Mustang
December 8th, 2008 by NZ Classic Car
The 2009 NZ Classic Car magazine Yearbook is on the shelves now, so grab your copy today.
In this special issue we have a tribute to the Lamborghini Espada, and a guide to finding and restoring a Ford Mustang. We have a whole Best of British: Past and Present section featuring Rolls Royce, Jaguar and Aston Martin. We have some great pictures from the local sports racing scene in the ’50s, ’60s and ’70s and get an opinion on the best racing driver of all time. We also consult with Meguiar’s to bring you a guide on keeping your classic gleaming through the summer. All this and more special news, reviews and technical support to keep you informed on the world of classic motoring.
November 28th, 2008 by NZ Classic Car
Recently advertised for sale in the States is every Mustang enthusiast’s dream a 1968 Shelby Mustang GT500KR. Some say it is the most menacing Mustang ever released and this vehicle is a true black on black, four-speed example with full documentation. Purchased new in 1968 the Shelby has the full GT500KR package (which includes power steering and power disc brakes, shoulder harnesses, a fold down rear seat and an AM radio,) tilt-away steering column, interior decor group, visibility group and GT equipment group. While the car originally came with the cast 5 spoke mag wheel covers, they were replaced by Shelby aluminum wheels in 1971. Listed at $179,900 ($324,000 NZ) this is one pricey Mustang, but it would be tough to find a straighter example of this highly sought after model.
To find out more on this Shelby Mustang click here
November 20th, 2008 by NZ Classic Car
Ford yesterday took the wraps off its modestly revised 2010 Mustang range, which includes updated hardtop and convertible models. On display this week at the Los Angeles Auto Show, the new ‘Stang has a thoroughly updated exterior and an improved cabin.
The 2010 Mustang is at once the same and different. Following the current trend of remaking but not completely restyling iconic classics, the new Mustang is immediately recognisable as Ford’s famous pony car. If anything, it looks even more like a late ’60s Mustang than the previous model thanks to some additional curvature in its lines, especially along the belt-line. At the same time, it also looks more contemporary. The designers have improved the aerodynamics and reworked many of the design details. What may be even more important for drivers of the Mustang is an all-new interior that finally dispenses with cheap, hard plastics and looks like it was designed in this century.
When the 2005 Mustang debuted, one of the biggest and most justified criticisms was its interior, specifically the cheap materials and hard plastics. Those criticisms are completely banished in the 2010 Mustang. All the plastic surfaces on the dash are now soft to the touch and pleasant to look at. Even the trim across the dashboard is aluminum rather than metallic-finished plastic.
In true Mustang tradition, there is a “steed for every need.” At launch, customers can choose from a V-6 or V-8 with their choice of coupe, convertible or glass roof,
The 2010 GT retains its 4.6L three-valve V8, which has now been bumped up to 315 hp and 325 lb-ft of torque. The air intake has been reworked so that fresh air is drawn from behind the grille rather than from the wheel well. The duct from the air filter box to the throttle body has been straightened and smoothed out to reduce flow restriction. The whole car has also been stiffened and new sound insulation has been added for a quieter driving experience.
November 5th, 2008 by NZ Classic Car
Forty years after its debut, a legend of American drag racing has returned. To mark the 40th anniversary of the release of the first Ford Cobra Jet Mustang in 1968, Ford Racing is introducing the 2008 Cobra Jet Mustang as part of the SEMA show in Las Vegas, U.S.A, this week.
For decades, the Mustang has been a feature car in many forms of racing, including drag racing. Adding to the racing history of Ford’s iconic pony car, the 2008 Cobra Jet Mustang is a factory-built race car that is built ready for the drag strip. It is the first purpose-built race car from Ford for drag racing since the original Cobra Jet Mustang.
“The Cobra Jet is one of the transformational vehicles for Ford Racing,” said Brian Wolfe, director, Ford Racing Technology. “The 2008 CJ will get us more involved with the hobby racers in drag racing. At this point there are a lot of little guys who are running Fords from the 60s, 70s and even a few from the 80s, but those cars aren’t necessarily relevant to what we are producing today.
The original Cobra Jet Mustang was conceived by drag racing legend Bob Tasca, the competition-oriented Ford dealer in Rhode Island, U.S.A who at the time operated one of Ford’s most successful retail operations. Tasca looked to the Ford parts shelf when he wanted to upgrade the engines on some of the Mustangs that he was selling, and came up with the KR-8 conversion package for his performance customers.
Henry Ford II announced that Ford would put together several of the Tasca 428-powered Mustangs for drag teams competing in the 1968 Winternationals, where two of the Mustangs made it into the finals and Al Joniec went on to win the Super Stock championship. After the car’s success at Winternationals, Ford announced that it would be producing the 428ci Cobra Jet engine.
The 2008 Cobra Jet will join the other FR500 Mustangs in the Ford Racing stable including the FR500GT, FR500C, and FR500S, the FR500CJ, it is a race-only model that will be limited to a production run of just 50. The initial allotment of cars has already been bought up at $69,900 ($115,500 NZ) each, but Ford insists there will be additional Cobra Jet Mustangs to come. Each car comes standard with a 5.4L supercharged V8 producing 400 horsepower, 6-speed manual transmission (optional automatic), and a drag race wheel/tire combination. The Cobra Jet, as delivered, will be able to run in the 10-second range and will also have a unique trim and appearance design and include an optional 2008 Cobra Jet graphics kit to distinguish itself.
October 24th, 2008 by NZ Classic Car
Since it fi rst galloped onto the scene in the ’60s, the Ford Mustang has been one of the most iconic American cars of all time. Offi cially licensed by Ford, The Mustang Dynasty covers the full story behind every model from the original 1964 pony car to the 2007 Shelby GT500. Much more than a book, The Mustang Dynasty is cleverly packaged to include 
many removable items, including reproductions of a 1965 driver’s manual, a 1979 offi cial Indy Pace Car bumper sticker, a 2003 Mach 1 patch, and an array of other Mustang treasures. There’s even a CD featuring recordings of various Mustang engine sounds and commercials. Altogether, this is a real collector’s item.
The Mustang Dynasty by John Clor
Review book supplied by the publisher
Review by Ashley Web
August 27th, 2008 by NZ Classic Car
This new addition to Motorbooks’ excellent Restorer’s Guide series offers a wealth of information for potential Mustang restorers. 
Examples from each model year are put under the microscope — along with a host of limited production cars — and items such as exterior and interior trim, engine and transmission packages and equipment options are covered in detail. The detailed text, backed up by tables detailing body, engine, transmission and rear axle codes, makes this book an essential reference tool for any considering either buying or restoring a 1967’-70 Ford Mustang.
Review by James Black
April 18th, 2008 by NZ Classic Car
With their point well and truly proven in road racing, utilising the Shelby Mustangs, the Ford Motor Company changed tack a little for 1968. Its focus went, with all eight ‘guns’ blazing, to the drag racers and the street racers whose requirements varied somewhat, but whose bottom line shared a desire for power. That power could be had in air conditioned comfort in the Shelby GT500KR. It was a fairytale come true
Shelby the name, Shelby the car; what was the formula that created such a legend? Was it all hype, or was it all fact? Was it a man riding on corporate funds to build his own motoring reputation? Or was it perhaps a corporation riding on one man’s ability to deliver what its own engineers could not? Whatever the situation, Carroll Shelby wasn’t the type to toe the party line, he was an individualist, one who was determined to finish a job properly, to complete any task assigned to him and not be afraid to soil his hands along the way. Corporate funds merely fed the man’s necessities.
This lanky Texan, the son of a US postal worker, had proven fairly early on in his racing career that you could take it to the big guns and win.
His road racing career began in an MG, of all things, but as his talent began to attract the attention of race car owners much faster rides came his way, among them a Cad-Allard in 1953. The name came from the Cadillac engine in a Sidney Allard car, a machine capable of around 241kph (150mph) on the straight.
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