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TorqueNews Exclusive: Watch the 2015 Ford Mustang GT in the Wind Tunnel (Video)

Ford Motor Company put more than twice the research and development time into the aerodynamics of the 2015 Ford Mustang and to show off the slippery form of the newest muscle car – Ford invited a select group of media to their wind tunnel facility for a closer look.
The 2015 Ford Mustang GT in the wind tunnel

Ford expects that the 2015 Mustang will compete on the global level with some of the best sports cars in the world so it was important to make sure that it offered better aerodynamics than any Mustang in the past. Ford hasn’t announced exact drag coefficient numbers, but the automaker has promised that this new S550 Mustang will be far more slippery than the current S197 Mustang.

During the exhibition of aerodynamics of the 2015 Ford Mustang GT, the wind tunnel was set to 30 miles per hour and a testing engineer took to the front of the car with the classic smoke wand. I captured almost two minutes of that exhibition in the video below. As you watch the video, pay close attention to how “tight” the smoke stays as it travels from out in front of the 2015 Mustang GT, across the hood, up over the windshield and then down the new fastback form. The fact that the smoke really doesn’t flare out at all until it comes across the glass fastback is a sign of very little turbulence and less turbulence means less drag.

As I move with the camera to the front of the 2015 Ford Mustang GT, take notice of the location of the smoke wand relative to the front edge of the new shark bite front fascia. Even with the smoke wand placed slightly below the top edge of the large grille, the air is captured and sent up over the hood. The way that the nose cuts deep into the air hitting the front end of the new Mustang helps to improve downforce while also preventing unneeded air from getting captured in the grille. As he then moves the wand towards the ground, you can see how suddenly the smoke disappears into the grille of the 2015 Mustang GT. It is very hard to see but as he moves the wand towards the outer edge of the grille, the smoke is funneled up through the hood extraction vents which are specific to the Mustang GT package.

At one point, the smoke wand is moved up away from the 2015 Mustang and you can see the stream of smoke straighten out and as the wand comes back down, you can really see how well the aerodynamics “bend” the air traveling over the car – all without creating unwanted turbulence and drag. The aerodynamic properties of the new Mustang GT will not only improve high speed handling and acceleration, but it will also allow the next generation Mustang to be more efficient…AND quieter inside at high speeds.

All in all, the aerodynamic design efforts will make the 2015 Ford Mustang a better car in almost every way – making it far more likely to reach Ford’s goals of the Mustang becoming the global success.

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