20th Anniversary Ford Mustang GT350 - Scott Moen's GT350

Have you ever seen something and known it was "the one"? Whatever that something was, you thought and plotted and dreamed and schemed in order to get possession of it. Scott Moen of Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, had that feeling when he first spied the 20th anniversary GT350 that Ford produced to celebrate 20 years of Mustang. We can't say that we blame him, either. The 20th anniversary cars, though not high profile in the performance wars, were and are desirable late-models.

In Scott's words, "The one car I always said I'd own was a 20th anniversary Mustang." His affection was so deep that he joined the 20th Anniversary Owners Association (AOA), even though he didn't own one of these limited cars yet. We say limited unreservedly since only 5,261 of these cars were built. What the new car buyers, and now Scott, got for their hard-earned greenbacks was a GT with a twist.

The cars were available in either a hatchback or a convertible, and both body styles came with the Oxford White exterior and Canyon Red Sports interior. The cars also had the optional Sports seats. The TRX wheel package with its 220/55R390 tires was also part of the GT350 anniversary getup. The only available driveline options were the engine and the transmission. These options consisted of one of three engine/tranny combos--a 5.0 carbureted five-speed, a 5.0 EFI (like Scott's car) that was backed with the AOD, or the Turbo 2.3 non-intercooled inline four.

By 1984 all brakes were power disc/drum, and most cars had power steering. Creature comforts continued to be items checked off an order sheet (unlike today, where you get plan A or plan B), and Scott's car has the full gamut. Power windows, tilt wheel, and air conditioning are just the icing on the cake.

The history of this Mustang is as unique as the cars themselves. The former owner, Diana Hershenburger, bought the car from Harrold Ford in Sacramento, California, and was presented the keys to the shiny new convertible on April 28, 1984, as part of the 20th anniversary celebration at the Cal Expo Center in Sacramento. From there, the car saw few miles, so the odometer reads a scant 40,155 miles. The car has not seen the ravages of time and multiple owners, as Scott is the second holder of the keys.

How he came in possession of the car is quite interesting. It seems his participation in the Owners Association earned him a call from Randy Church--head of the 20th AOA--who let him know that Diana had come to the agonizing decision to sell the long-held convertible. After nine years, it was time to turn the car over to a new owner--hopefully one who would care for the Oxford White drop-top as much as she did. Scott and Diana spent many hours mulling over the car and her desire to see it in a good home--something that is always nice to hear from an owner who is selling. Oftentimes, this means the owner really cares for the car and has taken care of the car. This was just the case with Diana's GT350. What Scott got was his dream come true--an anniversary car that looked as nice as it did the day it left Dearborn. How long is he planning on keeping it? Always.

List Of Standard And Optional Equipment On The GT350

Standard