The Mustang Has Always Been the Boss

There are a few stories about how the Boss Mustang got its name. Some say that when designer Larry Shinoda was asked about the secret project he was working on, he simply said, “the boss’ car.” But maybe it was simply a nod to the boss who brought Shinoda to Ford from General Motors. Or perhaps Shinoda himself had the nickname, “The Boss,” and the car was named after him. And still others simply say the car was named for the 302-cubic-inch Boss engine. Regardless of the name’s origin though, those people surely didn’t realize they were dubbing something that would eventually hit legendary status.

This 1970 Boss 302 comes from the second year of production. It’s the street-going version of the Trans Am race car that Ford was using at the time. A little more than 7,000 of the 302s were built for the 1970 model year, and only about 500 of those were in Candy Apple Red, so this is obviously an extremely rare vehicle.

As Mustang enthusiasts know, the color isn’t the only distinct exterior piece of the Boss. There are the rear louvers, the blacked-out rear deck with the spoiler, sport mirrors, a reflective stripe on the side, the hood scoop, and a few extra aero bits here and there. Performance wise, it was lowered, had different suspension, the engine block was stronger, the pistons domed, and the new cylinder head design allowed for more air. Overall, it put out 290 horsepower and 290 lb-ft of torque. Kevin Oeste, aka Professor MuscleCar, will tell you the rest.

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via [Muscle Car of the Week]