One of the nicest convenience items to have on your classic Ford car is a remote trunk release. This feature is common in almost all new cars today. After all, it's no fun rolling up to the luggage bellhop in the rain and having to kill the engine and climb out to open the trunk with the key. With the option of being able to open the trunk from the interior, it's a simple matter for someone on the outside of the car to load groceries, grab a lounge chair for the cruise night, or load the detailing items for the next show. Fortunately, it is now possible to equip the classic Mustangs we love with a remote trunk-release mechanism.
Scott Drake offers a top-quality kit for your early Mustang. It features electrical operation, but the interior release lever looks exactly like the original '60s-style cable mechanism. We have a '66 Mustang coupe we'd like to equip with the '65-'66 Mustang Scott Drake kit, and installation looks to be a simple matter that we should be able to accomplish in an hour. There's also a kit available for '67-'70 Mustangs. Similar car lines that use the same trunk-latch assembly should be able to benefit from this new electric release kit as well. There are no major modifications that need to be made to the car, just a simple installation procedure.
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Here's the new remote trunk-release kit from Scott Drake. The wiring, the interior release lever, and the replacement latch mechanism are included. | 
The new latch has an electronically actuated mechanism. Here we remove the OE latch, which we'll store in our spare parts department. |
Once out of the car, a side-by-side comparison shows little difference between the two latches. The only obvious giveaway is the black push button of the electronic actuator on the side of the new latch and the wiring coming from the new latch. You can see the original latch had been slotted for some reason. | 
Nothing plays hobgoblin on electrical circuits like a faulty ground, so pay attention to getting the ground wires secured. Here is a ground strap for the latch mechanism under the bolt head but on top of the latch. | 
The new latch is installed onto the trunk lid using the OE fasteners. Since the bolt holes on the new latch are not elongated, the chance of the unit shifting position is eliminated. Route the wire toward the driver side through the inside of the trunk lid and then up toward the hinge. The push button on the latch makes for a nice safety touch if someone should ever get caught in the trunk. |
On the inside of the car, begin by removing the sill plate that conceals the wiring underneath. You'll need a stubby screwdriver to remove the screw in the center of the sill near the seat. | 
Locate the release lever next to the driver seat for easy access. Once satisfied with the position, create the four required holes. Be careful not to damage the carpeting by allowing a carpet strand to wind up around the drill bit and unravel the carpeting pile. | 
Here we see the release lever in the installed position and the wiring routed back toward the trunk area. The wire is taped into place and goes over the pinch-welded seam. It will be protected from damage by the sill plate. For the hot lead, decide if you want to be able to operate the release with the key out of the ignition. If so, connect to a lead that is hot all the time, such as for the interior lights. If you'd like the release to operate only when the key is on, then choose a power lead that is routed through the ignition switch. |
Here's our completed installation at the lever end. With the sill plate back in position, it's a super-clean arrangement sure to be appreciated by anyone using the car. The remote-release kit is a great deal, as we found one at a national Mustang parts retailer for only $108.95. | 
Once in the back corner of the rear footwell, the wiring and relay is concealed underneath the carpeting. Here, a ground to the chassis is also established. The wiring then travels inside the car body and over the wheelhousing to emerge in the corner of the trunk. | 
The latch wiring from inside the car is ready to connect to the wires coming from the latch assembly. Be sure wiring is secured and that it can't become entangled in the trunk hinge. We already had a reproduction trunk-light wire in this area, so we simply taped the power trunk-release wiring to this wire for a factory-looking harness. |