Manoli Katakis 
The 2021 Ford Mustang Mach-1 was officially revealed this morning, and it looks like we’ve got another track-ready muscle car on our hands. But some die-hard enthusiasts seem to be let down that the new Mach-1 doesn’t feature a sought-after feature: a shaker hood. At the end of the day, this new Mustang may likely be better off for it, and we chatted with figureheads involved in the Mach-1’s development to understand why.
“The original (Mustang Mach-1) did not actually have a standard shaker hood,” said Nick Terzes, Mustang vehicle integration supervisor in an interview with MC&T. “It was an optional piece of equipment for performance with carbureted engines.” The 5.0L Coyote V8, needless to say, isn’t carbureted.
“It’s one of those things we were looking at in the car. Nowadays we found that it wasn’t gonna add anything for us to do that,” said Terzes. “We wanted to make sure to maximize the performance of the car, so we put our resources elsewhere. This car doesn’t have a shaker, but it does have a lot of aerodynamic and performance characteristics added to it. And, right out of the gate, more power.”
Translated: the engineering budget was better used elsewhere around the vehicle.
“We basically looked at the best technologies we’ve had to-date with the 5.0L are incorporated into this powertrain.”
As a bit of a throwback, the 2021 Ford Mustang Mach-1 features a pair of placeholders where a set of rally lights would be, as seen in the original Mach-1. Ford tells us that these circular panels can simply be popped out, and the aftermarket (which doesn’t have to deal with the prohibitively expensive rigors of re-engineering a front fascia in the name of compliance), can provide a solution to customers looking to fit throwback rally lights if they so choose. Historically, the Ford Mustang Mach-1 took home a pair of SCCA Manufacturer’s Rally Championships in 1969 and 1970.
Aside from the rally light placeholders, the new Mustang Mach-1 visually separates itself from its stablemates with unique paint options, unique wheels, a specific aero kit, and an oh-so-cool orange/gray stripe option.
The 2021 Ford Mustang Mach-1 will hit dealerships in Spring of 2021 in the United States and Canada, while international markets will soon follow. It’s expected to replace both the Bullitt and the GT350 in the Mustang family, but Ford refused to comment on the rest of the muscle car’s lineup for now. An all-new S650 Mustang is expected around 2022.
