Something to really read and think about:

Again, think about that meaning very very carefully.

 

There's an area right across the street from my work where FORD keeps all the cars they can't fit in the dealship. Along with all the other models Ford sells, there are about 50 new Mustangs just sitting there collecting snow

Maybe the Mustang just isn't as popular here in Canada OR this so called "back log" is just a marketing scheme. No. That can't be it. An auto company would never do something like that to boost sale's...

 

Guess I was writing while you posted. Good find. I have that one too.

I don't think that article would check-out if Ford did their technical homework on it. By Ford's very own archives in "Ford - The Heritage" book that I have in my library, there are documents and memos that refute the claim in the link you posted to. One document shows the entire list of potential names that were test-marketed for the Mustang production car back in 1963, and if memory serves me right I have most of the project names for significant projects and cars of the era too. I'll dig a little and refresh the memory.

Again, let me be clear... the CAR itself (not the prototype or the initial 2-seat concept project) was named by Iacocca and the Fairlane Committee. It was chosen from a series of animal names.

Back then, Ford had birds going in Europe/Australia, and animals in the US. The last project done before the "Special Falcon" was the Cardinal (a concept for production done in Germany). Many of the engineers that worked on the Cardinal were brought over and used in the 2-seat concept project. One of them was John Najjaf. He was an aviation buff. HE is the one that wanted to call the 2-seat concept car the Mustang (as in P-51) and he spoke of it that way in-house. But he was not in charge of naming the project or the car.

The production car - that came along well over 2 years after the concept - was named for the wild horses of the midwest - PERIOD. Named by the man who had the authority to do so. The same man who has stated why he chose the name. I will post scanned images as soon as possible to clarify. If any of you have the Iacocca interview from the Gone in 60 Seconds bonus material - you already have the final word.
Ironically, the Mustang was reffered to as "the Cougar" throughout much of it's developmental stages - the name was coined by one of the design engineers working on the clays (I forget the guys name... it may have been Don Frey but I'm not 100% certain on that). I am certain I have images of the pre-production Mustang with Cougar emblems on it dating to late '63 in the studio picture.

Bottom line is... Two different projects, two different cars, and some very confusing myths that just seem to keep proliferating like bacterium.

PS - why wouldn't they have used an airplane for the icon instead of a horse if the P-51 was the inspiration of the car? The Fairlane had a plane as a hood ornament in '59. The Falcon Futura also had aeroplane ornamentation. The F-600 and larger trucks/buses had planes for hood ornaments from @ '48 thru '65 too. Numerous other marques were doing the same, with swosshing trim and chrome moldings - the "wings" and "fins" on the back of the cars from '55 thru '60 were prevalent design cues for the era... so why a horse as the icon if a plane was the naming source?

 

Ford announced at the 40th Anniversary that they are going to monitor the sales of this new car very closely for demigraphics. I haven't spoken with any new buyers yet, but I suspect there will be many surveys and questionaires going out to buyers of the new car.

They had all kinds of charts and data on display in Nashville... it showed how many Mustang buyers were repeat Mustang buyers, how many were croos-brand, how many were 1st time buyers, 1st time Mustang buyers, all age demigraphics were on a bar chart (of course 30-32 was the largest segment). It was neat to see all the data. I took a digital of one board that had loyalty and repeat buyer data on it - got it on the home PC.

I'd LOVE to have access to that sort of data!

 

http://www.seriouswheels.com/2004/20...1-1280x960.htm

2004 Ford 40th Anniversary Mustang--1280x960

Image Copyright Ford Motor Company

The Ford 40th Anniversary Mustang is photographed with the car's namesake, a WWII vintage P51 Mustang fighter plane owned by Jack Roush.

http://auto.consumerguide.com/auto/e.../act/feature35

Initially named after the P51 Mustang fighter plane in World War II, Ford created the first Mustang concept in 1962. Since its public debut in New York at the 1964 World’s Fair, over 8 million Mustangs have been sold.

http://www.magazineusa.com/us/info/s...iginals&doc=45

The first Mustang – the 1962 Mustang I concept – is a two-seat, mid-engine sports car named after the legendary P51 Mustang fighter plane from World War II.

http://www.mustanggarage.be/mustang%...ebhistory1.htm

At first the car was named after the Lockheed P51 (Mustang) fighter, but Henry Ford II didn’t want a “war image”, so they opted for prairies and wild American horses.

http://forums.bradbarnett.net/index.php?showtopic=6560

John Najjar (Mustang I designer): I dreamed up the name for the special vehicle being developed in our studio. It was named after the famed Mustang P-51 fighter aircraft. In a studio meeting, R. H. Maguire, (my boss) and I were discussing a list of names, he objected to the use of the fighter plane as an emblem on a car! I immediately countered with the wild horse description from the dictionary. All debating ceased and the Mustang name and emblem became a natural for the car!

http://bossshinoda.stangnet.com/bosshistory.html

Originally named after the P-51 Mustang fighter plane, the Ford Mustang (pony car) was a success from the very beginning.

Iacocca, though a great man, is fairly notorious as to making his history the "real" history regardless. I think we can say with some certainty that when the name "Mustang" was established, it was the P51 Mustang that inspired the name. I don't think anyone argues that the car was ever going to be anything other than the running horse as far as the "Mustang" name goes (it actually came much closer to being "Cougar") but I think that when it was decided to go with the "Mustang" name for the production car that the horse imagery came around. But if you are looking for the root of the name, the birth of it as a car name, it was the plane that provided the inspiration.

 

Wow....someone did their homework

Colin

 

From page 74 of "Iacocca" (July 1986 Bantam Paperback Edition)

"John Conlye, who worked for J. Walter Thompson, our ad agency, was a name specialist. In the past, he had researched bird names for the Thunderbird and the Falcon. This time we sent him to the Detroit Public Library to look up the names of animals-from aardvark to zebra. John came up with thousands of suggestions, which we narrowed down to six: Bronco, Puma, Cheetah, Colt, Mustang, and Cougar.

Mustang had been the name of one of the car's prototypes. Curiously, it was not named for the horse, but for the legendary World War II fighter plane. No matter. We all liked Mustang, and as the ad agency said: it 'had the excitement of wide-open spaces and was American as all hell.'"