I remember perusing a book of classic cars in a book shop one rainy day many years ago and being quite taken with the sheer beauty of the old Ford Mustang – a real muscle car.
Of course the Mustang had the added mystique of not being so readily available in the UK, but now the iconic car with the coolest badge in cardom is going to be part of a larger model line-up to be made available on these shores – in right hand drive.
The 5-litre 420bhp V8 engine, you will be relieved to hear, will be part of the deal; as will the twin turbocharged EcoBoost model to balance the green appeal of a car not particularly associated with being a green automobile.
The all new right-hand drive sixth-generation Mustang is due to arrive in the UK in 2015 – so not too long to wait. Ford is currently in the throes of development tests for the much anticipated arrival.
The fact that testing is currently happening is a good thing, it means that those of you who might be excited by the prospect of such a car being available in the UK, but might be put off by thoughts of all-American Starsky and Hutch-style wishy-washy suspension that stops a full minute after the car itself, can rest easy; this Ford Mustang will have UK-tuned independent rear suspension. Top Gear reviewed the UK spec car and described the handling as “..fabulously neutral..” and “..amazingly well damped.”
It’s not just the UK that will benefit from a right-hand drive Mustang of course – South Africa and Australia are among those also eagerly awaiting 2015. Such is demand for this classic that in 2012 alone over 4000 USA cars were exported across the world, while in May this year over 9000 people registered their interest in the new European model.
The UK Mustang will come with either a 6-speed manual or a 6-speed automatic gear-box with the option of Sport Mode to truly milk the car for all it’s worth.
The interior is a classy but understated brushed aluminium, with leather as an option if you really want to push the boat out. The Mustang is likely to retail at under £35,000 for the V8 equipped version with the 2.3 litre 305bhp (plenty enough there if you can’t stump up that extra few thousand!) EcoBoost coming in at under £30,000.
Expect sales of black polo neck jumpers to rise in 2015 as many a man indulges his Steve McQueen fantasy in a right-hand drive Mustang – at last.
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