How many times have you watched movies saying, "I just have to have this car!"? You googled it, you put a poster as big as China on your bedroom wall with its best shot, and kept dreaming about it. Now, here is your chance. This is the Mustang that featured in the 2003 Universal Pictures film '2 Fast 2 Furious.' It is a car that was driven over by a semi trailer, hit by a C5 Corvette and rebuilt to look as if has just rolled off the production line.
The motion picture attracted massive success, grossing more than $236 million at the box office worldwide. That was more than what the original movie achieved, going straight to number 17 in the ranking of the highest-grossing film of 2023 for Universal Pictures.
It starred the late Paul Walker as Brian O'Conner, Tyrese Gibson as Roman Piece, Brian’s childhood friend, and Eva Mendes as secret agent Monica Fuentes. The plot puts Brian undercover to help bust a drug lord. ‘2 Fast 2 Furious’ was the movie that introduced iconic cars such as Brian’s silver Nissan R34 GT-R and model Devon Aoki, playing the part of Suki and driving the pink Honda S2000 with anime-inspired graphics.
The New Edge Mustang has been through so much that you can hardly realize where the story begins. It is number 88 of approximately 120 cars used in the '2 Fast 2 Furious' blockbuster. Yet among them, there were only five Mustangs, with this 2002 example being one of them. Several “2F2F” stickers have been added, with one being in the engine bay.
The model bears the Saleen S281 signature, but it is not an actual Saleen build. It just sports the Saleen-sourced components such as the brakes, suspension, gauges, and seats, plus the body treatment coming from the tuning experts The list includes the lightweight carbon fiber hood and center-exit exhaust system.
Photo: Mecum
The fourth-generation Mustang is finished in the flashy Liz-Stick Red shade. It was the favorite color of famous racer and tuning specialist Steve Saleen’s wife, Liz. There are seats in black leather with the ‘Saleen’ lettering on the backrest, a grey dashboard, and red panels containing the window controls in the doors to match the exterior red. Yet, nothing to write home about compared to the exterior.
The New Edge Mustang is first seen reversing into its parking spot when Brian O'Conner and Roman Pearce arrive at the drug lord Carter Verone’s home.
The muscle car returns on the screen in the climax chase scene along the city streets and on the I-95 Highway. Driven by one of the villains, it is on the same side as a fifth-generation Chevrolet Corvette, a Yank Camaro, and a 1970 Dodge Challenger.
During the chase, Brian and Roman drive in between two semi trucks. But the driver of the Mustang, trying to do the same thing, goes between the vehicles when they start closing the gap in between them.
Photo: Mecum
The driver loses control of the car and goes underneath one of the semis, ending up crushed under its wheels in a ‘cover your eyes’ kind of crash scene. As if the Mustang wasn’t already smashed enough, the driver of a 1998 C5 Corvette driving behind him, slams into what is left of the car. Lieberman admits the Corvette was supposed to crash but not to roll over.
According to Craig Lieberman, who served as a technical advisor for the movie, that scene almost didn’t happen. The 2002 Ford Mustang, with no driver on board, was thrown under the semi trailer with the help of a crane.
But even though it was a complete mess and total loss, the vehicle underwent a post-production repair carried out by Mason's Hotrods and Hobbies in Spartanburg, South Carolina.
It is powered by the 4.6-liter V8 engine, with no modifications whatsoever, linked to an automatic transmission, which was tailor-made for the film and which has to manage 260 horsepower (264 metric horsepower), steered to the rear axle. That is an extra oomph over the previous 215 horsepower (218 metric horsepower), achieved due to a new piston head design and several other upgrades.
Photo: Mecum
The odometer shows only 582.5 miles (937 kilometers), but it couldn't be further from the truth for a Mustang that is more than two decades old. Most likely, this distance has been covered since the rebuild.
The car comes documented with copy of the State of California title, issued to FF2 Production LLC/Universal Studios on September 22, 2002. Looking as if it never had to deal with the wheels of a trailer, the 2002 Ford Mustang will be auctioned off this January at the Mecum auction event in Kissimmee, Florida.
Mecum is expecting the car to go for a sum anywhere between $60,000 and $90,000, which is way above what a fourth-generation Ford Mustang would normally go for, considering that it is not even a classic yet.
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