The Dark Horse replaces the Mach 1 for the 2024 model year as the most powerful naturally-aspirated 'Stang of the S650 family. Based on the GT with the fancy exhaust system, the Dark Horse features beefier cams, a rebalanced crankshaft, and forged connecting rods from the previous-gen Mustang in Shelby GT500 flavor.
According to FoMoCo, it develops a mighty 500 horsepower and 418 pound-feet (567 Nm) at the crankshaft. Steeda had the opportunity of dynoing the Dark Horse to see how much of those resources actually get to the rear wheels, and the numbers aren’t good.
The Dynojet shows 408.11 ponies at 7,280 revolutions per minute and 357.20 pound-feet (484 Nm) at 5,060 revolutions per minute. It's very far off the generally accepted 15% drivetrain loss rule, but there is an explanation for these numbers: the 10R80 automatic.
Steeda couldn't use the 1:1 seventh gear because the 5.0-liter Coyote V8 would have hit its engine speed limiter too early. The guys used fifth, which is listed by the Ford Motor Company with 1.52:1 gearing. The auto-equipped Dark Horse runs a 3.55:1 Torsen limited-slip axle out back rather than 3.73:1 for the manual tranny.
That's not all, though. The pulls took place in Georgia, right next to Florida. Inhumanely high humidity and low atmospheric pressure aren't ideal conditions for a free-breathing engine to make power, but it is what it is…
It should also be mentioned that the black-painted car in the video below isn't fully stock. The only mod comes in the form of a resonator delete h-pipe, which offers an increase of 2 horsepower and 3 pound-feet of torque at the rear wheels of a previous-generation Mustang GT.
Said resonator delete h-pipe is currently available to purchase at $279,95. Lighter than the stock resonator (by up to 6.5 pounds or 14.3 kilograms) and made from 304 stainless steel, this mod promises a traditional deep muscle car exhaust note and increased torque at low engine speeds. Further up the spectrum, Steeda is much obliged to sell you an even lighter x-pipe for $279.95.
As opposed to $42,495 for the GT Fastback, the Dark Horse is currently available to configure on Ford's website at $59,270 (sans destination freight charge). Exclusively coupe, the Dark Horse is listed by the Dearborn-based automaker with limited availability.
The six-speed manual transmission of the Dark Horse is a Tremec unit, much superior to the Getrag of the GT. The 10R80 automatic, which is advertised under the SelectShift moniker, adds $1,595 to the final price.
Due next year for the 2025 model year, the S650 lineup will be taken to 800 horsepower by the GT3 racecar-inspired GTD. This variant packs the 5.2-liter Predator V8 of the S550-gen Shelby GT500, a rear-mounted transaxle of the dual-clutch variety, and aero trickery because Ford targets a sub-7-minute Nurburgring lap time.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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