Five decades ago on Apr. 16, 1965, Ford revealed the Mustang in a TV ad that featured the car at the top of a historic landmark, the Empire State Building. The meeting of these two icons was spectacular then, and 50 years later in a recent recreation of the event, it was just as magical! If you're wondering how Ford got the new 2015 Mustang convertible on top of the building, you're not alone. It was certainly not an easy feat, taking a large crew of technicians and several grueling days and nights of work.
To summarize the process: Ford's engineers used early prototypes of the new 2015 Mustang to figure out where they would need to make "cuts" that would separate the car into numerous sections. Like the team in 1965, their current crew visited the Empire State Building to take measurements of the elevator system and other parts of the facility. It was very important that the elevators' original art deco wood and brass trim decorations stay intact, so they needed to make sure the car was cut into small enough segments to provide enough clearance.
Once the actual display Mustang was sectioned, the pieces were hoisted onto custom rolling carts and moved up a freight elevator and two passenger elevators, which is the travel path one must take to get from the loading dock to the 86th floor observatory deck. From there, technicians had only a limited amount of time to piece the car back together for its two-day exhibit on Apr. 16 and 17.
Reuniting the Mustang and Empire State Building was an excellent way to celebrate the car's golden anniversary and the complete redesign of the next-generation model! Later this year, shoppers can find the 2015 Ford Mustang in Duluth at Gwinnett Place Ford and we can't wait! Check out the enclosed video to see Ford's crew assemble the Mustang above Manhattan.