Ok, this is a complex issue, so here I go................
More than a decade ago, Ford decided to take the Mustang global, in the process investing in making it left AND right-hand-drive. For the first time, a Mustang could be sold in Australia and the UK without a right-hand-drive conversion.
Focusing on Australia, the Mustang was actually right-hand drive converted twice in the history of the model. The first was back in 1965 and 1966 to help promote the coming new Falcon, which was at the time described as the "Mustang bred Falcon". These cars were actually converted in the Homebush by a subcontractor. The second time was the 2000 - 2003 Mustang Cobra, both Coupe and Convertible were converted at Tickford, Ford's official performance shop. In both cases, these cars attracted a substantial price markup to cover the cost of the conversion.
Returning to the current and incoming Mustang, having the car manufactured in RHD from the get-go allowed Ford Australia to price the car very competitively back in 2015 when it launched. Combined with the death of our own muscle cars, the response was an instant waiting lists stretching out to 12+ months. Also, the Mustang attracted many to the Ford brand that would have once never even thought of stepping into a Ford dealer. I ordered mine in early 2016 and got the car in early 2017. The factory eventually caught up and wait times were much more realistic. Then the pandemic hit, and the following supply constraints meant that wait times were back out to 12 to 18 months............on a run-out, style driven model. Unheard of in the car industry when dealing with Coupe's like this.
All of the above contrasts to how GM and Dodge/FCA/Stellantis/Whatever they are calling themselves this week decided to approach their muscle cars. They stuck to LHD, despite there being demand for these vehicles outside of the US market. So, any that did make their way to Australia were converted to RHD by a third party. In the case of the Camaro, a couple of years ago Walkinshaw/HSV/GMSV did manage to import and convert these vehicles to be sold through the Holden/GM dealer network, but they commanded a hefty price premium over the Mustang and sales remained subdued and ultimately the model was quietly dropped.
I know this will come across as a heavily biased comment, but think about this logically............... Ford really won the battle with their approach to the muscle car segment. GM and Dodge kept their head down and did what they always had done. Ford knew they were going to need to find ways to add volume to the Mustang line and make it a viable model going forward. By taking it global, they ensured the Mustang had a future. GM have now killed the Camaro, likely to return as an electric SUV, and Dodge are making their cars electric...........because that is what muscle car buyers want? :doh:
The color is Isle of Mann Green, base model because it's available w/ manual, has AWESOME OEM wheels and fits you to a T
️
rops:
