It’s hard for some of us to believe, but nearly 30 years ago, the Mustang was on the chopping block. Sales numbers were down, gas prices were going up, and Ford was ready to kill the nameplate off completely by 1987, replacing the car with the front wheel drive, Mazda-built Probe. Fortunately the UAW convinced Ford to save the car until at least 1993, and after that a huge campaign by fans around the globe saved the car once more, giving us the SN95 platform cars.

There were also others deep within Ford determined to save the car. Special Vehicle Operations (SVO) which later became SVT, thought that there was a need for a Mustang for the modern enthusiast. Something that was light, powerful, and handled, rather than simply did decent in a straight-line. Thus the SVO Mustangs were born, and sold from 1984-1986.

We’ve talked at length before about the SVO’s features, but to sum it up, the car offered horsepower comparable to the Mustang GT of the day, better suspension, 5-lug wheels, sport seats, and decent fuel economy. Unfortunately a higher sticker price meant that SVO’s also sold for as much as $3,000-$4,000 more than their Mustang GT siblings with similar options.

We recently found this commercial for the then all new SVO Mustang, based on the style of the commercial, we’d say it ran during prime-time, and probably sports events, when the right male target audience would likely be watching. We can imagine this one airing alongside the action shows of the day.

The commercial highlights many of the key features of the car, but what is comical is the noise when it fires up. In an obvious marketing attempt to make the car sound more enticing the sound of a V8 replaces that of the four-cylinder when the car is started, along with the commercial narrator stating the tag line, “The machine speaks for itself,” which seems kind of lame by today’s standards.

This blast from the past renews our love for the SVO and makes us eagerly anticipate the return of a boosted four-cylinder in what hopefully will be a lightweight chassis for the upcoming S550 Mustang platform.