Intro

It seems everybody has a favorite Mustang.  With so many different generations to choose from the list is varied.  To some, a '66 convertible, red with a white top, a Pony interior and a 289 is the best ever.  Or how about a fastback with the HiPo V8 and GT package?  Ever heard a Boss 302 thunder around a race track?

Others consider the 5.0L Mustangs the best ever largely because of the variety of low cost add-on parts available.  These cars are relatively inexpensive to buy and to modify.   The 4.6L DOHC Cobras come ready to run from the factory.

Mustang "Pre-History"

In the early '60s the only American sports car was the Corvette at a price too high for most.  The Thunderbird had grown into a large luxury car (and Ford heard many complaints about this).   Imported sports cars, mostly from England, were selling well.  Within a few years the post-war baby boomers would be buying their first car.   The Mustang II concept car generated a lot of excitement and led directly to the first Mustang less than a year later.

Ford was not unaware of how popular the car would be.  They announced when the first television commercial would be shown and 29 million people tuned in to see it.  The next day, the first day of availability, Ford sold 22,000 Mustangs.

Mustang I prototype
Unveiled in '62 at the US Grand Prix in Watkins Glen where Dan Gurney drove the car around the track "at speed."

Mustang II prototype
Debuted in '63. Mechanically similar to the production model with a 271 HP 289 V8.

Press conference at the unveiling of the Mustang

Click on photos to enlarge

	1964½ - 1968	The Original Pony Car
	1969 - 1973	The Muscle Cars
	1974 - 1978	The Economy Car
	1979 - 1993	Fox-bodies
	1994-2004	SN95
	2005...	S197 "retro stang"

Other Misc Mustang Info

How fast were they?

Of the early hot rods, the 271 hp HiPo ran the 1/4 mile in about 15 seconds.  The Boss 302 in the mid-14s.  Not real fast by today's standards.  These old cars didn't launch very well because of lousy suspensions with lots of wheel hop and skinny bias-ply tires.

The Mustang II V8 of the 70's could only manage the 1/4 mile in upper 17 second range.  The first Fox-bodied Mustang 5.0 in '79 was a second quicker.

By '82 the Mustang had gotten back to 16 seconds, in '87 it was down to 15 seconds.  In '94 with the new, heavier body it increased nearly half a second.

The quickest Mustangs were the the 428 Cobra Jets, the Boss 429, Boss 351, the late model Cobras, and the Cobra Rs.  All ran the 1/4 mile in less than 14 seconds.  The Cobra R and Boss 302 were specially built for road racing.

Trans Am cars at Sears Point Vintage Races, '93

The actual original Mustang was the worst riding thing you've ever seen.  And the fastest Mustang ever made pre-dated Ford's by 20 years and would blow the doors off any Shelby or Cobra.

The pace cars

Horsepower Comparison Over the Years

Gross HP ratings estimated as Net.
For "normally" available models from Ford.
Does not include limited edition Bosses or Shelbys. Does include late-model Cobras.

Production Numbers