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Another brand had the rights to the Mustang name in Germany so Ford called its pony car the T5
through Chris Chilton
December 24, 2022 at 16:08
through Chris Chilton
“You know what they call a Quarter Pounder with Cheese in Paris?”
In Quentin Tarantino’s 1994 film Pulp Fiction, John Travolta is lecturing Samuel L Jackson on the difference between Europe and America when the conversation turns to burgers. Travolta’s Vincent explained that the French measurement lover wouldn’t know what a quarter pounder was, so McDonalds called it ‘Royale with Cheese.’
But it wasn’t the imperial-metric divide that caused problems for Ford when it wanted to sell its original Mustang in Germany in the mid-1960s. It’s the old problem of another company owning the rights to the name. Ford couldn’t legally call its pony car ‘Mustang’ there because the name was trademarked by Krupp, who used it on large trucks.
According to Mustang Maniac Krupp offered Ford the chance to use the name for $10,000, but the Blue Oval suit declined. Instead, they decided to sell the Mustang in Germany as the T5 until 1979 when Krupp’s copyright on the name expired and Ford finally applied the Mustang label. Why T5? Because that’s the internal Ford code for the Mustang.
Related: Eleanor Mustang Replica Owners Can Sleep Better As Shelby Trust Wins Copyright Battle
The 1965-66 T5 cars were built in Dearborn and given several mechanical upgrades to make them suitable for Europe, including Euro-spec lights and turn signals, and apparently the shock tower brace that more commonly found on the Shelby GT350 to improve handling. But getting rid of all the usual Mustang references is an equally involved job. US-spec models have the word ‘Mustang’ emblazoned on the steering wheel center, the gas cap, the front fender, and some even have it on the hubcaps.
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Ford had to replace them all with blank equivalents or T5 badges, which must have cost a few Deutchmarks to use. Surely it makes more sense to spend $10k in the first place, if the quoted figure is actually true? All of which makes this restored 1965 4.7-liter V8 convertible, currently on sale for £49,750 ($60,000) in the UK, an interesting side-note in Mustang history, and sure to confuse some people if they decide you go home to America.
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