The long-awaited 2015 Ford Mustang is now getting ready for its release, with production of the car having started at Ford's Flat Rock plant in Michigan.
The 2015 version of the car will be the company's 50th year making Mustangs, and in celebration the badge on the front of the car will not only include the classic galloping horse, but also the words "Mustang - Since 1964."
The 2015 Ford Mustang is a new vehicle, with a different design as well as dramatically different parts under the hood.
The engine of the car will be a powerful 2.3-liter EcoBoost 4-cylinder engine, as there will be versions with an updated 3.5-liter V6 engine or an updated 5.0-liter V8 engine.
The updated design and mechanics are not the only cause for celebration with the new Mustang. For the first time ever, Ford will be building Mustangs in right-hand-drive versions to cater for markets outside of the U.S. including the U.K., Australia, South Africa and so on.
"It's been designed to be accepted globally," said Michael Robinet, an analyst at HS Automotive. "But there's still a lot of traditional American design in that vehicle. That's the allure of it."
Ford is aiming to broaden the appeal of the Mustang as the best muscle car on the market. The Mustang has been outsold by the Chevrolet Camaro for the past four years. The car aims to meet safety standards, while keeping classic design cues such as the long hood. It comes in three engine configurations -- the base 300-horsepower V-6, a 310-horsepower turbocharged four-cylinder and a 435-horsepower V-8, Ford said.
The Mustang is being built at a plant south of Detroit. This plant also makes the company's Fusion sedan, and while the cars do have similar grilles, they do not share many parts. According to Robinet, if sales of either car takes off, Ford will be able to add a third crew of workers at the Flat Rock plant, increasing annual production from 220,000 to 300,000. At its peak in the '60s, Ford made 600,000 Mustangs in a year.
"Ford now has the flexibility to turn the volume knob up or down at Flat Rock," Robinet said. "They have the ability to allow the Mustang to stretch its legs from an export perspective."
Mustang sales have been increasing over the past six months, rising 3.9 percent to 50,795, following a 7 percent decrease. In total, 77,186 were sold last year. Camaro sales, on the other hand, increased 13 percent over the past six months, with a total of 56,633 being sold in the first half of 2014. Camaro sales overtook Mustang sales in 2009.
The new Ford Mustang will go on sale in the fall and will start at $24,425, which is slightly more than the 2014 version.
