---
title: "Australia-Only 2019 Ford Mustang V8 Supercar Is the Right Type of Ridiculous"
description: "Sure, the Aussies will miss the Ford Falcon, but what's not to love about a 600-horsepower, naturally aspirated V-8 in a Mustang?"
date: "2019-02-05"
modified: "2019-02-05"
authors:
  - name: "James Gilboy"
    job_title: "Contributing Writer"
    link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/james-gilboy.md"
url: "https://www.thedrive.com/accelerator/26345/australia-only-2019-ford-mustang-v8-supercar-is-the-right-type-of-ridiculous"
categories:
  - "Ford News"
  - "News"
  - "News by Brand"
  - "Racing"
tags:
  - "Coupe"
  - "Ford"
  - "Mustang"
  - "Pony Cars"
  - "race cars"
  - "Supercar"
  - "V-8"
  - "v-8 supercars"
---

# Australia-Only 2019 Ford Mustang V8 Supercar Is the Right Type of Ridiculous

![](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/images-by-url-td/content/2019/02/ford-mustang-supercars-hero.jpg>)
*\<em\>www.thedrive.com</em>*

Ford Australia revealed Tuesday its 2019 entry into Australia's iconic touring car race series: the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship, or V8 Supercars to most of us.

The Ford Performance Mustang Supercar, as Ford calls it, is the successor to the retired Falcon Falcon FG X, whose last factory-supported Supercars race was the 2018 Newcastle 500, where it won. Ford of Australia ceased production of the Falcon in 2016, 46 years after the Falcon nameplate's retirement in North America, and elected to replace the Falcon's sedan body style with that of the Mustang.

https://youtube.com/embed/USUpu5qqdaM

Current Supercars Championship vehicles are all built on an identical base chassis and roll cage setup, though constructors are allowed to add make-specific bodywork and aero components. All cars competing in the series have homologated bodies, whose drag coefficients and downforce levels are as close to identical as possible. Weight must match or exceed 1,410 kilograms (3,109 pounds), at least 755 kilograms (1,664 pounds) of which must be over the front axle, where the engine is.

Engines are not mandated to be V8s, but all manufacturers still use naturally aspirated 5.0-liter V8s, making more than 600 horsepower. Ford and Holden—a General Motors brand—still use pushrod-actuated valves, two per cylinder. The latter considered switching to [a twin-turbo V6](<https://www.thedrive.com/start-finish/12643/this-is-the-sound-of-australias-new-v-6-supercars.md>), but [ultimately shelved the project in 2018](<https://www.thedrive.com/accelerator/19932/holden-halts-usage-of-the-twin-turbo-v-6-engine-in-the-supercars-series.md>).

[Mustangs will also find their way into the NASCAR Monster Energy Series](<https://www.thedrive.com/accelerator/20172/ford-mustang-to-fight-in-the-2019-nascar-monster-energy-series.md>), America's closest analog to the Supercars Championship, in 2019. It will mark the first time that Mustangs (or Mustang-bodied lookalikes) will have competed in the NASCAR Cup Series.

## Author
James is a former staff writer for The Drive. He has changed the conversation around electrification, debunked misinformation online, and become a prominent hunter of what he calls "automotive cryptids."

### Author social links  
[Instagram](<https://instagram.com/jamesgilboy>)

## More

- [This Intimidating Chevy Camaro Will Face the Ford Mustang in Australia’s Supercar Championship](<https://www.thedrive.com/accelerator/37078/this-intimidating-chevy-camaro-will-face-the-ford-mustang-in-australias-supercar-championship.md>)
- [Ford Mustang to Fight in the 2019 NASCAR Monster Energy Series](<https://www.thedrive.com/accelerator/20172/ford-mustang-to-fight-in-the-2019-nascar-monster-energy-series.md>)
- [Supercars Championship 2019 Season Opener Confirmed](<https://www.thedrive.com/accelerator/21954/supercars-championship-2019-season-opener-confirmed.md>)
- [How NASCAR’s Next-Gen Ford Mustang Compares to Its Australian Supercar Sibling](<https://www.thedrive.com/accelerator/40478/how-nascars-next-gen-ford-mustang-compares-to-the-australian-v8-supercar.md>)
- [Ford Is Mad That the Chevy Camaro Is Destroying the Mustang in V8 Supercars](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/ford-is-mad-that-the-chevy-camaro-is-destroying-the-mustang-in-v8-supercars.md>)
- [A Ford Mustang Sedan With a V8 and Manual Is Totally Possible, CEO Says](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/a-ford-mustang-sedan-with-a-v8-and-manual-is-totally-possible-ceo-says.md>)
- [Ford CEO: Fine With Being ‘Only One on the Planet Making a V8 Affordable Sports Car’](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/ford-will-keep-making-v8-mustangs-no-matter-what-chevy-and-dodge-do.md>)
- [The Ford Mustang is Australia’s New Mad Max Interceptor](<https://www.thedrive.com/new-cars/1181/the-ford-mustang-is-australias-new-mad-max-interceptor.md>)