Lot 7500: 1966 Ford Mustang T-5 GT Convertible

The Ford Mustang was sold as the T-5 in Germany because Krupp (the German industrial conglomerate, along with Kreidler motorcycle company) already held the trademark rights to the name “Mustang” in Germany. The trademark was legally protected until December 31, 1978.

Rather than fight a costly legal battle, Ford simply used “T-5” — which was the Mustang’s internal project code during development — as the model designation for all German exports from 1965 through 1978.

This is why the car you’re looking at has unique features like:

• “Mustang-delete” badging (no Mustang emblems on wheels, steering wheel, or gas cap)
• Metric gauges (speedometer in kilometers)
• European lighting that met German regulations
• T-5 designation instead of Mustang on trim tags

Only about 340 T-5s were produced for 1965-1966, making them exceptionally rare today. Ford was finally able to sell the car as a “Mustang” in Germany starting with 1979 models after Krupp’s trademark expired!

Pretty neat piece of automotive history, right? Would you like to know more about what makes this particular T-5 GT K-Code Convertible so special? It’s one of just two known examples!