2024 May Be The Ford Mustang's Worst Year Of All Time - Here's Why

Just a couple of years ago, each of the Big Three American car makers offered its own rear-drive, two-door coupe with an optional V8 engine. There was the Dodge Challenger, which left the market after the 2023 model year, and the Chevrolet Camaro, which was discontinued after the 2024 model year. Finally, there was the Ford Mustang, which is now left as the last gasoline pony car standing. 

Given that it no longer has any direct domestic competitors, and that Ford revealed a new Mustang for 2024, you'd think it would have been a solid sales year for Ford's icon, but that was not the case. 2024 turned out to be the worst sales year for the Mustang in its 60-year history, with overall sales down 9.5% from 2023. 2024 wasn't an anomaly either, as Mustang sales have generally been trending downward since the late 2010s. So why is it that fewer people than ever are buying Ford's iconic pony car? Let's look at some possible reasons.

Ford considers the 2024 Mustang to be an "all-new" car. But even at a glance, it's obvious that it's not all that different from the previous S550 Mustang, which debuted for 2015. The S650's front and rear fascias are new, and its screen-laden cockpit is a big departure from before, but the overall profile of the car and its underlying structure are familiar entities. Perhaps after almost a decade of the S550, Mustang buyers expected something more dramatic?

Then there's the Mustang's ballooning price. For the model's entire history, Mustang has been about affordable style and fun, but that's not so much the case anymore. The cheapest 2025 Mustang you can buy is the base EcoBoost Fastback with a starting MSRP after destination of $33,515. Back in 2015, when the S550 Mustang debuted, the entry-level Mustang Coupe had an MSRP of just $24,425. 

The 2015 Mustang GT with its 5.0-liter Coyote V8 had a base MSRP just under $33,000.In 2025, the Mustang GT has a starting price of over $47,000. That's a $14,000 increase in 10 years, and only two generations of Mustang that are not especially different from each other. Nearly all MSRPs have risen at similar rates over the last decade, but these increases do seem to affect the demand for specialty cars like the Mustang, more so than mainstream vehicles.

The Mustang has always made its bones by being accessible to all types of car buyers. Every generation of the iconic pony car has gone through lots of changes since the 1960s, but the youth market has always been a big driver of Mustang popularity. Even as recently as a decade ago, a young person in their 20s or 30s could more easily justify the purchase of a $25,000 Mustang Ecoboost or $35,000 Mustang GT as one of their first new-car purchases.

Today, the average person who can afford a $35,000 base Mustang or $47,000 Mustang GT is likely at a different spot in life. They may have kids to haul around, Costco runs to make, and lifestyles that just aren't a good fit for a pricey two-door car with a small backseat. 

Things might not be going great on the sales front for the Mustang right now, but the good news is that Ford has always done a good job of adapting to the market and evolving the Mustang, even as its competitors have given up and abandoned the market. 

Sure, there's the Mustang Mach-E to carry on the name to a new generation of buyers, but the "real" Mustang is a car worth fighting for. Though it was expensive, we found the 2024 Mustang GT to deliver a fantastic driving experience, and we would like to see the car stick around. For people who love cars and love driving, America with a V8 Mustang is a lot better than America without one.