After decades of toying around with the idea, Chevrolet finally launched a mid-engine Corvette. However, they weren’t the only automaker experimenting with a mid-engine layout in the 1960’s.
Unbeknownst to everyone and even Ford themselves, the Blue Oval toyed around with a mid-engine Mustang in 1966.
The story is so bizarre, you’d think it was April Fool’s Day joke. However, that’s not the case as Ford Performance has revealed the story of the mystery Mustang.
Also Read: This Guy Made A Ford GT Out Of A 1970 Mustang Mach 1 With A Mid-Engine Setup
According to the company, “There’s little we haven’t seen or heard about …but every once and a while, we come across something that stumps our inner circle.” That’s why they’re asking fans to help identify a mysterious mid-engine Mustang they came across and can’t remember.
The company doesn’t have much to go on but, approximately five years ago, the head of the Ford Archives, Dean Weber, discovered a set of four photos taken at a design studio on May 2nd, 1966. They show a Mustang-based mid-engine sports car, but Weber wasn’t able to identify it.
Since Weber didn’t recognize the car, he asked if author and former Mustang marketer John Clor knew what the vehicle was. Clor responded by saying he had “never seen these shots or anything even remotely like them before.” He also suggested they get in touch with people who worked at the design studio.
They also drew a blank as Ford’s former vice president of design, Jack Telnack, wasn’t aware of any mid-engine Mustang project in 1966. Ford product planner, Hal Sperlich, also wasn’t sure but guessed it “might have something to do with the drivable version of the Ford Research mid-ship car that was used as a Mustang tease.”
However, Gale Halderman – the principal stylist of the original Mustang – dismissed this possibility as he pointed out the Mustang I Concept was created earlier and wasn’t based on the production pony car.
The identity of the car remains a mystery to this day, so Ford is asking anyone with knowledge of the vehicle to send them an e-mail at ClubHub@Ford.com. The person who helps “unlock this mystery” will get a “special prize” and be named as one of the people who helped to solve the puzzle of the mid-engine Mustang.
