All 1966 Ford Mustangs rolled off the Ford assembly lines complete with a Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) and a Data Plate. The VIN is stamped atop the driver's side engine bay wall. The Mustang data plate, which is riveted on the driver's side doorjamb, also contains the VIN. These two items provide all the details of how the Mustang was first manufactured — the Mustang's DNA if you will.

Nowadays, if you are a vintage Shelby Mustang enthusiast and you have sufficient cash to purchase a 1965-1970 Shelby Mustang, you might be most likely to simply find, test drive, negotiate, and purchase the best possible example GT350, GT500, or GT500KR that you can afford. You might not be too concerned about the Shelby's exterior paint scheme.

Whether you're on the hunt for a 1965 Ford Mustang or you already own a '65, it's important to know how your Mustang was originally built, when it rolled off the Ford assembly line. Should you be looking to buy an old Ford pony car, how the Mustang was originally equipped is a big key to establishing her value. Knowing this upfront can be used in negotiating a fair price, or deciding whether or not you wish to make an offer in the first place. If you're already a Mustang owner and you're restoring her to factory new, you'll need her DNA of how she was born (built) from back in the day.

Back in the 1960s, the Shelby Cobra 289 FIA dominated races throughout Europe and the United States, putting the likes of Ferrari, Aston Martin, and Jaguar in its rear view mirror. In 1965, it became one of the first American cars to win the FIA's International Championship for GT Manufacturers. For Chris Ashton of Ruffian Cars, this legendary history served as inspiration for a '67 Mustang Fastback project, which he called a "gentleman's racer." It features a custom widebody, 364ci aluminum small-block V8, 5-speed TKX manual transmission, and lots of cool racing-inspired details.

A Classic Industries coworker told me several months ago to go visit the Segerstrom Shelby Event Center, in Irvine, California, and several times thereafter over the passing months. Every time he mentioned it, I'd make a mental note to myself while responding to him with something like, "Yeah, I gotta go there and check out all the Shelby Mustangs, Cobras, and Shelby Daytona coupes." 

Though we spend our five- and six-day work weeks catering to the needs of our honored customers who own and are working on, driving, showing, and enjoying American muscle machines, many Classic Industries employees are wrenching away, driving, and enjoying our own vintage vehicles in our free time. Some of us drive our old cars daily. 

Whether it's fictional tales of alternate history or sci-fi movies about parallel dimensions, many of us enjoy pondering what might've happened if the past played out a little differently. In the automotive realm, there were many period-correct parts and upgrades that, in retrospect, could've been combined to create a fantastic vehicle from an alternative timeline. This thought process led Steve Strope, of Pure Vision Design in Simi Valley, California, to build his 1966 Ford Mustang into a truly unique racecar that never existed. Starting with a Ford/Lotus Indy car engine from the same year, and drawing inspiration from road rally cars and the iconic Martini & Rossi racing team livery, Strope's Mustang is the best kind of automotive fantasy.

Recently, Classic Industries published an article for the multitude of 1st Generation Mustang owners and enthusiasts (1964.5-1973) called: Decoding the 1964-1973 Mustang VIN: A Comprehensive Buyer's Guide. This article is specifically designed to enable 1964.5 Mustang (early 1965) caretakers and fans to decode the pony car's Data Plate, which gives us useful information such as assembly plant, body style, color, interior trim, engine, transmission, and much more.

"This isn't just a replica, it's a reproduction — it has the DNA of the original Mustang, but it's evolved with modern technology," explained Tom Scarpello, founder and CEO of Revology. On a recent episode of Jay Leno's Garage, Scarpello showed Leno around one of the roughly 200 made-to-order Mustangs his company has built at its Orlando, Florida factory. Each car starts with a bare unibody and moves through a 26-stage assembly line, finishing as a complete classic Mustang that has been fully updated to drive, perform, and feel like a modern, high-end sports car.

Author's Note: This is a Classic Industries team member's car. As of this writing, we've logged over 900 miles on our Factory Five Racing Mk4 Cobra roadster replica. Since this is the very same sports car that is the subject of the book that I wrote, How To Build Cobra Kit Cars + Buying Used, we thought you would enjoy reading about our first test drive of the FFR Mk4 after Dad and I constructed this little road burner.