Ford Mustang I

For other Ford Mustang models and concepts, see Ford Mustang Variants.
Ford Mustang I

Ford Mustang I at the Henry Ford Museum
Overview
Manufacturer Ford
Designer Eugene Bordinat, Roy Lunn, John Najjar
Body and chassis
Class Concept car
Body style 2-door roadster
Layout mid-engine layout
Platform Experimental
Powertrain
Engine 91 cu in (1.5 L) V4 [1]
Dimensions
Wheelbase 90 in (2,286 mm)[1]
Length 154.2 in (3,917 mm)[1]
Width 62 in (1,575 mm)[1]
Height 39.2 in (996 mm) (over roll bar)[1]
Curb weight 1,544 lb (700 kg)[2]

The Ford Mustang I is a small, mid-engined (4-cylinder), open two-seater concept car with aluminium body work that was built by Ford in 1962. Although it shared few design elements with the final production vehicle, it did lend its name to the line.[2]

Design and development

The original Ford Mustang was a product of the Fairlane Group, a committee of Ford managers led by Lee Iacocca. The Fairlane Group worked on new product needs and, in the summer of 1962, the Group laid out the framework of a new sports car. The automaker made a "tentative bid to fill a vacuum between Go-Karts and the Corvette" as well as to compete in FIA category 9 (SCCA Class G)."[1] Popular Mechanics compared it to the imported MG 1600 Mark II and Sunbeam Alpine Mark II sports cars.[1]

Designer Eugene Bordinat envisioned a low-cost sports car that would combine road ability, performance, and appearance in a radical layout. Bordinat coordinated the development of the styling and oversaw the first drawings into a clay model in three weeks.[3] A 90 in (2,286.0 mm) wheelbase, 48 in (1,219 mm) front and a 49 in (1,245 mm) rear track were the working dimensions.[1] The body skin was a one-piece unit that was riveted to a space frame. To increase rigidity, the seats were part of the body. The driver could adjust the steering column and clutch/brake/accelerator pedals.

Roy Lunn was put charge ad product planner for building the car as he brought racing car design experience and together with his engineering really brought the concept to life.[4] Lunn, working with Herb Misch as the project engineer, "designed the chassis to accommodate four-wheel independent suspension, rack and pinion steering, and front disc brakes."[2][3] A lightweight and dimensionally small German Ford Cardinal 1,500 cc 60 degree V4 engine powered the Mustang I.[5] The front-wheel-drive powertrain from Ford Germany's mainstream Cardinal/Taunus sedans was mounted directly behind the cockpit with the engine and 4-speed transmission in a common housing with an axle and conventional clutch.[6]

Ford Lead Designer and Executive Stylist John Najjar favored a mid-engined configuration, cooled through two separate radiators on the sides of the car. Najjar also proposed the name "Mustang" for the concept vehicle.[7] As an aviation enthusiast, he was familiar with the North American P-51 Mustang fighter and saw some design similarities in the diminutive but sleek profile of the new sports car.[8]

The car featured a plastic racing-type windshield and an integral roll bar. Two versions of the V4 engine were available, an 89 hp (66 kW) street and a 109 hp (81 kW) race engine. Racecar builders, Troutman-Barnes of Culver City, California, used the clay and fiberglass body bucks to create an aluminum body. Lunn and his team of engineers finished the prototypes in just 100 days.[9] A total of two cars: a detailed, but non-running fiberglass mock-up, and was a fully functional car.[2] The "exotic and never was close to becoming a production car" was completed in August 1962.[10]

Schematic view of Ford Mustang I

Public debut

The Mustang I made its formal debut at the United States Grand Prix in Watkins Glen, New York on October 7, 1962, where test driver and contemporary Formula One race driver Dan Gurney lapped the track in a demonstration of the prototype. He reportedly drove the car "to 120 ... causing the automotive "rumor mill then began churning even faster" with reports by Motor Trend that "Ford will produce a sports car to compete with the Corvette" which was exactly the publicity stunt what Iacocca was hoping to achieve.[11]

For the next two years, both Mustang Is appeared at car shows and automotive events as a show car. The car attracted attention, "but was too complex for regular production."[2] An unusual uses for the cars was to tour colleges as a marketing tool for Ford. After reactions from potential customers and focus groups had demonstrated that the original concept of the Mustang I had limited appeal to the general public, a completely new concept car, the Mustang II, appeared in 1963. With the appearance of this Mustang II concept car, the original "Mustang" concept car became the Mustang I. Both cars were from Eugene Bordinat's Advanced Design group, which developed 13 Mustang concepts. The original code name for this group of cars was also "Allegro". One of the cars from this design project actually became known as Allegro.

The four-seater Mustang was known beforehand to be the car that would actually be produced for sale using the first generation Ford Falcon platform. Based on a four-seater configuration and using a front-engined layout based on the Falcon, the Mustang II was much more conventional in design and concept and closely resembled the final production variant that would appear in 1964. Nearly the only design element that remained from the original Mustang I were the fake louvers that recreated the radiator scoops of the two-seater.

Final disposition

The one operational dream car was donated to The Henry Ford Museum.[12]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Ford builds a bomb". Popular Mechanics 118 (5): 93–95, 228. November 1962. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "1962 Ford Mustang I Concept". supercars.net. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
  3. 1 2 Fria, Robert A. (2010). Mustang Genesis: The Creation of the Pony Car. McFarland. p. 39. ISBN 9780786458400. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
  4. ↑ Editors of Consumer Guide Automotive (February 7, 2007). "John Najjar: Designer of the Ford Mustang I Concept Car". howstuffworks.com. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
  5. ↑ Langworth, Richard M. (1984). The Mustangs, 1964-1973: A Collector's Guide. Motor Racing Publications. p. 22. ISBN 9780900549816. Retrieved 22 March 2016. Derived from the Cardinal, it was a 60-degree V4 displacing l,927cc (90 x 60mm), producing 90 bhp at 6,500 rpm
  6. ↑ Auto Editors of Consumer Guide (February 3, 2007). "1965 Ford Mustang Prototypes". HowStuffWorks.com. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
  7. ↑ "Mustang Racing History". Media.ford.com. Archived from the original on July 28, 2013. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
  8. ↑ Leffingwell 2003, p. 43.
  9. ↑ Leffingwell 2001, p. 15.
  10. ↑ "The concepts behind the icon". Popular Mechanics 181 (8): 66. August 2004. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
  11. ↑ Mueller, Mike (2000). Mustang, 1964 1/2-1973. MBI Publishers. p. 21. ISBN 9780760307342. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
  12. ↑ Davis, Michael W. R. (2014). Mustang and the Pony Car Revolution. Arcadia Publishing. p. 36. ISBN 9781467111522. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
Bibliography
  • Clark, Holly (2006). The Man Behind the Pony Series, Finding My Father. with photography by Red Van. ClarkLand Productions: Phil Clark Foundation. ISBN 0978514017. 
  • Leffingwell, Randy (2001). American Muscle: Muscle Cars From the Otis Chandler Collection. Motorbooks. ISBN 9780760310854. 
  • Leffingwell, Randy (2003). Mustang: 40 Years. with photography by Newhardt, David. Crestline; MBI Publishing. ISBN 0760321221. 
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