2019 Ford Mustang GT/CS California Special Is The Perfect Sunset Strip Cruiser
Ascending the onramp on the 405 departing LAX, right foot goes to floor and the 460-horsepower Gen 3 Coyote underhood comes to life as the revs head for the 7,500-rpm redline. The flirtation is brief, as this is a highway, but the buzzing commuters of Los Angeles hardly notice the speed. A blast of the wide-open Active Valve Performance Exhaust might have snapped them out of highway hypnosis for an instant, but our chariot soon blended into the traffic — as much as a bright-red Mustang can.
There was, of course, a mission in mind. This wouldn’t be carving canyons or ripping up racetracks. This was a pure street mission to a historic swath of road that has as much history as this optional package.
Whether it is cars, movies, or music, the Golden State has a long tradition as the birthplace of cool. Back in 1967 Carroll Shelby developed his prototype Shelby GT500 Mustang, Little Red, which inspired Ford to create the California Special Package. Over the years, it re-appeared for retro runs from 2007-2009, 2011-2014, and 2016-2017.
After a two-year break, it returned for the 2019 model year, and last fall we took one for a spin to the historic Sunset Strip. Heading off to see a pair of shows at the Whisky A Go Go, which opened its doors a few months before the Mustang debuted in 1964. Now a historic landmark, the club is one of the few remaining venues that helped give the strip its reputation. These days, modern hotels and restaurants surround its neighbors the Roxy and Rainbow, but these stalwarts help keep the area authentic.
Much the same can be said of the latest California Special. It has all the creature comforts a modern Mustang with the Premium package has to offer, plus a bit of throwback style that reminds us all where it came from. Setting it apart from the crowd are special 19-inch wheels, Ebony GT/CS stripes, signature grilles, and California Special badging. The splitter is borrowed from the Performance Pack option.
