History of the Mustang During the 1960s there was a time when people wanted something new, something with the luxury of a sports car at a fraction of the cost. Some thought that day would never come, but on April 17, 1964, the Mustang was born. At just $2,368 the markets were booming with demand for the new style of sports car on the market. Bidders came from all over the country to bid on the vehicle. The auction was held in Garland Texas between 15 bidders and the person who won the bid slept in the car all night so that someone couldn't buy it out from under him. Sales of the Mustang reached 100,000 and 22,000 orders were placed for the car. after its initial introduction the car was so successful that they introduced it at the 1964 Indianapolis 500. It was such a sought-after car that in its first few years of sale the company had sold 417,000 units. After the first year the number rose from 417,000 to 1 million units. In 1964 the Mustang appeared in the hit film “Gold Finger”. It was the first film to show Ford's new sports car. It was led by a murderer; it was a white 1964 Mustang convertible. In 1975 the company released a 302 V-8 engine, which produced a whopping 130 horsepower. It came packaged with an automatic transmission. Another option was available with cheaper emissions. But in 1976 Ford introduced a new design, with more horsepower than any other, something classy but with enough power to put you back in your seat. They called it a cobra with a functional hood scoop, racing stripes and spoilers in the front called chin scoops and an old fashion spoiler for that extra cut in the wind for maximum boost. The Cobra was the king of all cars on the road every... middle of paper... it would rain champion on all other models. But in 2000 they announced their car and many people wanted refunds for their 99 model or a newer engine. The new Cobra R put out a whopping 385 horsepower but lacked some necessities like a back seat and air conditioning. Ford sold over 200,000 of them for a price of $55,845. In 2001 Ford brought back the 1968 Cobra driven by Steve McQueen. It had new 5-spoke wheels, lowered suspension and more torque than before. But the Cobra features a supercharged 4.6-liter double overhead camshaft engine that produces 390 horsepower to make it the fastest Mustang ever built. In 2002 Ford built a Cobra, but only 100 were made and then exported to Australia as a special order with two extra fog lights and steering wheel on the right side. This makes it one of the rarest cars in the United States.