1965 Mustang Convertible

by Carl Bomstead

“Ride, Sally ride.”

Wilson Pickett caught the mood of the nation when, in his blues song, Mustang Sally, he sang “I bought you a brand new Mustang ’bout nineteen sixty-five.” Sally’s was only one of the 680,000 Mustangs that were sold in 1964-65 as the car that Lee Iococca and his committee of eight designed wildly exceeded sales projections. The Mustang was introduced in March of 1964 and those built up to August of that year are often referred to as “’64½s” although that was not an official factory designation. Adding to the naming confusion, Mustangs built before August 17th, 1964, equipped with generators and a GEN warning light, are often referred to as “early ’65s.” Those built after August 17th, alternator-equipped and with an ALT warning light, are called “late ’65s.” Engines in the late ’65s are more powerful; the 200 ci six-cylinder picked up nineteen horsepower (120 hp) and the 2-barrel and 4-barrel versions of the 289 cubic inch V8s were boosted to 200 and 225...