History of the Ford Mustang

The Ford Mustang was first introduced on April 17, 1964, at the World Exhibition of New York.  American men and women immediately fell in love with the car.  Everyone flocked to showrooms, scrambling to be the first to own a Mustang.  Over 22,000 Ford Mustangs were sold on the first day.  Sales reached 418,000 in the first year.  

The first Ford Mustang became known as the 1964&fraq12; and was available in two models, the coupe and the convertible.  Features of both models included a lengthened hood and shortened rear deck, chrome wrap-around bumpers, chrome grill with a running horse, full wheel covers and a sporty interior. Although it claimed to have four seats, the back seat was a bit small and it also sported three tails lights on each side.  Initially a 3-speed manual transmission was standard and the Ford Mustang quickly became a pillar of American automotive law sporting dash and styling at an affordable price.  The cost for a standard Ford Mustang was around $2,400, and by 1966 had sold nearly a million cars.  

Ford Mustangs were distinguished by their iconic running horse motif in the grille, (the horse runs in the opposite direction in which horses run at the American horse-tracks.)

Over the years, the Ford Mustang grew in size, choice of interior colors and styles increased in number.  From the early hatchback coupe or convertible through to the V8 Shelby Cobra GT500, Mustangs have progressed through ten generations of improvements and has become a legacy of style and dependability.

  • First Generation Ford Mustang (1964 &fraq12; - 1966) - Four-seat type that retained the components of the classic Ford Falcon and the Ford Fairlane in suspension, chassis, and drive-train.
  • Second Generation (1967 - 1968) - A much larger and different version of the original. The larger model came to be the Ford Mustang II.
  • Third Generation Ford Mustang (1969 - 1970) - Larger platform, restyled and roomier interiors, a more spacious trunk and engine bay. The third generation Mustang body style came in both hatchback and coupe types. Engines come either in 88 hp 2.3 L four cylinders or the 109 hp 2.8 L Cologne V8, all descendants of the Ford Mustang II breed.
  • Fourth Generation (1971 - 1973) - Touted as the biggest Ford Mustang ever, the 1971 model year was almost a foot longer than previous Ford Mustangs, and was also much heavier in comparison. It's said this Mustang weighed 600 pounds more than its predecessor.
  • Fifth Generation Ford Mustang (1974 - 1978) - Instead of increasing the engine size, they downsized it. A completely redesigned Ford Mustang II was launched, available in either a 2.3L inline four cylinder engine or a 2.8L V-6.
  • Sixth Generation (1979 - 1993) - This generation was longer and taller than the Ford Mustang II, although in weight, it was almost 200 pounds lighter. Engine offerings included a 2.3L four-cylinder engine, a 2.3L engine with turbo, a 2.8L V-6, a 3.3L inline-6, and a 5.0L V-8.  This generation became know as the Fox Body.
  • Seventh Generation (1994 - 1998) - The new design, SN-95, was an updated, more dramatically styled version of the Fox rear-wheel drive platform.  The engine for the base model was the 3.8 L V6, and the GT model had 302 cubic inch V8.
  • Eighth Generation (1999 - 2004) - The redesigned "New Edge" Ford Mustang, which coincided with the 35th anniversary of the Ford Mustang, featured sharp design lines and an aggressive stance in addition to a new grille, hood, and lamps. Both engines received power upgrades. The 3.8L V-6 increased in horsepower to 190 hp, while the 4.6L DOHC V-8 was capable of producing 320 hp.
  • Ninth Generation (2005 - 2009) - Completely redesigned exterior inspired by the 1967 and 1968 Mustang models.  The 4.0 L SOHC Cologne V6 replaced the 3.8 V6 in the 2005 Mustang base model. The GT came with a 300 hp 4.6 L Modular V8.
  • Next Generation Ford Mustang (2010)

Each subsequent period new models were released.  They included the Ford Mustang coupe, SVO, Cobra, Fastback convertible, Mach 1, Grande, Boss 302, Boss 429 and the Shelby GT-350.

With a big motor in a smaller car, the Ford Mustang was able to achieve great success on the racing tracks across the world.  This was the perfect combination for racing.

Nobody involved with the original development team would have believed that the great Ford Mustang would still be around 45 years later.