2024 Ford Mustang Dark Horse Review: Pieces of the Past, Tech of the Future

Ford could have picked from a dozen past names for its latest, high-performance special edition Mustang. It could have gone with Bullitt or Mach-1, Shelby, California Special or Boss, but instead it wanted something new. Ford aimed to tell customers, not just through the name, but also through the new look, new technology and new features, that this wasn't a Mustang for Boomers.

The 2024 Ford Mustang Dark Horse will be the pinnacle of ponycar performance, for now, and is the first to wear a horse logo that's facing forward instead of in profile. It's the most powerful 5.0-liter V8 Ford has introduced, and the optional Handling Package makes the vehicle the most track-capable, 5.0-liter street-legal Mustang ever too.

"In the seventh generation we launched the Dark Horse. The definition of dark horse is one we didn't see coming, the horse from behind in the race that comes to the front to win. And we thought with the advent of seventh generation Mustang that it was appropriate to bring out this nameplate called Dark Horse," Jim Owens, head of Mustang marketing told Newsweek.

"It's fitting that in this fourth-gen Coyote engine making 500 horsepower (hp), it has these dual throttle bodies underneath, sifting through the air pulled from those nostrils."

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Those new, horse-like air intakes in front are flanked by new darkened LED headlamps, along with a gloss black grille and a Dark Horse-unique lower front bumper. It has lower side skirts, a fixed rear wing, a new race-inspired diffuser and darkened quad exhaust tips.

The new badges, designed for this performance version of Mustang to visually separate it from other models, appear on the fenders, trunk and door sills, while a dark, anodized version is placed in front. The 2024 Dark Horse also comes in a new color called Blue Ember metallic paint, a cool, dark shade that emits a warm, pinkish-brown glow when it catches the light. The optional Appearance Package adds an accent blue to the Brembo brake calipers.

Inside, in addition to more Dark Horse badges, buyers get a new anodized blue shift knob for the Tremec six-speed manual transmission, ten-speed automatic buyers get the silver anodized paddle shifters. Both get a flat-bottom steering wheel with bright indigo accent stitching.

More contrasting blue stitching is door panels and seats, gear shift and center console, complemented by blue seatbelts. The Mustang Dark Horse Appearance Pack adds Deep Indigo Blue seats with a unique seat perforation showing blue underneath the first layer of material. A dark metallic gloss called Black Alley replaces silver accents on the other Mustangs. The Dark Horse comes standard with a 12-speaker B&O sound system.

The center pieces, where the Mustang is trying to reach new, younger buyers, are a 12.4-inch digital driver cluster and a new 13.2-inch touchscreen with the fourth generation of Ford's Sync infotainment system. The two screens look connected under one surface and the center screen is canted toward the driver. The displays use Unreal Engine, a program used for 3D graphics in video games, to show drivers all necessary information about drive modes, lap times, g-forces, etc. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard.

The cluster changes with drive modes, but can be adjusted separately, and shows and animation of the car and what parts are changing settings. Through a custom drive mode owners can change interior colors, suspension, steering and traction control settings, gauge cluster graphics and more.

The racier Recaro seats are optional and comfortable in the 2024 Dark Horse, but softer than in previous years and not quite as grippy on the body. In fast turns drivers will need to brace their knee against either the door or the center console.

And drivers will be doing a lot of that considering the two options for Pirelli tires, both created specifically for the Ford Mustang Dark Horse, are the stickiest ever installed. Pirelli P-Zero (PZ4) tires are standard with staggered fitting wheels (19- by 9.5-inches in front and 19- by 10-inches in the rear). The available Handling Package adds wider Pirelli Trofeo tires measuring 19- by 10.5-inches in the front and 19- by 11-inches in the rear.

Additionally, the Ford Mustang Dark Horse has unique chassis tuning, larger rear sway bars and heavy-duty front shocks, over the Mustang GT. Braking is handled by six-piston Brembo brakes with 13.9-inch rotors in front. Steering is improved using a Ford Performance strut tower brace and K-brace that help keep the wheels planted on the pavement. The Handling Package also adds an adjustable rear wing, stiffer springs, and larger front and rear sway bars.

Ford's MagneRide shocks are standard. They can monitor wheel and tire movement and can adapt automatically based on driving surface or driving mode.

At Charlottle Motor Speedway, Ford allowed for test laps on a track that included part of the banked oval and part of the inside road course. Right off the bat those Pirelli Trofeo tires were working, topping speeds of 120 mph on the 24-degree banking, but not making any noise. However, the new engine in the Dark Horse and new, adjustable exhaust system were so loud it overpowered the squeal of the rubber anyway.

The newest Mustang has tons of grip, only sliding gently in Track Mode where the traction control cuts in lightly to get the coupe pointed straight. It doesn't just kill the power abruptly like some sports cars. The clutch effort was perfect though the brakes were a little sensitive but with tons of stopping power. The slowest turn on the track takes the driver from 125 mph to about 40 mph, and was never scary, even when braking late.

The track was smooth, but the roads near Charlotte were not, and the Dark Horse surprisingly shined on the road with a very comfortable, grand touring-like ride, especially in the Normal driving mode. An owner could potentially customize the throttle for Track mode, the suspension and steering for Normal mode and the exhaust to Quiet mode, and then take the ponycar on a days- or weeks-long road trip without worrying about a sore back or bottom.

The 2024 Ford Mustang Dark Horse, hitting dealerships before the end of summer, starts at $59,270. It still feels big, much bigger than the medium-sized coupes like the Nissan Z ($39,990), Toyota Supra ($45,735) or Mercedes-AMG GT ($93,550), which are all now competitors as its usual American rivals are taking their exit. Both the Dodge Challenger and Chevrolet Camaro will be gone in their current forms after 2024.

However, they're still on sale now. The Dodge Challenger Scat Pack with a 485 horsepower V8 is $48,265. The Camaro SS is just $41,295. The more-expensive Mustang's 500-hp, 418-pound-foot (lb-ft) V8 overpowers them both. Dodge and Chevy buyers would have to move up to the Challenger Hellcat ($72,290) and Camaro ZL1 ($68,695) to lead the way, making the Dark Horse's price of $59,720 seem more reasonable. The Mustang GT with the same V8 but less power is comparatively inexpensive at $42,495.

The Ford Mustang Dark Horse is made perfectly for wide road courses and wider American roads. In a little more than a year it will be the last of the three historic ponycars, however, the electric revolution promises more power and less pollution right around the corner. This Dark Horse, in looks and technology, is already the future of Mustang for the next-generation buyer. The only piece of the past is the excellent engine under the hood.