Mustang Madness at the Petersen

Last weekend opened the Mustang Madness show at the Petersen.  Put on with the help of Los Angeles mega dealer Galpin in the valley this show was nothing short of amazing in its celebration of 50 years of Mustang.  You start the show with the 1965 Mustang convertible that Ronald Reagan used for his gubernatorial campaign and worked your way to the coming 2015 Model.

Each generation from start to current had a one off sample along with a descriptor board that told its story. For the 4th generation they had a super rare SVT with the R package deleting anything that would weigh it down and was really a race car for the streets.

Of course this being put on with the help of Galpin Ford they had a few treasures from their collection that made the show even more unique and helped explain the magic and mystique that is the Mustang.

Included in this show was a barn find 1967 Shelby GT that they originally sold new.  They tracked down the succession of owners and bought it back to add to their collection.  Its the classic barn find showing its age, wear and tear, but wonderfully unmolested over all those years.

They Galpin folks even had a couple of examples of their custom race cars from back in the day.  One was a 1969 Dragster funny car with four 351 Clevelands bolted together making some 1000 horsepower. Another was a prostocker with a massive supercharger poking out of the hood.

Of course not all the customs there were outrageous examples like this.  Some were subtle redos like the 40th anniversary Iaococa custom.  Only a few were made and not a single panel is interchangeable with a stock Mustang. Only a few hundred were ever made and most went into the hands lf collectors.  This car was a tribute to Lee Iaococa whom without his championing the car it would have never been produced.

More pictures of the show and the Petersen in General can be found in my flickr Album.

The Petersen for the uninitiated is probably one of the best curated automotive museums in So Cal and is situated in Museum Row in the mid-Wilshire district of Los Angeles.  The museum is several floors and has several shows rotating through during the course of a year.  I highly recommend you visit, even if you aren't a fan of cars as it does some really good dioramas showing the importance of the car and car culture on our countries growth.

The Petersen Automotive Museum
6060 Wilshire Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90036
323-930-CARS