Ford Mustang

The Mustang is a sports car marketed by Ford since the mid sixties. It has been the most competitive as a grand tourer. In the sixties and seventies the Mustang competed successfully in the Trans Am Series, becoming one of the series' most notable vehicles. The Mustang has continued to participate in SCCA racing even to this very day, competing in the Pirelli World Challenge. In the seventies and eighties the Mustang was used in the IMSA GT Championship's GTO category, which used vehicles also participating in SCCA racing. The Mustang was also used to power an IMSA GT Prototype, or IMSA GTP. These purpose-built racecars were based on the FIA's Group C prototypes. The Mustang became famous when used in the film Bullit, noted for one of the most famous car chase sequences in film history. Bullit editions were subsequently made. Mustangs are currently used in the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge. Because of its retro-inspired bodystyle, the Mustangs were entered using Trans Am Series Boss 302 tribute livery. The Mustang was used in the Rolex Sports Car Series before its merger with the American Le Mans Series. It is now used in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, formed out of the two series' merger. Shelby editions have been made available over the decades. The original Mustangs were noted for their tri-bar tallights with sequential turn signals. These were discontinued in the late seventies and did not return until the mid nineties. The Mustang was noted for its logo of a charging horse. This was also discontinued in the seventies and did not return until the late nineties. Cobra editions featured a snake instead of the horse. The Mustang provided the basis for the Mercury Cougar until the Cougar was changed to the Ford Thunderbird platform. The Cougar returned to the Mustang platform in the nineties. The Mustang has been used in stock car racing, but not in any of NASCAR's premier series. Early Mustangs featured a sporty "fastback" version. The Mustang introduced the "pony car", a type of smaller muscle car. Ford won the first ever Trans Am Championship. The Shelby Mustang, specifically the GT350, was tributed at the Monterey Historics at Laguna Seca Raceway for its fiftieth anniversary.