Why Ford Mustang Boss 351 Was Only Produced For Single Model Year
The early 1970s marked the end of peak muscle car, as new focus on safety and emissions regulations brought the classic era to a close. Life was particularly tough for Ford at the time, as the Blue Oval also had to drastically cut back on its racing efforts during this period, pulling its factory cars from both NASCAR and Trans Am competition. Nor did it help that muscle-car insurance rates had climbed right along with their horsepower ratings, making these factory-built hot-rods more expensive to own for customers. It was a combination of all those factors that killed off the 1971 Ford Mustang Boss 351 after a single year on sale.
The fact of the matter is that Ford was already moving away from racing when the Boss 351 was being developed, and the car's 351-cubic-inch engine was a direct outcome of the automaker's decreased emphasis on motorsports. Ford had introduced the Mustang Boss 302 and Boss 429 in 1969 specifically for its Trans Am and NASCAR efforts, and when those evaporated, so did the engines. The Boss 351 engine served as a sort of spiritual successor to past Bosses …
https://www.jalopnik.com/2220369/why-boss-351-mustang-was-only-produced-for-one-model-year/
(photo credit: Ford)
