DSO Observations - August 1966 **Pre-Production Orders**
Brian Styles
August 1966: (DSOs 2501-2512)
All 12 DSOs ‘received’ in August 1966, 8/12 & 8/15, prior to Mustang production commencing at San Jose.
11 out of the 12 DSOs were for a single car; the only multi-unit order was DSO 2505, for 100x G.T. 350 "Showing Cars" (pkg code 200F).
Earliest DSO ‘typed’ date: August 8, 1966 (2505, 2506, 2515)
Earliest DSO ‘accepted’ date: August 10, 1966 (2501, 2502, 2504-2507, 2510)
Earliest DSO ‘received’ stamp date: August 12, 1966 (2503, 2508, 2509, 2511, 2512)
Three (3) August DSOs ended up getting canceled: 2502, 2507, 2510, but not until six months later 2/6/67. All were G.T. 500 with air-conditioning.
Four (4) DSOs indicated the assembly plant as Metuchen. They were all G.T. 500 with Exhaust Emissions.
DSOs 2501-2523, dated (typed) 8/8/66 - 9/2/66, were originally typed with district 71. The contact person (person placing the order) was “G.W. Nuznoff”. Nuznoff was a SAI employee and was the same person that had ordered all the 1965 and 1966 model year cars.
A Change Notice was issued on 8/10/66 (rec’d 9/27/66) that referenced the District change from 71-84. It specifically referenced DSOs 2505, 2506, 2508 and 2509, though a 1-½ month difference between the date it was typed and the date it was stamped “received” possibly explains why DSOs continued to use district 71 through the end of September. The change to District 84 took place in October 1966, when it appears Ford's Dr. Ray A. Geddes, took over from Gerrald 'Jerry' Nuznoff.
The first batch of DSOs were received on 8/12/66 and 8/15/1966. This was prior to Mustang production beginning at San Jose. Ford processed subsequent DSOs in a batch manner, typically once per month.
The first batch of cars ordered by SAI specified that very few items deleted from them (very much like the 1965 & 1966 models were ordered). Only the following parts were itemized as being ‘deleted’ from the standard Mustang build:
Hood
Horn Ring Cap (The padded center part of the steering wheel)
Ornamentation (horse and corral) from front grille
Ornamentation from C-pillars and lower quarter panels
Roof console with overhead map lights
ALL exterior side emblems and rocker panel moldings
Brian Styles
1967 Shelby G.T. cars - The Pre-Production DSOs
When it comes to the earliest orders, almost all 12 of the pre-production DSO’s dates (typed, approved, received) are within days of one another. Other than the order for 100 ‘show cars,’ all other orders were for a single unit per DSO.
If you look at the cars ordered, sequenced by DSO number, it looks haphazard. However, if you ignore the DSO numbers that Ford assigned upon receipt of Shelby’s purchase orders, they seem to make a lot more sense. We’ve organized them into what appear to be three distinct groups:
Group A - Engineering Units - One of Each Package Code (District Item Numbers 0469-0476)
One of each package is likely a sign that these cars were originally intended for Testing and/or Engineering purposes.
Group A Notes:
There was no California requirement for Exhaust Emissions Control System (EECS) on the small blocks at the start of the ‘67 program, which is why no G.T. 350 units with a Thermactor were ordered as part of this group. Here’s confirmation in the form of an excerpt from the May 16, 1966 product planning memorandum:
Group B - “Showing Cars” -- G.T. 350 4-speed (District Item Numbers 0477-0576)
100 units for showing purposes, including the dealer launch event that took place on November 10th, 1966.
Group B Notes:
All G.T. 500 units were delayed. The three (3) G.T. 500 Air/Con units were held-up by Ford and later canceled. The two G.T. 500 units that actually were built, didn’t get completed by SAI until late January and were just sold as retail units.
Group C - Public Relations - Loaded G.T. 500 Automatic Cars (District Item Numbers 3000-3002)
One of each planned body style; all painted the same color. It's probable that all three of these cars were originally intended for advertising and/or PR purposes.
Group C Notes:
G.T. 500 units were delayed and didn’t get built until November. The fastback was built and overheated immediately. By the time the coupe and convertible were completed by SAI, the plans changed and they were repurposed for engineering use, possibly to ‘engineer / prototype’ the 67 ½ models, which were to include these added body styles.
It's also interesting to note that the three loaded G.T. 500 PR units (Group C) bear sequential Ford item numbers of 3000,3001, and 3002. We believe that the next sequential Ford item number assigned to the next sequential DSO is 3206. This leaves us wondering what item numbers 3003, 3004, and 3005 could have been allocated for....
