Ford Mulls Four-Door Mustang Super Saloon with A V8

Ford CEO Jim Farley revealed that a four-door, V8-powered Mustang is in the marque’s pipeline.

The Ford Mustang is one of the most iconic nameplates in the entire history of automotive, with said model recently celebrating its 60th anniversary. Piggybacking on the recent success of the new Mustang model, it appears that Ford is contemplating to launch a new range of ICE-powered Mustang variants, which may include a four-door model for the first time in its six-decade history.

Ford CEO Jim Farley (left) insisted that the proposed four-door Mustang will retain the same performance and attitude as its two-door sibling (right).

Speaking to Autocar UK, Ford CEO Jim Farley revealed that the world-renowned popularity garnered by the Mustang has prompted the firm to build more variants for its celebrated two-door sportscar. However, the CEO insisted that new derivatives of the Mustang must have the same “performance and attitude” as existing models in order to be accepted by Mustang fans and supporters.

“We will never build a Mustang that isn’t a Mustang,” he insisted.

“For instance, there will never be room for a small, two-row Ford SUV with a Mustang badge stuck on it. But could we do other Mustang body forms—a four-door or whatever? I believe we could, as long as these models have all the performance and attitude of the original,” the CEO told Autocar UK.

The new Mustang lineup will include some 'beginner-friendly' models, as well as some upmarket options with supercar performance level and track-focused add-ons.

In order for this Mustang saloon to succeed, Farley added that Ford must start diverging its Mustang lineup further by adding new models that appeal to both the traditional buyers that expect a relatively-affordable sportscar with decent performance in the Mustang as well as the upmarket ones.

However, the CEO insisted that Ford won’t veer too far off from the true essence of the Mustang in its diversification plan, citing that the automaker might not be ready to make some off-road-inspired Mustangs like what Porsche did with the 911 Dakar and Lamborghini with the Huracan Sterrato. One way to do this, according to Farley, is by keeping the Mustang’s signature V8 powertrain “as long as God and the politicians let us,"  adding to the possibility that this new super saloon might harness this eight-pot mill off the bat.

Besides four-door Mustang saloon, the company is also keen on introducing partially-electrified powertrains to the Mustang lineup.

Besides pure combustion V8, a hybrid-powered Mustang might also be in the firm’s pipeline, where Farley sees semi-electrification could give some added performance to the Mustang while helping to reduce carbon emissions at the same time.

“We’ve been testing, and we really do believe partial electric powertrains work well for performance drivers,” Farley added.

Ford Mustang Mach-E EV Crossover

On the topic of electric, Farley insisted that Ford won’t be making a pure electric Mustang in the near future, with the CEO discounting the Mustang Mach-E, as said EV crossover is “unrelated” to the Mustang despite sharing the same name.

“One thing I can promise, however, is that we will never make an all-electric Mustang. I look at other users of pure-electric power, such as Formula E and even companies like Rimac, and I just don’t think that would be right for Mustang. Great for other Fords—look at the worldwide success of Transit—but not for Mustang,” the CEO insisted.

Source: Autocar UK