Ford Styling Film:Two Automobiles That May Have Influenced the Design of the 1963 Mustang III
This 16-minute film from Ford documented the design process for the Mustang. It features two automobiles - Ford Allegro and Mustang II Prototype- which likely influenced the design and color of the above 1963 Mustang III Concept Show Car.
Enjoy,
Howard Kroplick
The 1963 Ford Allegro. Note the similar fastback design and color for the Mustang III.
1963 Mustang II Prototype. Built by Ford's prototype maker- Dearborn Steel Tubing- which also built the Mustang III.
Comments
While at Lime Rock Park to see in person the last factory effort of the Ford GT I would be able to see I noted a car in the parking lot. Seeing only half of it I thought a “Shelbyized” Mustang of some sort? Then I saw the rear and thought, that looks like Howard’s 63 1/2 two seat Mustang. Of course, then it was Bond…...and a license to kill on the race track property. But the styling cues were interesting, kinda kicking myself for not taking a pic of the real.
The video is filled with Alex Tremulis’ legacy at Ford. The Gyron and the Volanté flying car both came from Tremulis’ Advanced Styling Studio. He contributed to the styling for both the Allegro and the Mustang. The Cougar II was styled in large part by McKinley Thompson, one of Tremulis’ hires into Ford and the first African-American designer to work in the industry. Tremulis’ 3/8 scale X-1000 makes a cameo appearance as well as his headrests on the DePaolo model. Renderings by Dom Orlando, another one of Tremulis’ protégés also appear in the film. Even though Tremulis had moved on from Ford over a year earlier, his influence on the future of Ford styling was evident in the decades that followed. When this film was made, Tremulis and Vince Gardner, Mustang III designer, were crafting the streamlined body for the Gyronaut X-1, the future World’s Fastest Motorcycle.
The film was made by Graphic Films according to the end credit. This company was founded in 1941 by Les Novros, a former Disney staffer who worked on Snow White and on Fantasia. Graphic Films made several films for the 1964 New York World’s Fair.
I couldn’t help but notice. “Allegro” was also the name of a small car made in England by British Leyland in the ‘70’s and ‘80’s. Today it is considered one of the worst cars ever made.