Goolsby-Built '71 Mustang 'Pegasus'

As a follow up to his award-winning Chevelle, William (Buddy) Shores teamed up with Goolsby Customs once again to build perhaps the coolest ’71 Mustang Fastback to date. Up for the challenge, Ben Hermance put pen to paper and laid out the interior and exterior. The scheme was to create what Ford might have done with the ’71 design in 2011. High points include shortening the wheelbase one-inch, and taking six-inches out of the front fenders ahead of the wheels. This greatly improves the balance of the car, eliminating the massive front overhang. Out back, things have been changed radically, with laid-down rear glass, reshaped quarters and an integrated, pass-through wing. Oh, and Team Goolsby flush-mounted all of the glass, just ’cause they can.

Stance is king, and the Goolsby guys knew that the Roadster Shop could get Pegasus where it needed to be. One of the new Fast Track chassis’ from the RS guys was slid under the massaged body. To make sure this beast is sure-footed, 19” and 20” Nutek wheels were wrapped with Pirelli tires for the hook. This car is packed full of killer ideas and overflowing with incredible craftsmanship; the smoothed rockers, AC and transmission cooler lines inside the frame rails, and the exhaust system. Heck, even the lowly exhaust brackets are above and beyond what you’d typically find under a car. Speaking of the exhaust, the whole system was handmade with an ‘X’ in the middle, the mid-section is wrapped with high-temp header wrap, and the system terminates with two crazy handmade boxes integrated into the rear valance.

Now, Pegasus is a horse (already a powerful animal) with wings. WINGS, man. Motorvation for this car had to be stout, and something high-tech to fit in with the design. Before you go thinking turbo LS, don’t count the Ford camp out just yet. The 2011 Mustangs are coming equipped with the Blue Oval’s answer to the LS-family; 5.0 liter Coyote motor. Goolsby Customs decided that the new Coyote engine was the choice for Project Pegasus. Sticking to the back of the 5.0 is a six-speed automatic from Sean Hyland Motorsports.

Turning to the inside of the car, Goolsby wisely looked to M&M Interiors. The final result looks a bit like a 2011 Mustang with a lot of crisp, clean lines accented with exposed aluminum bits. The dual-round gauge system integrated into the custom hexagon recesses is none other than the world class VHX instruments from Dakota Digital. The gauge bezels have a show-chrome finish, but that just wouldn’t have fit with the renderings from Hermance, so, we sent the shop a pair of bezels and they applied the desired finish and gave them back to us to do the final assembly. The results really speak for themselves, and this author thinks the gauges are perfect for Pegasus.
“Peggy” turned out to be a big success and has opened a lot of eyes as far as what can be done with the ’71-3 Mustang. Moreover, we give kudos to the crew at Goolsby Customs for steering clear of the quickly-becoming-commonplace ’69-’70 Mustangs. We’re honored to be a part of this trend-setting Mustang, and simply can’t wait to see what comes out of the Goolsby shop next.