USA TODAY US Edition

Need more speed? Mustang upgrade has that and more

- Mark Phelan

Ford Mustang owners aren’t the only ones who love late nights in the garage working to wring more speed out of their pony cars. So does the engineerin­g team that developed the 2018 version of the world’s best-selling sports car.

The result: Performanc­e Pack Level 2, a $6,500 set of options engineers developed working after hours and grabbing unused minutes in Ford wind tunnels to take the Mustang ’s handling and grip to new levels.

It’s the second major performanc­e upgrade announced for the Mustang in a week, following a new GT package that accelerate­s to 60 mph in less than four seconds. Both should help Mustang compete against its archrivals, Chevrolet Camaro and Dodge Challenger.

Performanc­e Pack 2 is less about straight-line accelerati­on than steering, braking, grip and aerodynami­cs. It has a six-speed manual instead of the mainline GT’s 10-speed automatic, so it won’t be the fastest Mustang to

60 mph, but it should take the

460-horsepower GT’s handling on road courses closer to the 526horsepo­wer, 5.2-liter Shelby GT

350.

Mustang fans can order it on a Mustang GT with a 5-liter engine now for delivery next spring. There’s no rush, because PP2 in- cludes Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 “streetable track and competitio­n” tires, which are street legal but designed for use on tracks in dry weather and temperatur­es well above freezing.

The package also includes specially tuned antilock brakes and stability control, MagneRide adaptive shock absorbers, redesigned front splitter and rear spoiler, stiffened springs and stabilizer bars.

The new splitter and spoiler increase aerodynami­c downforce on the car to keep it stable at high speeds. At 80 mph, they generate

24 pounds of downforce, the exact opposite of the aerodynami­c lift some vehicles develop at speed.

The engineerin­g team used a

3-D printer to make prototypes of the spoiler and other parts that ended up in the PP2.

Ford’s formal plan for the 2018 Mustang didn’t include any of the features in Performanc­e Pack 2, but like countless Mustang fans before them, the engineerin­g team didn’t know when to stop.

“A passion to create something special is what really drove this project,” Mustang vehicle engineerin­g manager Tom Barnes said. “That really showed in the off-the-clock way we went about doing our work.”

Key members of the team included tire and wheel expert Chauncy Eggleston; aerodynami­cs specialist Jonathan Gesek; and dynamics boss Jamie Cullen.

“It will just beg you to go faster,” Cullen said.

 ?? FORD ?? Ford Mustang ’s Performanc­e Pack Level 2, a $6,500 set of options, includes a new splitter and spoiler.
FORD Ford Mustang ’s Performanc­e Pack Level 2, a $6,500 set of options, includes a new splitter and spoiler.

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