Zac Quinn 
Ford has significantly upgraded the engines available within the S650 Ford Mustang, which should improve fuel economy and performance. However, since Ford and the EPA don’t yet have any MPG numbers, it’s hard to know just how often one will be getting gas each year. Luckily Natural Resources Canada has recently published figures for the muscle car’s fuel economy, so we can get a pretty good idea of what to expect.
S650 Ford Mustang Fuel Economy: Details
Starting with the base 2.3-liter EcoBoost S650 Mustang, the four-cylinder engine has about 26 miles per gallon on the combined test cycle. Though, if the Performance Package is added to the car, that number drops by two, bringing the rating to 24 mpg combined. This isn’t that significant considering the package includes a 3.55:1 limited-slip rear differential, summer-only tires, 19-inch wheels, larger brake rotors with four-piston calipers, heavy-duty springs at the front, and a better sway bar at the back. The previous generation S550 Ford Mustang EcoBoost delivered a combined 25 mpg (non Performance Pack) on the same test cycle, meaning that the base Mustang shows a fuel economy improvement. Maybe that’s why Ford Motor Company went with automatic transmission only on EcoBoost models.
If you decide to take the car a step further with the new fourth-gen Coyote V8 engine under the guise of the GT trim, Natural Resources Canada gave the vehicle a combined rating of 18 mpg. It doesn’t appear like there are numbers for the Mustang GT with the Performance Package, but if the EcoBoost is anything to go by, we can expect a reduction of 2 mpg or so when that’s added. Because good tires mean friction, and friction means more force is needed to maintain speed. And more force means less efficiency. And less efficiency means less fuel economy. Simple.
As for the high-performance S650 Ford Mustang Dark Horse, which has 20 ponies more than the base GT, customers should expect to see around 17 MPG combined. If you think that’s low, it has the gas guzzler tax for a reason. However, you’re getting more fuel economy for the money.
The last-generation Ford Mustang Mach 1 with a six-speed manual only makes 17 combined miles per gallon, which is about what we see with the Dark Horse, but given that it has more power than the Mach 1, that’s pretty impressive. Consider, too, that Ford had to de-tune the Mach 1 Mustang due to emissions regulations. Not so with the Dark Horse.
These numbers show just how impressive Ford’s improvements to the Coyote V8 and EcoBoost engines have been, and customers are getting more power to boot. Now, we just have to wait for them to sort out the quality kinks and begin production.
