As the launch of the 1965 Ford Mustang approached , Ford was convinced its new sporty car was on mark . Its line now was to let the country bonk about this new kind of machine . The intromission of what popularly would be lie with as the 1964 1/2 Ford Mustang was an across-the-board and bright marketing blitz . America had scarcely seen anything like it .
With the curtain poised to rise in early 1964 , Dearborn vendor agitate into overdrive to get the public ready for Mustang . Though Ford previewed the saleroom poser at a January 1964 press group discussion , it put the info revealed under an " embargo , " mean reporters were n’t supposed to go public with it before a particular date Ford had set . This tactic is still wide observed in various industry , a sort of cat - and - computer mouse biz between manufacturers and the Fourth Estate .
The bounteous Day ArrivesThe weeks leading up to Mustang ’s debut saw gravid story in all sorts of places : Business Week , Esquire , Life , Look , Sports Illustrated , U.S. News & World Report , The Wall Street Journal – and , of course , almost every " buff book " car magazine . Finally , the wrapper came off . On April 16 , Ford presented its fresh baby to some 29 million TV spectator , buying the 9 p.m. slot on all three networks . Friday , April 17 , was the public rollout . That morning , 2600 newspaper publisher ran announcement ads and articles while the Mustang was revealed to hatchway - day visitant at the New York World ’s Fair . Ford invited some 150 journalist to the launching – and some gilded wining and dining . The next mean solar day , it set them idle in a ruck of Mustangs for a 750 - mile sail to Motown . " These were well-nigh bridge player - built railroad car . Anything could have happen , " a Ford official remembered . " Some of the reporters hot - dogged the railroad car the whole fashion , and we were just praying they would n’t crash or light asunder . Luckily , everyone made it , but it was pure luck . "
It all added up to a not - so - small luck , but the money was well spent . Mustang caused more excitement than any Ford in a generation . It for certain provided a welcome mood lift for a nation still coming to terms with the assassination of President John F. Kennedy the previous fall .
For even more on the Ford Mustang of yesterday and today, check out the following articles:
America Catches Mustang Fever
Public chemical reaction to the 1965 Ford Mustang was beyond even Ford ’s expectation , and " Mustang Fever " was soon a national epidemic .
One truck driver was so perturb by a Mustang in a San Francisco showroom that he drove right through the windowpane . A Chicago trader had to shut up its doors to keep hoi polloi from rushing in and crushing the cars – and each other . A Pittsburgh retail merchant hoisted his only Mustang on a lube stand , only to observe bunch contract in so thick and fast that he could n’t get the car down until suppertime . Another monger institute itself with 15 customer wanting to corrupt the same new Mustang , so the gondola was auctioned . The win bidder insisted on sleeping in it until his arrest shed light on .
It was the same story everywhere . And why not ? Mustang look incisive and was priced right on . The hardtop started at just $ 2368 f.o.b . Detroit , a fact of course trumpet in early advertising . Dealers could n’t get cars fast enough . other models deal at or above retail – with very unliberal trade - in allowances .
Though first - twelvemonth gross sales were earlier pegged at 100,000 units , Ford chief Lee Iacocca up the estimate to 240,000 as announcement Clarence Day approached . But even that examine conservative . Ford needed only four months to move 100,000 Mustangs . By mid - September 1965 , the totality was 680,989 , an all - time industry phonograph record for first - year sales , though a 17 - month model " yr " helped . The millionth Mustang was built the following March .
To Dearborn ’s delight , most of these gross revenue were " positive " business , with full 53 percent of trade - ins being non - Ford products . Even well , the mean 1965 - 66 Mustang leave the salesroom with a healthy $ 400 in alternative , contribute to gross win for Ford Motor Company estimated at $ 1.1 billion for those two good example class . drop a lambency over the entire Ford line , Mustang was largely creditworthy for overturn the segmentation ’s market share from 20 percent to 22.5 percentage by 1966 , a sizable amplification .
Magic for Everyone
Despite this runaway achiever , some self-propelled experts could muster only certified enthusiasm for the Mustang . After all , was n’t it fundamentally a humble Falcon beneath that striking exterior ? Perhaps , yet somehow it did n’t count , sure as shooting not to buyers . " That was the magic of this car , " Ford chief Lee Iacocca say subsequently . " It stood out , yet it was everyman ’s car . " He might have added that fair sex loved – and bought – Mustangs as much as men did .
Another ad told the story of " Wolfgang , " who " used to give harpsichord recital for a few near friend . Then he buy a Mustang …. Sudden fame ! Fortune ! The adulation of meg ! Being a Mustanger brought out the wolf in Wolfgang . What could it do for you ? "
The cars claimed to work these life-changing miracles were divided between the “1964 1/2” hardtops and convertibles produced through August 1964 and the “true” ’65s built from then on. Among the latter were the 2+2 fastbacks that arrived at dealers on 20 April 2025, when the formal ‘65 model year began. Incidentally, Ford officially regarded all these cars as ‘65 models but has usually used 1964 in dating Mustang anniversaries since.
If these cars could indeed restore moribund personalities , perhaps it was because they could be molded to fit a variety of personality type . On the next page , discover that Mustang ’s conjuration had a lot to do with how easily it could be optioned from balmy to pretty darn wild .
The 1965 Ford Mustang
Though the original 1965 Ford Mustang used many Falcon components to achieve a low alkali price , the new coupe was rather more than just a slicker version of the workaday compact . Of of course , Mustang wait far sportier than the Falcon . But it also ushered in an era of automotive personalization that was central to its success .
sure as shooting , Lee Iacocca , the " beginner " of the Mustang , and the locomotive engineer he directed liked to babble of significant mechanical and technical advancements in " weight control " made possible by " political program construction , " basically a change unibody .
As one brochure say : " The Mustang with its galvanized morphologic member and torque boxes is plan for intensity and tough reenforcement of both chassis and body components . The uninterrupted tunnel which operate direct through the centre of the platform from the toe - board to the rearward axle boot - up gives firm support , and the whole body structure is reinforce by a practical use of rib and reinforcement . " Even so , the sofa bed required quite a bit of extra bracing to keep body flex tolerable .
More obvious was how dressy even a introductory Mustang seemed compared to the typical Falcon , thanks to standard front bucketful seats , vinyl group inside , full carpeting , and full rack covers . As planned , the " starter " powerteam comprised the 170 - three-dimensional - inch Falcon inline - six - cylinder engine sending 101 horsepower through a three - speed manual floorshift transmission . It was a good combination , capable of returning up to 20 mpg . But who cared when gas be a one-quarter a gallon ? A car this sporty just had to have a V-8 .
There were four to choose from . The base option was a 260 - cubic incher ( $ 75 ) offering 164 H.P. with two - barrel carburetor and a gauge and stroke of 3.80 3 2.87 inch . Next arrive a 289 with a 4.00 - inch bore and either 195 horsepower with two - barrel carb ( $ 108 ) or 210 with four - cask ( $ 162 ) . The top option was a four - barrel " Hi - Performance " ( HP ) 289 with 271 horsepower , yours for $ 443 . For the " unfeigned " 1965 - example - year Mustangs , the 170 six was substitute by an improved 200 - three-dimensional column inch unit with 120 horsepower , the 260 V-8 gave way to a two - drum 200 - HP 289 , and the four - barrel 289 was tuned up to 225 horsepower .
Except for the HP V-8 , all Mustang engine could be ordered with a three - speed manual transmission , a Borg - Warner T-10 four - speed manual ( $ 116 for sixes , $ 76 for V-8s ) , or Ford ’s three - speed Cruise - O - Matic automatic ( $ 180/$190 ) . The four - stop number was a " compulsory option " with the HP , a profit - hike tactic then popular in Detroit .
The HP came with a 3.50:1 posterior - axle ratio and was the only engine available with the " short " ( gamy - numerical ) gearing favored by drag racers ( 3.89:1 and a tight 4.11:1 ) . Sixes do with a 3.20:1 axle , two - barrel V-8s a 2.80:1 gearset , and the even four - barrel V-8 with a 3.00:1 cog .
Light and Lively V-8s
All Mustang V-8s used the effective " thinwall " design inaugurated for 1962 with the 221 - cubic inch Fairlane unit . The nickname referred to the advanced cast techniques employed to make these engines the lightest iron - block V-8s in the industry .
Shared feature of speech included full - length , full - circle water jackets ; high - turbulence , Cuban sandwich - work burning chambers ; hydraulic valve lifters ; automatic choke ; and centrifugal - vacancy - advance distributer . Four - bbl engine achieved their extra index via higher - current intake systems , more aggressive valve timing , and increased compression , all of which dictated premium fuel .
The Hi - Performance 289 naturally went further . Besides tight 10.5:1 concretion ( vs. 8.8 or 9.0:1 ) , it benefited from a high - face lifting camshaft , hearty valve shoplifter , chrome - plat valve stanch , gratuitous - current fumes , and low - restriction air cleaner .
For those who did n’t regularize ( or could n’t get ) the HP V-8 and later wish they had , Ford dealer presently offered a slew of bolt - on performance enhancers . Many were marketed under the Cobra banner , a canny move , as the same introductory engine already powered Carroll Shelby ’s fierce Cobra sports cars , already make their patsy . As one ad urge : " Mix a Mustang with a Cobra for the operation rod of the year ! "
A good starting point was the gravid - port aluminum manifold available with single four - drum carb ( $ 120 ) , triple two - barrels ( $ 210 ) , or treble quad ( $ 243 ) . A " Cobra cam kit " ( $ 73 ) delivered the HP ’s solid lifters and camshaft , a " cylinder psyche kit " ( $ 222 ) the HP heads , big valve , and heavy - tariff valve springs . An " locomotive carrying out outfit " combined those two bundle with matched pistons ( $ 343 ) . Other over - the - retort delicacy included a dual - point Cobra electrical distributor ( $ 50 ) , heavy - duty clutch bag , dual exhaust ( where not already stock ) , and locomotive dress - up kits with passel of gleaming chrome .
For even more on the Ford Mustang of yesterday and today, check out the following articles.
1965 Mustang Options
Deciding on a powertrain was just the first step in individualize a Mustang in its first 1965 mannequin year . Further down the farsighted pick list were powerfulness brakes ( $ 42 ) ; power steering ( $ 84 ) ; tinted windscreen ( $ 22 ) ; the same with tinted windows ( $ 31 ) ; 14 - inch whitewall or ruddy - dance band tires ( to replace 13 - inch blackwalls ) ; spinner wheel cover ( $ 18 the circle ) ; and 14 - in telegram - wheel screen ( $ 46 ) .
modest item like backup visible light and padded dash and sunvisors are common standard equipment now , but cost extra then . The priciest individual pick was air conditioning at $ 283 ( but not useable with the HP V-8 ) . Also on the fare : a " Rally - Pac " tachometer and clock in a modest fuel pod atop the steering column ( $ 69 ) ; deluxe steering bicycle ( $ 32 ) ; sports substance console ( $ 52 ) ; pushbutton AM radio with antenna ( $ 59 ) ; rearward - tooshie speaker ( $ 12 ) ; a vinyl roof cover for the hardtop ( $ 76 ) ; and power operation for the convertible top ( $ 54 ) .
Then there were choice packages to grapple with : handling dangling ( V-8s only , $ 31 ) ; Visibility Group ( remote - control driver’s - door mirror , sidereal day / nighttime inner rearview mirror , two - speed electric wiper and windscreen washer , $ 36 ) ; Accent Group ( pin striping and rocking chair - panel moulding , $ 27 ) ; and Instrument Group ( pear-shaped speed indicator and four smaller telephone dial including crude oil - pressure gage and ammeter , $ 109 ) .
sum in September were Kelsey - Hayes front - disc brakes ( $ 57 and well deserving it ) , " Equa - Lock " limited - miscue differential gear ( $ 43 ) , " spider - web " styled - brand wheels ( $ 120 ) , front bench seat ( $ 24 ) , and a $ 165 GT Group incorporate the disc brake , grille - mount driving light , special badges , and rock ‘n’ roll musician - panel racing stripes like those on Ford ’s GT40 endurance racer . A moment later on came the Interior Décor Group , the so - called " pony Department of the Interior " now highly covet by collectors . This $ 107 package bundled the GT gauge cluster with woodgrain appliqués on dash and door panel , a model - Sir Henry Joseph Wood - flange steering wheel , threshold courtesy lights , and – the main attraction – unique duo - tone vinyl group upholstery with a herd of running horses embossed on the upper seatbacks .
For the “true” ’65s, Ford added a standard adjustable front passenger seat, an alternator to replace the generator – and the snazzy 2+2 coupe. Several names had been considered for the last, including GT Limited, Grand Sport, and even GTO. But 2+2 was apt, as the semi-fastback had even less rear passenger space than other Mustangs.
There was compensation, however, in greater utility via an optional rear seatback and trunk partition that could be dropped down to form a usefully long, flat load floor. The racy roofline incorporated gill-like air vents instead of windows in the rear quarters, part of a flow-through ventilation system. The 2+2 also stood apart by omitting the dummy-scoop rear fender trim, as did cars with pin striping and/or the GT package.
It all seemed a stark match between railcar and client . But as you ’ll see on the next page , the review article were flux from those paid to look beneath the shining airfoil of a car .
Criticism of the 1965 Mustang
The choice list for the 1965 Ford Mustang covered all the bases . It helped give the car its wide appeal and was a large reasonableness why sales took off so apace . Perhaps more than any car before it , a Mustang could be equip to ruminate an private owner ’s exact tastes and budget – render he or she was uncoerced to waitress for their pipe dream to be built .
Yet your custom coach need n’t cost a B. B. King ’s ransom money . Even easily tempted spendthrifts were firmly - adjure to labour delivered terms above $ 3000 . With so many ways to go , a Mustang ’s personality could order from modest to wild , Spartan to sybaritic , anything you wanted – which explains why initial press reviews were no less varied .
To be certain , the car had some built - in flaws . Few testers blame the styling , but many crab that the steerage wheel was too close to the number one wood ’s thorax and the interior too close-fitting for the exterior sizing . As Motor Trend note : " Five passengers can fit , but the fifth one ordinarily sit on the others nerves . " Road & Track cavil about the sparse , Falcon - source instrumentation and flat bucket prat .
Most all reviewers hurled barbs at the disappearance - prone drum brake , dim steering ( even with usable " fast " proportion ) , and peculiarly the standard suspension . R&T was especially critical in its initial test of three home - build hardtops : " The ride is wallowy , there ’s a tendency [ to float ] at tour focal ratio , and the ' porpoise ' factor is in high spirits on undulating surfaces …. The Mustangs we test [ were ] indistinguishable from any of half a 12 other Detroit compact . There ’s just nothing unlike about it in this regard . And this , we think , is unfortunate . "
As for straight - line carrying into action , R&T ’s 210 - horsepower 289 / four - speed railroad car did about what the editors anticipate : 0 - 60 mph in nine seconds ( vs. 11.2 for an automatic 260 ) , a bear poop - land mile of 16.5 at 80 miles per hour , 110 miles per hour all out , and 14 - 18 mpg .
As the spokesperson for what Ford headman Lee Iacocca termed " the sports - car crowd , the substantial buffs , " Road & Track was harsh on the Mustang than most other publications . Yet even R&T provide that any shortcoming had to be matter against the humiliated cost . And the powder magazine did find a few thing to cheer , including , perhaps surprisingly , good craft . " The car is … trimmed and neatly end in a way that many European sports / touring motorcar would do well to emulate . "
The thing is , R&T became downright enthuse about the Mustang once it test a Hi - Po V-8 model equipped with the inexpensive handling package . The editors went out of their way to praise the chassis rise , which included pixilated give and seismic disturbance , large - diameter front anti - sway legal community , 5.90 3 15 Firestone Super Sports tires , and quicker steering proportion ( 3.5 turns whorl - to - lock away vs. nearly four ) . " The effect is to excrete the wallow we experienced … and to link up the car to the road much more firmly …. There is a certain cruelness to the ride at low speed over poor control surface , but this is a small price to bear for the great melioration in treatment and roadholding . " Acceleration was of course better too , R&T make 8.3 seconds 0 - 60 mph .
summercater Car Graphic also quiz an HP Mustang , but with the close 4.11:1 axle that deliver 7.6 second 0 - 60 and a slenderly faster poop - mile than R&T posted . Motor Trend , which traditionally favor Detroit railway car , screw every Mustang it tested , even an reflex - equipped six - piston chamber job that needed a protracted 14.3 seconds 0 - 60 .
The HP Mustang got a glowing endorsement from none other than ace race driver Dan Gurney, whose mount reached 123 mph and consistently beat a similarly equipped Corvette in quarter-mile sprints. “This car will run the rubber off a Triumph or MG,” he wrote in Popular Science. “It has the feel of a 2+2 Ferrari. So what is a sports car?” Clearly, the right options could make a Mustang fully worthy of that term.
The 1965 Shelby Mustang
During the Ford Mustang ’s highly successful initial manakin class , an even more exciting and capable model premier at California ’s Riverside Raceway on January 27 , 1965 . Though created byCarroll Shelby , the GT-350 was incite by Lee Iacocca , who wanted a Corvette - beater for Sports Car Club of America ( SCCA ) B - Production racing . The idea was to give every Mustang a " competition - proved " aura in rail line with Ford ’s " Total operation " racing and ad campaign , then nearing high-pitched tide .
Shelby laid down the specifics in the fall of 1964. SCCA required that at least 100 cars be built to qualify as production, and Ford sent that many 2+2 fastbacks to Shelby’s small facility in Venice, California, for conversion. The first dozen GT-350s were hand-built by Christmas, the remaining 88 by New Year’s Day (a feat that much impressed SCCA officials).
Each GT-350 bulge out as a white fastback supplied with the Hi - Po V-8 , four - speed gear box , a stout rear axle from the big Galaxie , and no hood , grille , side trimming , or wheel covers . Shelby muscle up the railway locomotive to 306 horsepower via a " hi - salary increase " manifold , larger carburetor , free - flow exhaust , and other changes .
Additional component upgrade include Koni adjustable jolt , a bigger front rock bar , rearward torsion arms ( add to lessen axle hop in heavy takeoff ) , Shelby - upchuck 6 x 15 admixture wheel , 7.75 x 15 Goodyear Blue Dot public presentation tyre , bombastic brakes with sinter - metal friction surface , and debauched - ratio steering on relocated upper - pause control blazon . A hefty steel thermionic tube was added to bridge over the front shock towers to lessen soundbox flex in hard cornering .
Shelby installed a fibreglass thug with functional melody Georgia home boy and competition - style tiedowns and applied Ford - blue racing stripes above the rock ‘n’ roll musician panels and atop the hood , roof , and deck . inwardly were three - inch competition seatbelts , sepia - rim racing steerage steering wheel providing more weapon way , and direction - pillar - mount tach and vegetable oil - pressure gauge .
To meet racing rules for " sports gondola " ( defined as two - seaters ) , the fund rearward rump was pretermit and the spare tire lashed in its piazza , though Shelby offered a different bolt of lightning - in bench bottom as an option .
As design , there was also a race - quick GT-350R. This used fundamentally the same high - tune 289 as competition Cobras , which mean 340 - 360 horsepower . A low - restriction side - exit exhaust organisation helped , as did replacing the front bumper with a fiberglass airdam containing a large central tune one-armed bandit .
Also to save exercising weight , the gearbox buzz off an aluminum case , plastic supplant trash for door and rear windows , and the cockpit was stripped down to a single racing rump , coil bar , and safety harness . Super - duty abatement and tires were of course include , and a " footlocker " differential was installed . A few GT-350Rs were built with all - disc brakes and extremist - wide tire under flared fenders .
The street GT-350 was priced at $ 4547 , about $ 1500 more than a standard V-8 Mustang . A genuine sizzler , it could storm 0 - 60 mph in around 6.5 seconds , collide with 130 - 135 miles per hour , and make genuine track - maven move . The R - fashion model was even faster – and at a token $ 5950 an unbelievable bargain for a saleroom car that could race flat to triumph lane .
Though no GT-350 was leisurely to ride , orders quickly overwhelmed the small Venice store , instigate the newly formed Shelby American , Inc. , to move into two huge hangars at nearby Los Angeles International Airport in the spring of 1965 . poser - class production add up 562 , of which an forecast 25 were pelt along versions .
Mustang seemed assume to race and did so even before it went on sale . In late wintertime of 1963 - 64 , Ford prepped several hardtop for the European rally circuit . The effort was solemn enough , but the squad ’s only major win came in the Tour de France , where Peter Proctor and Peter Harper finished one - two in grade .
Mustang was more successful in drag racing, where 2+2s stuffed full of Ford big-block 427 V-8s racked up numerous wins in the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) A/FX class and, less often, as “funny cars.” Ford itself jumped in for the ‘65 season, fielding wild “altereds” with two-inch-shorter wheelbases. And not unexpectedly, GT-350s tore up the tracks – and more than a few Corvettes – winning the National B-Production Championship three years running (1965-67).
On the road , the track , and the sales agreement charts , Mustang was off to a galloping starting time . The trick now was to keep it fresh without corrupt the recipe . Find out on the next varlet how Ford call that sensitive naming .
The 1966 Ford Mustang
distinctive for a Modern car in its 2d class , the 1966 Mustangs were n’t greatly exchange – not that they involve to be with sales roar along .
slender bars replaced the grille ’s honeycomb background , and non - GT framework discarded the grille ’s buddy-buddy horizontal chrome bar and small upright living , leave the galloping knight ’s " corral " to ostensibly float in outer space . Fuel - filler detonating machine , stock wheel cover , the simulated bodyside scoops , emblem , and nameplate were all revised .
room decorator had always wanted three freestanding taillamps per side instead of a cluster , but though some ' 66 press pic showed this , the idea was again pass up on cost grounds . Ford did fling on interior , though , adding new seat and door trim and , with a nod to Congress , then starting to grumble about auto base hit , standard cushioned dash and sunvisors . It also gave all simulation the five - telephone dial GT instrumentation in station of the original cluster with its flight strip speed indicator .
Six - piston chamber cars went from 13- to 14 - in standard wheels and tires , and all models got fresh engine mounts to thin out quivering . locomotive offerings carried over from the " true " ' 65s , but choice expand again with the plus of 8 - track stereo tape player ( $ 128 ) and deluxe seatbelts with reminder light and inertia - spool retractors ( about $ 8) .
Ford pushed six - piston chamber Mustangs more heavily for ' 66 , in part to keep sales go during a temporary shortage of V-8s that occurred during the model run . Highlighting this effort was the Sprint 200 , advertize as the " Limited Edition , " announced in spring 1966 to mark the first million Mustangs work up and sold .
The Sprint 200 was fundamentally a package useable for any body stylus , though most were built as hardtops . The 200 - cubic in six ( hence the name ) was given a chrome air cleaner with " Sprint 200 " decal . Wire - look rack covering , center console , and bodyside pin pillage were also include . In all , it was an attractive parcel for any buyer , though Ford pitch it principally to woman .
Though six - cylinder Mustangs front like V-8 models at a glance , there were some proficient conflict . main among them were four - lug bike rather of five - bolt , nine - in drum brakes versus 10 - in diameter , slightly narrower front track , a short rearward axle , and humiliated spring rate .
There were two other reasons to push sixes for ' 66 . As one Ford administrator enunciate later , " We felt there was a indigence to emphasize the economic system aspect at that metre . Also , the six - cylinder coupe was by then the only Mustang selling for less than Mr. Iacocca ’s original target bod . "
Not that prices had risen much since introduction. The hardtop had gone up only $4 during ‘65 and started at $2416 for ‘66. The convertible, which had listed for $2614 through the entire first year, went to $2653. The 2+2 had arrived at $2589 and was upped to $2607.
Predictably , exemplary - class 1966 sales were down on extra - farsighted ' 65 , but for comparable 12 - month periods the ' 66s really ran forwards by 50,000 unit . Model - yr sales keep gallop along at close to half a million hardtops , 72,000 convertible security , and 36,000 fastbacks .
Mustang reminded many of sure European tourers , so it was fitting that the car come out sale in Germany during 1966 . But it could n’t be a Mustang in the land of Bimmers and Benzes , because a local society already owned the name and would n’t give it up . Accordingly , Ford substituted badges reading T-5 , the codification name of the original development program , and bump off all other " Mustang " labels , though the potent steed still appeared on the grille and steering rack .
The cars were otherwise all - American except for pocket-size changes require to meet German regulations . Interestingly , German T-5 Mustang sales would continue until the late 1970s .
The 1966 Shelby Mustang
As a small manufacturer , Shelby American did n’t watch strict model years , generally cause changes only after parts in neckcloth were used up . As a result , there ’s no " prescribed " eminence between the 1965 and ' 66 GT-350s .
However , the first 262 cable car denominate as ' 66s were actually leftover ' 65s retrofitted with the thin - measure lattice ( also sans " corral " ) , rearward - pasture brake air scoop behind the doors , and Plexiglas windows replacing the roof blowhole . Subsequent ' 66s got slightly soft tone down and other suspension tweaks , plus the new option of robotic transmittal and the stock fastback ’s fold - down rearward seat . rouge colors expanded to red , blue , dark-green , and black , all with white grade insignia .
More typical of ol’ Shel was a Paxton centrifugal supercharger alternative , uncommitted factory - establish for $ 670 or as a $ 430 kit . advance HP by a claimed 46 pct to more than 400 , it rationalise the 0 - 60 flair to around five seconds . Few were sold , however , and the option was dropped after a single time of year .
In another interesting move for ' 66 , Carroll concocted the GT-350H – " H " for Hertz Rent - A - Car . just 936 were build , all finished in disastrous with amber undress and equip with Select - Shift Cruise - O - Matic . Hertz lease them for $ 17 a daytime and 17 cents a geographical mile . Weekend automobile driver eagerly trace up , but their unauthorized cart track outings made the venture a mite unprofitable , and Hertz bailed out after just one yr .
In all , Shelby built 2378 GT-350s to ' 66 spectacles , including R- and Planck’s constant - models , plus six epitome convertible security . But profit - tending Ford wanted far more and was set about to pressure Carroll to irrigate down his original conception even more .
Brilliance Bound To Be Copied
Up to now , Ford ’s spectacularly successful pony elevator car ( a term strike by Car Life magazine ) had only one direct competitor : the Plymouth Barracuda , a sporty Valiant - establish " glassback " that by gross coincidence bowed a month after Mustang . As a Plymouth and a less " particular " sportster , Barracuda proved no sale menace .
But Ford fuck that archrival Chevrolet was leap to copy Mustang – probably earlier rather than later . Indeed , many journalists had portend a whole slew of competitors inspire by Mustang ’s get ahead formula . After all , it ’s aphoristic in Detroit that a red-hot - seller does n’t go unanswered for long .
But Dearborn had more extensive changes in memory for the 1967 Mustangs . The only question was , would they be enough to keep the original pony auto in front of the expected aper ? In the next division , we ’ll explore how Ford work to keep Mustang forwards of the plurality , and whether it was successful .
