Cristina Tanaka’s 2013 Ford Mustang GT/CS “Beast”
Cristina Tanaka’s 2013 Ford Mustang GT/CS “Beast” Mustang Story:
Cristina Tanaka is a mother of five in her mid-forties who works as a full-time freelance translator for the logistics department of a medical equipment company in Kobe, Japan. As a previous owner of a C5 Corvette, she believes that American muscle cars just have so much more character than other vehicles, with strong personal appeal and individuality. But Cristina felt now was the time to change from her Corvette to a Ford Mustang.
So how does one find a late-model Mustang in Japan? You go to your local Japanese car dealer that just happens to sell used American muscle cars on the side. So Cristina went to "Matsuoka Cars" in Amagasaki City, just outside Kobe, where she saw a dream assortment of Ford, Chevy and Mopar muscle cars all parked together!
How was it that a 2013 Ford Mustang GT/CS would be on a dealer lot in Japan? It might have been part of an extremely limited inventory of Mustangs that were shipped out from California in late 2012. Ford only made 2,135 Mustang GT/CS coupes at the Flat Rock, Michigan, assembly plant beginning on August 1, 2012, and just a fraction of those were in black. Cristina’s V-8 powered “Beast” puts out an impressive 412 horsepower and 390 pounds-feet of torque, capable of 0-60 times in just over four seconds. That was certainly enough horsepower and torque to go up against most Japanese-production performance cars.
Ford began corporate sales in Japan back in 1974 with just over 50 dealerships, and ended operations there in early 2016 due to government regulations and heavy competition from the in-house Japanese brands. To find a 2013 Mustang GT/CS among a total of only a few thousand Fords shipped there that year was extremely rare. Of course in 2015, Ford would make a big worldwide commitment to selling the Mustang in more than 140 countries – including Japan – with export models available in left- or right-hand drive versions.
Exactly who the previous owner of “Beast” was before Cristiana is a mystery, as she was unfortunately given no clues when she bought it.
“It would have been great if a thing or two was left behind by the previous owner,” she told us. It’s possible that the first owner was an American who brought it to Japan with them, or it could have been owned by U.S. Military personnel stationed in Japan. But by now Cristina actually prefers not knowing how it got to Japan: It's now her car -- her mythology -- as “Beast!”
Cristina’s 2013 Mustang GT/CS is "black on black” and was completely stock when she bought it. She said it was indeed "love at first sight.” Immediately designated with male gender, she named him "Beast" because that was the first word that came to mind after her first glance. To her it was simply a mysterious, almost Gothic black color that looked menacing, fiercely fast, and of course totally cool. She has added a few red interior moldings "because black and red are my favorite colors,” and has plans for some further modifications. But the ability to find new Ford parts, not to mention Mustang performance parts, is extremely limited in Japan. So far, she's replaced the factory shocks with a set of Eibachs and lowered the vehicle height. Next up are a new pair of Brembo calipers, and a second mirror-look ceramic coating. Her big plans are to upgrade to a supercharger someday. But all-in-all, Cristina’s 2013 Mustang GT/CS serves as a strong reminder to the locals that “there’s a new game in town.”
(photo credit: Ford Performance)
