1964 1/2 Mustang info

[badjuju342]

Logistical

Production began March 9, 1964 and ended August 17,1964
Only Coupes and Convertibles were produced during this time
Only Generator equipped cars were produced during this time
Date codes are �C� through �H�, found on the Data plate Engines Displacement & Code
170 cubic inch 6cyl 1bbl "V"
260 cubic inch 8cyl 2bbl "F"
289 cubic inch 8cyl 4bbl "D"
*289 cubic inch 8cyl 4bbl "K"
* Available in June of 1964 Exterior
The Gas Cap has no retaining wire.
The edges of the Hood have stiffening skirts ( bevels) on its lower left and right side
The Grill panels have corresponding bevels to the hood skirts
The Mustang lettering on the front fenders is 4-3/8", later lengthened to 5"
Windshield Wiper shafts bases are pot metal and have a threaded escutcheon Interior
Door Locks are color-keyed to interior, changed to chrome in later production
Owners Manual states 170 C.I. six cylinder, and the 260 low compression V8, and the Hi-Performance 289 V8
The fresh air vent on the drivers side is marked with a White "A"
Door handles and Window cranks are held by concealed spring clips, not allen-head screws
Instrument Cluster has red GEN light (Generator), later models had red ALT light
Heater blower is two speed with OFF position located in center
Carpet had color-keyed rubber heel pad, no toe pad, as in later models
Carpeting stops at inner rocker panel, with color-keyed vinyl under door sill plate
Front Seatbelts are secured with an eye bolt, later changed to hex-head bolt
Passenger seat was not adjustable
Smaller "T" handle on automatic transmission cars Trunk
Mat is grey burtex in hardtops, and speckled grey rubber in convertibles
Spare tire hold down is slotted for anchor bolt
Tail lights have 3 wire pigtail assembly Engine Compartment
Hood Bumpers have recessed phillips screw to hold bumper to stud
Radiator Core support has air vents/louvers in front of batter box for cooling
Horns are larger than on later models and mounted on the frame behind radiator
Generators are installed, have black rubber shroud
Oil dipstick is on passenger side and very long
Oil filler tube is on front cover of engine, not valve covers
Small flip open oil cap on distributor base
Coils is mounted flat on intake manifold
Brake switch ( 2 wires) is mounted on the master cylinder
Engine has a road draft tube, with /without a PCV valve

[badjuju342]

Ford's Mustang was conceived in full knowledge that in the mid-'60s the biggest population bubble in history was coming of age in America. Baby boomers would rule the '60s and there was little reason to think they wanted cars that were anything like their parents' cars. The production Mustang was shown to the public for the first time inside the Ford Pavilion at the New York World's Fair on April 17, 1964 — two months and nine days after the Beatles first came to New York to appear on The Ed Sullivan Show. It went on sale at Ford dealers that same day. The 1964 1/2 production Mustang followed two Mustang concept cars. The Mustang I shown in 1962 was a midengine two-seater powered by a V4. The Mustang II show car first displayed at the United States Grand Prix in Watkins Glen, N.Y., during October 1963, was a front-engine, four-seater foreshadowing the production machine that went on sale six months later. Compared to those two, the production machine was dowdy. Compared to every other American car then in production, except the Corvette, the Mustang was gorgeously sleek.
To make the Mustang affordable it needed to share much of its engineering with an existing Ford product. That product was the smallest Ford of the time, the compact Falcon. In fact, the first Mustangs were built in the same Dearborn, Mich., plant as the Falcon.
Initially offered as either a notchback coupe or convertible, the Mustang's unibody structure was laid over a 108-inch wheelbase and stretched out 181.6 inches from bumper to bumper. While it shared its front double-wishbone/coil spring and leaf spring rear suspension as well as its overall length with the Falcon, the proportions of the Mustang were different. Its cockpit was pushed further back on the chassis, resulting in a longer hood and shorter rear deck design, and both its roof and cowl were lower. It's with those proportions — detailed with such iconic touches as the running horse in the grille, the side scallops along the flanks and the taillights divided into three sections — the Mustang became a car people were instantly passionate about.
Engine choices started with the utterly lame 170-cubic-inch (2.8-liter) OHV straight six that made just 101 horsepower; then proceeded through a 200-cubic-inch (3.3-liter) OHV straight six rated at a flaccid 116 horsepower; a 260-cubic-inch (4.3-liter) OHV V8 breathing through a two-barrel carburetor and making 164 horsepower; a 210-horsepower two-barrel-equipped 289-cubic-inch (4.7-liter) V8; a four-barrel 289 making 220 horsepower; and, at the top, the famous 'K-code' high-compression, solid-lifter, four-barrel 289 pumping out a lusty 271 horsepower. K-code-equipped cars got a special badge on their front fenders indicating that not only did the engine displace 289 cubic inches, but that it was also the 'High Performance' version.
A three-speed manual transmission was standard with every engine except the 271-horse 289, which was available only with the four-speed manual that was optional on other models. The Cruise-O-Matic three-speed automatic transmission was also offered.
Nothing could stop the 1964 1/2 Mustang (especially not its four-wheel drum brakes) and with Ford furiously adding production capacity for the 'pony car' at plants around the country, the company sold an amazing 126,538 of them during that abbreviated 1964 model year — 97,705 coupes and 28,833 convertibles. The V8s outsold Mustangs equipped with the six by nearly three to one.
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