The 2026 Ford Mustang Dark Horse SC Is A Supercharged Beast
The Ford Mustang Dark Horse is about to inhale … a lot of air.
The 2026 Mustang Dark Horse SC is a supercharged version of the track-focused pony car. It swaps the regular Dark Horse’s 5.0-liter Coyote V8 for an updated version of the supercharged 5.2-liter Predator V8 that was previously featured in the 2022 Mustang Shelby GT500.
Ford hasn’t yet said how powerful the motor is this time around, but the last one was rated at 760 hp and 625 lb-ft of torque, so it won’t likely be less than that.
The Dark Horse SC essentially takes the place of the Shelby GT500 at the top of the mainstream Mustang lineup, below the extremely reengineerd Mustang GTD. Ford thinks it’s a better fit with the identity of the newly launched Ford Racing division, as the Dark Horse name is used across many of its motorsports endeavors, including NASCAR and the Mustang Challenge series.
Along with the engine, the Dark Horse SC gets a seven-speed dual clutch transmission, carbon fiber drive shaft and a differential with its own cooling system.
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It sits on a one-inch wider track than the standard Dark Horse and has a modified suspension geometry with new stabilizer bars, knuckles, forged aluminum links, springs and a magnesium strut tower brace. The MagneRide shocks have been retuned and its unique aluminum wheels are shod with Pirelli P Zero R tires. The Brembo brakes are larger than the Dark Horse’s and equipped with six-piston calipers up front, four-piston calipers in the rear.
The fascia, diffuser and rocker extensions are all revised and the hood is an all-new aluminum design with extra extractor vents and a removable rain tray for track driving that significantly reduces lift compared to the Dark Horse’s hood design.
Ford is also offering an optional Track Package that includes carbon fiber wheels and the carbon ceramic brakes from the GTD, which lower unsprung weight by a combine 120 pounds. A carbon fiber rear wing works with a decklid spoiler to generate up to 620 hp at 180 mph.
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That’s the only performance figure Ford has released, aside from a video that shows Red Bull Formula One driver Max Verstappen putting down a faster track pass in the Dark Horse SC than his new teammate, Arvid Lindblad could in a 1966 Ford GT40 MKII.
Recaro sport seats are optional on the Dark Horse SC, but included with the Track Package, which also deletes the rear seats. The Dark Horse head logo is replaced by an SC graphic on both trims.
Pricing for the Dark Horse SC will be announced closer to when the order books open in the spring for summer deliveries, but a loaded Dark Horse goes for just over $80,000 and the GT500 was priced from around $80,000 to over $100,000, depending on the options. That’s still a lot cheaper than the $327,960 GTD, which is a whole other kind of beast.
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