At the Detroit Auto Show earlier this month, Ford revealed the long-awaited successor to the Mustang Shelby GT500, but it kicked off a new era of Ford Racing (formerly Ford Performance) by naming it the Dark Horse SC. The Blue Oval said it wanted to show the link between its motorsport efforts and the road cars these exploits can result in, but it also seemed to be a way of distancing the new car from the old Ford Mustang Shelby GT500. Fast forward nearly two weeks, and during the auctioning of the first-ever example of the Dark Horse SC, Ford executive director of customization Matt Simpson revealed that the car produces “well over 700 hp.” Is that enough?
Comparing the Dark Horse SC to the GT500
Ford
“Under the hood, we’ve got a 5.2-liter supercharged V8, [with] well over 700 hp,” said Simpson — and the same could be said of the Shelby GT500. Both track-focused cars have the same basic engine configuration, both feature carbon fiber wheels (in top spec), and both have seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmissions, not manuals. As for output, the Shelby-badged Mustang famously made a whopping 760 hp, and Ford’s apparent reluctance to reveal the Dark Horse SC’s specific rating is curious. Is the Dark Horse SC as powerful as the Shelby was? Is it less so? Does it make more? Cases could be made for either scenario.
Related: Shelby’s New GT350/TA Is a Manual Mustang Rarer Than the GTD
If the Dark Horse SC makes less than 760 hp, it would not be surprising that Ford might want to avoid it potentially being viewed as a “lesser” vehicle. If it makes the same figure, direct comparisons with the Shelby would undoubtedly be made, which may diminish the rebrand to a Ford Racing product. And if it makes more power, it might make the Dark Horse SC appear too similar to the Mustang GTD, despite the latter being a vastly more engineering-intensive and capable machine. In other words, cynics in the room will have something negative to say, no matter what Ford has done here.
Ignore the Numbers
Ford/Porsche
Ultimately, the Dark Horse SC’s full horsepower output is irrelevant. Yes, over 700 hp will be fantastic, but what really matters with this car is that it’s a supercharged V8-powered Mustang with particularly exceptional handling. It’s got loads of aerodynamic upgrades, carbon-ceramic brakes (with the Track Pack), and suspension enhancements that include MagneRide dampers with revised software and hardware, stiffer springs, and revised control arms, to name a few improvements. This is the ultimate (relatively) attainable Mustang for the track day enthusiast, and while most $300,000+ GTD examples are likely to spend the majority of their lives in the climate-controlled garages of collectors, Dark Horse SC buyers will be people who want to regularly experience the track in America’s take on a GT3 RS. This is a celebration of the Mustang nameplate, Ford’s racing endeavors bearing fruit in the real world, and the S650 platform as a whole, and whatever its true output, we’re just glad it exists.
