No, This is Not the Mustang Apollo Astronauts Drove
It is the Mustang that could help students become future astronauts, however.
Ford announced Wednesday the one-of-a-kind Apollo Edition Mustang that will be auctioned July 23 in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, to benefit the Experimental Aviation Association’s Young Eagles program, a youth flying education program.
On top of the Saturn V-inspired paint, the 2015 Mustang GT goes like a rocket: 627 horsepower and 540 pound-feet of torque.
Ford engineers bolted on a Ford Performance supercharger screw, side and rear exhausts, six-piston Brembo brakes and custom Forgiato 21-inch performance wheels to the Mustang. The interior has a specialized instrument cluster, custom-embroidered seats, performance gauges and trim panels.
It’s the eighth-consecutive year Ford has developed a special vehicle for the Young Eagles program. Past highlights include a Blue Angels Mustang, a Roush-Shelby collaboration SR-71 Blackbird Mustang and an AV-X10 “Dearborn Doll” Mustang, which netted more than $250,000 for the charity. In total, the special-edition Mustangs have netted nearly $3 million, according to Ford.
Is it as cool as nerds in matching 1969 Corvettes? Maybe not.
But it is for a good cause, which is totally OK.
(Editor’s Note: In all due fairness, this is not the first car we’ve seen painted up like a Saturn V. All credit to Escape Velocity Racing, which painted up their Dodge Dart something fantastic for 24 Hours of LeMons.)
Photo courtesy Escape Velocity Racing
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Sadly, to me this special edition car exists only because the US manned space program is directionless, in spite of the machines being built today to replace the (also directionless) Shuttle. This car harkens back to a day when we knew where we were going in space, but that ended in 1972. Seems like a way to fill the void, but at least it's for a good cause.
Does the average Joe with $150,000 have a shot at this or is some fat cat (Rick Hendrick I'm looking at you) going to offer "$250,000 over your highest bidder" to trailer it away. What have previous examples "sold" for?