What the hell is this Ford Mustang Shelby GT350 mule?

What in the world is Ford testing under the hood of this Shelby GT350 mule? Our spies caught this Mustang mule testing near Ford’s development center in Dearborn. Pony cars designed with power bulges meant to clear superchargers are certainly nothing new, but Ford already has the GT500, and while this does look the part of a hood clearanced to make room for powertrain components, it’s not exactly clear what those might be

Let’s eliminate some possibilities. First of all, we have zero reason to believe the GT350 will be revived as a send-off to the current, S550-generation Mustang. In fact, the likelihood of this mule being in any way related to updates planned for the current model before its discontinuation is pretty slim. Don’t torture yourself. What we’re seeing here is likely a development mule for powertrain tech, quite possibly for the next-gen Mustang. 

And speaking of next-gen Mustangs, we’ve seen those in the wild too, albeit heavily disguised. Here’s one for comparison. While this is likely an early prototype or perhaps even a fairly advanced mule, we can see from the photo that the Mustang’s proportions aren’t likely to change much. We could be convinced that this hood is slightly taller than the current car’s, which may explain some of what we’re seeing here, but by and large, these cars don’t look all all different. Ignore the upright appearance of the rear greenhouse; that was present on the 2015 prototypes too and likely covers up some of Ford’s data collection and transmission gear. 

Rumors of an all-wheel-drive Mustang have swirled for years. Indeed, the addition of a front differential would likely require that some components of the powertrain move forward in order for this to work in the existing chassis. However, there don’t appear to be axle shafts poking through where the front center caps were removed; it appears to be a bare hub face. Contrast that with the rear wheel hubs, where the axle retention nut is clearly visible in these photos.

Other powertrain modifications could explain a shift forward too, such as electrification. Absent all-wheel drive, a hybridized Mustang would need to have an electric motor sandwiched somewhere in its longitudinal powertrain, for example. If implemented in the existing chassis, that could move the tallest point in the driveline far enough forward to require a modified hood, which this getup could be disguising. 

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