Power Wheels Mustang: small carriage

When I was growing up, it was a hot wheel and a matchbox car. I can never get enough of them, and always like to get them on my birthday or Christmas. I would spend a few hours running them on the living room floor, sofa and even my bed.

In similar fashion, Ford and Fisher-Price have created the Power Wheels Smart Drive Mustang, a battery operated car sure to have your little one turning donuts in the driveway. Perhaps something like this will inspire a new generation of car enthusiasts?

Smiles & Styles

Power & Performance

Safety & Security

Availability

Smiles & Styles

The officially licensed Power Wheels Mustang is meant to bring joy to the little gearhead in your family. Fisher-Price developed the pint-sized pony car using Ford sourced data. The result is a smaller version of the Mustang GTs we see at car shows and in driveways across the country.

Just like the real thing, the Power Wheels Mustang has pony car looks and solid performance.

Power & Performance

Let’s say your little one is a “chip off the old block” and wants to really get moving around the neighborhood. The Power Wheels Mustang has a slow start and stop system, instead of a basic on/off design. The motors actually ramp speed up or down, for faster starts and shorter stopping distances.

To add to the imagination, there is an integrated sound system. Engine sounds, recorded from an actual Mustang, are pumped into the little machine. The sounds articulate accordingly with acceleration and an auxiliary input jack allows kids to play their music on the biggest stereo ever installed in a Fisher-Price product.

What kind of music do kids listen to these days anyway?

Photo: Fisher-Price, Ford Motor Company.

Safety & Security

The Power Wheels Mustang features a nice array of safety tech, you know, so parents can rest easy. One safety feature – which is really something for a children’s toy – is traction control to monitor wheel slippage and adjust engine output.

Let’s say your little one wants to plow through the front lawn – this is where traction control is going to kick in.

Next up is stability monitoring that reads the angle of the toy car and takes action should excessive tilt be detected. This will shut down the motor to help mitigate rollover accidents.

Now, perhaps (and not that this would be your kids per se) little Johnny is rip-roaring around, blaring his music and scaring the neighbors with his reckless driving. Parents can utilize the digital speed control function to bring that nonsense to a halt. With this feature, parents shut down little Johnny’s fun, taking him from 5 to 1 mph instantly.

For the record, if I had a child, this would be something I would have to employ.

More than once.

Photo: Fisher-Price, Ford Motor Company.

Availability

The Power Wheels Mustang, available in either blue or pink, goes on sale in December for an MSRP of $359.99. Not sure what the lease or financing deals will be . . . maybe you get a lower price if you pay cash?

You can order one through Power Wheels on their official site.

“Mustang is one of our best-selling sports cars,” says Gary Collins, Senior Manager of Design, Power Wheels. “For the Smart Drive Mustang, we wanted to amp up the realistic driving experience to make the feeling of getting behind the wheel even more thrilling for kids.”

Carl Anthony is the executive editor of Automoblog and lives in Detroit, Michigan.