Joining the pony club

I try not to have too many regrets in life but, a few months after selling my 1963 Ford Galaxie wagon as described in the last issue, I really did wish that I hadn’t parted with it. To be frank, my head wasn’t in a very good place at the time and I made a rash decision.

Enthusiasm subsequently rekindled, head sorted, I started thinking about what might make a Galaxie replacement. Realistically, these big wagons are a bit too much of a handful for the roads I tend to drive and yet I still really hankered after another American car. I love the simplicity and quality of their engineering, the fact that parts are usually easy to source, and of course their style.

It wasn’t difficult to realise that what I wanted was a 1964-66 Mustang. I owned one briefly, more than 20 years ago, and always thought it was a very usable car, no bigger than a Zodiac MkIV. It had to be a V8, and probably a notchback to fit my budget of up to £15,000. Fastbacks command a premium and I actually prefer the slightly understated look of the notchback’s profile.

Checking out prices in this country and abroad, I quickly realised that Mustangs are now relatively expensive. Good V8s

start at 15 grand in the UK, rather than go up to it, and they aren’t much cheaper in the States. True to form, however, the right car turned up for sale just 20 minutes from where I live. A 1966 notchback finished in a very attractive metallic

bronze shade called Emberglo, it’s a California ‘black plate’ car – which means it was registered in the State before 1970 – and it’s in what Americans call good ‘driver’ condition: presentable but far from concours. That’s exactly what I wanted in a car to use and enjoy.

The seller, Matthew de Leysin, runs a part-time business importing just a few Mustangs a year (midland-mustangs.co.uk) and I immediately felt comfortable dealing with him. He was totally upfront about the car’s strengths and weaknesses, pointing out some flaws in the paintwork and a couple of other minor issues. But the car drove well and it really is rust-free, in line with its Californian history.

Bearing in mind the jobs that needed sorting, Matthew was happy to do a deal at £14,500 and I took the car straight over to a local specialist, Mike Lacey of Modurstang in Oxfordshire (modurstang.co.uk), where it looked right at home in his workshop, pictured above.

The good news is that Mike reckons I’ve bought a really nice car at a very fair price. As for the less-than-good news… I’ll tell you about that next month.

‘THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT I’VE BOUGHT A REALLY NICE CAR AT A VERY FAIR PRICE’