The Ford Mustang has a dedicated community of devotees, and it’s abuzz with a rumor today that the next generation of the iconic pony car will be ditching its gasoline engine completely. While we’re not certain what to make of the gossip, count us skeptical. At least a bit. We’ll explain.
Autoline Daily seems to be the source of the report, and it is an unusually detailed one. The site cites industry data provider AutoForecast Solutions, which offers several products that forecast details about automotive production worldwide. According to Autoline, the next Mustang will debut in December 2028, for the 2029 model year. It will be available only as an electric vehicle (EV), and be built at Ford’s Flat Rock, Michigan plant.
That’s a lot of detail for a rumor, which could suggest that there’s some insider information backing it up. We’ve reached out to AutoForecast for confirmation, but have not yet heard back.
All-electric Mustang Lineup? Not so fast
However, we should caution, the current generation of the Mustang has been on sale since 2015. A redesign for the 2028 model year would keep the current model on the road for a very long time by industry standards (most cars are completely redesigned about every seven years, with a partial update known as a “refresh” around the halfway mark). And the Mustang is America’s best-selling sports car. Ford is highly unlikely to let a model so critical to its image and sales strategy wither.
The Flat Rock plant, we’ll also caution, isn’t currently capable of producing EVs. Seven years is plenty of time to convert it. Indeed, we expect to see many automotive plants refitted for EV production over the next decade as electric cars make up more of the market. But, at least currently, an EV rolling out of Flat Rock isn’t possible.
But, EV Pony Car an Inevitability
An Electric Mustang seems inevitable. Indeed, Ford borrowed the Mustang name and some of its styling for its new Mustang Mach-E electric crossover. Our best guess would be that a Mustang EV may well be in the plans for 2028, but that a redesign will be coming long before that. A new Mustang within the next few years, with an optional electric powertrain added for the 2029 model year, seems much more in keeping with both Ford’s capabilities and the pace of America’s move toward electrification.
We’ll update you when we have more details. But, for now, let’s view this one with some caution.
