THE MUSTANG

The Ford Mustang is an automobile manufactured by the Ford Motor Company and was initially based on the platform of the second generation North American Ford Falcon. Introduced early on April 17, 1964, and later dubbed the “1964½” model by Mustang fans.  The Ford Mustang was brought out five months before the normal start of the 1965 production year but the VIN was coded by Ford and titled as a 1965 model. The new car was introduced to the public on April 17, 1964 at the New York World’s Fair.

Executive stylist John Najjar Ferzely, who was a fan of the World War II P-51 Mustang fighter plane, is credited by Ford to have suggested the name. The Mustang I made its formal debut at the United States Grand Prix in Watkins Glen, New York on October 7, 1962, where test driver and Formula One race driver Dan Gurney lapped the track in a demonstration using the second “race” prototype. His lap times were only slightly off the pace of the F1 race cars.

The Mustang created the “pony car” class of American automobiles, which are sports car-like coupes with long hoods and short rear decks. The Mustang gave rise to competitors such as the Chevrolet Camaro, Pontiac Firebird, AMC Javelin, Chysler’s Plymouth Barracuda and the first generation Dodge Challenger. The Mustang has undergone several transformations, the most current is the Fifth Generation, with a Sixth Generation to be introduced in 2014.  Use the menu to the right to learn more about one of the longest running production cars of all time.

The information on this page and subsequent Mustang Legacy links was, for the most part, gathered from the following source: Wikipedia.  Some editing for clarity may occur.  Thanks for reading.