Expected Pricing: $18,000 and up

A 40th birthday is usually a big deal, for people or for cars. As the Ford Mustang approaches middle age, Ford Motor Company will celebrate with special 40th anniversary trim packages on its 2004 models. Yet these amount to minor tweaks on the current Mustang, an effort to get a bit more marketing mileage before the Mustang as we've known it for the past 10 years fades into history. The next milestone comes a year later, when Ford introduces something really new: a Mustang that's redesigned from the wheel hubs up for model year 2005.

That is a big deal. Mustang might be the most recognizable name on any car made anywhere in the world, but this sporty coupe hasn't been completely overhauled since 1979. Indeed, Ford has started from scratch with the Mustang only three times since the original was launched in 1964. The next generation will retain the Mustang's familiar proportions and front-engine, rear-drive layout, updated with technology that brings the car more firmly into the 21st century. Yet Ford promises that it won't stray from a formula that still appeals to car buyers 40 years and eight million copies after the first Mustang was sold. The 2005 'stang will remain "fun, fast and affordable." Mustang created the category that came to be known as the pony car (for the horse on the Mustang's badge), and four decades later it again has the class to itself. Dozens of similarly conceived cars have come and gone, but when General Motors killed the Pontiac Firebird and Chevrolet Camaro in 2003, it left the market for rear-drive, sporty American coupes to the Mustang.

As Ford proceeds with an expensive redesign, Mustang's icon status becomes a double-edged sword. Those who buy V8-powered, performance-oriented versions of the current car are mostly males in their 30s and 40s. Most Mustangs sold today are six-cylinder models, often convertibles and mostly to women in their 40s and 50s. Either way, Mustang buyers are getting older, and therein lies the quandary. With the redesign, Ford needs to satisfy the aging Baby Boomers who have made the car so popular for so long. But it also hopes to spread Mustang's appeal, and perhaps restore its relevance with a younger crowd.

Most of what we know about the next-generation Mustang is based on two concept cars currently on the auto-show circuit. The Mustang GT and Convertible have been displayed at the 2003 Detroit, Los Angeles, and New York auto shows (where Ford also revealed its 2004 40th Anniversary Mustangs). The GT and Convertible show cars are very close to production trim, according to Ford insiders. Our sources tell us that, with a few exceptions, what we see in the concept cars is what we'll get in the 2005 Mustang.

The biggest exception is the seating arrangement. The Mustang GT and Convertible concepts are two-seaters, while the 2005 production car will retain the Mustang's familiar 2+2 seating, perhaps with a bit more room in back thanks to contemporary packaging. The 2005 Mustang concept is clearly retro in its design theme, smoothed with up-to-date styling and production techniques. The car was styled in Ford's Living Legend Studio, under the direction of design chief J. Mays. It's no accident that Mays more or less launched the retro styling trend. Volkswagen's New Beetle was created under his direction when he was working for Volkswagen.

The 2005 Mustang takes a host of styling cues from the 1964-72 models. It has the classic long hood and short rear deck, with recessed headlights, dual hood scoops and familiar, L-shaped scallops along the doors, ending in more vertical scoops in front of the rear wheel wells. The production convertible won't get the steeply raked windshield and low roll hoop seen on the Convertible concept; the coupe will likely get some variation of the smoked glass roof shown on the GT concept.

The really new stuff lies under the racy exterior. The 2005 Mustang was developed on Ford's latest mid-size, rear-drive chassis (known internally as the DEW platform), which also provides the underpinnings for such cars as the Ford Thunderbird, Lincoln LS and Jaguar S-Type. This chassis provides first-rate rigidity, and it's far more weight-efficient, much stronger with less weight, than the current Mustang's ancient FOX platform, which isn't known as a paragon of solidity. Ford's current DEW-based cars are essentially luxury machines starting at about $35,000, and that should bode well for the new Mustang, in terms of handling, rigidity and overall noise, vibration and harshness control. Yet if the new Mustang is to remain true to the affordable theme, the DEW will likely see some cost trimming as it becomes a Mustang. Ford insiders say that there will likely be two variants of the Mustang chassis: one with fully independent rear suspension for higher performance, high-end variants, and a cheaper, conventional solid rear axle for garden-variety six-cylinders.

The 2005 Mustang's engines and transmissions will be upgraded across the board, but only the base 3.8L pushrod V6 will be replaced. The concept cars were shown with the 4.6-liter dual-overhead-cam supercharged V8 used in the 2003 SVT Cobra (the current ultimate Mustang), tuned to generate an impressive 400 horsepower. The GT features a six-speed manual transmission, while the Convertible has a five-speed automatic. Expect the same engine/transmission combinations in the most expensive next-generation Mustangs.

Below that, there will be two more variants of the 4.6-liter V8: single-overhead-cam with three valves per cylinder, and dual-cam with four valves per cylinder, both normally aspirated. Lesser Mustangs will have a five-speed manual or four-speed automatic. The new base engine will be a variant of Ford's current 3.0L overhead cam V6, now offered in the Taurus sedan, producing a little over 200 horsepower.

Loyalists will find the most obvious functional changes inside the 2005 Mustang. The familiar dual-cowl dashboard has been scrapped in favor of a sweeping, uninterrupted instrument panel similar to that in the concept cars. Expect the same no-frills, down-to-business interior philosophy applied in the Mustang for years. However, Ford's new emphasis on improving interiors will likely produce a richer, more refined finish than that in the current Mustang's excessively plastic cabin.

A minimalist approach will also apply to standard features and option lists. All 2005 Mustangs will include basic amenities such as power windows and air conditioning, but there won't be a navigation system or an abundance of high-tech electronics. A few high-end items, including anti-skid chassis electronics, will be offered at the high end of the line. Big options for lower-level models will include items such as a mega-watt subwoofer stereo.

What about the fast part of "fast, fun and affordable"? We expect every 2005 Mustang variant will outperform its current counterpart by virtually every measure, from acceleration to lateral grip to fuel efficiency. With the exception of the forthcoming Ford GT supercar, the top Mustang will be the best performer in Ford's lineup and should be able to accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in less than five seconds.

The next-generation Mustang should be ready for launch in the summer of 2004. Initially, three trim levels will be offered: the base six-cylinder, the GT V8, and a racier V8 model. The full hotrod SVT Cobra will follow in short order. Ford seems genuinely committed to the affordable Mustang, and price increases should be no more than incremental. The six-cylinder 2005 shouldn't retail much higher than the current car, which starts at about $18,000.

When the next-generation Mustang arrives for 2005, it will be at least incrementally better than the current car in every respect: slightly lighter and more responsive, smoother, more solidly built, more nimble and more user-friendly. It will not be substantially different in spirit, and that's a good thing. Pony car fans can rejoice in the thought that the Mustang, which was so close to extinction on at least two occasions, will continue better and stronger than ever. Eight million buyers can't be wrong.