It’s a beautiful thing to see a child’s face light up with excitement, and it’s an even better thing to see that same look on their parents’ faces.
When you see the Mach 5 Inspired Mustang, you’ll understand what we mean. This beautiful car has been created by Kenneth Foat, who dedicated his life to making the most awesome cars for kids.
I was born on March 2nd, 1995. Growing up, I’ve always been around cars, whether they be full-scale or toys. My father collected Hot Wheels and scale models of famous Hollywood rides, inspiring me to slowly start doing the same. The only difference was that I opened all of mine. We shared a passion for cars on and off the screen since the beginning, but the Ford Mustang stuck out for me the most. It wasn’t until I was about four or five years old that my mother and father introduced my brother and I to the famous Japanese anime by the name of “Mach Go Go Go” or “Speed Racer” after being recognized in America. Since then, I fell in love with the famous racing car from that anime, and that’s the “Mach 5.” My brother had a love for Racer X and his “Shooting Star.”
Fast forward to me at twenty-three playing Forza Horizon 4. I combined my love for the Ford Mustang and Speed Racer’s Mach 5 by using the livery on the in-game Mustang. I called it the “Mach 5.0.” Fast forward another two years to July 22, 2020, the day I first picked up my 2014 Mustang GT. It was Oxford White with a vinyl black stripe on the sides and down the middle of the car, from front bumper to trunk lid. I took it for a test drive and immediately fell in love with the power as opposed to my previous four Mustangs. I drove it like I stole it on the four-hour trip back home, and it felt unreal.
I already had the idea of turning my video game creation into a reality before I even entered the dealership. All my ideas were racing through my head of what I wanted to make it out to be beforehand, but I knew I was bringing that car home the same day.
At the current time of all of these events, I was working at a local Ford dealership in the detail department. On my down time and lunch breaks, I’d start removing the vinyl striping that was already on the vehicle to give me a nice blank canvas to make my vision a reality. With the car bare and free of vinyl, I started searching for the Mach 5’s livery decals online and, after some time, I was successful in finding the racing numbers. Finally, I had to special order the big red “Mifune Motors” M.
I took the car over to a friend’s where he helped me align the big red “M” on the hood, and I aligned the 5’s on each door panel of the car. After taking a step back once the decals were applied, I watched my vision come to life. As a final touch, I branded the car with a custom badge I made that read “Mach 5.0,” which I placed above the rear passenger tail light on the trunk lid.
As I drove around town every day after that, I got looks, thumbs up, and people shouting “Speed Racer!” At gas stations, stores, etc., the car is a daily driver, so I still get those reactions no matter where I go. It’s an awesome feeling, and I hope I bring out the childhood in some that see the car. I get asked a lot, “How do you even know about Speed Racer and the Mach 5?” That was way before your time. I just give them a brief story about growing up with it and they smile.
As time went on, owning the car, I started a social media page on Instagram to get the car out there for others to see given the positivity it has received locally and to meet other fans/car enthusiasts. I started to get more and more ideas for the Mach 5.0 Mustang. I was thinking a lot about making the interior red just like the Mach 5, and researching success rates and techniques from others that have attempted the same with their own cars. After I was confident enough, I stripped the interior panels and painted each piece to achieve that beautiful apple red. I also applied a red floor that covers the carpeting in the car, really making the interior stand out. Once it was all put back together, it started to feel even more unique. Later on, as a self-birthday gift and with support from my wife, I bought a front lip and a rear spoiler to replace the small stock ones. I had them painted at a local shop and installed them with a couple of friends, really changing the look of the car with simple additions.
Those changes were perceived very positively by friends, family, and my followers online, which pushed me to get even more creative. My Mustang has even been noticed by Gotham Garage, in which they build replica Mach 5’s for anyone that can afford one. I’ve managed to meet two owners through my social media page of those replicas who have inspired me that dreams can be achieved further beyond current goals. They both like what I’ve done to my Mustang, and I’ve even been offered to drive one of theirs if ever in the area! I’ve even seen Gotham Garage’s first replica Mach 5 in the Petersen Museum, and that feeling will never be forgotten.
Growing up, I was very involved in art. I am still here today in many forms, but I drew mostly as I got older. Using my creativity, I decided to make the car a full-on tribute to the Mach 5, while expressing my love for Mustangs and being unique as a person as well as on the road. I look at cars as a blank canvas or sheet of paper waiting for an artist’s touch.
I mocked up the steering wheel to resemble the Mach 5 and all the different lettered buttons that activate the special gadgets as in the anime, and even customized the keys for the car to resemble the keys for the Mach 5 as seen in the 2008 Speed Racer movie. I have further customized the engine bay by painting the valve covers and engine plenum red, adding a “Go Speed” decal on my cold air intake heat shield, and customizing the oil cap to be white with the red “M” on it. My tire valve caps are pointed white enamel with the red M I made on them, resembling the front end of the Mach 5. To resemble the yellow-tinted headlights on the Mach 5, I used a fog light gel tint that covers the stock lenses. To add to the theme of the racing car tribute, I picked up some red rim blades that give a red stripe around the rim, and got some tire lettering for my new Hankook performance tires.
The car is not yet finished for what I have in mind, but the fun is the journey along the way, making the end appreciated much more. My future plans are to get new rims in chrome and change all the interior seating to red, aside from the red leather seat covers on the driver and passenger seats. The final step is to eventually have the vinyl replaced by painted-on graphics for the livery. I plan to keep this theme/tribute car going for as long as possible. It has been a lot of fun to make a reality, and the reactions from people of all ages have been a real treat as well.
In conclusion, Speed Racer had a huge impact on me growing up, and my love for cars and the Mach 5 is still very much alive today. That passion has been passed down to my daughter Chloe, who even has her own little ride on Mach 5, which I was fortunate to find. It’ll be brought to more car shows to add to the aesthetic of Speed Racer and so little kids can take pictures in it. Seeing how my daughter reacts to my collection and the Mach 5.0 and every other child that sees me out and about with it, reminds me when I was their age and saw cool cars, and now I’m in the shoes of the strangers I used to smile at and give thumbs up. It really is a great feeling.
