The first thing most people think about when hearing about a car that spent three decades in storage is rust. Plenty of it.
This makes perfect sense at some level, mostly because these storage places, be they barns, garages, or carports, rarely have the proper conditions for a big pile of metal.
Eventually, great classics end up becoming nothing more than rust buckets worth less than a new iPhone and requiring more work than anyone would be willing to accept.
This 1965 Mustang is exactly the opposite.
Despite spending no more, no less than 28 years under a cover in a garage, the car still comes in a totally surprising condition. The vehicle still flexes the original sheet metal, glass, and chrome. It has never received any kind of metalwork, so what you see in the photos is exactly the Mustang that rolled off the assembly lines 58 years ago.
Except for the paint, that is, as eBay seller rlberry6697 explains that the Mustang was professionally resprayed approximately 40 years ago. The original paint was faded, they claim, so the new paint was a must-have for a car this cool. Based on the photos, the new paint indeed holds up very well, so I don’t think that another respray is required right now – you should be able to assess the paint condition more accurately if you check out the car in person.
The VIN code reveals this Mustang was born as a C-code model, so it was (and still is) powered by a 289 (4.7-liter) V8 rated at 200 horsepower. This was the base V8 for this model year, replacing the 260 (4.3-liter) originally offered on the 1964 1/2 Ford Mustang. The 4-barrel version was the version that most people would probably prefer on a project car, as it produced 225 horsepower and 305 lb-ft (414 Nm) of torque.
The engine required only small fixes, and thanks to a new gas tank, a new carburetor, and filters, it now runs and drives like new. It’s unclear if the Mustang is entirely road-worthy, but even if it’s not, it shouldn’t require anything other than occasional minor touches.
The selling price seems to be fair given its overall condition and considering everything is still original (except for the paint). The auction starts at $13,000, and no reserve is in place. In other words, the top bidder will buy the car when the auction ends. No bids have been recorded so far, but the auction started literally just a few minutes ago.
If you want to see the car in person (and you should really hurry up, given this is a no-reserve auction), it’s parked in Grants Pass, Oregon. It sells with a clean title.