There’s an old ad I saw once in a van and custom car compilation magazine that dated back to about 1978 that stuck with me. I can’t remember if it was selling shocks or tires, but the car and it’s overall look is what sold me. The car was a 1969 or 1970 Shelby Mustang, and the rolling stock was wide-and-wider mag wheels on Mickey Thompson tires. I was smitten…I’m head-over-heels for the last two years of Shelby Mustang in the first place, but to see one on Keystones looking tough as all hell? Yeah, all day, every day. The ad was in black and white but I could imagine the car in a dark cherry red.

The likelihood of getting your hands on a Shelby of that generation? They aren’t growing on trees, that’s for damn sure. But this 1972 Mustang is fitting the bill for me. I wasn’t hunting for a big-boy Mustang of any year when I spotted this gem, but I’m all about the look right now. This thing screams late 1970s to me in a Ratty Muscle Cars kind of way. It’s a 351 2-barrel, automatic car, but that isn’t of much consequence. Any built-up Ford engine would do here. It’s the look that catches me. It’s a throwback to cars I used to see as a kid in the late 1980s before people got serious about restoring every last car in sight. I’m not too sold on the hood and I’d have to get the lights for the grille, but overall I’m digging this thing. Repair the flares, fix the rust spots, and make this thing rowdy. I can see it polished up, I can see it left alone. Either way, though, the deep dish wheels need to remain.

eBay Link: 1972 Ford Mustang