Lee Iacocca, The Father Of The Ford Mustang

Throughout the history of the automobile, the United States has played a fundamental role in its expansion, despite its origins dating back to Europe. However, the role of businessman Lee Iacocca changed the course of the  automotive industry in the 1960s with a car that became an icon: the Ford Mustang.

The quintessential ‘ pony car ‘ has not been the only renowned work designed by the American. After a meteoric rise through the ranks of Ford, and once he rose to the position of president of the brand, he  conceived one of the most controversial cars in history, the Ford Pinto.

The creation of a myth

Iacocca began his career at Ford in 1946  and gradually worked his way up between departments until he became vice president in 1960. From this moment on, the brand would never be the same again, and the entrepreneur would completely renew it, with more and better advertising, and selling what the public asked for.

Under this premise, the project was born that would end up giving birth to the first Ford Mustang, a car that reaped unprecedented success, as it exceeded one million sales in a period of 22 months. The Mustang thus became the American icon of the 1960s, the car that powered an entire generation, like the SEAT 600 in Spain.

In the 1960s Ford sold a range made up of more or less luxurious and powerful cars, but for the general public the larger engines were inaccessible. It was then that Lee Iaccoca had the brilliant idea of ​​creating a compact and affordable sports car with large displacement engines.

As if that were not enough, Iacocca understood that the American public demanded a design that denotes power even if it does not have it. With this premise, the Mustang was designed, which for many is more reminiscent of a European sports car. With a range starting at just over $2,000 at the time, different bodies and engines were offered.

The Mustang was available as a convertible, coupe or fastback coupe, as well as with six-cylinder engines and powerful 5.0-liter V8s. To these were added the four-speed manual and three-speed automatic gearboxes.

The Ford Mustang has not been the only model of the blue oval created by the American businessman and that is remembered. The Ford Pinto fiasco also bore his name, and with it began Iacocca’s decline at Ford.

After the fall of his popularity within the brand and his disagreements with Henry Ford II, Lee Iacocca would end up dismissed from his position in 1978, which ended a 32-year collaboration. After this movement, the destination of the businessman was Chrysler, where he would participate in the creation of the first minivan in history.

This event occurred in the 1980s, with the introduction of the first generation Voyager and the Great Caravan. His stay in the brand would extend until the 90s, when he retired permanently.

Lee Iacocca today

Today, Lee Iacocca is professionally retired, and  at 93 he is a cult character in the United States and for all those car enthusiasts. Due to his advanced age, the successful businessman is rarely seen at events of various kinds, mostly related to the Mustang.

It is worth mentioning that at the presentation of the latest generation of the Ford Mustang at the end of 2013, the head of development of the last Mustang and Iacocca were invited to the Jay Leno’s Garage program that the well-known Jay Leno has on YouTube. The presence of the creator of the pony car  par excellence was due to the preparations for the 50th anniversary of the model.

For this, in addition to having a pre-series unit of the last Mustang, they had the first produced unit of the original Mustang, from 1964 1/2, as well as one of the initial prototypes of the project.