Ford
Mustang High Country Special (1966–1967)

Why it matters

The High Country Special was one of the first regional limited-edition Mustangs. Ford made it for the Denver sales district in 1966 and 1967, years before the better known 1968 California Special. The package was only paint and badges, so the cars are valued as early dealer-promotion Mustangs.

How rare is it?

Six separate kinds of rarity – never combined into one number.

Each kind of rarity is rated separately and never combined.

Production

Every figure says what it counts.

Independent counts (e.g. engine and colour) are never combined into a calculated figure. Surviving examples are never presented as original production.

History

Ford and the Denver-area dealers introduced the package as a regional sales promotion. Cars were built at the San Jose plant and shipped by rail to Colorado, from where they went to more than 100 Denver-district dealers, also covering Wyoming and parts of Nebraska.

The registry lists 333 cars for 1966 and 416 for 1967. The 1968 High Country Special shared only the name; it was a rebadged California Special.

Technical specifications

Engine

Transmission & drivetrain

Chassis, body & dimensions

Performance

“Not yet verified” means no source has been checked for that value yet. Nothing is estimated to fill a gap.

Identification guide

How to tell an original from a replica or later conversion.

A genuine car has a six-digit District Special Order (DSO) number starting with 51, the Denver district code, and a blank paint code on the door data plate because the colours were special orders. Only three colours exist: Aspen Gold, Columbine Blue and Timberline Green. Shield-shaped brass fender emblems show a mountain skyline with the words High Country Special; the 1967 emblem also carries the year. The San Jose plant date code for 1966 was 15G. Some dealers fitted the badges elsewhere or left them off.

Sources

Each number links to the exact facts it supports.

1. 1
   1966-1967 HCS Introduction & History Level A CaliforniaSpecial.com (HCS registry material from registrar Bob Teets)

   • 333 '66 HCS cars produced; 416 '67 HCS cars produced

   Accessed 2026-11-12