7 Of The Highest Horsepower Ford Mustangs Ever Made

Part of the appeal of the Ford Mustang has always been its power. People have always wanted to put hulking V8 engines under the hood of one and tear down the road like they're the subject of a Bruce Springsteen song. From its earliest days in the 1960s where it was being powered by the 428 Cobra Jet engine that could generate up to 335 hp, it became one of the figureheads of the muscle car generation, and even as that era faded away, the Mustang has remained synonymous with American-built automotive power. Despite emissions restrictions, environmental regulations, oil crises, and more, Ford and Shelby, a frequent collaborator on the car, have managed to find ways to continuously grow the horsepower capabilities of the Mustang no matter what gets thrown in its way. That Mustang Mach I was impressive for its time, but there have been Mustang models since that have doubled and tripled its power output.

Some of the Mustang's most powerful models are plentiful on the road, and others have only had very limited production runs, not even reaching three dozen produced units. There have been so many different special editions, offshoots, high performance models, and more, that it can be a little overwhelming to look at the wide scope of the car's 60-year history and see what exactly are the most powerful Mustangs that Ford has ever produced. Luckily, we are here to answer that question by spotlighting seven different models that rank among the highest horsepower ratings ever achieved by a car from a major manufacturer, let alone just Ford.

The most powerful Ford Mustang ever built is also one of its most limited. This is a car that began life back in the late 2000s but never found a way to get out of just being an experimental vehicle. However, that all changed in 2020 with the reveal of the Ford Shelby Mustang GT500 Code Red, which would be produced for just three years. Not only did it have a limited time of production, it was a strictly limited edition vehicle that only had 30 units produced in total.

To power the Mustang GT500 Code Red, Shelby took the standard GT500 that Ford had built and really juiced it up. The GT500 typically comes with a supercharged 5.2L V8 engine, and Shelby opted to switch out the supercharger for two turbochargers instead. Shelby also enlisted Nelson's Racing Engines to modify the engine to feature a dual-feed fuel system. If you were to use premium gasoline with the Code Red, you would be looking at an output of over 1,000 hp and 780 lb-ft of torque. While those are impressive numbers, that would not be the highest horsepower rating for a Mustang. To get to that top spot, you would instead need to use E85 ethanol for fuel. That increases the output to 1,300 hp and over 1,000 lb-ft of torque.

Importantly, the Mustang GT500 Code Red is not a street legal vehicle. Instead, it's designed to drive as fast as possible on a racetrack. So, it makes sense why just 30 were produced.

You might assume that all of the models at the top of this list would be from within the last five years, and while that is mostly true, there are Mustangs that are over a decade old that produce exceptional amounts of horsepower. One of those is the 2013 Ford Shelby 1000 S/C, named as a tribute to the Shelby Cobra. When this car was first introduced the year prior, it was not a street legal vehicle, but that changed for 2013. That does not mean there was a drop in horsepower to achieve this status. In fact, the maximum output increased from 1,100 to 1,200 hp.

This change in output was due to a complete engine overhaul from the original model. It had used a supercharged 5.4L V8 under the hood, but for 2013, Shelby decided to use the newer 5.8L V8 that was powering the contemporaneous Ford Mustang GT500, and also gave it a 3.6L Kenne Bell supercharger. This is how Ford and Shelby could reach that crazy 1,200 hp number. However, with its manual six-speed transmission, MotorTrend puts its actual output at a maximum of 1,050 hp. Even that number would still put the 2013 Ford Shelby 1000 S/C in second place on this list.

The 2014 model would continue to use this setup and achieve the same results, but Shelby decided to end production of the 1000 S/C after that year. It is not smog legal in California, as the state has very strict smog check laws for automobiles, but you've got 49 other states to drive in.

Shelby has been using the moniker Super Snake for various iterations of its take on high performance Ford Mustangs going all the way back to 1967. In the more modern era, that name has been used for several different upgraded models, but most recently, it is Shelby's take on the Ford Mustang S650 GT. It first launched for the 2024 model year and Shelby did not want to hold back when it came to delivering power to the people.

For a production vehicle, the specs on this Mustang are incredibly impressive. Boasting a 5.0L Coyote V8 under the hood, outfitted with a 3.0L Whipple supercharger, you can expect a maximum output of over 830 hp. This is a street legal vehicle, but in total, Shelby is only going to be producing 300 units of the 2025 Mustang Super Snake. The starting price on the car is a whopping $170,165, which is the kind of price tag that makes your average gear head sink in their seat because they know they can't have it. For those who can afford it, you are getting the most powerful Ford Mustang currently in production.

All of the models listed so far have been examples of Shelby American taking Ford Mustangs and supercharging or turbocharging them for maximum performance. However, Ford Performance, the racing division of the company, is perfectly capable of delivering a high performance vehicle too. Right alongside the 2025 Shelby Super Snake, Ford offered its own performance take on the 2025 model with the Ford Mustang GTD.

This is a model which had its original conception on the racetrack. First, Ford built the Mustang GT3 for competition purposes, and the company ultimately decided that there should be a street legal version of the race car. That is where the Mustang GTD comes into play. There are plenty of differences between the two in order to get the street legal designation, and one of those is the engine, though in reality the GTD's has just 0.2L less displacement volume than the GT3. The GTD features a supercharged 5.2L V8 engine that has the outstanding maximum output of 815 hp. So, it doesn't quite reach the peak of the Super Snake, but it comes about as close as you can get.

The 2025 model year is the very first year for the Mustang GTD. In fact, it hasn't actually hit the market just yet, though it's expected to cost around $325,000. If Ford Performance continues to produce and improve the car over the years, you could see it climb this list even higher. Ford advertises this model by saying "Street Legal. But Just Barely." With that kind of horsepower, you can understand why.

Although the Code Red is currently the crown jewel of what Shelby is able to accomplish with the Ford Mustang GT500, it is not the only variation of that model that the company has created. After all, there are only 30 Code Reds in total, and they aren't street legal. That is where the Ford Shelby GT500SE shines, with the SE meaning Signature Edition. The regular Shelby GT500 has enough power for most people at 760 hp, and that would plant it at this spot on the list if the SE didn't exist. However, for the upgraded variation, Shelby maximized output to over 800 hp.

The two utilize the same 5.2L V8 engine, but for the GT500SE, Shelby installed a new pulley and coolers to get the most out of that engine. While there are many regular GT500s around, the SE models are extremely limited. Shelby will only create 100 units per model year. In a great gesture, proceeds from sales of every Shelby Mustang GT500SE will go directly to the Carroll Shelby Foundation, which looks to provide medical and educational care for children in need. So, not only do you get to have one of the most powerful cars on the road, you get to know that you are also helping kids in some small way.

The price of a GT500SE is listed as $29,995, but that is simply an upgrade price. You need to have the standard GT500 to begin with, which Ford discontinued after the 2022 model year.

Shelby American is not alone in upgrading Ford Mustangs into true power machines. Fisker-Galpin, a collaboration between Galpin Motors and Danish auto designer Henrik Fisker, introduced an incredibly impressive take on the 2015 Ford Mustang GT called the Mustang Rocket.

This is a rather radical overhaul of the standard Mustang GT, and it goes beyond the upgraded powertrain. Most notably, the body panels have been replaced by carbon fiber, making the car lighter while still being sturdy in its construction. Of course, the powertrain is improved too. The Rocket features the standard 5.0L Coyote V8 that you would normally find in a Mustang GT of the time, but it is also equipped with a 2.9L Whipple supercharger.

Fisker-Galpin claims that this configuration will allow the Mustang Rocket to generate up to 725 hp, which Car and Driver states could well be possible, though isn't confirmed. Regardless, its position on this list does not change, and the 2015 Fisker-Galpin Mustang Rocket stands as one of the most powerful Ford Mustangs of all time.

While Fisker-Galpin had a good time with the Mustang GT for the 2015 model year, Ford itself did just as well when it introduced a rather special edition of the car. A number of the Mustang models on this list were produced in very limited quantities, but none of them are as limited as this one. There was only a single unit produced of the 2015 Ford Mustang GT Apollo Edition. This particular Mustang was designed to commemorate the Apollo moon missions. Ford has designed a number of cars to commemorate other notable American air-centric people or accomplishments like the Tuskegee Airmen or the SR-71 Blackbird, but of all these special editions the Apollo is the most powerful.

The 2015 Ford Mustang GT Apollo Edition has the ability to reach a maximum output of 627 hp and 540 lb-ft of torque. Obviously, this is not meant to be a commercial production vehicle, even if that horsepower rating is tantalizing. Ford has built this Mustang and all of these air-themed cars for the Experimental Aircraft Association, specifically to benefit the group's youth aviation programs that teach and train young people to become pilots. The GT Apollo Edition was put up at auction and was able to fetch $230,000, with all of the proceeds going directly to that program. So, while this special Ford Mustang can only belong to one person, at least its limited nature is for a good cause.