4 Things To Know If You Want A Ford Mustang As A Family Car – Jalopnik

The Ford Mustang is a legendary excessive performer that — in its sportiest configurations — has been recognized to lap the Nürburgring in document time. But it additionally occurs to be the easiest household automotive that Ford sells for 2026. Of course, the Mustang is the one precise automotive the Blue Oval now sells, since every little thing else is both a crossover, an SUV, or a truck.

Still, the present Mustang might shock you as a family-friendly selection. Experts from the likes of AAA and Good Housekeeping, amongst others, inform customers to deal with elements resembling security applied sciences, car-seat compatibility, passenger room, cupboard space, and gas economic system — and the numbers might be massaged to point out the ‘Stang does pretty properly in a few of these areas. On the opposite hand, Ford’s fashionable pony automotive cannot hold with “real” individuals movers like minivans or SUVs, particularly in key classes involving measurement and security. The backside line is that whereas the Mustang could also be higher than you suppose as a household selection, you need to understand it comes with some main, doubtlessly deal-breaking compromises.

We’ll test all that out and extra under, however first a fast be aware: We’re going to deal with the standard gas-powered two-door Ford Mustang fastback from the present technology, which went on sale for the 2024 mannequin yr. We’ll depart the Mustang Mach-E four-door EV crossover for an additional day and tackle the four-door Mustang sedan if that ever seems. Rumors proceed to fly over that latter risk regardless of Ford leaving the sedan section 5 years in the past.

Safety is extra vital than ever with little ones onboard, so it is good to know that the 2026 Ford Mustang does earn a five-star total score in NHTSA crash testing, with the complete 5 stars in frontal and facet crash safety plus a five-star rating for rollover resistance. The outcomes with IIHS, nevertheless, paint a distinct image. Not solely did it fail to qualify as a Top Safety Pick, however it additionally acquired solely a marginal score for car-seat compatibility with its LATCH anchors. To be actual, the decrease anchors in each rear-seat positions had been discovered to be situated too deep within the seat and had been too exhausting to connect. Remember, too, that the IIHS claims the danger of dying in a crash might be 46% greater for individuals buckled into the again seats than into the entrance.

Further, in case you’re searching for a automotive you’ll be able to rely on, the Mustang might not be the perfect answer. It has the second-worst predicted reliability in its section based on Consumer Reports, and it has been recalled 3 times — not counting a individually listed recall for unintended acceleration within the supercharged Mustang GTD.

The excellent news is that the Mustang is fairly properly full of ADAS options. Lane-keeping help, a blind-spot system, rear cross-traffic alert, automated emergency braking, and rear parking sensors all be a part of the federally mandated rearview digital camera as commonplace gear. Adaptive cruise management is among the many Mustang’s choices.

Most individuals do not cease driving once they have youngsters. In reality, you could end up travelling much more miles than standard in case you’re including child-centered rides like visits to the grandparents, journeys to the pediatrician, and further grocery runs to your typical day. With that in thoughts, it could possibly make sense to decide on a household automotive that is comparatively good on fuel — just like the Ford Mustang. 

The 2026 Mustang can earn EPA scores of twenty-two mpg metropolis/33 mpg freeway/26 mpg mixed when geared up with its commonplace 2.3-liter EcoBoost engine. That makes for benefits of three mpg metropolis/5 mpg freeway/4 mpg mixed over each the 2026 Honda Odyssey and the usual Chrysler Pacifica. Additionally, the Mustang’s EPA numbers come together with 315 horsepower and 350 pound-feet of torque. Putting all that output to good use, Car and Driver clocked a 2024 EcoBoost Mustang attending to 60 mph in 4.5 seconds. Just bear in mind that your fuel mileage drops the sooner you go, so you will not have the ability to maximize velocity and gas economic system on the similar time.

The concern right here is that many fashionable selections for households are literally far more environment friendly than the Mustang. Among minivans alone, the peculiarly styled 2027 Chrysler Pacifica plug-in can hit 30 mpg mixed in gas-hybrid mode and journey 32 miles solely with electrical energy. The Toyota Sienna, for its half, rocks a standard hybrid setup good for 36 mpg in all sides of EPA fuel-economy testing.

There’s additionally no getting round the truth that the Mustang’s rear seats usually are not very massive. So past any considerations about reaching these LATCH attachments, it could be robust to even wedge a automotive seat into the again of the automobile within the first place. Watching somebody attempt to stuff a forward-facing booster seat into the rear of a Mustang, as an illustration, reveals precisely how actual the battle might be. Moreover, as soon as it is achieved, your little tyke might not have any legroom leftover. A mere 29 inches is out there for back-seat passengers. The fastback additionally exacerbates the house concern by lowering rear-seat headroom to 34.8 inches.

To put that into context, the compact and hybrid-only 2026 Mitsubishi Outlander can ship practically 40 inches of second-row legroom with house left over for a 3rd row — albeit one with fewer than 19 inches of house for decrease extremities. Oh, and the Outlander additional leads in second-row headroom, with an additional 4.3 inches versus the Mustang. True, the convertible opens up extra headroom, however on the value of a 15.6% drop in trunk dimensions.

Speaking of which, the Mustang does have 13.5 cubic toes of room to place junk within the trunk, together with split-folding rear seats that may considerably develop that house. Some reviewers, although, famous that the trunk’s form makes it much less sensible to make use of in some instances.

Many individuals complain concerning the value of autos immediately, notably now that wealthy individuals wealthy individuals killed off America’s inexpensive automobiles. Yet regardless of the common marketed value of a brand new automotive reaching a brand new document earlier this yr, that price of $51,974 is a minor buy in comparison with the outlay for elevating a toddler. Bringing up child, from delivery to age 18, will set you again greater than $303,000 based on Lending Tree.

With that in thoughts, a brand new 2026 Mustang, with an MSRP of $32,995 (earlier than vacation spot prices of $1,995), is a veritable cut price. The solely minivan priced beneath $40,000 is the Kia Carnival, which squeaks in at $39,035 — representing an MSRP of $37,490 and a vacation spot charge of $1,545. The flipside right here is that regardless that many individuals take into account minivans to be the Platonic ideally suited of a household automotive, many households truly do not want a automobile that huge and dear. And there are many family-approved rides round that undercut each the Carnival and the Mustang.

For instance, when Car and Driver got here up with a listing of high autos for households, it included the Chevrolet Trax, Ford’s personal Maverick, and the Honda Accord. And all of these have MSRPs under $30,000.