Photos: Ford

Last week we reported that Ford was looking for help identifying a mid-engine Mustang prototype that had shown up in photos from 1966. It seems now that the mystery has been solved, and the modified ’Stang in question is indeed the wild Mustang Mach 2 concept, albeit in early form.

What made the initial photos significant, and the car a mystery, was the use of factory ’66 Mustang sheet metal stampings on the inner and outer portions of the body. While clearly modified, it’s obviously factory hardware, which would suggest that the finished mid-engine car would bear a strong resemblance to a standard ’66 coupe.

Many of the experts called on to review the photos mentioned the Mach 2 concept from 1967, but not definitively, given that the Mach 2 concept was built with a fiberglass body. Also, the visual cues weren’t quite right. But the smoking gun would come from another photo expert named Jim Farrell, and a former Ford design worker named Bud Magaldi.

Long story short, experts on the case quickly reached out to Farrell, who has access to Ford’s collection of S-negative photos. Through Ford’s redundant photo numbering system, Farrell and folks at Ford were able to determine that the date in the photos (5-2-66) lines up closely with the Mach 2.

To back this development, Farrell also reached out to numerous Ford designers, Bud Magaldi among them. Apparently, Magaldi was working on the project at the time, and confirmed that the Mustang was indeed the Mach 2 in this quote as reported by Autoblog:

“I am not sure how many people knew about it, as I was in my second year of the training program, and was working overtime on the project doing detail work, lettering, wheel proposals, graphics, etc.," Magaldi said. "The designer on the project was Jerry Morrison, and the studio engineer was Bob Huzzard, I believe it was the VP of Design Gene Bordinait who wanted to do this car."

Considered as a sporty replacement for the Shelby Cobra, the Mustang Mach 2 concept was debuted at the 1967 Chicago Auto Show. It sported a stylish fiberglass body concealing a mid-mounted 289 ci engine and five-speed transaxle with independent rear suspension. The whole car, which ran and drove, was alleged to weigh just 2,650 pounds and kept within the footprint of the standard Mustang.

But alas the Mach 2 concept was just that, a concept, which was never fully developed. After hitting the major shows, the Mach 2 was not seen again and we can only speculate on its whereabouts.