MUSTANG ALLEY

Around 800 Ford Mustangs lined up at the British Motor Museum in celebration of the everyman sports car's 60th birthday. Felix Page was wowed by the variety on show

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Every country has its car: Mini, Beetle, Fiat 500, Renault 5 - each bound up intrinsically with the heritage of its respective country of origin, and in certain cases nearly as long-lived.

The US could claim a few, but it's arguably the Ford Mustang that stands proudest as the automotive embodiment of Americana, with its fusion of affordability, cachet and performance propelling it to become one of the country's and the world's best-selling cars of all time.

But who would think it had such a huge and fanatical following in the UK, where it's been sold officially for only the past seven years? Some 800 cars turned out to celebrate the Mustang's 60th birthday at the British Motor Museum earlier this month, which would feel like a commendable turnout had it been held in Ford's home state of Michigan, let alone Warwickshire.