Automotive rivalries don’t get bigger or better than the one the Ford Mustang and Chevrolet Camaro share. These American muscle cars have been slugging it out since the 1960s, and the battle continues for one more model year.
The 2024 Ford Mustang is freshly redesigned with new styling, a revamped interior, improved technology, and extra performance hardware. Want to rev your Mustang engine while standing outside the car? The available Remote Rev feature allows you to do exactly that via a button on the key fob.
Where the Mustang is all new, the 2024 Chevrolet Camaro is driving into the sunset. This is the final model year for the sixth-generation Camaro, though a new and possibly electrified version is rumored to be on the way.
Until then, whether in coupe or convertible format, these legendary rides have one more go at claiming victory over the other. Let’s take a look at how the Mustang and Camaro compare.
2024 Ford Mustang
Its long hood and hunkered-down stance don’t look dramatically different from the outgoing Mustang, but the 2024 model year brings a raft of improvements to Ford’s ‘pony car.’ Available engines include a 315-horsepower turbocharged 2.3-liter 4-cylinder or a 5.0-liter V8 that churns out anywhere from 480 to 500 horsepower. All Mustang cars are rear-wheel drive, and V8-equipped models come with a choice of a 6-speed manual or 10-speed automatic transmission. The turbo 4-cylinder only offers the automatic.
Available as a coupe (“Fastback” in Mustang speak) or convertible, pricing starts at $30,920 for the hardtop and $39,020 for the open-air version. These prices don’t include a $1,595 destination charge.
Ford Mustang Highlights
Performance: You don’t have to go full bore with the available V8 engines to enjoy spirited performance in your Mustang. Its standard turbo 4-cylinder provides plenty of acceleration and strong passing power while returning an EPA-estimated 26 mpg combined in city and highway driving. OK, we’ll admit the lure of V8s in the Mustang GT and the newly added Dark Horse model are hard to resist. They sound incredible and turn this pony into a thoroughbred.
Paint colors, wheel designs, hood scoops: You could spend hours online or in a dealership poring over the various options offered on the 2024 Mustang. There are up to 11 exterior colors, numerous designs of racing stripes, six interior color schemes, and a vast range of alloy wheels and tires to choose from. Second only to snowflakes, it’s easier than ever to create a Mustang unlike any other.
Vastly improved interior: Ford paid a lot of attention to modernizing the Mustang’s cabin. The results are excellent, so long as you’re seated up front. Facing the driver is a new 13.2-inch infotainment touchscreen that operates as nicely as it looks. A 12.4-inch digital instrument cluster is also standard. Fit and finish are solid, the front seats are supportive, and a flat-bottom steering wheel makes it easier to slide behind the wheel. The rear seat remains a torture chamber for adults, particularly in the more confined coupe. But that’s something of a muscle car tradition.
2024 Chevrolet Camaro
In coupe configuration, the 2024 Chevrolet Camaro has a starting price of $30,900, excluding a $1,595 destination charge. Like its rival, the Mustang, going topless costs extra. The base Camaro convertible commands $36,900. Having dropped a turbo 4-cylinder from its lineup, the 2024 Camaro is now available with a 335-horsepower 3.6-liter V6 or a 6.2-liter V8 good for 455 horsepower when naturally aspirated, or 650 horsepower when supercharged. A 6-speed manual remains standard with every engine, and a 10-speed automatic is optional.
Chevrolet Camaro Highlights
V8 thrills: The base V6 in the Camaro has plenty of grunt, but as in the Mustang, a muscle car comes alive when a V8 is under the hood. Only the extremely power-hungry would think the 455-horsepower 6.2-liter V8 isn’t enough. However, once you punch the gas pedal in the Camaro ZL1 with its 650-horsepower supercharged V8, there’s no turning back. That 150-horsepower advantage over the 2024 Mustang Dark Horse will not go unnoticed by Camaro fans either.
Wonderfully customizable: Colors, alloy wheels, racing stripes, metal and carbon fiber trim pieces, wings, and spoilers — you name it, the Camaro offers it — and likely in two or three versions. Combined with the choice of two body styles and three engines, only the dizzying option sheet of a full-size pickup truck outdoes all the goodies that can be added to the Camaro.
Ride and handling: Both of these American muscle cars offer quick steering and surprising comfort. The Camaro is adept at roaring down a dragstrip or flinging its way around the twists and turns of a racetrack. It’s also pretty accommodating for more mundane driving tasks, like a daily commute or a quick dash to the grocery store.
Similarities
Hardcore Mustang and Camaro fans would answer “nothing” in this space. Trust us, despite the rivalry, these cars are very similar when you look beyond the badge on the front grille. Each can be configured to be anything from a budget-friendly cruiser to a blisteringly quick performance machine. The space up front is good, but the room in the back is lousy. Cargo volume is also never a polite topic to mention in such muscle car company. In case you’re curious, the Mustang has a roomier trunk.
Conclusion
This comes down to a veritable coin toss, even considering the 2024 Mustang is the new and improved model and the 2024 Camaro will soon exit via stage left. As collector items go, the Camaro makes a strong case for cashing in now on this Chevy’s long and storied pedigree.
From a design standpoint, they’re each aggressive and fun-loving. They’re also perfectly fine when fitted with their base engines and hilariously over-the-top when their most powerful motors are squeezed into the engine bay.
The Mustang holds a slight edge when it comes to cabin design and quality. It does have a slightly larger and more usable trunk in both coupe and convertible format, too. Yet, credit both for having user-friendly infotainment systems that outshine what you’ll find in many luxury-badged vehicles. That attention to detail is something many car shoppers don’t expect in machines with muscle in their name.
