Keeping the muscle car tradition alive

WITH the automotive world rapidly hurtling towards electrification and emissions reduction, the muscle car is now officially on the endangered species list.

- JASON WOOSEY

Even more so, the muscle car with a V8 engine.

The Chevy Camaro is dead. The Dodge Challenger’s successor, the Charger, was initially launched as an EV, with six-cylinder petrol versions later joining as a “we changed our minds” afterthought. They could just as well have introduced it with a kale juicer built into the dashboard.

Not that any of this matters to South Africans, as the only muscle car we've been offered in modern history is the Ford Mustang. And it is heartening to know that Ford’s pony car has been renewed for a new generation that follows the same basic recipe as before, just with a few modern twists.

With a normally aspirated 5.0-litre Coyote V8 rumbling beneath the bonnet, and power going to the rear wheels only, it remains a muscle car right down to its last tyre cap.

Just like nature intended.

The seventh-generation Ford Mustang, introduced in late 2024, is what you might call a logical evolution of its predecessor. The larger grille makes a more purposeful statement and the new Tri-Bar LED headlights add a modern touch.

Moving to the back it’s still instantly recognisable as a Mustang, but those vertical Tri-Bar taillights look a little too cartoonish for me, with their new boomerang shape.

The interior is where we see the biggest changes, with the previous Mustang’s more traditional “double brow” dashboard (which harked back to the 1964 original) making way for a large dual-screen cockpit that could just as well have been lifted from the latest Chinese SUV on the market.