The Ford Mustang was an instant hit when launched in 1964 – and when you look at this beautiful left-hand drive ‘pony car’ it’s easy to see why. With its classic Wimbedon white paintwork set off by dark blue GT striping and sitting on a set of 17” American Racing alloy wheels, ‘KMS 974E’ is a real head-turner. The car was imported from California to the UK in 2005 and has had just two previous owners since it arrived in this country. It has been treated to a full restoration and benefited from a 351 upgrade to the 5-litre engine. The California sunshine means that the Mustang is rot-free underneath, and the current owner describes the engine, bodywork, electrics, paintwork, black leather interior and three-speed Cruise-O-Matic automatic transmission as ‘excellent’. The car sports classic Lucas rectangular fog lamps, while contemporary touches include a digital odometer and tachometer and Kenwood radio. ‘KMS 974E’ comes with three keys and a large folder including all MOTs and invoices for all work carried out since the car arrived in the UK.
Desperate to attract young, enthusiast buyers to its brand, Ford launched the inaugural Mustang in 1964. It had its corporate fingers crossed for sales of 100,000 in the first year. As things transpired it hit that figure in the first three months and the million mark after just 18 – the car was a runaway success. As often happens in the automotive world, the model then grew with time, and the modified ‘67 version portrayed as ‘Eleanor’ in the film Gone In 60 Seconds and the ‘68 one immortalised by Steve McQueen in Bullitt, were a more imposing breed of horse. Indeed, the model continued to grow in size, gaining a further three inches in width for 1971 in order to accommodate Ford’s big block 429ci unit. However, history interestingly shows that Mustang’s best year ever was 1966, when 607,568 examples found homes in the US alone. By comparison, a mere 61,090 of the current model sold in 2020. It seems ‘classic’ really is best!
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