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Fox Trivia -

Former Ford Vice President of Design, Jack Telnak, discusses the creation of the Fox at the Mustang 50th Celebration in Charlotte

By Steve Turner
Photos courtesy of Ford Motor Company

With each transition in the Mustang lineage there is a mixture of fear and excitement in the hearts of all enthusiasts. We all can’t wait to see what’s next, but we fear that it won’t be as good as what we have grown to love. This cycle has repeated since 1964.

As enthusiasts anticipated the coming 2015 Mustang there was a fear that the car would be “too European.” It’s a fear that we shared, because the new car is launching worldwide. The reason the car has fans all over the world is that it is distinctly American.

However, unless you are a longtime fan of the breed, you might not recall that the Fox Mustang was considered European at its inception. It has since come to be appreciated as the most traditional Mustang in recent memory. However, at the time, Ford management was ready to transition from the successful-but-derided Mustang II, they looked to the company’s European design chief, Jack Telnak.

Influenced by his tours of design duty in Australia and Europe, Jack returned to Blue Oval headquarters in Dearborn, Michigan, to begin work on the third-generation Mustang. Though he had some strong ideas about making the car more aerodynamic and efficient, while retaining its’ sporty nature, he had a bit of an uphill battle.

“Thou shall never do a slantback front end.” That was the commandment from Gene Bordinat, Ford's vice president of design, “Henry Ford II only wants vertical front ends, and he'll show us the door if we ever try anything like it.”

Eventually, even Mr. Ford recognized that the more aerodynamic style was the trend, and Ford had to remain competitive. With more freedom to pursue his goals, Jack assembled a team of designers to bring more efficiency and style to the Mustang. To do so, he took a unique approach, letting the designers choose the path the car would take, rather than him choosing his favorite. Jack left it up to the designers to choose the version they believed in and to be prepared to defend it.

Obviously this freedom and responsibility brought out the best in the team, and they would need it. That’s because they weren’t starting with a clean sheet of paper. They would need to create a sporty Mustang from the new Fox platform born with the Ford Fairmont. It was no easy task, and they tweaked the platform aggressively to meet the team’s design goals.

In the end, the team succeeded in building a sleek, light performer that enjoyed a successful, 14-year run. Moreover, the Fox still enjoys a loyal following today. Jack Telnak went on to lead other successful designs, like the Taurus, and he was at Ford all the way through the New Edge design phase until he retired in 1997.

Obviously, without Jack, there wouldn’t be a Fox Mustang as we know it. I would not be writing this story, and the path of the Ford Mustang might be completely different. It was a true honor to hear him speak, so if you weren’t there and you love Fox Mustangs, click play below and enjoy his talk.

As a final note, I hear that Jack will be coming to my town in October. If the SVTP nation is interested, I could try to set up a more in-depth interview with him.

SVTPerformance - Mustang 50th Video: Former Ford VP of Design discusses the creation of the Fox