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2018 Ford Mustang Looks To Square Up Against The Sixth-Generation Chevrolet Camaro

It’s no secret the sixth-generation Chevrolet Camaro has kind of trampled over Ford’s stallion. Comparison after comparison, the Chevrolet Camaro has come out on top, outgunning, outrunning and outperforming the sixth-generation Ford Mustang.

But, Ford wants to put a stop to that, and it thinks it has a remedy in the refreshed 2018 Ford Mustang, which has been revealed following a premature internet leak.

Our fine friends and colleagues over at Ford Authority reported on the refreshed 2018 Mustang this morning, and there’s more than just revised looks. It’s clear the Mustang team dug their hands into the GT350 parts bin.

We say that because the MagneRide dampers will now be optional with the Mustang Performance Pack for the first time ever, and the manual gearbox equipped Mustangs have been reworked to offer “optimal torque.” A new dual-mass flywheel and twin-disc clutch handle the modulation in a more efficient manner.

Handling is sharpened thanks to new shock absorbers, a new cross-axis shock absorber and what Ford calls “innovative” stabilizer bars.

Looks are subjective, but we can’t help but think the outgoing Mustang looks a tad sharper in execution up front. The new fascia portrays a more subdued look. However, the rear looks as precise as ever with new, curved LED taillamps.

As for the power wars, Ford states the 5.0-liter Coyote V8 engine has been tweaked with upgraded dual injection. A higher redline, plus more ponies and torque will be present, but the blue oval did not dish out official ratings for the engine. The current 5.0L V8 has long been down on power compared to the Camaro’s 6.2-liter LT1 V8 engine.

However, the Mustang will no longer do battle in one segment against the Camaro; the 2018 Mustang has dropped the 3.7-liter V6 engine from its lineup in favor of the 2.3-liter Ecoboost four-cylinder only as a base powerplant. Some oneupmanship on Ford’s part, however, is the introduction of a 10-speed automatic gearbox for either the Ecoboost or Coyote V8 standard. The 2017 Camaro ZL1 is currently the only Camaro available with the Ford-GM, co-developed gearbox.

Other small improvement bits include a factory, quad-tipped exhaust with an optional active valve system to control exhaust volume and tone at various engine speeds and an all-digital 12-inch gauge display.

So, will the 2018 Ford Mustang be enough to take on the 2017 Chevrolet Camaro again? Ford hopes so. We smell rematches cooking.

Former GM Authority staff writer.

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Comments

  1. Eh….how much a difference does a refreshed pony car make? I honestly don’t know, maybe someone else does. The car will definitely be improved, but many of these improvements sound pricey. And as we saw with the new Camaro, there definitely is price limit with these cars if you want it to be a volume seller.

    My take is looks is quite important in this segment — more so than basically any other. And the look is basically the same (if not slightly downgraded, as you noted) so I would guess there wouldn’t be a major difference in sales.

    Reply
  2. Its a mild refresh to bring the styling closer to the rest of the Ford line.

    The photos show this clearly. Not much change and if anything it is not as clean as the old model. So far many comments have not been for a positive move. Not bad just not as good as the 2017.

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  3. New world disain.not bad. Pre fl doing first step. Pre fl start new strategy quality, disain, tehnology and how doing global things and and coporate eu ford division. They doing good

    Reply
  4. Good cars not cheap.who wants cheap and only big volume is stuped

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  5. I don’t know if it’ll be enough to beat the Camaro, but it certainly has more than enough of the goods to go toe-to-toe with the pony car performance champ! And as good as the GT350 is, I’m dying to see how Ford’s implementation of those parts will work on the lesser model Mustang. But as usual, keyboard warriors dominating the forums and comment sections of the auto mag sites are always spouting their unfavorable opinions about the changes….But then again, Ford really didn’t need to update the styling, as the current design is already considered the best in class arguably. And why did they drop the N/A 6? ….Either way, Kudos to Ford for keeping the ‘Stang fresh and up to speed!

    Reply
  6. Ewerybody need uptate styling audi, mazda, chevy ,opel……

    Reply
    1. Audi especially. YUCK

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  7. I honestly thought their front design is inspired by the Hyundai Elantra front end

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  8. Seeing as how they are already beating the Camaro I would it a step to move further ahead.

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  9. Gm likes big volume and cheap things. Different strategy but we born gm fans and i hope gm learn and doing better and better

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  10. I did know the Camaro was cheap or any other gm models. You talk about cheap things but the Camaro cost to much. Mustang is beating the Camaro because it’s cheaper ?

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  11. I really think Ford swung and missed here, the front end looks droopy.
    Kind of has a 2012 Dodge Charger front end.

    And like someone said above this segment was suppose to be “affordable” power but now these cars are nearing 50k+ for just the GT, SS models which isn’t going to fly when these cars are most people’s second car.

    I know the v4 models are affordable but who the hell wants a muscle car without a v8. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that this segment is tanking a bit since these pricier models came out

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    1. I agree. These cars are getting too expensive for regular folks to afford.

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    2. No v4 is available. Inline 4.

      Reply
  12. Cheap things low costs and big volume. Plus old times and other staff. All thats not good

    Reply
  13. Ok but why ford news is here or kia .who cares this ….. . we wants good gm news

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  14. Camaro went on a crash diet for the latest generation. Mustang is still much heavier, which means for an equal hp rating it will be slower.

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  15. I would still buy a Challenger. One of the most beautiful cars on the road, in my opinion.

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    1. They look great….but they are HUGE. park one next to the 6th gen Camaro or 6th gen Mustang then the Challenger looks big and goofy.

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      1. 6th gens I would agree, 5th gens not so much. We put a challenger next to a 2013 Camaro, next to a 2014 mustang, All were same length and heights would be equal, but the challenger rolls on taller diameter tires, which lifts it up an inch. The dodge proportions are just larger to the curves which make it look blocky drawing your eyes to the edges of panels which makes the car look more retro and less aero.

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        1. I have a GT350 and I I have a 1LE. The 1LE is hands down the better value, but its not the better overall car. Sorry to tell you.

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    2. Since most of the country buys SUV’s, should be no problem selling a sports car that handles like a SUV.

      Reply
  16. The V8 Performance segment of both the Camaro and mustang are like 5% of total production. Most the production are V8 and now 4 cyl. I think where chevy benefits is they have the Cross-over which is offering the 1LE package on the V6. This increases the performance segment percentage and gives the person wanting economy more sports car muscle performance. I wish the OEM’s would go back to ala-cart orders instead of packages. If you could order a base mustang with the 5.0 flat plane crank, 4.30 gears, and 10 speed auto transmission it would produce some dedicated legendary muscle and collector value would jump.

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  17. This is uglier than sin.

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  18. Ford’s decision to kill off the 3.7L V6 will be a big mistake because the 350 horsepower 2.3L EcoBoost 4-cyl from the Focus RS is a very expensive engine which translates that the base price for the 2018 Ford Mustang might be near $40K as this can’t help sales as buyers will find Chevy’s Camaro with it’s 275 hp LTG 2.0L DOHC-4v 4-cyl turbo with a base price of about $26K more attractive.

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  19. I just think its funny how mustang guys talked so much shit on the new Camaro when it came out but here is ford, scrambling to become competitive performance wise.

    The fanboys couldn’t shut up about how “the new Camaro copied Ford’s design”, “chevys 5th gen couldnt beat the new mustang so they made one of their own! Ha Ha!”, “camaro is just a parts bin bastard of Cadillac and Corvette!” blah blah blah.

    Fast forward to the 2018 model year and Mustangs now have a heated steering wheel, larger digital gauge cluster with a track-styled gague mode, high rise spoiler on non California Specials, MRC on entry level v8 models, dual mode exhaust, a quick shifting automatic transmission with more gears, and a lower hood……hmmmmm, where have we seen these things before? ???????

    But theyre too proud to admit when MUSTANG copies CAMARO. ??? Both Camaro and Mustang look good, but the stang needs to be in darker colors.

    Reply
    1. Clown^ Historically the mustang always gets a refresh mid cycle and in no way is copying your beloved camaro. Should we analyze who’s doing the copying?I do believe the mustang came before the camaro. I also seem to remember the camaro climbing into a grave, only to be reborn years later getting it ass handed to it by the mustang on a regular basis. So chevy had to make changes again to compete with the new mustangs. That cycle is still in place, they’re both great cars. GM has been chasing the mustang from day 1.

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  20. I think the 2018 Mustang refresh looks good.
    I am trying to make out if the hood vents are functional. from the pics I found, it unfortunately looks like they are not.
    The 10 speed auto and the Mag Ride are cool additions.

    The Stang and the Camaro are really moving on from the Dodge Challenger.

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  21. I am shocked that Ford is discontinuing the 3.7L in the 2018 Mustangs. My 2016 V6/auto runs the 1/4 mile in the mid 13s and I don’t trust the ecoboost engines because who know how long the turbo will last before it needs replacement…..expensive repair!!!
    Both the 2.3 ecoboost and 5.0 require expensive 93 octane fuel….another reason to dislike Ford’s decision.
    Sticker price will be insane, I bought my 2016 V6 for $23,500 plus tax.

    Reply
  22. I’d argue the title of this is not accurate, Ford is looking to expand their square to cover the Camaro’s triangle. The mission of these two cars may still overlap however their intended uses have diverged. While it’ll be interesting to see what direction the next generations of each of these cars take, if they stay on course I expect the next generation Camaro to be a replacement for the current generation Corvette and the next generation Corvette to make a leap to a rear -engined exotic. The Mustang I expect Ford has decided for all the hoop-la about performance, style, utility and value are the backbone of Mustang’s success sales and will keep those in mind with the S650. They’ll leave the specialty cars to be the ultimate performance cars, while continuing to throw buyers a bone to start with in the GT.

    Reply

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