MUSTANG AUTOMOBILE TURNS 35 ON SATURDAY

MUSTANG AUTOMOBILE TURNS 35 ON SATURDAY

DEARBORN, Mich. (Wireless Flash) -- Gear heads get your motors running because this Saturday (Apr. 17) is the 35th anniversary of the Ford Mustang. On April 17, 1964, the sporty muscle car made its debut at the New York World's Fair. Folks went so "ga-ga" over the new wheels that Ford dealers were swamped with more than 22,000 orders in the first day. Mustang fever was so intense that a riot actually broke out at one Chicago showroom. And in Garland, Texas, 15 customers bid on the same Mustang. The winner then insisted on sleeping overnight in the car until his check cleared. All in all, almost half a million Mustangs were sold in the car's first year, and 6.9 million Mustangs have been sold total since 1964. One final bit of trivia: Contrary to popular belief, the early models of Mustangs were named after the WWII P-51 Mustang fighting planes -- not the horse.

CONTACT: Scott Davis, ***; Dearborn, MI; (800) 665-1515 or (313) 621-0504