Ford has unveiled its new Mustang model, the 2018 Ford Mustang GT, which will make its debut next week in Detroit at the North American International Auto Show. However, this new model also signals a big departure from the muscle car market’s recent trends. Ford’s newest Mustang will be powered by an upgraded version of its 5-liter V8 engine that produces 460 horsepower and 420 lb-ft of torque. In contrast, other popular muscle cars have recently gone electric with models like the Dodge Challenger SRT Demon and Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE using 707 horsepower to deliver record-breaking performance.
Detroit-based Ford Motor has long believed that the Mustang is in a class by itself. With the seventh generation of the renowned American pony automobile, that could soon come to pass.
The new 2024 Mustang hardtop and convertible with two gas engines was introduced by the Detroit carmaker on Wednesday. The car’s two biggest competitors, the Chevrolet Camaro and Dodge Challenger, are anticipated to switch to electric vehicles in the upcoming years.
A makeover of the famous vehicle without any form of electrification, according to Ford executives, is a component of the company’s “Mustang family” plan, which also includes the all-electric Mustang Mach-E crossover, which went on sale in late 2020.
Jim Owens, head of Mustang marketing, said during a media conference that “we know customers do desire that internal combustion and some of them want the electric and we provide both in that Mustang family.”
According to a report by Automotive News, a planned hybrid model was shelved, perhaps leaving the Mustang the last gas-powered muscle vehicle from the Detroit manufacturers — a notion that seemed far-fetched even a few years ago.
This summer, Dodge revealed that its two-door Challenger and four-door Charger muscle vehicles will be replaced by a new all-electric vehicle by the end of the next year. As part of General Motors’ intentions to only sell electric vehicles by 2035, Chevrolet is anticipated to stop producing the gas-powered Chevy Camaro in the upcoming years.
This implies that the Mustang, which has prevailed in sales over the Camaro and Challenger with the current, sixth-generation vehicle, will be the only choice for gearheads who still want for the roar of a V-8 engine in a fast American coupe.
Since many years ago, fewer Detroit sports and muscle vehicles are being sold. From 2015 to 2019, sales of popular two-door sports coupes like the Ford Mustang, Dodge Challenger, and Chevrolet Camaro dropped 32%. This was the final year of sales before continuous global supply chain issues, such as a lack of semiconductor chips, stalled automakers.
Some of our rivals have mentioned leaving the market for internal combustion engine sports cars, but what makes us so glad to be present today is that we are already growing that family, added Owens.
