2006 Ford Mustang by ItalDesign

Story Cars
56 minutes ago
3 min read

The 2006 Ford Mustang by ItalDesign was a one-off concept based on the fifth-generation Mustang GT. It was designed by Fabrizio Giugiaro after he saw the new Mustang and wanted to reinterpret it through an Italian coachbuilding lens. The project was approved by Ford, built by ItalDesign-Giugiaro in Turin, and revealed at the 2006 Los Angeles Auto Show.

The concept did not try to erase the Mustang’s identity. It kept the long hood, rear-drive stance, fastback attitude, and aggressive proportions, but it made the whole car look sleeker and more exotic. The rear overhang was shortened, the body was tapered more aggressively, and the car was widened by 30 mm at the front and 80 mm at the rear. That gave it a more planted, European super-coupe feel without making it unrecognizable as a Mustang.

The body was the biggest change. ItalDesign used carbon-fiber body panels, added electrically operated scissor-style doors, and created a continuous glass canopy running from the windshield through the roof and into the rear window. The side glass had louvered detailing, while the rear treatment leaned into 1960s fastback Mustang influence. It looked more compact than a standard Mustang, even though it was actually wider.

Ford Racing handled the mechanical upgrades, and this was not just a styling model. The concept kept the Mustang GT’s 4.6-liter 3-valve V8, but added an intercooled twin-screw supercharger, Ford GT fuel injectors, a larger 95 mm mass air meter, a conical air filter, Ford Racing mufflers, and an X-pipe exhaust. Output rose from the stock 300 hp to an estimated 500 hp with 11 psi of boost.

The chassis was upgraded too. Ford Racing fitted a handling package with performance dampers, lowering springs, and anti-roll bars, dropping the ride height by about 1.5 inches. The car also used Brembo brakes, with six-piston front calipers and 375 mm front discs, plus four-piston rear calipers and 365 mm rear discs. The final wheel setup used 20-inch OZ Racing wheels with 275/40 tires up front and 315/35 tires in the rear.

Inside, the Mustang by Giugiaro was wilder than the production car. The dashboard stayed broadly Mustang-like, with classic round gauge pods, but the trim was much more theatrical. Orange detailing carried through the cabin, while horsehide was used on the seats, door panels, and floor areas as a direct visual play on the Mustang name.

The concept never became a production car, and it was probably too European and too expensive for that. But it proved something useful: the modern Mustang’s basic shape was strong enough to survive a full Italian reinterpretation. The Giugiaro version did not replace the American muscle-car formula. It stretched it into something sharper, lower, wider, and more exotic.