If you were on the internet yesterday, you’ve probably already seen the Mustang Dark Horse SC. Despite Ford scheduling the car’s release for this morning, its motorsport partner, Red Bull, released a video showing four-time F1 champion Max Verstappen driving the car, totally undisguised, on a race track.
Red Bull didn’t spill the beans on any specs, though. It was easy enough to surmise that “SC,” in this case, represented Super Charger, going by the engine’s whine in the video. And because the car was undisguised, spotting the changes to the design was simple. But as far as mechanical details, Ford fans were still in the dark.
Now there’s a bit more info. Ford has finally made the Dark Horse SC for-real official, spilling the deets on the powertrain and all of the changes made beneath the skin. But there are still a few key figures missing.
New Looks, Plus More Changes Underneath
Black accents remain a strong part of the Dark Horse SC, with the grille hosting even more blacked-out portions than the standard model. Ford says the updated fascia has revised brake cooling ducts. The new hood, now bulged to accommodate the supercharger, is made from aluminum and comes with hood pins as standard.
The body changes don’t stop there. Underneath the nose, you’ll find a belly pan that stretches from the splitter to behind the front wheels. In the back, there’s a new diffuser to improve cooling around the rear axle area, and Brembo brakes all around. On the software side, the SC gets Ford’s Variable Traction Control system, originally developed for the GTD, which adds five levels of traction assistance, adjustable by the driver. There’s also a swath of upgrades to the suspension and chassis. From Ford:
Every Mustang Dark Horse SC comes with next-generation MagneRide dampers featuring upgraded hardware and software, as well as revised springs with firmer rates, new stabilizer bars, updated front and rear knuckles, and modified front control arms. Along with improvements in tire technology, Mustang Dark Horse SC elevates handling capability beyond the Mustang Dark Horse Handling Pack.
A lightweight magnesium strut tower brace is standard, while forged suspension links replace steel components to further reduce weight and improve steering feel. And Ford Racing engineers used learnings from both competition and Mustang GTD development to produce a flatter, more responsive handling character than the 5.0-liter Mustang Dark Horse by adjusting the rear suspension geometry and updating the steering rack, tie rods, and power-steering gear.
If you watched Red Bull’s video yesterday, you very likely spotted the new ducktail-style rear decklid. That upgrade comes as part of an optional track package, which also adds the carbon-fiber wing on top. Those elements can produce up to 620 pounds of downforce at 180 mph, according to Ford. The Track Pack additionally comes with some Recaro seats and some serious chassis upgrades, like carbon-fiber wheels, carbon-ceramic brakes, and Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 R tires. Ford claims the package saves 150 pounds, though I bet most of that savings comes from the wheels alone.
A Bigger, Boosted Engine And Only One Gearbox
Instead of supercharging the standard Dark Horse’s 5.0-liter Coyote V8 and calling it a day, Ford went in a different direction, bumping displacement to 5.2 liters. The company is remaining mum on the details of this engine—it’s unclear if this is the same powerplant from the most recent Shelby GT500, which carries the same displacement, or something totally different. Either way, a supercharged V8 is cool, so I’m not terribly worried about its origins.
The normal Dark Horse can be optioned with either a six-speed manual transmission or a 10-speed automatic. In the SC, though, neither of those gearboxes is an option. The only transmission choice is a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic. Though Ford hasn’t said where this gearbox comes from, it’s very likely the same (or a very similar) unit as the one in the GT500.
With the same basic drivetrain layout, the Dark Horse SC is shaping up to be a very suitable Shelby GT500 replacement. But there are still a couple of question marks before I can make that determination for sure.
Two Important Numbers Are Still Missing
Ford isn’t just vague when it comes to the engine’s sourcing—it has yet to reveal any power or torque specs. The closest the press release comes to mentioning horsepower is when it describes the SC as “a significant step up over the standard Mustang Dark Horse in terms of horsepower, torque, and cutting-edge performance equipment.” Beyond that, there are no official numbers.
This can’t stop me from making some educated guesses, of course. In the Shelby GT500, Ford’s 5.2-liter supercharged V8 made 760 horsepower and 625 pound-feet of torque. In its most recent application, the Ford F-150 Raptor R, it makes 720 horsepower and 640 pound-feet of torque. While Ford hasn’t said this engine, nicknamed “Predator,” is the one used in the SC, it makes sense that power output might be somewhere in this range.
The other number missing is the price. The standard Mustang Dark Horse starts at $66,075, including destination, but Ford has yet to reveal pricing for the SC. To generate an estimate, I decided to look at pricing for Mustangs in the past. In 2020—the last year both cars were on sale—the difference in price between the GT500 and its cheaper, naturally aspirated sibling, the GT350, was $12,460, or about 20%. Apply that same 20% increase to the Dark Horse’s price, and you get a price tag just short of $80,000.
For a bit more context, the Shelby GT500 was priced from $80,795 when it left production in 2022. Factoring in how pricing for sports cars has evolved these past few years, I suspect the SC will come in somewhere around the mid-$80,000 range, based on these calculations. This is just a guess, of course, so don’t take the numbers too seriously.
Prospective buyers won’t have to wait long to find out. Ford says it’ll share more details “in the future,” with order books opening in spring ahead of summer deliveries. Whether it’ll be more powerful than the GT500 is irrelevant to me. I’m just happy Ford is selling a supercharged Mustang again.
Top graphic image: Ford
Scott Calvin
I was all set to get one, but then I realized it would be too hard to get a rear facing child seat in there. Too bad. 😉
I’m assuming this is tongue in cheek, but they have these infant seats now that swivel, so you can turn it to make it parallel to the rear backrest and then lock it in rear facing without taking it out. Supposedly great for coupes. I just bought on but it’s not here yet. I hope they’re as good as they say they are because getting the baby in and out of the seat now is breaking my back.
Definitely tongue in cheek. I never had kids, but if I did, they’d be out of college by now. That sounds like quite the improvement. Years ago, I was amazed that you could get one seat and have multiple bases to make it easy to move between cars.
Wait, it doesn’t come standard with the Recaro’s?
Cool car, but way too expensive for what it is
This is a cool car. It’s got CF wheels, a dope spoiler, tons of power, a DCT, neat aero. It’s got factory hood pins! All the good stuff. Yet, somehow, I have trouble getting excited over any Mustang. They just do absolutely nothing for me.
There was that one leak of a “Legend” engine, but I think this is the GT500 powertrain with updates.
I do like that you can apparently get the SC with the front fascia in body color instead of being blacked out.
I really like that choice as well. The S650 has too much black around the grille in most trims. I really hate how it makes the car look. If they’re going to charge this much for a car, paint the damn body panels.
Feels like this car should be a Cobra – it’s got a big enough hood.
That Predator V8 sounds so good at full tilt. A guy in the neighborhood across from mine has one and rips it down the 2-lane highway between our neighborhoods regularly.