‘Ready To Rock’ Ford Mustang goes crazy horses with tyre smokin’ 870bhp
Drifting champion Vaughn Gittin Jr’s company creates a tyre-smoking supercharged version of the Ford Mustang
“Not just another supercharged Mustang” is how RTR Vehicles in the US describes its latest take on Ford’s Mustang pony car. Supercharging is certainly a popular way of extracting more power from the 5-litre V8, but it’s probably fair to say not many are pumping out the 870-plus horsepower and 895Nm of torque in the new RTR Spec 5.
RTR stands for “Ready To Rock”, and is the pet project of drifting and off-road champion Vaughn Gittin Jr. “JR”, as he’s also known, has been associated with Fords for quite some time – so it’s only natural that RTR would turn to Mustangs (and the Bronco off-roader) for its special builds.
RTR will sell just 50 cars a year, each priced at $159,999, about £119,000 at current exchange rates, though it’s US-only. A lot for a Mustang, but then Ford’s in-house GTD is well over $300,000, and we’d be surprised if the car developed by a drifting champion is any less fun. If your budget is smaller, dealers are currently offering £6,600 off on new Ford Mustang Dark Horse orders though our Buy a Car service putting prices under £69,000.
What else has changed on the RTR Mustang?
The RTR Spec 5 takes some inspiration from JR’s drift machines, in contrast to the more race-track oriented approach of Ford’s own Mustang GTD. As well as the whopping stage 2 supercharger, and an intercooler to go with it, it also features an RTR by Borla cat-back active exhaust system.
In the chassis department, there’s a set of 20-inch RTR Aero 5 wheels wrapped in Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tyres (a chunky 305-section up front, and 315-section at the rear), a set of RTR 30-way adjustable “Tactical Performance” coilovers and adjustable anti-roll bars, and two-piece front brake discs. Oh, and RTR makes sure that every car it modifies comes with the Electronic Drift Brake offered by Ford from the factory, to help you get sideways even easier.
It’s the styling that’s probably going to sell the RTR Spec 5 as much as anything though. It features the company’s latest widebody kit – not simply a set of bolt-on extensions, but a full bodywork package that beefs out the front and rear wings and side skirts. The front arch extensions even get extended felt liners while the rear ones feed cooling air to the tyres – probably wise, for a car aimed at spinning them up at every opportunity.
The kit also includes bumper extensions, a carbon chin spoiler, carbon front and rear “wake towers” – those extensions behind each wheel arch to control airflow – and splitters along the sills and aft of the rear wheels. There’s even a new fuel door, since the wider rear arch components would cover the existing one, and the obligatory bonnet vent and rear spoiler, also RTR-designed parts.
Inside there’s an RTR gearshift knob (whether you opt for the six-speed manual or ten-speed auto standard to the Mustang), leather-trimmed Recaro sports seats, RTR-branded floor mats, and a serialised plaque on the dash with JR’s signature engraved into it. You don’t need to stick to Ford’s standard exterior colours either – for $7,500 you can have a “premium” paint finish, or $15,000 for whatever colour you want. The company will rustle up a custom render of your potential car to help buyers decide.
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