The Ford Mustang was introduced at the New York World’s Fair on April, 17, 1964, and Jay dragged his parents there to check it out, even though it would appear on all three American television networks two days later. The Mustang’s launch was one of the most successful in American history, selling 22,000 units on its first day, and over one million in its first 18 months. No other car has ever captured American hearts so completely, nor achieved such iconic status as the ultimate emblem of the American spirit.

Although many believe the Mustang was the first pony car, it was not. The Plymouth Barracuda hit the market a few weeks earlier. The Mustang was first conceived as a two-seat, mid-engine roadster by Ford product manager Donald Frey and championed by Lee Iacocca. A pony-inspired torque-box body frame was plopped atop Falcon underpinnings, utilizing most of the Falcon’s mechanical parts to keep production costs low. This allowed Ford to price the Mustang for Joe Public, with the 1964½ base model hardtop listing around $2400. If your Dad drove a Mustang, you were the coolest kid in school!

In 1965, Ford turned to the legendary Carroll Shelby to get the Mustang ready for the race track. In order to gain SSCA approval, Shelby rushed to build 100 street units by January 1st, 1965, all of which were painted Wimbledon White livery with Guardsmen Blue stripes. Shelby pumped up the Mustang’s engine and mounted it in the trunk, reinforced suspension, and removed the back seat to make way for a Detroit locker rear end. Thirty-six 350 Rs were produced for racing that year, and the car won five of the SSCA’s six divisions.

Jay owns car #120 out of 562 models produced, which he thought was expensive when he bought his Mustang 20 years ago for an undisclosed sum. After all, its few critics from back in the day thought it would never become collectible, because Ford made too many of them. Jay claims that an investment in a Shelby Mustang is way better than the stock market. Only problem? You can always sell stock, but you can never sell this car once you’ve driven it!