New Ford Mustang Dark Horse on sale from £65k
Ford squeezes its track-focused Pony car through noise and emission test - but at a cost
Somehow, in this world of ultra-stringent emission laws and killjoy noise restrictions, Ford has managed to sneak its new V8 Mustang into the UK, past the same legislation that ultimately scotched the Suzuki Jimmy and, in the not too distant future, the Toyota GR86. And it’s not just the regular V8 GT we’re getting, either, as the full-fat Dark Horse will be coming our way, too. Today, Ford has announced that both models are available to order, and confirmed how much pocket money you’ll need to set aside.
First up, the Dark Horse. The most potent Mustang we’ve ever had in the UK (save for the special order Super Snake that’s for sale on PH right now) starts from £65,585. That’s for the six-speed manual, while the ten-speed automatic at £67,585. For reference, that’s about the same price as a new M2, only BMW has it so the manual is more expensive than the auto. It’s also around £10,000 more expensive than the old Mach 1, although the Dark Horse promises to be a decent step on from its spiritual predecessor - at least in the chassis department.
What that looks like for us UK buyers is 453hp and 398lb ft of torque from an updated 5.0-litre Coyote V8, which is nearly 50hp down on the US-spec car thanks to those pesky emission restrictions. Thankfully, there’s a lot more to the Dark Horse than a power hike. The track-focused Pony car benefits from a Torsen limited-slip differential, uprated brakes, active dampers and beefier anti-roll bars. American buyers can spec a Handling Package with stickier Pirelli P-Zero Trofeo RS tyres and more aggressive geometry, but we won’t be offered that here because, again, legislation won’t allow it.
Moving on to the regular Mustang, it starts at £55,585 for the manual GT and £57,585 for the ten-speed auto. There’s a greater difference between the GT and Dark Horse in the US, but because the latter isn’t quite as venomous over here it brings the former closer in play. The GT packs 446hp and an identical torque figure to the UK-spec Dark Horse, resulting in a 0-62mph time that’s just 0.1 seconds slower than the range topper - 5.3 seconds for the GT, 5.2 seconds for the Dark Horse.
All cars come with Ford’s Performance Package as standard, which bundles Brembo brakes and limited-slip diff with 19-inch alloys. Active MagneRide dampers are an optional extra, which scans the road for bumps 1,000 times per second and adjusts the suspension settings accordingly. From the cockpit, you can select between five driver modes - Normal, Sport, Slippery, Drag and Track - alongside your own custom setting which allows you to cherry pick bits you want to leave on or off (that’s everything in Sport bar the dampers, then).
Jon Williams, Ford Blue’s European chief, said: “New Mustang is everything that our customers expect from an undisputed automotive icon – and then some. Surprising, connected technology really complements and elevates performance enhancements that will win the hearts of a whole new generation of drivers.” You won’t have long to wait to ‘win a new generation over’ with your Mustang, either. Orders are open now, with deliveries expected in the coming months. If this truly is to be the last V8 Pony car, it’s got to be worth getting your name down for one, surely?
The old US emission engines from the early 80s were huge but breathless and more recent detuned versions of engines tend to lose all interest at the top end. My EA888 is rated at 190 PS and is pretty much flatlining at 4000 rpm, where the 300 PS variants would undoubtedly be surging towards the horizon.
Would this (and other similar engines) feel like they're being artificially held back or is the tune a little more sympathetic than that?
Do people in pubs actually care how fast your car goes by the way? Maybe it says something about the pubs I go to, but no-one's ever really asked me!
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff