The Ford Mustang is one of the most recognized car names, not just in America, but around the whole world. Since its inception, in 1964, the Mustang has been one of the most iconic American cars. The mastermind behind it was Lee Iacocca, who effectively, founded the Pony car segment. The Pony car was defined as a compact, affordable, and stylish car with sporty characteristics, and on that front, the Mustang was delivered. In a later iteration, graced by Carrol Shelby's motorsports expertise, some versions of the Ford Mustang would later become a true Muscle car. Moreover, until the Chevy Camaro's inception, the Ford Mustang remained the only Pony car on sale.

Now that the Camaro as we know it is, sadly, retired, the Mustang is the last, American performance coupe standing. After seven generations, the Ford Mustang was bound to have some rare and special editions, and there's no shortage of such. Over its near-60-year history, the Ford Mustang evolved continuously. There were many ideas, including one of a mid-engine Mustang, as well as various 'Stangs reimagined by renowned Italian designers, or models that weren't even available in the U.S. With that said, these are the rarest or rarest of Mustangs.

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9 2009 Ford Mustang Iacocca 45th Anniversary

45 Made

The S197-generation Ford Mustang is not the most loved version of the car, but it was redeemed by a few special editions. Aside from the Shelby GT500, there were much rarer, and more special variants, and one of them was the Iacocca 45th Anniversary Mustang, which celebrated 45 years of the Ford Mustang. The car was named after the man responsible for its inception and was released in 2009, just as the S197 model was due its first major update.

Specifications

Just 45 units of this Mustang were built . The redesigned body was designed by Michael Lyon and crafted by the Gaffoglio Family Metalcrafters. The interior remained the same but was more lavishly filled with leather, for an altogether, more upscale feel. The 4.6-liter Modular V-8 was supercharged for 400 horsepower while retaining the stock five-speed manual or five-speed automatic.

8 2006 Ford Mustang Guigiaro

1 Unit

The S197 Mustang's neo-retro design gave a lot of renowned designers interesting ideas. Among them was the idea of turning the retro-futuristic Ford Mustang into a much sleeker thing, resembling a European sports car. In 2006, that's exactly what Italian designer, Guigiaro Giorgetto did. The director of Ital Design spared no effort in altering each aspect of the S197 Mustang, starting with the A-pillar, which sat at a 45-degree angle.

Specifications

While not confirmed, it is believed the Giuigoaro Mustang was inspired by the 1966 Mustang Mach 1 concept, which featured very similar proportions. The 4.6-liter V-8 was supercharged for 500 horsepower and mated to a five-speed manual. The interior, while retaining the same classic styling, was ennobled, and more akin to an exclusive European sports car. It also came with scissor doors. The concept was fully-functional and even driven by Giorgetto Guigiaro, himself.

7 1969 Ford Mustang BOSS 429 LID

1 Unit

The Ford Mustang BOSS 429 is, not just one of the most iconic Ford Mustangs, but also one of the most iconic American Muscle cars. Its 429 cubic-inch V-8 was developed for NASCAR racing and was notoriously underrated. It was also heavy, which made the car's handling subpar. The original car's weight distribution was 51.5/48.5, which is not great.

Specifications

Because of this, Ford decided to experiment with putting the engine at the back. A mid-engine version of the BOSS 429 was developed, called the BOSS 429 LID. Ford Special Vehicles and Kar Kraft were instrumental in developing the car. The nine-inch rear axle was turned 180 degrees along with the 429 V-8 and C6 automatic transmission. The car was fully functional, but in the end, it was decided, the gains weren't significant enough to make financial sense.

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6 1979 Ford Mustang SVP M81 McLaren

10 Made

The 1970s were tough times for car enthusiasts since the oil crisis forced manufacturers to reduce power and with it, appeal from its vehicles. The Ford Mustang was no exception, and even the third-generation Foxbody Mustang, which was believed to mark the car's slow but steady return to popularity, didn't get actual power until the 1990s. With that said, a few special versions from the 1970s and 1980s, sought to remedy that, and one of them was the result of an unlikely collaboration. McLaren of all companies helped Ford put some life into the Foxbody.

Specifications

The 2.3-liter turbo-four which was, essentially, the Pinto engine with a turbocharger, produced 175 horsepower - a bump of 33 horsepower from the standard car. Even though production models featured a five-speed manual, the car was still painfully slow, managing the quarter-mile in 17.37 seconds at 79.2 mph. Of the 249 planned M81 Mustangs, only 10 were made.

5 2000 Ford Mustang SVT Cobra R

300 Made

The New Edge design of the updated SN95 Mustang contributed with its fair share of sporty versions. While the Terminator Cobra was, essentially, Ford's 2000s, Hellcat equivalent, the SVT Cobra R was a Mustang that could go toe to toe with European stuff around a track. All 200 cars were painted bright red and featured distinctive body kits with deep chin spoilers, tall rear wings, and side exhausts.

Specifications

The 5.4-liter Modular V-8 was good for 385 horsepower, which reportedly, allowed for a 13.2-second quarter-mile time. The Tremec T56, six-speed manual was paired with 3.55 rear gears, allowing for a 177-mph (282 km/h) top speed. New Eibach springs lowered the Mustang by up to 1.5 inches compared to the standard car, and four-piston brake calipers graced all four corners while the interior was stripped from non-essential stuff.

4 1965 Ford Mustang Ferguson AWD

3 Made

Until the all-electric Mustang Mach-E came around, the prospect of an all-wheel-drive Ford Mustang was almost absurd. However, such a car was introduced almost immediately after the original Mustang came to life. While Ford was looking to make the Mustang more popular, not that it had problems with that, UK-based company, Ferguson Research came up with the first all-wheel-drive system for passenger cars.

Specifications

Naturally, they were looking to sell their design, which would, eventually, end up in the Jensen FF - a four-whee-drive version of the Interceptor. A deal was struck and Ford shipped two '65 Mustangs with 289 V-8 engines to England where they were fitted with the permanent AWD system, sending 63 percent of torque to the rear wheels. While the system was great Ford bean counters decided it adds too much complexity and would make the car too expensive.

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3 1971 Ford Mustang Shelby Europa

9 Made

For a long time, the Ford Mustang was sold, exclusively, on the North American market. The Ford Mustang did not become a global model until the S550 came about. In 1971 and 1972, however, a Belgian Shelby dealer, owned by Claude Dubois, managed to sell 14 examples of the redesigned, first-generation Ford Mustang. The European Mustang Shelby examples were based on the Mach 1 platform and were fitted with 351 or 428 cubic-inch V-8s.

Specifications

Out of the nine cars, just two were convertibles. According to an article by CJPonyParts.com, one of the three Mustang Shelby Europas - a red coupe - was stolen in 1987, and was never recovered. The European Shelby models featured distinctive stripes, front and rear spoilers, and adjustable front suspension, featuring Koni shocks. Power was rated at 360 and 400 horsepower respectively.

2 1993 Ford Mustang SVT Cobra R

107 Made

The Foxbody Mustang is one of the Pony car's most significant generations. The Fox platform was much nimbler and lighter than what previous Mustangs had. While the car debuted in 1979, a properly quicky 5.0 Foxboy did not arrive until the very end, in 1993. Similar to the Buick GNX before it, the Foxbody Mustang SVT Cobra R was the final evolution of the third-generation Mustang.

Specifications

The 302 Smallblock featured GT40 heads and was rated at 235 horsepower, which was 10 up from the previous year's Mustang 5.0 GT. Even so, the number was proved to be underrated, by about 40 horsepower. The Tremec T5 five-speed manual was paired with 3.08 rear gears, resulting in a sprint to 60 mph in 5.7 seconds, on to a 14.5-second quarter-mile time. Being an SVT Mustang, it lacked all the creature comforts that weren't driver-essential. Just 107 examples of the extreme Foxbody were made.

1 2011 Ford Mustang Shelby 1000

23 Made

If we talk about peak, old-school Mustangs, then we have to mention the S197 Mustang Shelby 1000. This was not a car sold out of the box, but a further development of the Shelby GT500. All S197 Shelby 1000 cars start life as a GT500. The 5.4-liter supercharged V-8 is already stout out of the box, but according to Ford, it cannot sustain 1,000 horsepower continuously. In order to make it reliable and able to withstand Veyron levels of horsepower, continuously, the entire engine was torn apart and reassembled with upgraded internals.

Specifications

The list of modifications is quite extensive and can be found on Shelby's website. The car still retains the six-speed manual transmission and live rear axle, making it a proper drag strip slayer and quite... thrilling around the corners. The S197 Mustang Shelby GT500 also happens to be the last car Carroll Shelby was involved in, before passing away. Just 23 S197 Shelby GT500 were converted to the Shelby 1000.

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2022 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 Code Red

30 Made

The S550 Mustang Shelby GT500 features many firsts for the iconic model. It's the first Mustang Shelby GT500 to feature an independent rear suspension and the first one to rely on a dual-clutch automatic. The 5.2-liter, supercharged, Predator engine, even in standard form, is impressive with its 760 horsepower and 625 pound-feet (847 Nm). There's already a King of the Road package bumping horsepower to 900, but the Code Red goes even further. The 2.65-liter supercharger has been replaced by two, resulting in 1,300 horsepower and 1,000 pound-feet (1,356 Nm).

Specifications

The Code Red name is not new, as it dates back to an experimental Mustang from 2008. This one is a production model and 10 units will be produced for each model year, for a total of 30 cars. There is a catch, however - the Mustang Shelby GT500 Code Red is track-bound, meaning you can't legally drive it on the road.