The seller has listed this barn find 1972 Ford Mustang as a “California Special,” but those blue stripes tend to mean only one thing: it’s a Sprint Edition, offered to commemorate that year’s Olympic games. Though Ford never officially put the words “Olympic” in their marketing, the patriotic color scheme and USA decals on the body sure made it obvious that the model was designed to commemorate that year’s Olympics team. A California Special was a much different beast, so it’s pretty clear the seller has swapped around his special edition names. Regardless, it looks like a decent example of a rare Mustang and it’s listed here on Facebook Marketplace for $15,000 in Bangor, Maine.
The other dead giveaway as to which special edition model this is can be found in interior, where the nicely preserved bucket seats sport the Spirit edition trim pattern of Corinthian vinyl bolsters with Bright Blue Lambeth cloth inserts, according to Hemmings. The interior was accented by red piping to complete the patriotic look, but otherwise was standard Mustang fare inside. The rear seats were upholstered to match and blue carpeting was used to ensure not one inch of the car wasn’t used to convey how proud the Ford Motor Company was of that year’s athletes (or, more likely, how eager they were to move a few pieces of metal off the lot at a higher price point solely for some special colors and other cosmetic features.)
The body on this Mustang looks quite nice, and I believe you can just make out the other distinguishing feature of a Sprint edition, which is that of the lower body panels that wear a blue finish. What I can’t seem to find in the pictures is the USA shield that was specific to the models sold in the U.S., but it’s possible given its location this was a Canadian market car which with a maple leaf decal. Regardless, the body looks decent for being a northern car, and the seller doesn’t allude to any rust issues. In fact, the seller claims it still wears its original paint, so hopefully that shield decal is visible somewhere. If a Mustang wasn’t your choice for a rolling testimony of your patriotic spirit, you could get the Sprint trim in Pinto or Maverick varieties as well.
We don’t have much else to work with photo-wise, as this is the only other interesting angle: that of the radio cluster, which appears to be an original model. The Mustang has a 351 under the hood that hasn’t run in years, and the seller is asking $15,000 for the car as it currently sits. The listing cites one dent on the trunk but I can see some other cosmetic flaws on the driver’s side fender; still, if this car is a long-term Maine resident and has no significant rust underneath, I’d call that a win. The Sprint edition was certainly a limited model, with just under 10,000 made. Finding one with original paint and its original graphics intact is indeed a find, but it is worth the asking price as-is?
Overpriced even if running and in near perfect condition.
Steve R
So . . . To be clear on this, the seller thinks it’s a California Special but, it’s a Sprint with a Spirit interior.
I’m confused, please . . . Someone explain this to me.
They actually made “Sprint” Mustangs for years – some were with the 6 cylinder as the package.
Reminds me, I was in Ehrenberg, Az Friday and saw on an open car hauler, 5 muscle cars headed for Aguana, Cal.
On top at rear, a 68 Shelby 500 KR. A 69 F8 Charger 500. A 69 Charger RT with rust repair. A 70 Lime Coronet RT, 440-6 pac, 4-speed and a 70 red Hemi Challenger RT. All needing restoration. May see them soon here on barn finds. From Ariz to Calif.
Hummmm
No Cal Special package for this year (or after ‘68 and until… well after), Grumps. Yes- it’s a misnomer by the Seller, and is a Sprint packaged Coupe. Kinda cool to see the factory Warning decal over the stereo… haven’t see an original one of those in quite some time.
Agree on that warning label, So frickin’ funny compared to the ones we see today ! Forgot they even existed. Only needs the “cold starting” procedure hanging from the dash
Jeff, nice work as always. Appreciate the effort you put into researching the “special edition” packages on all years. I concur that this may be a Canadian market car. No evidence through photos that any detail has been removed.If only Kevin Marti were a BF site member ! Never cared much for the ’71-73 cars but there are exceptions. Like this one, but it doesn’t crack 10k. The seller is obviously clueless, the epitome of the type you don’t want to negotiate with.
I’ve never seen one of these in coupe trim. Not saying they weren’t made I’ve just never seen one. I used to see a fastback version back in my pizza delivery days.
I always thought these were sharp, with the wide blue stripes repeating in the upholstery. A few years ago I was at a show where the owner brought one of these Mustangs (a fastback) plus an equivalent Pinto. Surprisingly the Pinto was in much better shape.
From Mustang Monthly
http://www.mustangandfords.com/featured-vehicles/mump-0904-1972-canadian-sprint-mustang
I had this one’s twin many years ago. Was so rusted it was beyond saving. I could have sworn that it was referred to as a Miss America edition, but hey, it was a long time ago.
Maine = Salt = Rust. It is expensive to ship a car from upstate Maine. Do your homework.
I bought one of these cars about 20 years ago. It was a fastback, tear drop mirrors, spoiler, magnum wheels and Olympic Stickers on rear quarter panels. Still had bias ply tires on it. I got the Marti Report and it was exactly the way it came from the factory, short of the rust. Completely ate up with the rust. I passed it on.
This is a Sprint Edition. There were 9383 built. Basically a stripe package. Red, white and blue stripe decals with the USA decal on the rear quarter. Canadian versions got a maple leaf decal on the rear quarter. There were two ways to buy it….. as an “A” package model with base options & “B” with mild upgrades and wheel/tire package. Bet if you broke the numbers down between US and Canadian models it would actually be really rare!
I think the Canadian models were about 50% of what was made with the US logo.
That’s correct it did not make a California special after 68 it’s got a grande roof style and blue stripes it’s what we call it a morphodite it’s just a way of Ford sell another car getting her name out there with recognition putting stripes on it but it’s still a nice car