I wrote this story about 3-odd years ago but it never got published because of a few kinks in our magazine operation at the time.

I wrote this story in honor of my father, my idol and the only man who gets my respect, loyalty and adulation without question. He is still alive and well but in the province now and I miss his presence very much. I cried when I wrote this then and I still shed tears while I write these opening lines.

Ireneo “Tex” Panganiban, the authors esteemed father.

It may sound like a tribute to the Ford Mustang, but I tell you, it is more of my tribute to my beloved father, who, by the Grace of God, still lives with us healthy at the age of 83.

Here is the story:

The Ford Mustang is as iconic as any car can ever be, and to this day still holds the same attraction as before.

We had one while I was a kid, another in my teens, and one is still in the old garage in Nueva Vizcaya, in running condition but waiting for either of two things, I get my hands on it and do a full restoration job, or my Father sells it off and somebody else completes the job. Either way, that Mustang will live on and be somebody else’s pride and glory.

And my story is not the only Mustang story you will hear. It is a repetition of a very old anecdote passed on from the lips of every family that ever owned that muscle pumping iron horse. No one wants to let go of a Mustang, no Mustang ever stays old and rusty for long, and for every Mustang ever built, there will be one man (or woman to be fair) who will claim it as his own until the end of his mortal life.

The year 2014 is the 50th of the Mustang badge and Ford was kind enough to send me one to enjoy and see the difference between the old and the new. I decided my Dad had to see this just because he owns one.

The old one is a 1967 Coupe. It was the first of the restyled model, a two-door hard top that retained the big-block 289 V8 engine. This was supported by a three speed automatic transmission and the fastest I ever drove it to my recollection was at 170 kilometers per hour on the then empty South Super Highway. Yes, I was a teen and it was the 1980’s so pardon the brashness.

But what Ford gave me that summer was the 5.0 liter Sports version. It sported that power domed hood, 19-inch alloy wheels and a three bar LED rear lights much like the old one’s design. Just looking at it, and you know it’s a Mustang. I didn’t think having that name on the car would matter at all.

Open the door and time flies backwards with that classic look at the instrument cluster. Two round gauges behind the large three-spoked steering wheel with the logo of the Mustang greets you, a sign of things to come.

Of course past and present merge when you see all the other tech inside, but the most visible of this is the Recaro sports seat and the touch screen display at the center of the dash.

Oh and there is that Track Apps thing that is displayed on a 4.2-inch LCD screen that show you cool info’s like acceleration and braking times and g-force. Something the old foggies, like my dad, would probably not really know how to use but would enjoy anyway.

There is this thing about the 2014 Mustang and lights too. From the outside, right after you press the unlock button on the key fob, the street or floor gets splashed with the logo of a Mustang, a galloping horse. It looks so cute the first girl who saw it said exactly that, “oh how cute, a horse light!!!”

But that is not all. Inside the menu, where only the obsessive-compulsive people like my father can find it, is an application that allows drivers to customize the color of the instrument cluster, both the instruments themselves and that background lighting.

There are 7 preset colors and 125 user-configured combinations. Yes, my father tried it and loved it even at 80-years of age.
Now, we go to that part where, as my dad would say, the real test of a muscle car is done, the sound and feel of the engine.

Remember, this Mustang is powered by a 5.0 liter V8 engine that spews out 420 horsepower, a hundred more horses than what my dad has. This was mated to a six-speed automatic transmission. So when we turned the key to start the engine, I literally heard my father groan with delight (like a teen would) at the sound of the crank turning and then that quick explosion of power as the engine came to life.

Nothing compares to that low rumble of pure American pony car engine except maybe the whining scream of an Italian supercar. Pump the gas pedal a quick burst and the engine roars, telling you that the claim of 0-100kph in 4.6 seconds may actually be the standard for this car.

I look at my dad, get off the drivers seat and gestures to him to take the seat. He never hesitates. Quickly signaling that I head for the passenger side, we drive down the subdivision road slowly as he tries to feel the behemoth in his hands. You see his eyes wanting to give it a go but we can’t, not in these conditions. So we do the best alternative, we head down to the North Expressway.

On the way, we see people turning their heads, looking, admiring, jealous, but all surprised to see an 80-year-old man behind the wheel with his 51-year-old son riding shotgun. I tell you their smile and surprise were priceless. We probably looked like 29 and 8 year olds, father and son out for a quick joy ride, which if not for the real age, we actually were (and how I actually felt.)

When we get to the expressway, my Dad gingerly tries to put on some power. Well he almost failed because at the press of the gas, tires screeched and car jumps forward. We laugh and then he asks if he can and I say sure and we zoom into the highway as best as an Octogenarian can.

For a car that can go to 100kph in less than five seconds, this Mustang is quite easy to handle. The front McPherson Strut suspension and three-link live axle at the rear really does a good job of keeping the cars balance. And it handles very well too.

We stop at the third gas station we see and I ask my father if I could take the wheel and he reluctantly gives it to me. I give it a go and mostly what the old man said was basically correct.

The new Mustang could go really fast.

Weaving our way through expressway traffic was pretty easy. The power of the engine was so much that you could zip past most every car and still have some more in reserve for that sprint if necessary. And no, we never got over the speed limit too much as my Dad was a stickler for rules.

Back home, we got into this father and son debate, the usual my car is better than yours routine where he insists his old rustbucket of a Mustang is still the better car, both with age, pedigree and style.

I on the other hand maintained that the styling, power, tech and comfort level of the new one trumps his old one.

Of course, deep down inside, I was agreeing to both our observation, because how do you compare two legends of different era’s. A 1967 Ford Mustang Coupe’ will always be the equal of a 2014 Mustang Sports, because simply put, they are both of the same DNA.