Ford Would Like To Sell You A 1965 Mustang
Nostalgia is big business, and there are plenty of people who will pay any price and bear any burden to return to the products of their youth. Harley has CVO Springer Softails for thirty grand. Gibson has the 1959 Murphy Aged Reissues for about half that much. Patek Philippe will sell you a Large Calatrava just like the one your father forgot to hand down to you (because he was actually a hick-assed convenience-store manager and not the Duke of Worchestershiresauce) for as much as $40,000.
The Sixties-car fanaticism has arguably reached its sell-by date, a casualty of disappearing portfolios and Barrett-Jackson overkill, but Ford has something really quite nice for the remaining True Believers: a brand-new 1964 1/2 Mustang convertible shell, built (or at least approved) by Ford.
Quoth the release:
The ’65 Mustang body shell is constructed of higher-grade steel than the original, said Jim Christina, vice president of Dynacorn International, the Ford-approved company that is manufacturing the ’65 Mustang. “We use a modern universal automotive-grade steel that is actually stronger than the original, and modern welding techniques along with more welds to strengthen the body,” Christina said.
The ’65 body is in production now and can be delivered by freight truck to any address. The ’65 Mustang body includes the doors and trunk lid and all the sheet metal from the radiator support to the taillight panel except the hood and front fenders. Those items are available separately. The ’65 Mustang body shell starts at $15,000.
The new body shell can be made into a 1964½, 1965 or 1966 Mustang, based on the powertrains and trim parts added to it. It is the third classic Mustang body shell now available to restorers. The other two are the 1967-68 and the 1969-70 fastback bodies.
Super fun. I can tell you what I think of when I see bare Mustang body shells. I dream of building a competitor to Paul Faessler’s fire-breathing AIX Mustang.
It’s a proven fact that simply showing your fifteen-year-old son this picture will cause him to wipe the goth lipstick off his face and delete “Glee” from his TiVO settings. It’s that strong. I’ve been in a few races with Faessler and having that thing blow by my Neon is like being personally reprimanded by Zeus.
Anyway. Back to classic Mustang body shells. They’re better than the original. Go buy one and build yourself a Mustang. Why not? If, on the other hand, you’re a child of the Eighties, you can hold out for a reissue of the 1983 GT 5.0 “White Trash Ferrari”. If the Dynacorn current offerings are any indication, Jack Telnack-era 1979-1993 Mustang shells should be available in about twelve years. In the meantime, however, we’ll have to re-suffer through the Mustang II. King Cobra, anyone?
More by Jack Baruth
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Didn't these guys show a Mopar E-body at one point? I don't see it on their site now. But I would think that'd be a great niche for them: way rarer than Camaros and Mustangs in the first place, and even more prone to scary levels of rust, but lots of recognition and demand now. It might not quite be cost-effective to build a '66 Mustang from repro parts, but a Hemi 'Cuda? Maybe the Mopar unibodies are harder to repop, or maybe Chrysler's being less than helpful with licensing?
Great idea, but WAY too expensive. The sheet metal shell of a '65 Mustang should be something like $5,000 tops. If you bought all the sheet metal separately for a reproduction '65 Mustang, no way would it come anywhere near the price of $15,000. I understand this model has slightly more than that, but the price difference really makes no sense.