Back in January, Ford Motor Company filed to trademark “Boss” with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), and that was followed by another trademark filing for “Dark Horse Boss” with the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) that same month. These filings seemed to preview the potential return of yet another pony car variant from the past, and that notion was later backed up by Ford Authority‘s very first Ford Mustang Dark Horse Boss prototype sighting earlier this month. However, it’s worth wondering – what could be lurking under the hood of that particular model?
First, we must consider the fact that Ford may also be mulling the return of the GT500, as Ford Authority recently spotted a pair of prototypes that are believed to preview precisely that. Back in late February, a document surfaced online that was purported to be a communication between the United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 600 union and its members, referring to the impending addition of an afternoon shift at the Dearborn Engine plant in preparation to build more supercharged 5.2L V8 powerplants for the 2026 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500.
In that document, the supercharged 5.2L V8 in question was called “Legend,” which is a shift from the S550-generation GT500’s version, which was dubbed “Predator,” as well as the F-150 Raptor R, which uses a version of that same engine but without a special nickname applied. The current belief is that the Ford Mustang Dark Horse Boss could represent a bridge in the lineup between the Dark Horse and the GT500, which gives us some clues as to what it might utilize in terms of a powerplant.
Ford could simply opt to go with an enhanced version of the already-fortified, naturally-aspirated 5.0L V8 Coyote engine present in the regular Dark Horse, or perhaps it will strap a supercharger on that powerplant as an alternative. The Blue Oval could also opt to stuff the 7.3L V8 Godzilla under its hood, though it’s unclear if such a thing is even possible – at least, without major modifications.
Then there’s the possibility that the Ford Mustang Dark Horse Boss could get a non-supercharged version of the Legend, or perhaps even the same blown unit as the GT500, albeit, perhaps a detuned version making less power. The Dark Horse Boss prototype was wearing the same wheels as the S550-generation Mach 1, which – coupled with the “Boss” portion of its name – may signal that the new model will be more of a track-focused variant in the vein of those models, as well as the S550 GT350, albeit one with a more reliable powerplant than the old 5.2L V8 Voodoo – which has faced some known issues.
Regardless, we’re curious to hear what our readers think – what engine would you like to see in the new Ford Mustang Dark Horse Boss? Let us know by voting in the poll below!
Comments
I don’t want it period, and it’s not needed. How about something more mainstream for a change? And not another Mustang.
AMEN !
5.4l based off the GT3 car
It’s an interesting idea, that. Never thought we’d have the potential to see a 5.4 4V in a car again, but the old 5.4 4V Triton was a decent motor and was certainly a legend in its own right.
For the US market, “Dark Horse” sounds corny. Dark Horse Boss sounds even worse. Just call it the Boss 302 or whatever CI displacement is in the engine bay. Dark Horse also has not been selling well so maybe Ford should actually listen to people who buy their Mustang rather than focus groups of kids who can’t afford a high end Mustang.
Exactly. Stop talking to pamphlet readers and idiots on social media who can afford to buy these things at their ever-increasing prices (or pretend to afford them, in some cases). Talk to people who want to buy them and probably could, but refrain from doing so for various reasons.
An aluminum 7.3 tuned to ~75hp per liter would be so sick.
Godzilla Motor with John Kaase Boss 9- cylinder heads
I voted for the 7.3 but a hopped up version of the 6.8 would be my real choice. The 6.8 is a shorter stroke version of the Godzilla and would be a freer revving engine and more suitable for a sports car than the truck oriented 7.3. Think 429 vs 460. Give it ported heads, a bigger cam, bigger throttle body and better exhaust. In other words, let it breathe.
I’m absolutely with you on this. The nice part is that if someone wanted more displacement and didn’t mind sacrificing the high-revving nature of the shorter stroked 6.8, it wouldn’t be all that hard to increase the displacement with factory parts, let alone what would be quickly offered by aftermarket companies. Brilliant idea.
Either the Coyote or the Legend naturally aspirated. It’s been proven time and time again that big horsepower forced induction motors never fully utilize their torque or horsepower ratings due to the high operating temps realized during operation. The engine control systems dial back or make the intake mixture richer to lower these numbers to keep components from frying themselves. So, don’t be lured in the big horsepower/torque game…besides anyone other than a pro driver can’t fully utilize what is available much above 500 horsepower anyway, especially in a road racing environment.
As far as powerplant, it should be noted that unlike the last mule we saw, this mule looks like it has the dual chin coolers from the s550 gt500. That leads me to think there’s a possibility this gets boost of some sort. Hopefully not another whipple kit that’s been so played out by every aftermarket manufacturer but it wouldnt surprise me.
If I am being honest, none of it appeals to me. Sure, ANOTHER higher performance mustang is cool. The mustang as a whole is already too expensive, and this will be EVEN MORE expensive. I already can’t afford a new mustang base model. So a 70-80k mustang has zero interest on my part. It’s not needed. What we need is more affordable vehicles. What the hell happened to the $20k Maverick? In 4 model years it’s base price has increased by 10k. The equipment offered on them sure hasn’t added 10k in value.
How about an affordable, sub 30k small or midsize, fuel efficient sedan? The R&D money spent on ANOTHER mustang variant could surely go towards bringing other cars back to the US market. Mustang sales have tanked in recent years. So lets muddy the market with another variant. makes sense to me. Meanwhile the MachE sales are dominating the Mustang by something like 30%. I don’t like to associate them together, but Ford does and it shows that even mustang buyers aren’t buying mustangs with 2 doors.
But, if Ford is asking me what engine I want in a Performance oriented mustang variant, Gimme that Godzilla. Or even better, an aluminum block version of the “mini-zilla” 6.8.
I’m with you on wanting smaller, more affordable vehicles. Unfortunately, a lot of that is going to be difficult unless the CAFE standards (which tie required fuel economy heavily to wheelbase length) are taken out completely. Until that happens, we won’t be able to see anything like that.
Get rid of the Dark Horse. And it should be a BOSS 302 5L built with the same or better internal as my ’13 BOSS. A one off built 5L. To keep the legacy of the it’s linetchy.
7.3L V8 Godzill would make it stand out. Make it unlike other options. It would be the first non-truck use of the 7.3
It would be the return of the big block after over 30 years.
Give me something simple, easy to upgrade, with a ton of torque. The 7.3 Godzilla fits that perfectly. The 6.8 doesn’t have a forged crank, so that’s a no-go for me. Take me back to the 60’s with big cubic inches, HD manual transmission, 3.90 to 4.11 gears. Make me spend my money!!
When Dodge one-upped Ford in 2015 with the “707hp” Hellcat, it wasn’t anything really all that special. They just waited until they knew how much the 5.8 Trinity for the GT500 was going to make and then quietly pretended that the 600hp Hellcat was always going to make 700+.
Ever since then, the Hellcat engine has been shoved into everything and received many, somewhat arbitrary and useless increases in power. It’s gotten pretty old, especially considering how long Dodge has remained rather unimaginative with their designs, engines included.
Ford is somewhat in the same boat right now. Granted, that proverbial boat still corners, unlike the Challenger, but they’re in the same boat, nonetheless. They’ve kept putting the supercharged 5.0 and 5.2 into everything. IT’s made the Mustang those engines are in fast, sure, but they’re also expensive. Not just due to the sheer price on the tag, but also with the price-to-performance ratio. I have no doubt that the C8 will be faster than the GTD and that it will do so at quite the price deficit. I’m not saying the price-to-performance ratio would be fixed with Ford opting to use either the 6.8 or 7.3, but it would help with overall cost and could still offer a lot of power. The Mustang is not selling and cost is one of the reasons why, as most people can overlook styling if the vehicle is fast or fun enough. Whatever they do, they need to honor the “Boss” moniker and make sure this thing is different the same way the 5.2 Voodoo was. We’ve all seen expensive, supercharged V8s and it’s getting a bit dull.