- Sitting there in the middle of nowhere, barely on the shoulder of I-70, in total darkness, no working hazard flashers, big rigs thundering inches away, with one bar-worth of signal on the cell phone, I began to second-guess my decision to wade into this adventure, wondering if all the haters were right.
I had a 1974 baby-blue mustang 2, when I was a teenager - but not a fastback like the one in this article. I liked it a lot - but that was probably because the car it replaced was a 1970 Dodge Duster - what a dog that POS was. That mustang-2 was a pretty fun car to drive, until I ran it too low on oil and blew the engine. Damn thing never showed me a dash warning light, either; not until a couple of minutes before it croaked. Cars weren't as reliable or predictable back then.
Honest answer. The Duster was crap and good riddance. I sold it for $150 more than I bought it for after 1 year, so it was still a win. The mustang II will always have a place in my heart because that's where I got my first blowjob.
This is like that time Four Wheeler built a mail jeep. It, too, was an utter and total piece of shit, as well as an abject waste of time. However, we'd long since crossed over into mockery of four wheeler so we read every chapter with bated breath. Link Part 2 when it comes out. Choads. They shoulda built the Celica GT. 
What will amaze you is that we discovered TR-7s and Land Rover Series IIIs share a wheelbase, which means the British have done what I did a ridiculous number of times. The Celica is mentioned because it was discussed in the article. And if you're going to be weird in the pages of Hot Rod, be weird. Although the editor writes for Mustang magazine, which would make a Celica a rather awkward choice. Really, I see why theyre doing it, but MIIs are still pieces of shit.
Shit, if they wanted weird they should have gone with a Buick Skyhawk. Don't remember that car? That's okay. Buick probably prefers it that way.
That's one of the great things about automotive history. There are all of these unique cars on the fringes. Some are known and coveted, like split window Corvettes and COPO Camaros. Some are known and ignored, such as Dodge Omni GLHS or Monte Carlo Aerocoupes. Then you have cars like that Falcon, a blip on the radar that could easily be overlooked, the only thing making it compelling is the circumstances around its existence.
Thanks for the link to the Jeep project. That looks like a good lunchtime read. I'll give you a shout out when Part II comes about. I really can't wait to see the kind of trouble this car brings about. If it was anything like my neighbor's Pinto, he'll need an act of divine intervention to keep him from just driving it off a cliff. You should check out some of Roadkill's Youtube episodes sometimes. They're a great way to vicariously enjoy "stupid car projects that really shouldn't happen."
There was a '75 Ford Maverick in our circle of friends back in High School. It had the 302 that this miserable Mustang II needs in order to justify its existence and it was still a wretched piece of shit. Anyone who has ever turned a wrench on a variety of '70s cars can testify that the sunset of British automotive and the ascendancy of Japan and the crushing defeat of Detroit were not dictated by fashion. The Japanese cars of the era were tidy, innovative and fun to work on, the American cars were clumsy, shoddily built and stout in all the wrong directions ('70s American emissions controls, looking right at you) and the British cars of the '70s were built by saboteurs.
Funny thing is, for a brief moment, the Mustang Deuce (as in piece of shit, not two) was going to be based off the Maverick. For anyone with fifteen minutes to kill, the Wikipedia Article on the Mustang gives a great history on the car nameplate overall and of course, actually going to the Mustang II gives a more specific history. Here are some quick cliffnotes for anyone reading. - The OG Mustang was based off the Falcon Platform. Iacoca basically said "Fuck the bean counters, we're going to make a car that I think has spirit while still being reasonable." What he and Ford eventually created was an overnight success. - Towards the end of the of the first generation of the Mustang, it got fat. Reaaaaly fat. Sales started to suffer as people ditched the Mustang for Mavericks and Pintos. - Iacoca and Ford then created the Mustang II. It was small and almost as light as the OG Mustang and was able to meet the new, restrictive emissions standards. - Instead of competing against cars like the Camaro, it suddenly competed against cars like the Datsun 240z and the Chevrolet Monza. In its debut year, it got Motortrend's "Car of the Year Award," and it sold relatively well throughout its lifespan. As an aside, it was only without the 302 engine for one year. Though with all the extra emissions parts on the 302, Ford basically had a turd of an engine on its hand.There was a '75 Ford Maverick in our circle of friends back in High School. It had the 302 that this miserable Mustang II needs in order to justify its existence and it was still a wretched piece of shit.