After a 17-year hiatus, the 2021 Ford Mustang Mach 1 is here.
“Mach 1” is one of the most iconic names to accompany the Mustang at various points throughout its 55-year production history. Ford brought it back for the 2021 model year — retiring the old Shelby GT350 and the also-beloved Bullitt in the process — but this one is particularly special. The very first production model, VIN 001, hit the Barrett-Jackson auction block in Scottsdale last night. Leading up to the actual event, we were curious exactly how the hammer price would shake out. First-VIN examples tend to fetch big money for obvious reasons, but automakers have been putting these vehicles up with the intent to send the proceeds to charitable causes. That, in itself, can also draw in larger bids from philanthropic types. Also, if you want the car badly enough and have the means, money really is no object, is it?
Friday saw some other blockbuster sales as well. The very first Hellcat-powered Ram 1500 TRX Launch Edition also crossed the block, as did the first 2020 Chevrolet Corvette convertible. While the Chevy brought in a cool $400,000 — also for a charitable cause — this 2021 Ford Mustang Mach 1 sold for a whopping $500,000. I say “whopping” because that’s honestly a bit more than I expected, but still great news for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, or JDRF. These cars foreshadow a couple even larger auctions tonight, including the VIN 001 Ford Bronco and the GMC Hummer EV pickup.
Getting back to this Mustang though, what do you get in terms of the actual car? This now fills the gap between the standard Mustang GT and the wonderfully ludicrous Shelby GT500. It still uses a 5.0-liter Coyote V8 engine packing 480 horsepower paired to a 6-speed manual transmission, as the automotive gods intended. It’s a track-focused machine, hence all the aggressive aero gear and beefy brakes.
If you didn’t have the wedge of money to slap down on VIN 001 at Barrett-Jackson last night (you’re hardly alone on that one), the 2021 Ford Mustang Mach 1 has an MSRP starting at $53,915 including destination. That’s not to say dealers won’t mark these up as they arrive en masse this spring. Still, though, you won’t have to shell out half a million dollars for the privilege.
