How Ford Mustang Get Its Name

An enduring question about ford mustang even after nearly 50 years on the road is the origin of its name.

How ford mustang get its name. Depends who you ask. The right image and therefore the right name were crucial for the lee iacocca led fairlane committee they met at the fairlane hotel in detroit tasked with creating a new ford sports car for launch at the 1964 world s fair in new york. Or the wild horse of the american west. Although it shared few design elements with the final production vehicle it did lend its name to the line.

The most plausible explanation as related by the people at the heart of the decision in late 1963 was that john najjar the designer on the project drew inspiration from the p 51 mustang a world war ii era fighter. While the ford mustang is almost certainly named after the p 51 mustang fighter plane its early designers felt as though the running horse should be its defining symbol. According to ford specific documentation about the car s naming no longer exist. The ford mustang was named after the p 51 a world war ii fighter aircraft.

This time they believe they ve hooked up to a 1973 ford mustang mach 1. The ford mustang is a series of american automobiles manufactured by ford in continuous production since 1964 the mustang is currently the longest produced ford car nameplate. If there s one thing that gets mustang people worked up it s the clash between theories on where the name came from. Does it honor the famed p 51 fighter plane of world war ii.

The mustang emblem found on the front in some cases the rear of pony cars shares the same logo with smu with one major difference. Is the world s love affair with mustang about the name. Quickly nicknamed the pony the mustang name has a surprisingly complicated history. According to designer john najjar he suggested the name mustang after the world war ii p 51 mustang.

The real question for mustang fans. Does it even matter. The first attempt to bring this mustang to the surface resulted in the engine being ripped from the transmission and being brought to shore by itself and the v8 sported some long tube headers suggest that this was a souped up car before it was unceremoniously dumped in the river. The ford mustang i is a small mid engined 4 cylinder open two seater concept car with aluminium body work that was built by ford in 1962.