Right now, there’s a good chance you’re reading this on a tablet computer, which has a touchscreen that grants you access to every corner of cyberspace. In a few minutes, you might take a call on your Bluetooth headset. Modern electronics and software certainly are amazing, but they have their limits. Sometimes they just can’t produce an image or a rendering that takes the place of something you can actually put your hands on.
That’s why automotive designers, such as the ones at Ford responsible for the looks of the 2015 Mustang, still use 1:1-scale clay models. Unfortunately, when they need to adjust something to make it just right, such as the aircraft-inspired interior’s brow line above the main gauge cluster or the stitching in the leather trim sections, they can’t just click a mouse. They have to fix things by hand. On the plus side, they get a tactile experience of the cockpit, just as customers will when they sit in a car at a Blue Oval dealership.
Click the play button below to see all of the thoughtful touches Ford’s stylists and craftspeople incorporated into the company’s 51-year-old icon.
Derek Shiekhi's father raised him on cars. As a boy, Derek accompanied his dad as he bought classics such as post-WWII GM trucks and early Ford Mustang convertibles.
After loving cars for years and getting a bachelor's degree in Business Management, Derek decided to get an associate degree in journalism. His networking put him in contact with the editor of the Austin-American Statesman newspaper, who hired him to write freelance about automotive culture and events in Austin, Texas in 2013. One particular story led to him getting a certificate for learning the foundations of road racing.
While watching TV with his parents one fateful evening, he saw a commercial that changed his life. In it, Jeep touted the Wrangler as the Texas Auto Writers Association's "SUV of Texas." Derek knew he had to join the organization if he was going to advance as an automotive writer. He joined the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) in 2014 and was fortunate to meet several nice people who connected him to the representatives of several automakers and the people who could give him access to press vehicles (the first one he ever got the keys to was a Lexus LX 570). He's now a regular at TAWA's two main events: the Texas Auto Roundup in the spring and the Texas Truck Rodeo in the fall.
Over the past several years, Derek has learned how to drive off-road in various four-wheel-drive SUVs (he even camped out for two nights in a Land Rover), and driven around various tracks in hot hatches, muscle cars, and exotics. Several of his pieces, including his article about the 2015 Ford F-150 being crowned TAWA's 2014 "Truck of Texas" and his review of the Alfa Romeo 4C Spider, have won awards in TAWA's annual Excellence in Craft Competition. Last year, his JK Forum profile of Wagonmaster, a business that restores Jeep Wagoneers, won prizes in TAWA’s signature writing contest and its pickup- and SUV-focused Texas Truck Invitational.