Ford has produced many iconic generations of Mustangs over the decades but its also had a few misses like the 1971 model. With this in mind, rendering extraordinaire Abimelec Design decided to take a ’71 Mustang and freshen it up with parts from a modern Shelby GT500 to see how it would look. As we’re sure you’ll agree, it looks superb.
In crafting a much better-looking Mustang, the designer has drastically altered the proportions and created much wider wheel wells. The entire body has also been lowered and the fenders slimmed down while a host of aggressive add-ons and more modern parts tie everything together beautifully.
The front end of this wild pony car, fittingly dubbed the 1971 Ford Mustang Mach 1, is particularly nice to look at. For starters, it rocks modern LED headlights, a black grille, and a blacked-out bumper. There is also a massive bulge on the hood with large air extractors to help cool the 5.2-liter supercharged V8 lifted from the Shelby GT500.
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The designer has also equipped the car with a set of special HRE 520 wheels sitting over a set of red brake calipers. A range of changes have also been made to the rear of the Mustang, including the fitment of new LED taillights similar to those of a current Mustang but with a slightly retro twist, a design choice that works wonders on the car. There are also new quad exhaust tips, aerodynamic flics on the outer edges of the rear bumper, and matte black racing stripes. Rounding out the updates is a gorgeous blue paint scheme.
Then there is the interior. Given that Abimelec’s wild restomod has a modern Shelby GT500 engine, it’s only fitting that it also has many of the same interior parts, complete with a digital instrument cluster and a set of carbon fiber-backed bucket seats trimmed in blue Alcantara.
Building a 1971 Ford Mustang like this would cost an considerable amount of money, but if there’s anyone out there willing to take on such a project, it should be feasible.
