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If Ford Invented The Mustang Today, Would It Be Made From A Fiesta?

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#1

When Ford debuted the Mustang back in '64, the car was little more than a rebodied economy car with a ton of trim and performance options. Given that same formula, what would the Mustang look like if it was designed today?

The original Mustang was only rear-wheel drive because it was built off of Ford's basic economy car, the Falcon, and that happened to be RWD. It's that economy car base that let the Mustang be so cheap. It started at $2,368, or $17,821 in today's money. That's about six grand less than the base price of the upcoming 'Stang, a car built on its own dedicated (and expensive) platform.

I would figure that the equivalent economy car base for a reborn Mustang would be a Fiesta. I like the idea of a redesigned, small, tossable FWD coupe, but past experience with the dreaded Ford EXP and the Ford Probe (both similarly front-drive Mustang-alikes) makes me think I'd be in the minority.

Do you think anyone would buy a new car built to the original Mustang formula, not just one sold with the same badge?

Media Source: jalopnik
 

scotman

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#2
Well. Being that Mustang was a game changer for the industry, you would have to assume That no other car maker would have done some sort of "personalised coupe" to offer to the upcoming baby boomers! As it was the Mustang had several competitors within two years anyway! So, Time and change being a constant given, It would have been some other maker. The 15 Mustang is not on an ALL NEW chassis. It is a very heavy revision of the last one. Ford admitted this publicly. That is not a bad thing at all. The addition of IRS rear axle is the only somewhat debateable controversy on this car. Times change. Buyer tastes change. The EXP was based on a very succesfull car line for Ford. The EXP for a time , enjoyed the highest buyer demographics of any small American OR imported coupe! Thats a fact that is in the history books. The biggest downside to EXP was the gear ratios and shift throw reach, It was the same as Escort and not proper for a sport coupe. The Mazda built Probe was a relatively low investment gap filler that did gain a a pretty wide level of acceptance in spite of the fact it cost alot to repair and insure. All of this stuff should be viewed with the knowledge that Ford had put very, VERY little money in the Mustang since its 1979 redo! They made a pile of cash off that car! And put very little back into it until the buyers demanded it! The real question that should be on every mustang enthusiasts lips is What comes next? There is No rear drive chassis left in production at ford for them to "cheaply" create the next new Mustang from!! The Lincoln LS was the original bones for the current Stang. Maybe Ford should seriously consider a rear drive chassis for an upcoming mid sized Lincoln product just so Mustang will have a modern RWD chassis to be created on! These "what if" questions are interesting but do nothing to deal with the future of what is to be!
 
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#3
That's really great information you posted Scott. It's really too bad the Probe never caught on, the second generation looked fairly decent.
 

scotman

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#4
That's really great information you posted Scott. It's really too bad the Probe never caught on, the second generation looked fairly decent.
Hello. Yes the Probe was a nice car. It was a nightmare of issues when modified and had a weak transmission if any serious upgrades were done to the engine. I think the probe would have developed a strong following on its own if only the driveline had been stronger and the name been changed to something less "dildo like". The name alone totally killed sales of the probe to most women!
 


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