2006 Ford Mustang GT

Ford's new-generation Mustang is an amazing blend of the best of two different worlds. It looks very much like the late-'60s Mustangs that were so popular in their day, while it drives exactly like the fully contemporary performance coupe it is.

Styling

That first 1964-1/2 Mustang's most prominent styling features were a high, forward-thrusting mouth-like grille opening flanking slightly recessed headlamps, three-element taillamps and simulated side scoops. It was an unprecedented hit, selling a record 418,812 units in its first 12 months and its first million in less than two years. Since then, Mustang has survived because Ford has kept it close to Iacocca's original small, sporty, high-value formula.


For 2005 came the ultimate accolade to those much-loved first-generation Mustangs on a substantially superior platform. It looks so much like the '67-'70 Mustangs at first glance that you have to look again (and know what you're looking at) to realize it's the new one.


"Our thought from the beginning was a car that was pure American muscle and would relate to those earlier Mustangs," explains Ford Performance Chief Designer Doug Gafka. "We took every major Mustang—Mach 1s, Bosses, Shelbys—and did display boards with every major cue of what made that particular Mustang great...the side scoops, the hoods, the grille openings, the taillamps, all of the important elements that made it a Mustang...and picked and chose what we felt were the really strong ones to reinvent or modernize for this new Mustang."


Not much changes for 2006 following the new-generation Mustang's highly successful debut. There's a new "Pony Package" for the V6 that adds GT-inspired suspension, 17-inch wheels and tires, a custom grille, fog lamps, ABS with traction control and special pony emblems to V-6-powered cars while V-8-powered GTs are now available with four different wheel/tire combinations including two new 18-inch wheel and tire setups with unique suspension tuning. A new darker aluminum interior upgrade option is also now available.