Autoblog

Click above image to view a gallery of the Flashback Mustang

Classic Design Concepts has announced it will be debuting two of four new Mustangs targeted towards baby boomers at the 2007 SEMA Show. The first is a recreation of a base 1967 Mustang using all Ford licensed products with a few extras thrown in. The second, which is CDC owner George Huisman's personal car, is codenamed "Flashback" and features classic styling with modern amenities. Far from being a simple restoration, the Flashback is actually a brand new car built from the ground up. It features a Dynacom Ford-authorized body that has been altered by Classic Design Concepts with a modified front fascia, fog light package, bright mesh grille, rear fascia, and functional lower side vents. The best part is that the Flashback isn't a one-off show car. Customers will be able to order full Flashback Mustangs directly from Classic Design Concepts.

The base car comes with a 302 ci V8 engine with 375 horsepower mated to a 5-speed transmission, although a 347 ci V8 with 450 hp and a 5.4-liter supercharged V8 with 600 horsepower are optional. The base package also includes leather seats, air conditioning, a JVC head unit and Rockford Fosgate sound system, stainless steel brakes, and Ford 9" rear end. Four suspension and brake packages are available as well as different hoods, wheels, and even stripes.

[Source: Classic Design Concepts via Stangnet.com]

click above image to view more pics of the StangNet Mustang GT500

StangNet.com is putting the finishing touches on its latest project car, and it's a doozy. Of course it's a Mustang, a modified GT500 to be exact. Teaming up with Classic Design Concepts, a mini-automaker all its own, takes the StangNet GT500 to a place average tuners would usually fear to tread.

For starters, the StangNet GT500 sports CDC's Glassback roof, which looks like a painted piece of sheetmetal from a distance, but upon closer inspection reveals itself as perforated metal that allows occupants inside the car to see right through the roof. The car also sports a custom made ducktail spoiler, new lower front grille/spoiler, body-colored mirrors, MY2008 HID headlamps, louvered scoops over the quarter windows and a hand-painted pair of blue racing stripes.

The car's performance has been enhanced with a new suspension from Steeda, functional brake ducts in place of the standard GT500's foglamps, CCW SP20 19-inch wheels (deep dish in the rear) wrapped in BFGs, and a Magnaflow catback exhaust coupled to an MRT H-pipe. The interior is largely unaltered so far, save for the addition of a Ford GT push button start system.

The car will be present at the Mid-America Ford Performance and Shelby Meet in Tulsa, OK around mid-June. Come November it will also appear at the SEMA show in Las Vegas where we'll likely see additional modifications made for the big show.

[Source: StangNet.com]

ModdedMustangs is hypothesizing that Ford may be considering offering a retractable hardtop option for the 2009 Mustang. The site's reasoning is pretty thin, based mostly on the fact that there are retractable hardtop kits available for the Mustang currently and that engineering expertise for such a project could be culled from the recently unveiled Focus Coupe Cabriolet for Europe.

The most convincing piece of evidence of is a pair of videos posted on various Mustang message boards of a Classic Design Concepts prototype 2006 Mustang Convertible with a retractable hardtop. CDC is the outfitter that produces the panoramic Glassback roof conversion for late model Mustangs in cooperation with Webasto. You can check out the video of the retractable hardtop going up here and going down here. The conversion apparently doesn't touch the trunk's cargo space, instead eliminating the back seat and making the Mustang convertible a true 2-seat roadster. CDC's website makes no mention of the availability of a retractable hardtop conversion, but the fact that a prototype exists says something.

In light of the speed at which Ford is moving to put the Shelby GT into production and the fact that it's working directly with Shelby Automobiles, Inc. to produce the vehicle, the idea Ford might partner with other small companies like CDC/Webasto to produce a Mustang hardtop convertible isn't that far fetched. You can bet we'll be seeking out CDC's display at SEMA this year hoping to see this car in person. Adding the retractable hardtop to the lineup would give Ford a dizzying array of Mustangs in its lineup. Considering the Mustang's impressive sales performance, that hardly seems like a bad thing.

[ModdedMustangs]