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I’VE just returned from the launch of the 2021 Ford Mustang Mach 1 at Sydney Motorsport Park. It’s a ripper car – a track-focused, factory hotrodded Mustang, inspired by the original ’69 Mach 1. If you’re interested in my thoughts on it, check out the review at whichcar.com.au.

But it got me thinking about the newcar landscape in Australia in this postlocal manufacturing era. For us lovers of V8-powered, rear-drive performance cars, the truth is, it’s pretty bleak. With the Camaro no longer available and Chrysler’s decision to discontinue the 300 SRT in Australia this year, the Mustang stands alone as the only affordable option.

Street Machine is not a new-car mag, so it’s not something we spend a lot of time contemplating, but it will become a problem in 10 or 20 years’ time when stocks of used Commodores and Falcons, already fetching big money on account of supply and demand, completely dry up.

I worry about what cars we will have available to us as the foundation for building tough street cars in the future. Traditionally, the cars we’re passionate about as adults are the ones our parents drove us to school in as kids, and for the next generation, that’ll be dual-cab utes and mid-sized SUVS – pretty mindnumbing stuff.

Mustang (and arguably Kia Stinger) aside, the only modern muscle cars available today are European unobtanium, and while the incoming C8 Corvette is a car that I’m personally very excited about, with a driveaway price nudging $190,000 for the entry-level 2LT coupe, it’s one I’ll never likely be able to afford.

Even the iconic AMG C63, which has for years been known for its bellowing V8 exhaust note and tyre-melting rear-drive fun factor, is being castrated. From 2022 on, it’ll be a hybrid four-cylinder with allwheel drive. Eww.

It’s little wonder then that Ford has sold so many Mustangs since bringing them to Australia in 2015, and thank goodness they have. In factory spec, they represent outstanding value, are fun and engaging to drive, and have just the right amount of retro appeal.

The Coyote is an exceptional platform for modification, too, as you’ll see when you

THE 2021 MUSTANG MACH 1 IS A RIPPER – A TRACK-FOCUSED, FACTORY HOT-RODDED CAR INSPIRED BY THE ORIGINAL ’69 MACH 1

come across Wayne Lineker’s 2017 Ford Mustang GT on p. 126 of this issue. With little in the way of powertrain mods other than a Procharger, aftermarket oil pump, torque converter and driveshafts, it makes 750rwhp and has run 9.70@149mph, all while remaining wonderfully streetable.

I think we should get used to seeing modified Mustangs, because looking well into the future, there is going to be precious little else to work with. Here’s hoping the big three American manufacturers are able to keep churning out muscle cars long into the future, and local legislation continues to allow them to be privately imported once they’re of age. Cheers,

Broads