Mustang no longer top selling muscle car for 2021

iguanaman3 said:

Maybe in American sales but Mustangs are sold all over the world unlike the Challenger. It is a surprising showing for Challenger though. It is the same car they have been making since 2008.

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Indeed Dodge has definitely been able to stretch that original investment. It's about the age of the Fox body Mustang in years of production: 15 years now.

eelstrebor said:

Doesn't mean it's a better car......

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Agreed. Mechanical comparisons aside, the Mustang clearly has evolved. Especially since 2015 it looks like a modern car, like a well-designed vehicle. By comparison the current Challenger looks, at least to me, like something a 5 year old might draw if he were trying to draw a picture of the 1971 Challenger. Or, perhaps, like something a hurried marketing group might throw together in response to a competitor offering a newly redesigned pony car that, while clearly referencing its most glorious past, was nonetheless a new and modern design (2005 Mustang of course).

As for the current Camaro? That looks like a post-haste response to the 2005 Mustang - 2008 Challenger…. just as the original Camaro was a rush-job GM response to the original Mustang.

coyote1 said:

Agreed. Mechanical comparisons aside, the Mustang clearly has evolved. Especially since 2015 it looks like a modern car, like a well-designed vehicle. By comparison the current Challenger looks, at least to me, like something a 5 year old might draw if he were trying to draw a picture of the 1971 Challenger. Or, perhaps, like something a hurried marketing group might throw together in response to a competitor offering a newly redesigned pony car that, while clearly referencing its most glorious past, was nonetheless a new and modern design (2005 Mustang of course).

As for the current Camaro? That looks like a post-haste response to the 2005 Mustang - 2008 Challenger…. just as the original Camaro was a rush-job GM response to the original Mustang.

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I've read that the Camaro is being discontinued after next year I believe.

The 2-door world is an odd place. All 3, Ford, GM, Stellantis, have a following. The push to EV and Hybrid is having a big effect on the muscle car market as folks try to secure ICE before it fades away.
I'm a little surprised Challenger outsold Mustang in 2021 becauae the Brampton plant closed about 3 times because of CV and chips. But that's the story with all of them.

As mentioned in posts above, the Challenger platform, as well as Charger, is stale and there is constant complaints from that circle. And there are no plans to refresh it before the end of 2023 production at which time EV/Hybrid starts. But there is a lot of uncertainty about what Stellantis plans to do.

IMO a 1 time hiccup in top sales is not something to be concerned over. I have faith Ford Mustang sales will bounce back.

The Challenger is a great car. I love the timeless styling. Big trunk and adequate rear seat. AWD available with the Pentastar V6. Supercharger kits readily available for the Pentastar, and millions installed in many Dodge ChryCo and Jeeps, so lots of support and parts availability.

If the interiors weren't cheap I'd probably have an AWD as a daily.

Cobrajet67 said:

Apparently, the Mustang has been beat by the Challenger in sales for 2021: Challenger Takes The Lead From The Mustang in American Muscle Car Sales (powernationtv.com)

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That's really not saying much so to speak....the Camero sales are so bad IIRR Chev is seriously considering cancelling production after 2023. Given Ford's reputation of treating customers poorly, QA issues, engineering defects, etc., they are not far behind GM and FIAT in watching the customers leave

V6 Cannonballer said:

Oh, no... Whatever shall we do?

Keep enjoying our own rides. Let the suits worry about the numbers.

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I started this just as an fyi thread, nothing more. We can't have only good news as that's just cherry picking reality.
The problem is Mustang yearly sales have generally been steadily dropping off even with body style changes for a long time now so a valid concern is what happened to the Camaro. Sales have been so bad for years that GM is apparently quietly killing it off. We don't want that to happen to the Mustang as well therefore the numbers shouldn't only worry the suits if you want Mustangs to buy in the future either new or used.
Though aging demographics play a big part a major issue is that the younger generation largely looks at Mustangs, Challengers, Camaros, etc as something that reflects a bygone era. The youth widely care more for tech and convenience than the visceral experience of an ICE vehicle. Whether sales continue to slowly spiral downward will significantly depend on the reception of the new S650 next year and the powertrains that get offered during it's run. If a hybrid or all electric version are also offered, which is almost certain, along with the 5.0 then I see sales possibly picking up.