1965 Ford Mustang Fastback Rally Car

Endurance rally car. A finisher in London-Mexico 1995 and London to Sydney 2000.

302 V8 built by Phil Stott with aluminium heads, power steering, extensive roll cage.

Fully floating rear axle with disc brakes and fully refreshed since last outing

New front brake callipers, wheels powder coated, interior re-painted, and generally tidied. (Nov.'18)

The original Mustang was exactly the right car at the right time and this 'sports car for the masses' sold a million in less than two years. Available as a Notchback Coupe, Convertible or, from 1965, as a Fastback Coupe, the array of trim and engine options meant that there was a 'Stang' to satisfy everyone, although it was in powerful V8 form that this 'Pony Car' was most fulfilling. The Fastback Coupe is an effortlessly cool shape and is the Mustang profile that people default to in their mind's eye.

The car presented here is a left-hand drive 1965 Mustang Fastback (Code:63A), from the first year of manufacture making it one of the very earliest fastbacks. From its VIN number we can establish that it was built in San Jose, California during September 1965 as a 2-door Fastback, finished in Wimbledon White and powered by a 289 'Hi-Performance' V8. It was imported from California as a rolling shell by our vendor with the intention of building a competitive endurance rally car and accordingly the chassis and suspension were comprehensively strengthened to deal with many thousands of miles of rough terrain.

In the hands of our vendor, the car has finished in two of the most gruelling long-distance events ever held. In 1995, it finished a commendable 36th on the 16,000 miles London to Mexico event despite having incurred 4 hours of penalties on Day 4 after the clutch slave-cylinder failed, dropping them to 57th, before making a remarkable comeback in South America, a feat which earned them the Quantum Leap Award. During the London-Sydney in 2000, after 10 days the team were lying about 23rd (and 2nd out of 7 Mustangs) in a field with three world champions. Then a stub axle broke and they just focused on finishing, which they did in 70th place out of 95, in a rally so demanding that just finishing is a win in itself. Since then, it has formed part of our private vendor's collection for a number of years and hasn't been used in anger since the London to Sydney event but, we understand, was fully refreshed after the event took place.

Mind you KYY 156C still looks every inch the classic rally car. It remains finished in Shelby Blue and White and sits on silver American Racing Torq-Thrust wheels fitted with P-Zeros. The bumpers are off with a 'nerf-bar' now on the rear but all-in-all the car appears relatively free of 'battle scars'.The engine is a 302 V8 built by Phil Stott with aluminium heads and sits in a remarkably tidy engine bay. It has power steering, an 'extensive' roll cage, fully floating rear axle, disc brakes, and is fitted with a 120-litre ATL bag tank. The interior is totally functional and completely equipped to go anywhere although we would guess that the Sparco seats, harnesses, fire extinguisher, and bag tank will no longer be current. The dedicated 'Terratrip' rally computer and other associated timing equipment may well now be appropriate for current Historic/Classic rally regulations. In November '18, the car was fitted with new front brake callipers, the wheels powder coated and the interior re-painted as part of a general tidy by TT Motors prior to the sale.

The time has now come for someone else to enjoy the variety of options on offer with this motorcar and our vendor believes that the Mustang is potentially suitable for Lima-Cape Horn in 2020. At this sensible estimate, it's certainly a rare and exciting proposition.