Ford wowed drivers with the sixth-generation Mustang?s independent rear suspension and grown-up interior, but a slimmed-down and more powerful new Chevrolet Camaro elevated the pasture in which the two ponies play. For the 2018 model year, the Mustang boasts a little more power and some new options to keep the competition heated.
For 2018, the four-cylinder Mustang EcoBoost is performing line-lock-assisted burnouts on the grave of last year?s V-6 model, replacing the six-cylinder car as Ford?s entry-level pony. The starting price for the turbo Stang is down $610 to $26,485 for the new model year, just $400 more than the old V-6. Power from the 2.3-liter engine is unchanged at 310 horsepower, although torque is up 30 lb-ft to 350.

Those who crave displacement and aural theater should spring for the $35,995 GT with its 5.0-liter V-8. The cloth-seat stripper model comes in $1900 over a 2017 Mustang GT, but that extra cash buys 25 more horsepower and an additional 20 lb-ft over last year?s car, bringing the totals to a stout 460 horses and 420 lb-ft, enough virility to top the Camaro SS V-8. Opting for a convertible adds $5500 to the EcoBoost model and $9500 to the GT, the latter of which is available only in uplevel Premium spec as a droptop. Ford?s new 10-speed automatic transmission?co-developed with General Motors?can be had on any model for $1595. Regardless of powertrain choice, luxury-minded buyers can step up to a Premium model (for between $4000 and $5000), which ...