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Ford will retain V8 engine with manual gearbox for as long as possible

Ford Mustang is the only muscle car to still offer a V8, with its main rivals such as the Chevrolet Camaro, Dodge Challenger and Charger having withdrawn from the race.

Jim Farley, CEO of Ford, has confirmed that the American car giant will keep offering its tried-and-tested large-capacity V8 with a manual gearbox for as long as possible. The V8 engine with the manual transmission will continue to be sold despite the stricter emission regulations and changing buyer habits.

Laurie Transou, Global Chief Engineer for the Ford Mustang, stated that for as long as the V8 can be sold, it will be part of the Mustang. Laurie said, "[Ford CEO] Jim Farley has mentioned, and we agree, that we're doubling down on our V8. As long as we can possibly sell our V8, we're going to."

Laurie further mentioned, "I would say that we're in a unique position in our market right now. For Mustang, we actually offer a lot of different variants. We have the Mustang Mach-E… so we have those variants. We have the EcoBoost and we have the 5.0-litre."

Currently, the Ford Mustang is the only muscle car to still offer a V8, with its main rivals such as the Chevrolet Camaro, Dodge Challenger and Charger having withdrawn from the race.

Joe Bellino, Global Brand Manager for the Mustang, stated, "I'd say, I think we're very proud to [be] still making the V8. And when it comes to everyone else, I think that makes us really proud of what we do. And parking on that, that's our history, right…? V8 Mustangs and what we're doing still." He further added, "Not everybody can say that. And as Jim mentioned, doubling down on it, making it a priority of ours, and it's a hallmark of Mustang."

In addition to the V8 itself, Ford will also retain the manual transmission option for its customers. Transou confirmed that the manual transmission will also be available for as long as customers keep buying them. Laurie stated, "The pure enthusiast loves the manual transmission, so [we] continue to offer it. As long as our customers are desiring manual transmission and there's a market for it, we would continue to offer manual transmission."

Source: Drive.au

 
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