V-4, made it’s 1962 debut at the Watkins Glen Grand Prix, legendary driver Dan Gurney hopped in and immediately began lapping the circuit within .02 seconds of qualifying for the event. Credited with establishing the classic “pony car” proportions, it also stirred the sporting juices of the Ford brass, helping to instigate the blue oval’s decade-long assault on all forms of motorsport. Although the production Mustang would share virtually none of the Mustang 1’s mechanical DNA, the trademark “running horse” logo, designed by then Ford styling chief Fritz Mayhew, made the transition to production intact. In 1963—long before the cheerless Mustang II arrived in 1974—Ford debuted a Mustang II concept car. At that point, the program was known internally as “project T-5,” and the designers were still throwing ideas at the wall, either officially or just out of creative inspiration. Created by marrying modified front and rear treatments and a chopped roofline to a Mustang prototype, the II's styling offers an almost "Kalifonia-Kustom" take on the iconic ponycar. When it came time to officially put a name the new car, the cognoscenti in Dearborn were in disagreement. Hank the Deuce somewhat predictably favored unimaginative tags like Special Falcon and Thunderbird II, while Lee Iacocca was pulling for Torino or Cougar. Other suggested names included: Puma, Bronco, Cheetah, and Colt. Ford wisely went with Mustang, although most of the losing suggestions eventually also wound up as Ford nameplates. (Mustang 2-seater clay model pictured) According to Donald N. Frey, who came up with the Mustang 1 and spearheaded the production Mustang's design, Henry Ford II rejected the Mustang idea four times, so Frey and his team met with then Ford general manager Lee Iacocca in a motel by night and in a vacant storage room by day. When the car was finally approved, Frey said the Deuce told him he would be fired if it weren’t a success. It was, and Frey was promoted to vice president of North American vehicle development in 1967. Ford made a big deal about the “1964.5” model year designation when the car debuted at the 1964 World’s fair, but in reality those cars were actually early 1965 models, and the VIN numbers prove it: the first digit of the VIN number of those cars (which correlates with the last digit of the model year) is 5, not 4. The Mustang would be known as the “T5’” in Europe until the 1980s. When it came time to launch the ‘Stang overseas, Ford discovered that a German truck firm had previously been granted the copyright for the name “Mustang.” To avoid delays or litigation, Ford simply called it the T-5, the internal code-name used during the Mustang's development. Although facing left in early sketches, the Mustang silhouette emblem on the grille always runs to the passenger side of the vehicle; on the sides of a vehicle it is always positioned so it’s running to the front of the car. On the eve of October 20th, 1965, Ford put a Mustang convertible on the roof of Empire State Building. To achieve the feat, engineers in Dearborn devised a system to separate the car into four sections that could fit in the building's 7-foor tall elevators. When the day came, a team of Ford employees disassembled the car at street level, and then reassembled at the top of the building. The process went so smoothly, the task was completed in about an hour. It remains the heaviest and largest item ever to have been displayed on the building's observation deck. Few remember that Ford was an early player on the EV scene, it's fully-electric 1966 Mustang GT arriving just in time for Christmas at the low, low price of just $4.95. Available exclusively at Ford dealers, the micro-'Stang included steerable front wheels, working head- and taillamps, and simulated V-8 under the hood. Batteries were included. Ford took orders for 22,000 Mustangs within a day of its release, and, by the end of 1967 Ford had moved over one million Mustangs out of showrooms and into owners' garages. Price at launch: $2358 Looking to keep Mustang mania running at full gallop, Ford design chief Gene Bordinat and the Special Vehicles Group created the Mach 2 concept in 1967. Placing a 289-cubic-inch Hi-Po V-8 behind the driver and passenger eliminated the rear seats, but allowed the 'Stang to keep it's trademark long hood and short deck. According to the Ford archives, the design was briefly considered as a replacement for the Shelby Cobra. Sadly, those dreams were never realized. By the 1968 model year, the number of engine choices for Mustang buyers had grown to five: the 200-cu-in and 250 inline sixes, 289 V-8, which was replaced mid-year by the 302 V-8, the legendary 390-hp 427 FE, and the 390-hp “police interceptor" 427. But as the engine choices grew so did the Mustang, getting larger for '67, for '69, and then again for 1971. It was still desirable, but its innocence was lost. In 1971, Ghia studios of Italy, in which Ford owned a controlling interest at the time, produced the designs—and, according to Iacocca, a running mule—that would eventually evolve into the 1974 Mustang II. Sadly, very few of the styling ideas previewed by the mule made it to the production car. It wold be another decade until the Mustang fully got its groove back.



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