Vendor supplied images
Highlights
- Subject to an extensive rotisserie restoration documented in a 28,000-word account with accompanying photographs and three-inch thick folder of invoices
- Rare and immensely desirable factory ‘GT’ with ‘Rally-Pac’ - restored to exact original specifications barre a manual gearbox conversion and uprated carburation
- Advisory-free MOT valid until 21st July 2024 - although exempt due to its age
- Garage-stored and used exclusively in dry weather since the restoration was completed
- Finished to an exemplary standard and superbly presented in readiness for sale
- Tahoe Turquoise colour
The Appeal
Every once in a while you come across a car that ticks every box. Here’s one.
This 1966 Ford Mustang GT 2+2 has got quite literally everything going for it. Before we get onto the staggeringly accomplished restoration, let’s consider the specifications. It’s a rare factory ‘GT’ in Tahoe Blue with a 289 cu in (4.7-litre) A-Code V8. It was ordered fully loaded with power steering, front disc brakes and Ford’s ‘Rally-Pac’ auxiliary instruments.
Impressed? Well, we’re only getting started…
It has the Black Pony trim, wood-grained deluxe steering wheel, wood trim centre console, 4" front grille fog lights, door panel duel-lens lights, GT Fender badges, GT gas cap, and front to rear lower body triple stripe. Its burbling V8 bellows through a dual straight-through exhaust with flared tailpipes. There are reversing lights, a tinted ‘windshield’, Ford’s ‘Special Handling Package’ and 14" Rallye steel wheels. The spec is truly magnificent.
The car retains all these features today and is further enhanced by the fitment of a five-speed manual gearbox and Edelbrock carburettor.
This is no recent import. In fact, the car has been in the UK for most of its life, with five former British keepers since it crossed the Atlantic in 1968. The previous keeper acquired the car in 1975 and drove it for twelve years before taking it off the road in 1987. He intended to restore it, but like so many projects, the Mustang ended up on the back burner for some 25 years, after which it was offered for sale. That’s when its fortunes changed, and our vendor took possession in 2012. One extensive rotisserie restoration later, in 2017, the Mustang returned to the road as one of the best examples of this rare edition you’re ever likely see - especially outside the US.
We’ve seldom encountered such a painstaking and well-documented restoration, evidenced by a 28,000-word account with accompanying photographs and three-inch thick folder of invoices. A great deal of care has been taken to ensure every detail is as good and period-correct as possible.
For Mustang fans, this is the car you’ve always wanted; better still, it could be yours…
The History and Paperwork
- Left the Dearborn Factory in May 1966
- Imported to the UK in 1968
- Five former UK registered keepers
- In previous ownership from 1975 to 2012
- Restored by the vendor from 2012 to 2017
- Exempt from road tax and MOT testing - although voluntarily submitted for MOT each year, never failing nor accruing any advisories to date
- The current MOT expires on 21st July 2024
- V5C present
- Substantial collection of invoices from the restoration
- The vendor supplies the photographic record and 28,000-word account of the work
- The vendor decided to leave the odometer reading as it was when they purchased the car - it has covered 2,821 miles since it returned to the road after the full restoration with its first MOT carried out in December 2016 when the speedo was showing 71,548 miles
The Condition
- Impeccably presented
- Resplendent in its original colour - Tahoe Turquoise
- Original ‘GT 2+2 trim’ and ‘Rally-Pac’ appointments
- Owing to the car’s pre-restoration condition, a number of panels were replaced which include the ‘hood’, ‘trunk’, doors, (inner and outer) front and rear wings
- The passenger and driver’s side floors, were replaced, as was half the firewall, the front and rear frame rails, the inner and outer cowl and the shock towers
- Front and rear bumpers replaced, quarterlight vents re-chromed, stainless steel window trims restored and polished
- Underside fully prepped and coated with Raptor 2k protection
- The underside has been seam sealed with 3M 2k flexible joint sealer, followed with epoxy 2K sealer/primer Lechler epoxy that has anti-corrosion properties, then coated with 2K Raptor coating (designed for pickup beds)
- The engine bay is coated with epoxy 2K sealer, and polyester spray filler followed by the undercoat all blocked ready for the 2k satin black
- The main shell is coated with epoxy 2k sealer, followed by polyester spray filler and another undercoat all blocked ready for the 2k base and clear
- Reupholstered front seats, while the rear seat is original
- New carpets, headlining and door cards
- The wiring loom has been reworked and relays for the dip and main lights, horn and fog lights have been added
- Headlights, indicators, taillights, and reverse light bezels were all replaced
We’ve had a look through the vendor’s aforementioned “Mustang Build Story” document, and the sheer quality of the restoration work is apparent in every photograph and lengthy account of each job. Just about every component, panel, trim piece and fastening has undergone some form of restoration or replacement, and the Mustang’s overall condition is a testament to the vendor’s commitment, tenacity and skill.
Since completion, the car has been used sparingly, venturing out only in dry weather - which, in the UK, translates to covering just 2,821 miles. Therefore, the car continues to present beautifully, with no apparent deterioration, wear or any faults to report.
The Mechanics
- 289 cu in (4.7-litre) A-Code V8
- Five-speed T5 manual gearbox replaces the original three-speed Cruise-O-Matic auto
- Front suspension with Shelby drop
- Front and rear springs, bushings and bearings and shock absorbers all replaced
- All-new brakes, lines and hoses
- New steering box and power steering components
- Engine fully rebuilt: block has been bored +30" and the crank mains and ends ground +10"
- New cam bearings, pistons, shells & mains
- Pertronix ignition
- Edelbrock carburettor replaces the original Autolite item
- The vendor states that the car “wants for nothing its ready to go”
- Fitted with a battery cut-off switch and tracker
- Oil and filter last changed twelve months ago
We’ve saved the best until last. Once you’ve finished admiring how beautifully restored this car is, you can get down to the important business of driving, which we’re pleased to report is a similarly pleasurable experience thanks to its rebuilt A-Code V8 and T5 manual gearbox.
Besides the fact it left the factory with an automatic transmission, this Mustang was evidently specified by a driving enthusiast, as it boasts the converted ‘Rally-Pac’ and ‘Special Handling Package’. Following the restoration, which entailed a full mechanical rebuild, the fitment of a manual gearbox and the incorporation of several choice upgrades, the vendor demonstrates that the V8 readily roars into life and settles to an even idle. We’re informed that it drives beautifully, with no apparent faults whatsoever and the advisory-free MOT record since first tested post-restoration in 2016 is further reassurance that this car is in rude health.
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