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1966 Mustang Production Data
1966 Mustang Production Info, Ads, Prices, Options, and Data Plate Codes
The earliest recorded build dates for the 1966 model year are 16Aug65 for Dearborn and San Jose, and 25Aug65 for Metuchen. For 1966, the Mustang again was offered in three body styles - coupe, convertible, and fastback. The Mustang design was not changed much for 1966. The grille design changed a bit - the honeycomb grille was replaced by a horizontal bar design, and the vertical and horizontal bars extending from the running poly corral were dropped. The bright hood lip moulding introduced with the 1965 Mustang GT package became standard, as did backup lights and the lower rocker panel moulding. Redesigned side mirror, side scoop chrome trim with three windsplits (coupe and convertible only), wheel covers, and a restyled gas cap completed the exterior changes. On the interior, the instrument panel was redesigned with five round gauges, replacing the panel borrowed from the Ford Falcon for previous model years; the glove box door was redesigned, and the standard vinyl seat design was changed to a "woven" pattern.
Ford broke the 1,000,000 Mustang mark in 1966, only 18 months after its introduction, when the 1,000,000th Mustang rolled off the assembly line on 02Mar66. To celebrate (and to avoid a potential production problem due to the overwhelming popularity of the 289 V8 engine), Ford released the Sprint 200 Mustang. These specially-equipped six-cylinder Mustangs came with special wire wheel covers, side accent pinstripe and rocker panel moulding (side scoop chrome trim omitted), center console, and chrome oil-filler cap and air cleaner with a special air cleaner decal which read "Mustang Powered Sprint 200". The earliest known Sprint 200 was built on 11Jan66.
Shelby G.T. 350 Mustangs returned again in 1966. Changes from the 1965 models included the installation of a plexiglass quarter window instead of the previous year's air vents; the addition of functional quarter panel air scoops that fed cool air to the rear brakes; an optional automatic transmission, the addition of the Cobra G.T. 350 logo on the gas cap, and color choices were expanded to include Wimbledon White, Candy Apple Red, Sapphire Blue, Ivy Green, and Raven Black. On the interior, a fold-down rear seat was added, as was the deluxe Mustang woodgrain steering wheel and Cobra tachometer. Less than ten of the Shelby G.T. 350's produced in 1966 were convertibles, making them the rarest of Mustang convertibles. Shelby also produced 11 supercharged G.T. 350S models. Hertz Corporation ordered approximately 1,000 G.T. 350's to offer as rentals (designated as "G.T. 350H"), nearly doubling sales of the Shelby G.T. 350's for the year. Most of the G.T. 350H models received a black paint scheme with gold racing stripes, and black interior.
In 1966 there were also 333 High Country Specials produced, of which only 35 were convertibles. The High Country Special was a promotion that Ford ran from 1966-68. The Mustangs came in three special colors: Timberline Green, Columbine Blue, and Aspen Gold. All came with special emblems that dealers were free to mount where they wanted. They were only sold in Colorado, Wyoming, and parts of Nebraska.
One other little known special edition called the "Anniversary Gold Mustang" is also said to have been produced, to celebrate the production of the one millionth Mustang in March 1966. It is believed that less than 50 of these Mustang hardtops were made. These Mustangs are said to have been given special order gold paint and black deluxe "pony" interiors. All known examples of this package were produced at the San Jose plant, and have a DSO of 33111 and a common build date of March 29th. It is not known how these Mustangs were distributed or why they were produced. It is believed that they were part of a dealer sales competition, with just one going to each of Ford's sales districts.
1966 Mustangs exported to Germany were given the model name "T-5", since another company owned the rights to the name "Mustang" (T-5 was the original name Ford had given to the Mustang project). There were a few mechanical modifications for the German market. While the tri-bar running Mustang emblems remained intact on the fenders, steering wheel, glove box, gas cap, and wheel covers, cosmetic changes included replacing the "Mustang" fender badge with a rectangular "T-5" badge, removal of the engraved "Mustang" lettering on the steering wheel and gas cap, and a speedometer calibrated in kilometers per hour for T-5s sold to German residents (T-5s sold to US military personnel in Germany retained MPH calibrated speedometers). It is not known how many T-5s were produced in 1966, but the production number is estimated at approximately 600.
In addition to the three U.S. plants which produced 1966 Mustangs, Ford also produced 1966 Mustangs at plants in Mexico City (over 2000 units, VIN starting with "AF") and Amsterdam, the Netherlands (approx. 240 units, VIN starting with "AN"). In addition, in a pilot program, approximately 160 1966 Mustangs were shipped from the U.S. to Ford of Australia's plant near Sydney either as pre-assembled "bare bones" vehicles or as "knock-down" units (VIN starting with "AA"), and converted to right-hand drive to meet Australian legal requirements (a plate was installed on the right door sill declaring the vehicles "Made by Ford Australia," and an "Australian Compliance Plate" was affixed to the firewall). Production at all three of these international plants was limited to the coupe body style (signified by the digits "07" in the VIN), and each carry their own unique style of data plate.
Data Plate Decoder Click the data plate graphic to decode your 1966 Mustang's data plate. Explanations for all data plate codes are presented in the table below. Scott Martin's 1966 Mustang Data Plate Decoder
Click the data plate graphic to decode your 1966 Mustang's data plate. Explanations for all data plate codes are presented in the table below.
Scott Martin's 1966 Mustang Data Plate Decoder
Example:
289cid-4V (Hi-Po)
Antique Bronze
Note: Some 1966 Mustangs built late in the 1966 production year may have 1967 DSO codes. Thanks to Gerry McCabe for bringing this to my attention!
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