These Were Ford's Best Concepts Of The 1990s and 2000s

Image: Ford

Try, if you’re able, to put the image of the S197 Mustang and all the baggage it may entail out of your mind and focus on this, the Mustang GT Concept. If you were around for its reveal 20 years ago, it was revelatory. The 2003 show car demonstrated a path forward for Ford’s tried-and-true flagship that was hip and forward-looking while still offering a nod to history. Ford’s designers always were the best at that, and the Mustang GT was them at the top of their game, moving away from the fourth-gen’s aged and forgettable look (pre- or post-facelift, it doesn’t matter) for something unique to the original pony car.

The eventual production version wasn’t quite as aggressive of course, and the rear styling and taillight design was an unquestionable step down, but all told Ford executed a solid conversion bringing this concept to the road. Also, the logo for this thing, visible on the license plate in the pic above, was excellent, and I’d be remiss not to point out that the ’03 show car was a standout star of Sega GT Online.