Overview: 2015 Ford Mustang

 

 

With five decades of heritage and over 9 million examples sold, the Mustang has become an American institution. It’s long been known that Ford was planning something big for 2015, the Mustang’s 50th anniversary. In recent months, rumors and speculation about the new car hit a fever pitch, but aside from the occasional spy shot of test mule cars clad in extensive camouflage, details about the new pony car have been achingly scarce. That ends today.

 

 

Clearly, Ford is well aware of how much is riding on the success of the new Mustang. What you see here is the culmination of years of research and development based on a symphony of factors affecting the new car. Perhaps the most pivotal of these factors is Ford’s plan to take the new Mustang into global markets. That plan touches nearly every aspect of the new pony car, from the exterior styling and interior refinement to the powertrain and suspension. While the merits of the aesthetic changes are open for debate, there’s no argument that nearly every alteration made to the mechanicals of the new car stand to make this a significantly more engaging vehicle to drive than its predecessor.

 

Outside, the new Mustang has clearly been developed to fall closer in line with the rest of its Ford brethren while still retaining the "vibe" that makes a Mustang a Mustang. Whether or not Ford has accomplished that is a largely subjective exercise. You either love the new look or you don’t, and while it’s no surprise that some people are slow to adapt to change, the initial reaction to the redesign may have been a little more divisive than what Ford’s designers had hoped for.

 

However, in terms of proportions, the new car features a wider rear track that has been stretched from 62.1 to 64.9 inches and an overall height which has been reduced by 1.4 inches while still maintaining the 107.1 inch wheelbase of the outgoing car. This, combined with the new styling elements, results in a Mustang which looks noticeably more capable and athletic than the 2014 model.

 

 

While Ford had hinted in the past that retro-inspired design found in the outgoing model would be largely absent this time around, the designers also made sure to retain elements of its heritage as well. From the traditional triple taillight configuration and the LED headlight "gills" that echo the slats found adjacent the headlights on the original Mustang, to the new fastback roofline, there’s certainly still some legacy to be found in the new car.

 

Get inside the new Mustang and you’re treated to an interior which has been given an extensive overhaul as well. Ford says that aircraft design played a large role in the inspiration for the new cockpit, and it certainly shows. With a more purposeful layout, modernized look and a big step forward in terms of material quality, the new Mustang looks like it may set a new standard for interior refinement in this segment. 

 

 

But the improvements aren’t just skin deep. While Ford has yet to release performance numbers for the V6 and V8 motors, both bring with them notable improvements over the versions found in the current car, so it’s safe to expect a modest bump in output for both motors. Perhaps the biggest news on the powertrain front is the addition of a third engine option – a biturbo, 2.3 liter EcoBoost four cylinder mill, expected to generate about 305 horsepower and 300 pound-feet of torque. Much like the F150, this new EcoBoost trim level will be slotted above the base model. All three motors will be mated to either the Getrag six-speed manual gearbox carried over from the current car or a six-speed automatic transmission, which now also sports paddle shifters.

 

 

In terms of suspension, the solid rear axle of the outgoing model – loved by drag racers and largely detested by almost everyone else – has finally been put out to pasture. In its place is now a fully independent setup, and its addition necessitated a major revision of the front suspension as well, which now utilizes a double-ball-joint independent setup with MacPherson struts. Ford says it expects the new Performance Pack equipped GT to outperform the current Boss 302 model on the track.

 

 

Stopping power will see a serious upgrade as well. GT models equipped with the Performance Pack will now be fitted with 15-inch rotors mated to six-piston Brembo calipers up front and 14-inch rotors with single-piston calipers in the rear. All other models in the Mustang range will also see significant braking upgrades over the systems found in their outgoing counterparts as well.

 

While the breadth of information we currently have is fairly extensive, there’s a handful of key figures we’re still waiting on. Weight (which is rumored to have dropped by as much as 200 pounds), official performance numbers, fuel economy and pricing are all blanks we’re waiting for Ford to fill. However, with the car not expected to find its way into showrooms until late 2014, it may be some time before all those details come to light.

 

Make sure to check out our footage from today’s reveal, as well as Ford’s introduction video and press release, below.

    

 

 

 

 

 

The pony car wars show no signs of letting up any time soon. While the new Dodge Challenger, and particularly the 707hp Hellcat variant, have been stealing the limelight as of late, Ford has just announced the official specifications and output figures for its all-new Mustang, which is set to hit showrooms later this year.

 

As the Mustang moves up the ladder in terms of refinement, both through more standard content and its long-awaited move to a fully independent rear suspension from the solid-axle design that’s been a staple of Mustangs since the car debuted in 1964, many have worried that the car would gain quite a bit of weight for the 2015 model year.

 

It’s true that the Mustang has packed on a few pounds, but thankfully the numbers revealed are small enough to be largely negligible. The base Mustang, equipped with the V6 – which now outputs 300 horsepower, strangely down 5hp from last year’s model – with the automatic transmission weighs just 12 pounds more than the outgoing model at 3530 pounds, while the biggest weight gains are seen in the GT model, up 87 pounds to 3705 when equipped with the manual transmission, or 3729 with the automatic gearbox, there a gain of 54 pounds.

 

 

While weight gain in performance vehicles is rarely a welcome sign, Ford points out that the power-to-weight ratios actually improve for 2015, albeit by a rather small amount. The 5.0-liter V8 in the Mustang GT is now officially rated at 435 horsepower and 400lb-ft of torque, up 15 ponies and 10 pound-feet from the 2014 model, and should make the Mustang’s minimal weight gain largely unnoticeable. The 2.3-liter turbocharged EcoBoost four cylinder engine, a new offering for 2015 and the first time a turbo has been installed by the factory in a Mustang since 1986, officially outputs 310 horsepower and 320lb-ft of torque, slotting it in between the base V6 model and the GT in the Mustang portfolio.

 

Pricing is now also out in the wild, with the base V6 model priced at $24,425, the EcoBoost coming in at $25,995 and the GT starting at $32,925, all of which include the $825 destination charge.

 

Check out the press release below for more details on the new Mustang, and keep an eye on the 2015 Ford Mustang overview page for updates as we have them.