Ford is reportedly preparing the successor to the Mustang Shelby GT350, one of the most celebrated versions of its rear-wheel-drive muscle car. According to a report by Car and Driver, the new model could arrive soon, although the launch date has not been confirmed. The American carmaker has not yet released any official statements on the subject, so the picture is based on journalistic rumors.
The most significant detail concerns the name. According to the rumors, the future car could drop the Shelby designation, linked to the historic collaboration with tuner Carroll Shelby and the tradition of high-performance Mustang versions. If confirmed, the change would mark a break with a product line that in recent years has built a strong identity among enthusiasts, who associate the GT350 designation with track-oriented driving.
The technical choice would also differ from the past. The successor is said to use a naturally aspirated engine, with no supercharger or turbocharger. This feature would place it in an intermediate position in the lineup, between the Mustang Dark Horse and the Dark Horse SC, the latter equipped with forced induction. The difference is not only about the engine layout: a naturally aspirated engine offers a linear throttle response and a more direct power delivery, characteristics that many purists associate with the original character of American muscle cars.
Several points remain to be clarified, however. The price, the engine output and the debut date are not known, and the available information comes from a press report without official confirmation cited by Ford. As a result, it is not possible to determine with certainty the commercial positioning of the model, nor how much performance gap would separate the new version from the variants already on sale.
The news comes at a time when the American muscle car segment continues to face new regulations and the shift toward more efficient powertrains. Ford has kept the V8 engine as a distinguishing element of the Mustang, and a possible return to a naturally aspirated version in an intermediate position could be read as an attempt to balance performance, production costs and the expectations of its most loyal customers. This interpretation, however, remains dependent on direct confirmation from the manufacturer.
Meanwhile, the classic Mustang continues to fuel the collectible used market. One example is a 1969 Mustang Mach 1 put up for auction on the Bring a Trailer platform. The car is fitted with the code M 351 cubic inch V8, with a declared output of 290 horsepower, paired with a three-speed automatic transmission and rear-wheel drive. The car had a single owner until its sale in 2026 and has a paint job dating back about twenty-five years. The indicated mileage is 49,000 miles, with about 50 miles added by the current owner. The listing does not concern the successor to the GT350, but it shows how strongly the brand retains its collectible value.