2018 Ford Mustang GT reduces rumbles

When you have a 460-horsepower V8 at your disposal in the 2018 Ford Mustang, things can get noisy. It’s a blessing or a curse, depending on the situation.

Downshifting from sixth to fourth while going through a tunnel on the highway? Perfect. Sneaking into your neighbourhood in the middle of the night or heading to work at 6 a.m. on a Sunday while everyone else is fast asleep? Well, that’s a bit tricky.

Thankfully, Ford has you covered, with a couple of new tricks for the Mustang GT’s active exhaust system: Quiet Start and Quiet Exhaust. The former lets drivers start up the Mustang GT without disturbing anyone, while the latter keeps the V8’s rumble to a minimum.

Both features can be programmed to activate between certain hours, perfect for sneaking out for a midnight drive or heading to work before sunrise. And once you’ve cleared your sleepy neighbourhood, the system can be deactivated. Neat, eh?

Steve von Foerster, Ford’s former head of vehicle engineering, came up with the idea. As the story goes, a neighbour of his complained to the police about his loud Shelby GT350. Von Foerster left before the cops arrived, so he didn’t end up with a ticket. He didn’t get mad, either. Instead, von Foerster set out to make the Mustang GT a little more courteous.

Now, it’s up to Mustang owners to actually use the feature. Perhaps if Quiet Exhaust would automatically activate upon leaving Cars and Coffee meets, we’d be spared the mishaps.