The history of the Ford Mustang who designed it when was it invented where was it first built how many different forms of the Mustang are there?

Answer 1

Mr. Phil (Phillip) Clark came up with the idea for the Mustang two seater car while he was in Nashville, Tennessee on his way to California for the Art School of Design. He saw the running horses (wild Mustangs) and wanted to have that as his icon on the car he would create. First he gave the idea to GM (see Witzenberg Doc, 1971 about the GM Mustang) but that didn't work out..then in Advanced Design and Research, a place funded by Grants ETC, the car was completed in Clay--the Team that completed the Car included Jim Quinlan, Jerry Malinowski and others. The Car was liked by the Lincoln Mercury division Head, Eugene (Gene) Bordinat. Phil Clark had also designed several running horses for the car. The 1962 Two seater has one running horse on it, and then in 1964 it had been sent back to CLARK and Malinowski to "Streamline" into a one piece emblem to replace the original Cast two piece emblem. This emblem was put onto the production cars--after it went through a couple of others, see www.ponysite.de for more Mustang history. The Two seater was the forerunner of the Re-designed Falcon. Phil Clark's Mustang Coupe design can be found in the 1963 Fall edition of Motorcade Magazine, signed by him.

Joe Oros and Donald Frey and others worked on the production car, and some of Clark's ideas transferred onto the car--scoop ideas, horse and some other minor adjustments. The Car was begun in 1962 to get ready for the 1964 Worlds Fair.

The Prototype MUSTANG was a great marketing Scheme By Lee Iaccoca to launch the re-skinned Falcon sells..as they had many Falcon bodies left over. Along with the Advertising (J.Walter) group, Ford took the prototype to colleges in a time when T.V's were scarce and word of mouth would get around that Ford had a Race Car equal to the Corvette that was affordable..and everyone wanted one..so when it came out with just the scoop idea added and of course the Running Mustang Emblem, everyone wanted it..because Ford spent two years carrying the two-seater around to Market the re-skinned Falcon.

You can thank motivational management techiques for the original Mustang design, abetted by a shrewd chief designer, Joe Oros. Oros first worked for GM in the 1930s and early 1940s, then joined the independent George Walker group that shaped the vital all-new 1949 Ford and the cars and trucks that built on its timely success. When Walker became Ford's in-house design vice president in 1955, he made Oros an assistant, then named him to head the Ford Studio in 1956.

Though Oros would supervise the design of almost every U.S. Ford-brand vehicle over the next dozen years, the Mustang was undoubtedly his biggest success as studio chief. Ironic, then, that his team's winning design was something of a rush job, just like that '49 Ford. Here, in his own words, is how Oros remembers the birth of the 1965 Ford Mustang prototype.

Lee Iacocca wanted a car that was more of a personalized, sporty four-seater rather than a tight, European 2+2 package. Gene Bordinat requested proposals for it from our Ford studio, Lincoln-Mercury [and Corporate Advanced]. Oros remembered Clark fondly as one of the most talented designers of that time, and said so as Clark's original designs were revealed at the 40th Anniversary of the Mustang in Nashville, Tennessee....Clark had been almost forgotten until that day his daughter revealed the family treasure kept quiet for so many years. Clark started in Advanced Research and Design (a new named department in that day), freelancing. Was recognized by Eugene Bordinat, who took two seater design from the Advanced design Studio and worked on in in the L-M Studio. Clark then worked closely on the project UNDER Bordinat, and many others were brought in. In the Meantime, Frey's group was working on the 4 seater design. At some point the two came together--Mustang Prototype and Mustang 4 Seater redesigned Falcon. Ford's Benson Research tells the story of the 4 seaters guys fighting the Mustang Name that had been marketed for years to the appropriate age group and women--and those wanting FORD to produce a Race Car Program; so at the last possible minute the Cougars on the 4-seater were replaced SECRETLY and the 4 seater Falcon was then presented to the Public as MUSTANG...it would seem the name grew on both groups after a time---and stuck...along with CLARK's Original (streamlined version) of his Running Horse.