2019 ford mustang nascar 1
2019 ford mustang nascar 2
2019 ford mustang nascar 3
2019 ford mustang nascar 4
2019 ford mustang nascar 5
Bruce Newton14 Aug 2018
NEWS

MOTORSPORT: Ford Mustang not for Bathurst

Blue Oval’s 2018 Bathurst 1000 focus will be on Ford Falcon’s last flight at Mount Panorama

The new Ford Mustang Supercar will not break cover at the 2018 Bathurst 1000, in part because Ford is keen to not distract from the final appearance of its homegrown Falcon in Australia’s greatest race.

There are also more practical and strategic reasons Ford won’t reveal its new Mustang at Bathurst; it would place the development team at DJR Team Penske under tremendous pressure to roll out a Mustang at Mount Panorama in early October when its primary focus is to win the race.

And Ford and its teams want to keep technical aspects of their first Mustang Supercar -- especially the car’s aero package -- under wraps from its Holden rivals as long as possible.

2019 ford mustang nascar 1

Ford Performance revealed its first top-flight Mustang NASCAR in the US late last week (pictured here), ahead of its debut in the 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series.

Drawing similarities with Australia, where Ford stopped Falcon production and closed its factory doors in October 2016, the Mustang will replace the soon-to-be-discontinued Fusion in North America’s premier NASCAR Cup series for the first time.

Work on Australia’s Ford Mustang Supercar started in March, before Ford Australia's official announcement in April. It is due to start testing in November before homologation is finalised in December and it’s tested publicly for the first time in February 2019.

2019 ford mustang nascar 3

Eight examples were expected to line up on the grid at the Adelaide 500, which kicks off the 2019 Supercars championship in late February. However, this week’s defection of Matt Stone Racing back to Holden means the count right now is back to seven.

The Ford FG X Falcon will retire from the Supercars championship at the end of this season, two years after production ceased at Ford’s Campbellfield plant in Melbourne.

The Ford Falcon first won at Mount Panorama in 1967 and has scored 14 victories there in total.

2019 ford mustang nascar 4

“We’re excited about Mustang being on track for 2019 and development is still underway,” Ford spokesman Damion Smy told motoring.com.au.

“In the meantime, we’re looking for a Falcon win at Bathurst.”

DJRTP boss Ryan Story confirmed Mustang would miss Bathurst but was on schedule for its November test debut.

“The program is proceeding according to plan as far as these things go,” he said. “We obviously had a late start which means we are having to throw a little bit of caution into the wind as far as meeting the deadline goes.

2019 ford mustang nascar 2

“There has been speculation about us using Bathurst as a launching pad with the first finished car, but the reality is it’s not going to be ready for that.

“We are basically working from the homologation test backward to ensure we get everything done.”

DJRTP recently signed off both the race car’s roof and windscreen for manufacturing. They are long-lead items and not aero-sensitive, Story explained.

“We are starting from the top and working down … it’s a really exciting time for all those involved in the project but there is a still a hell of a lot of work ahead of us before we reach that December test.”

2019 ford mustang nascar 5

Compared to the road-going version, the Mustang racer is expected to be longer to accommodate the 2822mm wheelbase of the Supercars control chassis, and slightly higher to fit over the rollcage hoop.

Surface work is being completed by Ford Performance in the US in consultation with DJRTP and the other main Ford team, Tickford Racing, while Ford’s Melbourne design studio is providing feedback to ensure the race car looks as much like the road car as possible.

“The Mustang is an iconic car so it’s important to Ford and it’s important to us that the Mustang Supercar looks like a Mustang and that’s a key reason why we are working with Ford Performance and Ford’s Asia-Pacific design studio here in Australia,” said Story.

He said the project had not suffered any unexpected setbacks or issues.

“Just the time is the biggest one,” he said. “We would have loved an extra three to six months, but that’s the nature of racing. You have to be pro-active and you have to be prepared to work longer than a 40-hour week.”

Share this article
Our team of independent expert car reviewers and journalistsMeet the team
Stay up to dateBecome a carsales member and get the latest news, reviews and advice straight to your inbox.
Download the carsales app
    AppStoreDownloadGooglePlayDownload
    App Store and the Apple logo are trademarks of Apple Inc. Google Play and the Google Play logo are trademarks of Google LLC.
    © CAR Group Ltd 1999-2024
    In the spirit of reconciliation we acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.