Then & Now: A modern classic

The Mustang is a car that exudes energy and spirit. That’s why Colin Sweetman can’t decide on just one.

Ten years ago, the Ashburton resident became the proud owner of a 1967 Notchback Sports Sprint and recently added to his collection with a sparkling new 2019 Ford Mustang GT.

“The Mustang has character and real presence; it has soul,” he says.

“A pretty slick machine” is how Colin describes the latest model. Its coat of head-turning green paint stopped him in his tracks prior to purchasing. It’s one of three vehicles in the same ‘need for green’ colour that Ford has brought into the country so far. While complete with all the usual bells and whistles of a new car, including Apple Car Play and automatic lane departure control, the modern Mustang has a few tricks making it a bit more special. An electronic tuning system on the dashboard allows the driver to choose four different types of sound – quiet, normal, sport and race – from the vehicle’s four exhaust pipes.

“The thing that really gets you is that sound. You put your foot down and people turn to look,” Colin says.

There’s the option of cooled seats as well as heated – perfect for Canterbury’s ever-changing temperatures. The Pony Projection Lamp illuminates the iconic logo onto the pavement when the vehicle doors open at night.

However, the ‘candy apple red’ paint coat on the vintage vehicle brought from Chicago is quintessentially Mustang. Without the high-tech features of the newer model, this one holds its own with classic charm. The left-hand-drive, six-cylinder car has no power steering.

“You wind the windows down yourself and it doesn’t even have a rev counter,” Colin says. “It’s amazing to drive in its own way; it’s very traditional and classic and feels like you’re really driving. Everything is so automatic in the new one – you don’t need to turn on the headlights or windscreen wipers. The driving experiences are very different.”

There are similarities between the Mustangs despite being 52 years apart on the production line. Classic black interiors line each car, as well as the vertical formation of the three ‘tri-bar’ tail lights and, of course, that wild horse emblem on the grill.

“Mustangs are iconic cars and the models relate well to each other. They haven’t lost their way in between – Ford has kept that soul alive,” Colin says.