‘Like the F-150 is to Ford trucks, Mustang is the soul of Ford cars. A pure performer, it’s the most affordable 300-horsepower car made and the best rear-drive performance car under $20,000.’

Since its dramatic 1964 introduction, Ford Mustang has been the icon of American performance and style, capturing hearts worldwide. For 2005, Mustang combines an all-new, fully modern architecture with all the soul that makes a Mustang a Mustang – bold style, a brawny engine and rear-wheel-drive excitement.

The Mustang takes its design language from the concept car that stole hearts along the auto show circuit and signaled that Americas only remaining muscle car would be introduced for 2005 with even more attitude.

The cabin – a beneficiary of Ford’s tripled investment in interiors – is every bit as breathtaking and genuine as the exterior. Three distinct design themes celebrate Mustang history with modern materials and features, including an available industry-first, color-configurable instrument panel for almost unlimited personalization.

V8 Power

Muscular new engines infuse Mustang with its legendary tire-smoking performance. The 4.6-liter all-aluminum V-8 has three-valve heads and cranks out 300 horsepower. The 2005 Mustang GT is the first mainstream production Mustang to break into the 300-horsepower arena, a place formerly occupied only by legendary Cobra and Boss models.

Because of its all-aluminum construction, Mustang’s MOD V-8 – a member of Ford’s modular engine family – weighs 75 pounds less than a comparable cast-iron design and stokes up 40 more horsepower. Electronic throttle control, faster engine management controls and the new three-valve cylinder heads with variable camshaft timing all contribute to this impressive output.

The three-valve heads with VCT allowed engine designers to use a higher compression ratio with regular 87-octane gasoline to maximize the energy used by every drop of fuel. Intake runners with active charge motion control valves also shape each combustion event for strong, low-end torque and maximum high-rpm power.

Chassis

The MacPherson-strut front suspensions reverse L lower control arms are the product of a groundbreaking manufacturing technology used to produce steel control arms that actually weigh less than some comparable cast-aluminum designs. MacPherson struts – originally developed in the 1940s by Earl S. MacPherson, a Ford engineer – are widely renowned for their ability to deliver both comfort and control with reduced weight.

For 2005, Mustang’s rear suspension has a new three-link, solid axle architecture with a Panhard rod that provides precise control of the rear axle. A central torque control arm is fastened to the upper front end of the differential, while trailing arms are located near each end of the axle.

The standard four-wheel disc brakes have the biggest rotors and stiffest calipers ever fitted to a mainstream Mustang. Twin-piston aluminum calipers clamp down on 12.4-inch ventilated front brake discs on GT models – an increase of more than 15 percent in rotor size.

Story by Ford Motor Co, edited by Supercars.net