1969 Ford Mustang Mach 1
Although the original wheelbase was the same, the car grew wider with longer overhangs while lowering the roofline in a bid to make the car that much more aggressive. The nose became sharper and quad headlights were the norm, with the ones on the outside of the grille sitting deep within rectangular cavities for a meaner look. The Mach 1 also gave its prospective owners a wide variety of choices in terms of not only engines, but also axles, transmissions, exterior trims and add-ons, interior and exterior colors. It was heaven for those who like to fiddle with forms in the dealership stuffing their cars with extras. The offering was the same for 1970 with the Mach 1 only available as a SportsRoof although, by then, the car had gone through yet another visual refreshment procedure. This means that the 72,458 units built of the 1969 model year are the only ones with the quad headlight, low-slung allure. The Mach 1 was popular enough to stay in production until the dawn of the Foxbody which is when Ford returned to the GT moniker.
The company then revived the Mach 1 during the lifespan of the SN-95 as a mid-range model that sat above the GT but below the SVT Cobra. Since then, many rumors emerged hinting towards the return of the Mach 1 as a trim level for the sixth-gen Mustang. As we鈥檝e reported back in May, it鈥檚 far more likely that the Mach 1 will be resurrected as a model of its own right and an electric one no less. Until then, let鈥檚 take a closer look at the original. The Mustang did not escape this dreaded fate but, before it became an unrecognizable land yacht of sorts, they hit the sweet spot with the 1969 styling upgrades. Ford extended the front and rear overhangs to make the Mustang bigger by 3.8 inches. Thus the wheelbase staying put at 108 inches. The roofline was also lowered by almost 1 inch. The lines of the car are punctuated by reflective stripes on the sides and across the upper edge of the rear end, just above the Mustang lettering where you鈥檒l find 鈥淢ach 1鈥?written on the stripe itself.
The swage line on the side extends from the upper edge of the headlight crease all the way back to the edge of the rear quarter panel where it met a C-shaped air intake. That intake, positioned just aft of the door in line with the door handle, is the only one on the car鈥檚 profile replacing the double side scoops that used to sit under the swage line on the earlier models. Gone are also the louvers behind the side windows, but Ford thought its customers might still want a dose of louvers, so they offered optional louvers - dubbed 鈥淪port Splats鈥?- to be placed over the back window. Again, it is a feature that hampered usability all the while improving the sporty look the car was going for. The rear spoiler, another optional extra, was the final piece of the puzzle, but it鈥檚 not really known if it actually aided the handling.
The back of the car features three individual vertically-mounted taillights at the extremities, with the rear bumper acting as the lower edge with the reflective stripe marking the upper one. The car came with dual exhausts regardless of the engine choice and a fancy, chromed pop-open gas cap with all the necessary branding on it. All the inches added to the body plus all of the bits and pieces meant to show the Mach 1 could reach Mach 1 speeds took their toll on what was once the most compact of the pony cars. Thus, the 1969 Mach 1 weighs in at a respectable 3,254 pounds. You have two-tone vinyl upholstery, high-back seats and teakwood-grained trim on the interior door panels and the dash. The three-spoke rim-blow steering wheel is as large as you鈥檇 imagine it to be with three circular holes drilled in each spoke. You鈥檝e got four gauges looking at you with the tachometer and speedometer in the middle and the fuel and temperature gauges on the sides.
