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The ’64 ½ Mustang Started it All

The ‘64 ½ Ford Mustangs sparked the pony car craze. We examine what makes these very first Mustangs unique and distinctive.

Building the First Mustang

This month marks the 60th anniversary of the release of the Ford Mustang. To celebrate, I scoured Carsforsale.com for a good example of the original ’64 ½ Mustang to illustrate what made those early cars so charismatic. This example can also help would-be collectors distinguish those very first ’64 ½ cars from later 1965 model year Mustangs.

But first a bit of background. The Ford Mustang began as the brainchild of Ford executive Lee Iacocca. Iacocca identified the growing youth market as primed for something novel, exciting, and, ideally, affordable. To appeal to the baby boomers, who were aging into their driver’s licenses, Iacocca tasked his designers and engineers to come up with an attractive, sporty 2+2 with mass appeal. But Iacocca wasn’t the only automotive executive eager to capture this nascent market, Pontiac and Plymouth had their own sports car projects underway, which gave Ford just 18 months to develop their new sports car.

1964 Worlds Fair Ford Exhibit 1965 Mustang - fordheritagevault.com
1964 Worlds Fair Ford Exhibit 1965 Mustang - fordheritagevault.com

To save both time and money, the new car would be built from the existing Ford Falcon platform. Ford initiated an internal design competition between teams from Ford, Lincoln-Mercury, and the Advanced Products Studio with Ford’s team, led by Joe Oros, coming up with the winning design. Designer John Naijar is credited with the Mustang name, taken from the WWII fighter plane the P-51 Mustang.

The Ford Mustang officially premiered on April 17th at the World’s Fair in New York and at dealerships nationwide. The car was an instant sensation, selling 22,000 on its first day, over 400,000 in the first year, and topping one million units sold by its second year of production.

Why is it Called a ‘64 ½ Mustang?

1964 ½ Ford Mustang Front Exterior - carsforsale.com
1964 ½ Ford Mustang Front Exterior - carsforsale.com

The first thing to know about the ’64 ½ Mustang is why it carries the unusual half year designation. Because Ford wanted to get the Mustang to market as soon as possible, the spring debut was out of sync with the typical model year schedule. Those Mustangs built between March and July 31st of 1964 are colloquially known as ’64 ½ Mustangs while those built from August ’64 onwards are proper 1965 model year cars.

All ’64 ½ Mustangs ran one of three engines. The base motor was a “Thriftpower” 170-cu.-in. straight-six making a paltry 101 horsepower. Next were either a 260 cu.-in. V8 with 164 horsepower or a 289 (D-code) V8 with 210 horsepower. A high-performance variant of the latter V8 (K-code) was tuned to 271 horsepower.

How to Identify a ‘64 ½ Mustang

1964 ½ Ford Mustang Under The Hood - carsforsale.com
1964 ½ Ford Mustang Under The Hood - carsforsale.com

From a distance it’s exceedingly difficult to tell ’64 ½ Mustang from a ’65 Mustang, for instance both have the original honeycomb grille design. However, a close inspection of the ’64 ½ car reveals key details that can help tell them apart.

First are the wipers. On the 64 ½ car the wipers are fully chrome with the sheet metal beveling on the underside of the wiper pivots, on the ’65 these bevels are above.

Next is the hood. Two details are telling here: first, the front edge to the ’64 ½ hood is unfinished; second, the edging to the hood has a tucked beveling to it rather than the folded over bevel of later cars. Additional beveling can be seen where the hood tapers between the grille and the headlights.

Another key detail you’ll notice with the hood open are the louver vents to the right and left of the radiator for the battery. The large, frame-mounted horns behind the radiator are another giveaway this is a ’64 ½ Mustang.

The interior also features subtle differences. On the dashboard on the left of the odometer is a light that reads GEN for generator as the ’64 ½ Mustang had a generator which was swapped for an alternator in ’65 cars. The heater fan switch is also different as ‘64 ½ versions have an “off” position in the center. One last detail is the ’64 ½ Mustang’s gas cap does not come with a safety/security cable as later cars do.

This ‘64 ½ Mustang is as Vintage as It Gets

1964 ½ Ford Mustang Side Exterior - carsforsale.com
1964 ½ Ford Mustang Side Exterior - carsforsale.com

The ’64 ½ Ford Mustang I found on Carsforsale.com isn’t just in good condition or just the quintessential red convertible, it’s also one of the earliest Mustangs to market. According to the seller, this ’64 ½ Mustang was sold at George Parsons Ford in St. Johns, Newfoundland, Canada, to one Captain Stanley Tucker on April 14th, press day for the Mustang and three days prior to the car’s official debut.

Under the hood is an original D-code 289 V8 with a four-barrel carburetor and paired with a four-speed manual transmission. The car still carries a factory-correct generator rather than an alternator. The interior is finished in red with red leather seats and a wooden, three-spoke steering wheel.

In all, this ’64 ½ Ford Mustang is a sterling example and at just $31,500 a steal for such a historically significant and distinctive car.

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Chris Kaiser

With two decades of writing experience and five years of creating advertising materials for car dealerships across the U.S., Chris Kaiser explores and documents the car world’s latest innovations, unique subcultures, and era-defining classics. Armed with a Master's Degree in English from the University of South Dakota, Chris left an academic career to return to writing full-time. He is passionate about covering all aspects of the continuing evolution of personal transportation, but he specializes in automotive history, industry news, and car buying advice.

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