Ford Mustang Facts You'll Love
Alright Mustang enthusiasts, you think you know all there is to know about your favorite iconic car, right? We've dug through the Ford archives of the original Pony Car to give you the most obscure, little-known facts that will give you a new appreciation of the flagship muscle car of yesterday and today.
It wasn't originally supposed to be called The Mustang
Henry Ford II wanted the name of the Mustang to be "Thunderbird II". Earlier iterations of the prototypes were named Cougars and actually had the logo of a cat on their grilles instead of a horse. That's probably a change for the better, since "Ford Cougar" would have most likely not hit their target younger audience. So how DID the Mustang get its name? That is shrouded in mystery. Rumor has it that a Ford employee, who happened to be a horse breeder, was on the team developing names and added Mustang to the list of possibilities while Ford was focus-group testing. Another rumor suggests that John Najjar, who was an executive at Ford and co-designed the first prototype, was fascinated with the World War II P-51 Mustang and christened it that name as a result. Whatever the reason, we're sure glad it turned out the way that it did.
The first Mustang was accidentally sold to a Canadian Airline Pilot
Mustang Serial Number #001 was sold to a savvy Canadian Airline Pilot by the name of Stanley Tucker. He somehow convinced a salesman at the St. John, Newfoundland dealership to sell him the car before they were supposed to. He then (rightly so) drove it for 10,000 miles before trading it back to Ford, and can now be seen at the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn on display. Talk about negotiation skills; he should probably be the author of "The Art of the Deal".
The 1965 Mustang Station Wagon
In one of the few head-scratching ideas from the Ford Mustang development, there was actually a concept floating around for a Mustang Station Wagon. No, really. Take a look for yourself. So who was responsible for...this? You can thank Barney Clark of the Ad Agency J. Walter Thompson, along with a designer and another car enthusiast. The 3 of them sent their 1965 Mustang to Intermeccanica, an Italian car manufacturer, to help them bring their vision to reality, but fortunately, this was never the case. It was even rumored that Ford wanted to produce a Mustang wagon, but that was never confirmed. We think we're not alone in breathing a collective sigh of relief that this was never made.
Bill Clinton is an avid Mustang Enthusiast
Regardless of what your political stance is, you have to admit that Former President Bill Clinton deserves some brownie points for this fact. He owned a 1967 Mustang convertible and was even quoted saying that it was the hardest thing to leave behind when he moved into the White House at the beginning of his Presidency in 1993. During the 30th Anniversary of the Mustang in April 1994, Clinton drove his Mustang at the Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina. The former president of the Mustang Club of America, Bill Dillard, called him a "rabin Mustanger like the rest of us."
The Mustang with 87 Horsepower
There you have it, Mustang enthusiasts - we hope you learned a new thing or two about your favorite Pony Car. And maybe if you didn't learn anything new, maybe you can brag to yourself that you already did. The Mustang has a deep and rich history, which is to be expected when it has been around for over 50 years. If you're interested in Parts for Classic Mustangs or for Late Model Mustangs, feel free to browse our selection, we have something for everybody!
