2026 Ford Mustang RTR Is A 'Ready To Rock' Drift Car For The Masses
We sometimes look at parts bin engineering as a bad thing, but that's not the case with the Mustang RTR. Ford has installed some of the best bits of high-end models on this lower-spec EcoBoost to make significant handling improvements. The RTR gets Brembo brakes from the GT Performance package, with six-piston front calipers and 15.3-inch front rotors. It also gets the GT's more powerful cooling fan and a modified GT steering rack with nearly three inches of additional travel to hold those drift angles. The Mustang Dark Horse donates its rear subframe, adjustable strut alignment brackets, and the front and rear stabilizer bars from its handling package. Ford has created a special Drift/Track performance alignment spec, which dealers can set the car to at the customer's request. MagneRide dampers are optional, and also get RTR-specific settings. A unique RTR-tuned Track mode allows drivers to get sideways, but reels the car in before it gets too far out of control, giving amateurs a chance to get a feel for drifting with an electronic safety net. A drift car has to look cool, and the RTR gets a bunch of upgrades in that department as well. It gains the nose of a Mustang GT. This could be to hide the fact that it's not a GT, but more likely to better integrate the special grill with RTR signature lit nostrils. The car looks white, but Ford calls the color Avalanche Gray. Numerous Tarnished Dark Anodized components compliment the color, the most notable of which are the 19-inch wheels. Special graphics, mirror caps, pony badges, and a raised rear wing spoiler from the Mustang GT Performance Pack complete the package. RTR likes its bright Hyper Lime calipers, seat belt, and Drift Brake, but they're also available in Dark Tarnished if the brightness doesn't appeal to you. Ford has not announced pricing, but the RTR package will be available solely for the EcoBoost High Package and EcoBoost Premium, both in the coupe body style only. Adding a few thousand to the base price of those would likely put this in the $35,000 to $40,000 range. That's more than a Toyota GR86, but it's also a lot more car with a lot more horsepower. While it's not chump change, it's still well below the $50,000 average price of a new car these days for a potent performance package.