Stone Mountain State Park — named for a huge quartz monzonite rock with three war heroes from the Confederate army on horseback carved into the side — was the host location for the 11th annual Mustangs At The Mountain show. While Blackjack, Traveller, and Little Sorrel are the most famous horses on the mountain, we were there in search of a different kind of stallion — the Ford Mustang.
With over 300 Mustangs to choose from it was difficult to narrow it down to our favorite machines, but we managed to narrow it down to five exceptional machines, but you can see more in the gallery below…
5. ROUSH Warrior Edition
One of just 45 Roush Warrior Mustangs built in 2016, Rick Carter’s example is definitely unusual. The Warrior Mustang is a joint venture between Ford, Military AutoSource, and ROUSH. Available only to men and women in the military and on orders overseas, this car became Rick’s during a tour in Germany. At heart, the Mustang is a ROUSH Stage 3 minus the wheels and body kit, but more importantly, its an awesome and special vehicle for our men and women who keep us safe.
There is no false advertisement in either one of these logos. Rick Carter’s ROUSH Warrior Mustang spent plenty of time in Germany and around the Nurburgring before returning to the States with him. A ROUSH Stage 3 at heart, this Warrior packs 670 horsepower under the hood.
4. 1994 Indy Pace Car
Throughout the years Ford produced dozens of special-edition Mustangs — from Bullitts to Mach 1s to Cobras — but many of them are tucked away in the garages of collectors. This leaves us to wonder what they look like in person. Thankfully, Wayne McCutchen ignored the stock-and-in-storage trend and modified his 1994 Mustang Cobra Indy Pace Car from one end to the other. The result? The photos speak for themselves, as this is one beautiful Pace Car.
Axe wheels, custom Terminator-style interior, and a tricked-out engine bay are just a few of the many things that sets Wayne McCutchen’s 1994 Mustang Cobra Indy Pace Car apart from the rest.
3. Eleanor-Inspired Fastback
Unfortunately, we could never track down the owner of this beautiful, white Mustang fastback for more details, but lets face it, the car speaks for itself. This Eleanor-style machine carries all the right stuff, from the body lines to the stance to the killer paint job, everything that screams look at me. We could not have brought you an honest top five list without featuring it here.
We love the subtle and clean use of blue as a second color to accent the car. The stripes offer a nice break on the otherwise white body. The blue seats and interior pieces are far more unique than the more traditional black and red guts you commonly find in a fastback of this generation.
2. Boss Shinoda Hurricane Survivor
Chances are, if you are familiar with the Mustang show scene, you have probably seen Vernon and Pattie Allen’s orange 1994 Boss Shinoda. The car won Best Of Show at Mustang Week in 2017, it was featured in the 1994 spot in The 55 Years Of Mustang display at Ponies In The Smokies and was most recently featured inside during Mustang Day at the Mustang Owners Museum in Concord, North Carolina.
Wherever it goes, this car certainly draws a crowd. However, it was not always fun and games for this beauty, as the car was nearly destroyed during Hurricane Katrina. The couple did an amazing job saving the car and turning it into something special, which you can see in the additional photos in the gallery below.
Even though this is not exactly how it was delivered, the Allens car created a one-of-a-kind Boss Shinoda that could have been. The highlight of this car is undoubtedly the rare, ROUSH 5.0 intake, which makes for one special engine bay.
1. Vintage Fastback Drag Racer
With only 7,273 K-code Mustangs were built in 1965, so seeing one at a show is always pretty special, especially one with a manual transmission. When we find one with a cool story like Dave Williams’ car, we just cannot get enough of it. From an early age, this fastback was drag-raced before being placed into storage for almost 20 years, after which it was resurrected, rebuilt, engine-swapped and drag- raced some more.
Over this time, the car accumulated about 72,000 miles, making it a fairly low-mile piece, considering its age. Fast forward to 2015 when current owner Dave bought the car and brought back its original 289 factory glory. Only this is no stock 289, however, as it features a nice mix of period-correct parts. As such, this little 289 puts out an impressive 407 horsepower, making the car one that would have definitely dominated the stoplight races back in its day.
Under the hood, the 289 features a Holman Moody/Le Mans cam, a Shelby air box intake, and a Holley 715 Le Mans carburetor. All told the combo delivers 407 horsepower and 421 lb-ft of torque, so the engine certainly lives up to the name. Inside, only a set of racing belts distinguish this car from its original appearance.
