The automaker hopes to keep longtime Mustang enthusiasts happy while broadening the car’s appeal to younger, tech-focused buyers.
The exterior features a more aggressive front end and a chiseled, angled rear, which Mustang brand manager Jim Owens described as an “edgy, sexy, disruptive design.”
In a departure from the current model, Ford is offering different front end designs for each of the two engine options. The 5.0-liter GT has a larger grille, new hood vents and a redesigned front splitter to distinguish it from the EcoBoost variant.
Each engine comes with an optional performance pack that includes wider rear tires and MagnaRide active suspension.
Ford says the carryover engines have been updated and likely will have better performance specs than the current model, although it declined to provide specifics.
Ford is offering a “remote rev” feature that lets drivers rev the engine with a button on the key fob. An electronic drift brake comes with the optional performance pack.
The redesigned Mustang will feature over-the-air software update compatibility and a host of driver-assist features, though the automaker’s BlueCruise hands-free technology is not among them.
Mustang sales in the U.S. are down 14 percent this year through August, to 33,144.
The car will continue to be built at the Flat Rock Assembly Plant in Michigan. Ford this year touted a $3.7 billion investment in three Midwest states, which includes money for Flat Rock to build the next-gen Mustang.
