DETROIT — Even as Ford Motor Co. expands the Mustang brand with an electric crossover, it’s doubling down on its gas-powered heritage by resurrecting one of the most popular badges from the golden era of pony cars.
The 2021 Mustang Mach 1, slated to go on sale next spring in a limited-edition run, is meant to juice sales in the sports car market by appealing to enthusiasts with V-8 power.
The car will come in eight colors, including an exclusive Fighter Jet Gray, and will feature design cues from the original Mach 1, which debuted in 1969 as a replacement to the Mustang GT.
The latest iteration, back in Ford’s lineup for the first time since the 2004 model year, will be outfitted with pieces from the performance pony car’s stablemates. They include the 5.0-liter V-8 engine found in the Mustang Bullitt, the six-speed manual transmission from the Mustang Shelby GT350 and the rear-axle cooling system from the GT500, among other parts.
“We’re going to the best parts of our lineup and are combining them to make just a fantastic car,” Nick Terzes, Mustang vehicle integration supervisor, said in an interview. “We had to deliver on the name, we had to deliver on the performance and we had to deliver it in a balanced manner. Every functional area, every attribute, was enhanced or touched.”
The engine has been specially calibrated to produce 480 horsepower and 420 pound-feet of torque. The six-speed manual transmission comes standard, although Ford will offer an optional 10-speed automatic.
