2024 Ford Mustang Dark Horse Review
2024 Ford Mustang Darkhorse
Base Price: $58,185
5.0 Liter V8
500 HP / 418 TQ
0-60: 3.7
— Guy who did stuff: Yousef Alvi —
The Ford Mustang has been in constant production since it’s debut back in 1964. That’s 60 years of uninterrupted production! That is 60 years of having a V8 engine and a manual transmission offered every single year! The Mustang has seen geopolitical turmoil, wars, inflation, deflation, crashing economies, pandemics along with sky high oil prices and it has survived it all.
It has survived it all by knowing what makes the Mustang so special, its Americana wrapped in metal. It’s a rolling symbol of a country and you can’t really deviate from that simple formula without throwing away the entire meaning of the car in the first place. Ford knows that and when the tides of EVdom sprung forth a few years back…they stood their ground. Or in other words:
“If GM was running Ford back in 2017, I’m willing to bet, the Mach-E would’ve completely replaced the Mustang”
As we know now, GM reversed their idiotic decision and ‘maybe’ back in the ICE game but who knows…
So around 2017, as every automaker collectively fapped each other at the mere suggestion of ridding themselves of the ICE engine as a whole, Ford did the opposite. They said ‘good for you’ and continued to invest in ICE development. As a further ‘frack you’ Ford spent even more money in developing the latest iteration of the Coyote V8!
The culmination of all their stubborn hardwork is this Dark Horse. The Dark Horse name maybe new but think of it as a 2024 version of the Mach 1, so it’s a trim level that slots right above the GT. So what does the Dark Horse give you?
It gives you the best pieces from the Mach 1, GT500 and GT350 into one model. Let’s break it down:
Mach 1
Steering Knuckles
GT500
Block
Connecting Rods
GT350
Transmission
From there all of those pieces get bolted to a GT in which, every single bit was fiddled, prodded and altered. It’s not done yet, those piece get bolted to a Dark Horse’d body with it’s ‘aero errywhere’ treatments and stunning Blue Ember paint. That aero gets added assistance with a set of massive Pirelli Super Trofeo RS R Compound Tires. All of those details, give you the following:
“Best Handling Mustang Ever Made”
As I said on my first drive of the old GT back in 2018, the Mustang can no longer be called a Pony Car/Muscle Car…it’s legitimately dropped kicked itself into the Sports Car realm. Every iteration from there was just another notch in its performance pedigree belt. This Dark Horse is just another notch toward perfection.
Just like the old Mach 1’s turn in ability was instant, the Dark Horse builds upon that and delivers rapid turn-in ability in a moment’s notice, completely shrugging off it’s girth in rapid and immediate fashion. That girth, by the way, is a massive 107” wheelbase and almost 4000 lbs curb weight.
It doesn’t matter though, the Dark Horse laughs at the face of physics. If anything, this beast feels agile and lithe in the corners. The adaptive suspension tuning, revised rolls bars and those massive Pirelli tires deliver so much grip, that coming close to it’s limit on the streets will not just get you arrested but land you in solitary confinement.
Since it’s a track ready Mustang, you would assume the on-road demeanor is like hugging Jack the Ripper but you would be wrong. It’s excellent to the point that it’s damn near civilized. Dial the suspension and steering to Comfort and enjoy settled highway ride. Even with the massive R compounds, the ride is never jarring nor is the road noise all enveloping.
Let’s go ahead and break it down:
The Great
Handling: Laugh in the face of 911 and M3 owners as you bellow past them with your Track exhaust opened. This is the best handling Mustang ever made.
Ride: Civil, relatively quiet and strangely composed. The only thing letting it down are the seats which lack any sort of lumbar support.
Soundtrack: Can’t be a naturally aspirated V8
The Good
Looks: Look at it! This Dark Horse’d Mustang is the best looking Mustang ever made. It’s modern, vicious, aggressive and bit the back of your hands beautiful.
Interior: A larger greenhouse with a revised interior lends to a comfortable and airy cabin. Sure it’s still plasticy but the Lego-y bits are a step up from the previous generation.
The Price: $20,000 cheaper than the equivalent M3/4. Is the M3/4 $20,000 better?
No
The Bad
Front Lip: It will rub and scrub over anything and everything.
Torque: Okay, yes i’m spoiled by turbos and turbo V8s, but the Dark Horse could do with a bit more torque down low. The 418 ft/lbs arrives at a rather lofty 4900 RPM and the Dark Horse, while feeling very quick, is never the visceral ‘holy fecal matter’ feeling one would expect.
The Overall
The 2024 Ford Mustang Dark Horse is a statement, that in the world of EVdom…Ford will be the ‘keeper of the flame’ of the V8 powered sportscar.
