Licensed To Drive Prequel by Big Lucks dropped in Episode 256, put it in gear HERE. The car at the scene of the crime was a restored, cherry Ford Mustang. No other car symbolizes Southern Californian individualism than this masterpiece. Being the savage Indian that I am I read up a little on it and want to drop some lesser known facts about this Speed Machine.
Ford crowd-tested different names for the Mustang including: Cougar, Torino and T-Bird II.
Instead of the infamous pony logo Ford almost used a knight on a chessboard. This seems way too British for an American Metal Stallion.
The Plymouth Barracuda was the Mustang's closest competitor and came out just before that pony car.
Henry Ford was the head greenlighter on the Mustang but Lee Iacocca is credited with the being the Mustang's real father. Lee, as he liked to be called, was the son of Italian immigrants--any wonder why the infamous Luciano had to take that thing for a ride?
Lee and his team kept the Mustang design meetings hidden from the old and crusty Ford to be free to make a legit cool car. Eventually, Lee helped shape the Cougar, the Escort and some other cars until he was in charge of Ford (until a clash with Ford Jr.). A notable designed was Donald Frey who said that his children gave him harsh criticism about his car designs which eventually led to the pony car styles. Frey helped bring disc brakes into the Auto world.
The most expensive Mustang was sold for $3.85 million (with taxes and fees). That car and movie star Steve McQueen were leads in the film “Bullitt,” and the most famous Mustang ever. Obviously, after this last episode the Bullitt Mustang was knocked down a peg as the Luciano Mustang is now the most famous.
Hand Curated facts at lunch by me from the Harris, Dean. Ford Mustang: Trivia & Fun Facts Every Fan Should Know About The Great American Icon! Kindle Edition.