As the Corona Virus lock down continues we are very limited to what we can do and very little is happening to customer’s cars for obvious reasons. However the WebShop is still operating as normal, but its continued operation is very reliant on on the key worker delivery drivers. We posted “Adam’s response” a couple of weeks ago and we would like to say a big thank you to all the support we have received since then. An overwhelmingly positive response to what Adam had pointed out. It seems as though the very small minority of people that had moaned about the costs didn’t respond – funny that! This is not just about poor Mustang Maniac as there are plenty of businesses that are going through the same thing as us. Based on the responses to our last post;

Adam Longmore

“Thank you for all your support during these difficult times.”

Customer’s Car Mini Project.

Like we mentioned above the WebShop has been doing well with the usual service items and some bigger projects taking place. For our most loyal customers and those within the fabled inner sanctum of Mustang Maniac, we will go out of way for the more unusual requests. Such a request cam into us for a stock look LED headlight upgrade. There are plenty of LED upgrades out there, but not many with the Ford lens look. Our standard Ford lens on the left and the replacement stock style lens on the right.

Adam looked around and found a close match with the H4 fittings. The biggest problem is to find an LED bulb that will fit behind the lens within the headlight bowl itself. As the wire harness plugs directly onto the back of the bulb it makes the overall length quite long deeper than the standard 6″, which will then hit the front of the fender and not allow the bulb to be secured correctly. Adam had a couple of ideas, one would be ideal and might be a tight fit, the other will fit with a little creative working.

Here is the standard H4 halogen bulb, the nice to have LED in blue, and the it will fit option in grey. The issue becomes plain to see when the comparisons are made.

The full and detailed fitting guide can be found here on how it was done;

https://onemanandhismustang.com/led-head-light-conversion/

A few phone calls were had between Adam and Mart for various options. The upshot was that Mart was going document the fitting for us and test the idea. Mart was then going to let Mustang Maniac how it went. All was good and the actively cooled LED bulb set with the pigtail fitted as Adam had envisaged. There needed to be a couple of minor ‘mods’ to make it all dust proof back on the car. The comparison was made with the standard Ford sealed beam Halogen headlight on the left, and the replaceable LED on the right. Total time to fit? half an hour or so each side, not including the OCD cleaning behind the headlights that took place at the same time.

The finished article looks great and will be a huge advantage for night driving and to be seen by other road users.

Although this was a mini bespoke project depending on the response and demand Mustang Maniac gets, we may start to stock these as a kit and be available on the WebShop. Please email us and let us know if there is a general market for this option.

News:

The sad loss of Gale Halderman – the last of the original Mustang team.

Gale Halderman of Tipp City, world-renowned for being the original designer of the iconic Ford Mustang, died Wednesday April 30th 2020 at Upper Valley Medical Center, a family spokesman said. He was 87. Halderman died after a short battle with liver cancer, according to his family.

His design became the basis for a car that would eventually sell more than 8 million units, span six design generations, and be one of a handful of models continuously built for 50-plus years, local auto enthusiast Skip Peterson wrote in the Dayton Daily News Wheels section in 2017.

“To have lived 87 years and to have designed something that is part of pop culture and automotive history, he had such an impact,” said Jimmy Dinsmore, author of “Mustang by Design: Gale Halderman and the Creation of Ford’s Iconic Pony Car,” acting as a spokesman for the Halderman family.

“He did it in such a humble way that has touched the heart of every Mustang enthusiast out there. As great of a designer as he was, he was an even better human being,” Dinsmore said. The most striking thing about the 40-year Ford employee was Halderman’s humility, Dinsmore said. For many years, Halderman did not receive much attention for being the Mustang’s original designer, preferring to let others take the credit, he said. That’s a testament to his makeup and the type of person he was, Dinsmore said. “I’ll always remember his smile at car events when people would thank him for designing such a beautiful car, the smile it would bring to his face,” he said. “That’s the impact Gale had – whether you were a Mustang fan or not.”

Dinsmore recalled when he and Halderman attended a Mecum auto auction in Indianapolis and a 17-year-old boy ran up to the legendary designer as soon as he came through the door.

“He was so revered throughout the Mustang community,” he said. “When Lee Iacocca passed away last year, Gale was the last of the Mustang legends still with us. In some regards, this is the end of the golden era of the Mustang’s beginnings.”

Halderman’s status with Ford Motor Co. did not go unnoticed.

“When he went back to their Christmas dinners and such, he would be seated at the table with Mr. Ford,” Dinsmore said. Halderman is survived by three daughters: Karen Koenig, Kim Learning and Carol Marchelletta; nine grandchildren; and eight great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death in 2013 by his wife of 60 years, Barbara Senter Halderman; an infant son; and a daughter. Halderman graduated with a bachelor of arts degree from the University of Dayton. He also earned an industrial design degree from the Dayton Art Institute.

During his 40 years in design at Ford, Halderman was director and executive director of the Advanced Design Studio, Interior Design Studio, Lincoln/Mercury Design Studio and the Ford Design Studio. A member of the Mustang Hall of Fame for his design, he also received the Motor Trend Car of the Year Award for the design of the 1990 Lincoln Town Car and was honored with the Lee Iacocca Award on April 19, 2014, for dedication to excellence in perpetuating an American Automotive Tradition. In 2016, Halderman was also inducted into the American Legion Buckeye Boys State Hall of Fame for outstanding contributions to the automotive field.

In 2014, he created the Halderman Barn Museum on his family homestead in Tipp City, which holds a giant collection of drawings, artwork, memorabilia and information about all things Mustang, Ford and Lincoln Mercury. It also houses the first car Halderman bought, a 1965 Mustang convertible, according to Peterson.

The museum will be kept open by appointment. and a celebration of Halderman’s life is planned for the future.

Source: https://www.daytondailynews.com

Money News:

Yep, if you have a Fox body Mustang you are about to be in the money!

PARK CITY, Utah – Ken Block recently revealed his latest concept vehicle, “The Hoonifox,” which pays homage to 1980s motorsport styling and takes design cues from Ken’s own 1965 Hoonicorn Mustang. It also reimagines the best of that era while putting a modern-day spin on a Ford classic.

The all-wheel-drive Ford Mustang “Hoonifox” is a Fox Body Mustang design that Block developed with Ash Thorp, designer of the forthcoming Batmobile, with whom Block worked with to design his current Ford Escort RS Cossie V2.

Block and Thorp hope to use the same “render-to-reality” path they took with the Cossie V2 racecar project to bring to life a Gymkhana car concept that has been in Block’s head since the Hoonicorn V1 was built. Their idea is to modernize an ’80s Fox body Mustang, making it raw and simple like the Hoonicorn V1, while leveraging the new possibilities of Thorp’s 3D design skills.

Taking cues from ’80s motorsport, not to mention “Miami Vice”-era levels of street car excess, they got to work. Aggressive, boxy, modern rally car-inspired over fenders were a must. While the combo of classic Mustang GT louvered tail lights and window louvers are a nod to car styling of the era.

The Hoonifox will similarly be equipped with a rally-spec AWD system, and will include possible power plants like the Ford Ecoboost V6, or the naturally aspirated Roush Yates V8 found in Hoonicorn V1 –which Block has touted for its rawness and driveability. Another option could be the Mustang Mach-E drivetrain.

With the renderings of the Hoonifox concept now coming to light, there is much to be done before seeing the car to production. Starting the physical build, further development, inclusion of new tech, and testing is still needed. Block is looking forward to seeing the Hoonifox become a reality.

“I absolutely want to build the Hoonifox,” he said. “And do a ‘Gymkhana’ video with it, of course. And, do it in a 1980s ‘Miami Vice’-style version if it. Down in Miami.”

In a video released on Block’s YouTube channel; he, Thorp and Hoonigan Industries CCO Brian Scotto give a behind-the-scenes look into the creative process of developing project vehicles for Hoonigan Racing Division. The announcement of the Hoonifox concept is a first for the team, in that it allows fans and auto enthusiasts alike a rare, early peek into the development process of an all-new Gymkhana racecar.

The video highlights Thorp’s designs from the Batmobile to major motion pictures. Block, Thorp and Scotto also discuss the history of the Fox Body, go into detail on how it came about and walk through the design process, finishing up with some amazing beauty shots, and concept liveries.

source: https://www.at.ford.com

Finally:

Happy VE weekend on the 75th anniversary. Adam has gone to some effort to celebrate the Victory in Europe Day in the lock down, although hardly anybody will see it apart from delivery drivers and couriers. Adam was quite happy to sit in his office to raise a beer to the brave men and women who gave their all for their country.

Stay Safe!