Today in motorcycle history, January 3, 1963

     Mustang Motorcycles introduce a Heavy Duty Dellorto air cleaner (D-1874) to their new bikes for 1963.   

   Mustang Motorcycles were the two-wheeled brain-child of engineer John Gladden, whose Glendale, California, company manufactured aircraft parts during World War II.

When the war came to an end and Gladden had to figure out what to do with his now-quiet plant, his thoughts turned to his favorite pre-war activity: motorcycles. What was needed, Gladden decided, was an inexpensive, lightweight bike that could serve as a transition between a motor scooter and a full-sized motorcycle.

   The bike, scheduled for sale in 1945, was to be powered by a 125cc Villers two-stroke Single. A few of these machines, called the Colt, were produced, but with limited availability of the British-built Villers engines prompted a redesign of the Colt to accept Gladden's own engine.

The result was the Model 2, which became available in the fall of 1947. It featured a single cylinder, 320cc side-valve engine, a three-speed Burman transmission, a tubular front fork, a solid rear suspension, disc wheels and 4.00x12 tires. Mustangs also placed well in the lightweight division at the Catalina Island Grand Prix, ridden by Fulton, Jim Phillips, Tom Bizzari and Ed Kretz, Jr.

The little bikes were active at drag strips, as well; and in the hands of a racer named Tom Beatty, a highly modified Mustang routinely turned 90 mph, with clocking in the low-12-second range.

   By the 1960s, Mustang had an expanded model line. There was the basic, front-suspension-only, solid wheel, three-speed Pony, backed up by the Bronco and the Stallion, which sported wire wheels and front brakes. Top of the line was the Thoroughbred, with a swingarm rear suspension and a Burman four-speed transmission. They were available in various paint schemes, such as Brilliant Red, Rocket Green, Lustre Black and Galaxy Blue.

   Though the marques continued to sell well in the early 1960s, the clock was running. Gladden continued to rely on the British-built Burman transmission, a steady supply of which became impossible to obtain. But by then, Honda's toehold in the American Motorcycle market, was so strong that Gladden's simple little post war design didn't have a chance. As a result, though new Mustangs were sold until 1965, the last one to roll off the production-line in Glendale was 1963.