Ford Motor Co will unveil its next-generation 2015 Mustang on December 5, in the first complete overhaul of the car since 2005, the US automaker said.

The new Mustang, which marks its 50th anniversary next spring, gets a more modern design, a more nimble chassis and more efficient engines and transmissions, all intended to broaden the car's appeal beyond its core American audience. The 2015 model is slated to go on sale next summer.

"We had a big decision to make about the execution of the vehicle, but most of all we had a chance to globalise this iconic vehicle," Ford global marketing chief Jim Farley told reporters at an event held in conjunction with the Los Angeles Auto Show.

The company first announced the timing of the preview in a description of a video posted on its Ford Mustang YouTube channel.

To help broaden the Mustang's appeal globally, Ford will introduce the new design simultaneously at its headquarters in Dearborn, Michigan, New York, Los Angeles, Barcelona, Shanghai and Sydney.

Toward that end, Ford is spending hundreds of millions of dollars on the redesign of the vehicle from the ground up, sources previously said.

"It's an interesting time for us to launch Mustang and we want to be relevant to the part of the US customer base and global customer base that hasn't thought of Ford first," Farley said.

In the 15 days leading up to the debut, Ford is teaming up with Facebook and Instagram to showcase the car by having fans share photographic stories every day, including 15-second videos by select users, about the car using the hashtag #MustangInspires. Farley called social media the new platform for the company to get its brand message to consumers. - Reuters