No, the $80K Ford Mustang Dark Horse is not a Katy Perry special edition — it’s actually the pony car’s top trim.
Pricing details for the new 2024 Ford Mustang have just been released. With the official configurator now available, you can play around and try building your dream muscle car.
Interestingly, the website lets you build a Mustang costing a pretty steep $79,515 with the Dark Horse trim — the new range-topper replacing the Mach 1. Keep in mind that a base Dark Horse Mustang will already set you back $59,270, more than $20,000 in options alone!
So, what exactly does the twenty grand extra gets you? For starters, you will get the 5.0-liter naturally-aspirated V8 from the Mustang GT, tuned to produce 500 hp and 418 lb-ft, making it the most powerful coyote V8 to date. Moreover, there’s a $1,595 fee for the 10-speed automatic transmission and $4,500 for the Dark Horse Handling Package, including dark wheels, fatter tires, and adjustable strut mounts. And if you are into that, the racing stripes cost an eye-watering $5,495.
Additionally, the $1,650 Recaro sports seats will hug you tighter in hard corners but don’t have heating/cooling or memory function. And the smaller bits, like the $600 indoor vehicle cover, $105 large cargo organizer, $130 cargo area protector, and $200 premium floor liners, are also available.
Worth noting, these add-on features are indeed nice to have, but you don’t actually have to tick every box to have a good time in your new Mustang. In fact, because the Dark Horse is arguably the 2024 Mustang’s top trim, you’re already getting the 3.55 limited-slip rear axle, performance exhaust, Ford’s Co-Pilot 360 driving assist features, and security package as standard.
Not to mention the premium Bang & Olufsen sound system, heated steering wheel, electrically adjustable ventilated/heated front seats with memory function for the non-Recaros, and ambient lighting are also included with this top-of-the-range trim.
So while you can opt for an $80,000 non-Shelby Mustang, remember the Dark Horse is already a well-equipped muscle car, even without the $20,000 worth of options. And let’s not forget that if you’re willing to pay that much for a fully loaded Mustang, you could consider getting your hands on a last-gen Shelby GT500 for a few grand more — and it’s louder, more brutal, and with 760 hp, it’s got a lot more power under the hood.
But that said, keeping the budget in the $60,000 realm, the Mustang Dark Horse offers the latest design and most powerful 5.0-liter V8 engine in the pony car’s 60-year history. And combined with the fact there aren’t many well-equipped V8-powered, manual box, rear-wheel-drive performance cars left to pick from; we’d say the Dark Horse is still worth considering.
What do you think? Cop or drop?
