Ford sees opportunity for Mustang as competitors abandon V8 engines

DETROIT
—


Ford
Motor
sees
opportunity
to
grow
Mustang
sales
as
it
becomes
the
last
American
muscle
car
with
a
traditional
V8
engine,
playing
to
generations
of
gearheads
who’ve
been
drawn
to
the
performance
vehicles.

The
optimism
comes
after
Mustang’s
closest
American
competitors
ended
production
of
their
muscle
cars
in
December.


General
Motors
stopped
producing
the
Chevrolet
Camaro,
and


Stellantis
ended
production
of
its
Dodge
Challenger
V8
ahead
of
a
new

all-electric
muscle
car
later
this
year,
followed
by
gas-powered
models
with
twin-turbo,
inline-six
engines
that
are
expected
in
2025.

Their
exodus
(and
that
of
others
in
the
muscle
car
market)
is
the
result
of
changing
consumer
demand
away
from
two-door
cars,
as
well
as

tightening
fuel
economy
standards
and
the
emergence
of
all-electric
vehicles
capable
of
unrivaled
acceleration.

Jeff
Marentic,
general
manager
of
Ford
Blue
products,
which
includes
the
Mustang,
said
the
pony
car
remains
good
business
for
the
automaker
both
domestically
and
internationally.
Mustang
marks
its
60th
anniversary
on
April
17.

“We’re
excited
to
continue
to
offer
Mustang.
It’s
sad
to
see
competition
leaving
but
that’s
beneficial
to
us,”
Marentic
told
CNBC. “For
people
who
are
looking
for
a
true
American
sports
car,
it’s
available
to
them.
…
We’re
looking
and
talking
about
the
future
of
Mustang,
and
how
far
we
can
grow
it.”

Marentic
declined
to
discuss
specific
sales
expectations
for
the
vehicle
but
noted
the
company
has
added
a
new
V8
model
for
the
seventh-generation
vehicle

called
the
Dark
Horse
—
a
not
so
subtle
reference
to
Ford’s
ambitions
for
the
V8-powered
car.

Both
the
2024
Dark
Horse
and
Mustang
GT
are
powered
by
a
5.0-liter
V8
engine,
with
the
new
model
generating
up
to
500
horsepower
and
418
foot-pounds
of
torque.
Ford
also
has
announced
a
2025
Mustang
GTD
with
a
supercharged
5.2-liter
V8
engine
that’s
expected
to
arrive
as
early
as
later
this
year
with
more
than
800
horsepower.

Ford
has
been
able
to
continue
to
sell
Mustang
V8
models
in
part
because
it
has
invested
in
making
the
vehicles
more
efficient
and
it
was
early
to
adopt
smaller,
turbocharged
four-cylinder
engines
that
now
make
up
about
48%
of
Mustang
sales
in
the
U.S.

Ford
also
offers
an

all-electric
Mustang
Mach-E
crossover
that
features
similar
design
cues
and
badging
to
the
two-door
coupe,
but
it
shares
little
to
no
other
characteristics
other
than
the
name.

“I
can
understand
the
green
movement,
but
we’re
so
proud
of
our
V8s,”
Marentic
said,
adding
the
model
accounts
for
a
majority
of
Mustang
sales
in
Europe. “It
helps
define
who
Ford
is
outside
of
the
United
States.”

The
seventh-generation
Mustang,
which
Ford

revealed
in
September,
recently
started
shipping
outside
of
North
America.
It
will
eventually
be
sold
in
85
markets
on
every
continent
aside
from
Antarctica,
according
to
Ford.

Non-U.S.
sales
have
assisted
in
keeping
the
Mustang,
which
is
exclusively
produced
at
a
plant
in
metropolitan
Detroit,
in
production
amid
declining
domestic
demand
for
two-door
sports
cars.

U.S.
sales
of
the
Mustang
have
declined
from
a
recent
peak
of
more
than
122,000
units
in
2015
to
fewer
than
49,000
last
year.

Internationally,
Ford
reports
there
have
been
more
than
235,000
Mustangs
registered
since
2015.
That’s
when
the
automaker
began
producing
right-hand
drive
models
for
countries
such
as
the
United
Kingdom,
Australia
and
Japan.

The
top
markets
for
Mustang
outside
of
the
U.S.
are
Canada,
Australia
and
Europe,
according
to
Ford.

“People
relate
extremely
strongly
to
Mustang,”
Marentic
said. “The
pull
is
amazing.”

Marentic
declined
to
discuss
future
product
plans
for
the
Ford
Mustang,
including
a
hybrid
that
was

reportedly
canceled
for
the
seventh-generation
car
or
the
potential
for
an
all-electric
version
of
the
two-door
vehicle.