One-of-a-kind Mustang up for bid
A 1965 Ford Mustang with the VIN 5F07U100002 holds a couple of firsts, despite a serial number that suggests it may have been the second.
The sports car is believed to be the first hardtop Mustang to receive a serial number, as well as the first Mustang to be serialized sporting the Caspian Blue color.
It was also one of the first Mustangs sold in Canada, although a shipping error slowed its trip north of the border and caused it to miss the Mustang ’s introduction to the world.
In a month’s time, auto enthusiasts will have a chance to bid May 20 on the rare pony car when it goes to auction during Mecum Indy 2017.
The car will be a featured attraction of the event, held May 16-21 at the State Fairgrounds.
Tickets to the event are $20 a day, $100 for all six days, but go up to $30 a day the first day of the auction. The Mustang ’s new owner will have to pay a 10% buyer’s premium on top of the winning bid; if the winner comes over the Internet or phone — someone who would not have paid the admission fee — the buyer’s premium is 12%.
According to the Mecum Auctions website, this Mustang was among the 150 to 180 preproduction Mustangs built between Feb. 10 and March 5, 1964. In preparation for the Mustang ’s launch, workers had to be trained and cars had to be built for public relations duties.
Mustangs came to dealers’ showrooms with a list price of $2,368, according to Hemmings Motor News.
More than 400,000 of that model year were eventually produced, according to Hagerty collectors car insurance. The company values a top-tier ’65 Mustang coupe at a little more than $27,000.
The first two orders, white convertible 5F08F100001 and blue hardtop 5F07U100002, were to make the trip to Canadian Ford dealers so they would have a showroom car for the April 17 introduction day, according to the Mecum website. Like today, consecutive unit numbers didn’t necessarily determine the order off the assembly line, so it is unclear what car was actually the first off the line.
The hardtop was scheduled for early assembly so it could be shipped to Brown Brothers Ford in Vancouver by April 17, according to the website. But the hardtop was misrouted and ended up at Whitehorse Motors in the Yukon Territory in May, missing introduction day.
The six-cylinder, three-speed Mustang with 13-inch tires was a demo car for about a year before it was sold in the spring of 1965.
The first two serialized 1965 cars have survived after all these years, according to Mecum. The convertible, 100001, is owned by Ford Motor Company and displayed at The Henry Ford Museum. Early Mustang historian Bob Fria, who determined much of the hardtop’s history, got 100002 in 1997 after 13
previous owners.