The Ford Mustang Is Not A Muscle Car.
Let’s clear this up once and for all. The Ford Mustang is not a muscle car and it’s about time people stopped referring to it as such.
It was a pony car. It was indeed… the original pony car. If you don’t already know this, the first hit on a Google search will tell you:
Let’s clear this up once and for all. The Ford Mustang is not a muscle car and it’s about time people stopped referring to it as such.
It was a pony car. It was indeed… the original pony car. If you don’t already know this, the first hit on a Google search will tell you:
Pony car is an American class of automobile launched and inspired by the Ford Mustang in 1964. The term describes an affordable, compact, highly styled car with a sporty or performance-oriented image.
It wasn’t a muscle car.
The muscle car was uncompromisingly designed for power and straight line speed.
It did not have a sophisticated chassis or clever engineering in anything but the engine - let alone have the sleek styling of European performance cars.
The muscle car was the blue collar car guys car. Inexpensive. Any cost or money spent went to straight line power. It was a light-to-light racer. It could also be a cruiser, a road tripper eating up the miles… or a frantic cross country racer chased by the cops driven by the lone driver, the last American hero, the electric centaur, the demi-god, the super driver of the golden west!
Over the years, you could get away with calling the Mustang a muscle car as the lines blurred out of the seventies and into the eighties and nineties. Then even when it was remodelled and brought back to life most recently though, it still had a live rear axle which made the handling suck.
If it made the handling suck, “Why would they keep it?” I hear you ask.
Well, firstly crap rear suspension helps the Mustang lose control and fly into crowds of onlookers if you believe the memes… but most importantly it’s cheaper - which fits with the pony or muscle car ethos.
However in 2015 Ford switched the Mustang over to independent rear suspension.
“What’s a live rear axle?” “What’s independent suspension mean?” I hear some of you ask?
Well, let’s allow Jason from Engineering Explained tell you because he is better at it and I can’t be bothered to type an explanation…
So, where were we?
Right.
Ford switched to independent rear suspension. Awesome. Welcome to the 21st century and going round corners and stuff!
To the point it’s as much fun to drive a canyon as it is to nail it in a straight line.
Yes. The new Mustang is a full bloodied sports car - and a very good one. I had the pleasure of driving one up and down a long canyon road for a day and it was great. Fast, sure footed… fun. I’m originally from Europe and if you had de-badged it completely and sat me inside having not been in one before; I would have sworn it was a European sports car.
It cares as much now about it’s handling as it does it’s power.
The Ford Mustang is not a muscle car. It never really was, and from 2015 onwards it certainly isn’t.
Oh, and neither is the new Camaro.
The only genuine muscle car in production right now is arguably the Dodge Challenger.
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Comments
I beg to differ.
The real question is: Who cares?
No. No. NO. NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Unlike pretty much everyone here, I actually agree with you. If someone were to look at it they would say it’s a sports car. I can’t help but look at the new on and see a American version of the Audi A5 coupe.
Great read!
Honestly.. I don’t get the live axle hate.. Ford sierra had a live axle, and it handles superbly! I think that the problem is the skill less owners…
Referring to the part about straight speed, have you ever tried to corner in a mustang? 😂😂
It’s fun.. and before the “drifting” sport of the JDM crowd, live axle RWD american teenagers and young adults were whipping the rear end around on corners decades prior.. We just called it “cornering”
Not only do i agree with this.. But i will go as far as a saying that the Camry is more of a muscle car than anything else american made currently is..
Technically the Ford Falcoln which the Mustang was based would be a mustang Muscle car..
Why? Well The Falcoln was mostly sold as a I6 with 93Hp.. but they did make a 429CJ version.. which would make that a Muscle car.. the mustang has never been a muscle car, because they didn’t make the mustang as a family car, and just on a whim stuff a big motor into the engine bay..
To me the last of the actual American Muscle cars were the RWD Impala SS which was a souped up caprice.. and the Mercury Marauder Which was a 32V Cobra Motor stuffed into a Grand Marquis.
I don’t get the point of this article. Its like saying the Supra isn’t JDM anymore lol
Ian Wrong.
Thank you to whomever wrote this - we have entire too many confused people running loose.
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