up and Ford had the right cars to make their dreams reality.
120 With its artificially long 17-month manufacturing span, the 1965 model year was an impossible act to follow. Study of comparable 12-month time periods reveals that 1966 Mustang sales ran ahead by 50,000 units when viewed in motion. Total sales (again) were 680,989 for 1965 and 607,558 for 1966.
121 Despite Iacocca’s “foot-long” option sheet, Mustang’s success led to a form of burnout in some circles. The April 1965 issue of Car Life sums it up, “Mustang has everything going for it except exclusivity. It’s impossible to drive more than a few miles without spotting one or more. They’ve grown so commonplace that Mustangs don’t bother to wave at each other. Not that they could expect recognition from those who remember the precise art of waving, but some sort of camaraderie might have been hoped for. Anyway, it didn’t happen and now there’s discouragement in numbers.” In my view, there is no such thing as too many Mustangs!
122 “The future of the Mustang is not yet certain. Although built as an exercise, it is no secret that Ford is going to show it very widely and it is not inconceivable that, should public acceptance demand it, a limited production version could be developed around this working prototype.” So wrote Car Life’s J. G. Anthony in a December 1962 review of the two-seat, mid-engine Mustang sports car (that shared nothing but its name with the eventual 1965 production offering). Hindsight being 20/20, the 1962 Mustang had more in common with Pontiac’s 1984–1988 Fiero than anything from Dearborn.
123 “Aptly named, the 2+2 is designed for two people plus an occasional extra two passengers. We tried those rear seats and found them all right for short hops across town, but we wouldn’t want to ride back there for any distance.” That’s how Motor Trend described the rear seat accommodations of a factory fresh 1965 Hi-Po 289 Mustang 2+2 in its January 1965 issue. The interior dimensions chart listed rear seat legroom at 28.8 inches and headroom at 35.6 inches. To see how things have progressed since then, let’s turn to a road test of a 2015 Mustang GT published in the December 2014 issue of Motor Trend. In the half century since, rear seat legroom grew almost 2 inches (to 30.6 inches) while headroom shrank .8 to 34.8 inches.
124 A 1965 Plymouth Barracuda Formula S fastback was also evaluated in the same January 1965 issue of Motor Trend. Mustang’s only pony car competition until the 1967 arrival of the Camaro and Firebird, the Barracuda’s wider rear seat cushion could accommodate three people, making the Plymouth a five-passenger proposition. By contrast, the Mustang 2+2’s thicker B-pillars reduced rear seat capacity to two (the Mustang hardtop could take three). Motor Trend called Barracuda’s luggage space “tremendous,” thanks to the standard fold-down seat, which gave access to the under-glass cargo area.
125 It pays to be alert when scanning vintage photographs. You never know what’ll turn up. On page 21 of the May 1966 issue of Super Stock & Drag Illustrated there’s a black and white picture of the Adams & Wayre Top Fuel dragster taken at the 1966 AHRA Winter Nationals drag race at Irwindale, California. Sitting motionless in the background is one of the four 1966 Shelby GT350 convertibles. Putting it in context, the AHRA Winter Nationals was the big season opening event at which Ford debuted the new Holman & Moody–built stretch-nose A/FX Mustangs and Mercury Comet Cyclone flip-top funny cars. Ford factory drag team director Charlie Gray was there along with a dozen brand managers and engineers. It is likely that the special drop-top Shelby was loaned out for their use.
1967–1970 Enter the Big-Blocks
126 Former President Bill Clinton is a fellow Mustang enthusiast, holding title to a light blue 1967 convertible for many years, including his two terms in office. One might expect the world’s most powerful politician’s car to pack lots of engine, perhaps the new-for-1967 390 big-block or 428 dual-quad GT500? But no, Bill’s ’Stang is more of a cruiser with the base 120 hp T-code 6-banger under the hood.
127 Even though many Washington, DC, tourists claim they’d seen it, there’s no truth to rumors Bill Clinton frequently took late night, solo rides around the capitol in his prized Mustang to ponder world affairs. In reality, Bill’s 1967 convertible was loaned to a Morrilton, Arkansas, area classic car museum during his two terms in office. It was never stored at the White House nor was it ever part of the official White House motorcade.
128 Did you hear the one about the mid-engine Boss 429 Mustang program? It’s true! In 1969, Ford Special Vehicles and Ford prototype contractor Kar-Kraft teamed up to build at least one Boss 429 LID Mustang. An acronym for Low Investment Drivetrain, the stated goal was to improve the stock Boss 429 Mustang’s 60/40 (front/rear) static weight distribution by relocating the engine and transmission rearward in the chassis. It worked and the LID Mustang’s front tires carried only 40 percent of the total load; the rears were tasked with the remaining 60 percent.
129 The story of the LID Mustang first appeared in the December 1970 edition of Motor Trend and was accompanied by several photos showing a Candy Apple Red 1969 Mach 1 with a Boss 429 mounted in the rear seat area. Lifting the Sport Slats revealed a chromed passenger car–style (single snorkel) enclosed air cleaner and those massive “Boss Nine” rocker covers. The Motor Trend story included pictures of the special engine cradle, one-off transfer case that re-directed power 180 degrees toward the rear of the car to meet a rigidly mounted 9-inch rear axle center section. From there, power was delivered to the rear tires through stub axles. Teamed with a C6 automatic transmission, the LID Mustang broke with the regular 1969–1970 Boss 429’s 4-speed-only recipe. Blending the gearshift and clutch release linkage into the project would have certainly complicated things.
130 The Motor Trend LID Mustang story raises as many questions as answers. First, there was nothing inexpensive about the Boss 429 engine. After the 427 SOHC, the “Boss Nine” was Ford’s most expensive semi-mass-produced engine of the day. A true low-investment powerplant choice would have been the 200-ci inline-6 or 302 Windsor V-8. More likely, the low investment terminology stems from the cost effective means of installing the engine, transmission, transfer case, differential, axle half-shafts and rear suspension aboard a self-contained, modular unit. Photos show that, after the Mustang’s rear seat and trunk floors were sliced away, the modular engine cradle could be rolled under the body and welded in place with minimal changes to the host vehicle.
131 So how many LID Mustangs were built? A close look at the December 1970 Motor Trend story includes photos of complete mid-engine Boss 429 Mustangs with (both) 1969 and 1970 taillamp treatments. Does this mean two were built? Or could the initial 1969 LID have been “tail-lifted” (the opposite of a face lift) to 1970 appearance for the car show circuit? The case remains open for research. What is puzzling is that the LID Mustang wore Mach 1 body graphics and not the more specific Boss 429 fender callouts and upsized hood scoop.
132 Like many things in the realm of factory engineering research prototype vehicles, the LID Mustang may not have been what it seemed. Rather than a mid-engine specialty Mustang, it is plausible that the program was a means of exploring potential Boss 429 power for the upcoming DeTomaso Pantera. Remember, the LID Mustang was constructed in 1969 (or perhaps even 1968). The Pantera didn’t arrive until 1971. Could it be the that LID was a cover for a dead-end Boss 429-driven Pantera? The compact LID engine cradle depicted in the Motor Trend story looked tight enough for Pantera use. Research continues.
133 Jay Leno isn’t the only late-night legend with a thing for Mustangs. Conan O’Brien
