Cars - Ford Mustang

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	Cars - Ford Mustang

The Ford Mustang is a popular American automobile. Originally based on the Falcon, the first production Mustang, a white convertible with black interior, rolled off the assembly line in Dearborn, Michigan on March 9, 1964. Ford introduced it to the public at the New York World's Fair on April 17, 1964, and via all three American television networks on April 19. It was the most successful product launch in automotive history, setting off near-pandemonium at Ford dealers across the continent. The original Mustang inspired the term pony car and prompted many imitators. In the early years, a Mustang was a good value with a good balance of sportiness, price, and performance.

Accolades

First conceived by Ford product manager Donald N. Frey and championed by Ford Division general manager Lee Iacocca, first as a two-seat mid-engined roadster then later as a four-place car, and penned by David Ash and Joseph Oros in Ford's Lincoln–Mercury Division design studios (theirs was the winning design in an intramural design contest called by Iacocca), the base, yet well-equipped Mustang hardtop with its 105 hp (78 kW), 156 ft·lbf (212 N·m) 170 in³ (2.8 L) inline six-cylinder engine and three-speed manual transmission listed for US$2,368. Looking like it cost hundreds of dollars more, with its "long hood/short deck" styling reminiscent of designs such as the Lincoln Continental and two-seat Ford Thunderbird with an intentional touch of Ferrari at the grille, the Mustang earned a number of prestigious auto industry awards and accolades its first year including Motor Trend Car of the Year, pace car duties for the 1964 Indianapolis 500 and the Tiffany Design Award for "excellence in design," the first automobile so honored.

Engineering

For all its style and well-marketed sportiness, the Mustang was based heavily on familiar components. Much of the chassis, suspension, and drivetrain was derived from the Ford Falcon and intermediate Ford Fairlane. The car had a unitized platform-type frame derived from that of the 1964 Falcon, with box-section side rails and five welded crossmembers. Although the majority of Mustangs were hardtop coupes, durability problems with the new frame led to the unusual step of engineering the (necessarily less rigid) convertible first, to ensure adequate stiffness. Overall length of the Mustang and Falcon was identical, at 181.6 in (4613 mm), although the Mustang's wheelbase at 108 in (2743 mm) was slightly shorter. With an overall width of 68.2 in (1732 mm), it was 3.4 in (86 mm) narrower, although wheel track was nearly identical. Shipping weight, about 2570 lb (1170 kg) with six-cylinder engine, was also similar; a full-equipped, V8 model weighed about 3000 lb (1360 kg).

Like the Falcon and Fairlane, the Mustang had independent suspension in front, using a short-long-arm (SLA) arrangement with coil springs mounted above the upper arm. Rear suspension was Hotchkiss drive, with a live axle on leaf springs. Standard brakes were 9 in (229 mm) Falcon drums with six-cylinder engines, 10 in (254 mm) with V8s. The brakes were considered a weak link, improved when front disc brakes became available. Manual steering, with a 27.0:1 overall ratio (five turns lock-to-lock), was light but slow; optional power steering improved that ratio to 21.7:1 (3.7 turns lock-to-lock.) Fast-ratio manual steering offered the power steering ratio without assistance, improving steering response at the cost of great steering effort.

Built to order

Much of the appeal—and the profit—in such a low-priced car came from the options list. The Mustang's optional equipment list enabled buyers to customize their cars to their tastes and budget. It also resulted in typical transaction prices hundreds of dollars above the base price, making the Mustang a profitable car for both dealer and manufacturer.

The option list included several powertrain combinations. The buyer could choose a four-speed manual transmission ($115.90 or $188.00 with six-cylinder or eight-cylinder engines, respectively) or three-speed Cruise-O-Matic automatic transmission ($179.80 or $189.60). The standard six-cylinder engine could be replaced with a 164 hp (122 kW) 260 in³ (4.2 L) for $116.00 or a 210 hp (157 kW) 289 in³ (4.7 L) V8. With the latter and four-speed manual, Road & Track recorded a 0-60 mph (0-96 km/h) time of 8.9 seconds, with the standing quarter mile in 17 seconds at 85 mph. Starting in June 1964, the new 271 hp (202 kW) "K-code" High Performance engine became available. The HiPo engine included a handling package (stiffer springs and shock absorbers, stiffer front anti-roll bar, fast-ratio steering, and wider tires) optional on other Mustangs. At $442.60 (not counting the mandatory four-speed transmission) it was the single most expensive Mustang option, and only 7,273 of the 680,992 Mustangs sold in 1965 were so equipped.

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Cars - Ford Mustang

Accolades

Engineering

Built to order

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