Vaughn Gittin Jr. builds vehicles that are ready to rock—that's literally what the "RTR" in RTR Vehicles stands for. The latest example to roll out of Gittin's North Carolina facility appears to be a properly rowdy rendition of the 2026 Ford Mustang: The Mustang RTR Spec 5.

The plan is to build just 50 examples of RTR's rowdiest machine. Three have already been built, and customer deliveries are currently underway. Car numero uno boasts massive power, a paint color dubbed Terrain, and a composite widebody kit. Vaught Gittin Jr. was on hand to personally hand over the keys to artist Caleb Clark, who commissioned the build.

2026 RTR Mustang Spec 5

Photo by: RTR Vehicles

All Spec 5 builds begin life as a standard V8-powered Mustang. There's a 5.0-liter mill up front, but with a supercharger, output jumps to a massive 870 horsepower.

RTR swaps in its Tactical Performance suspension system, which boasts 30-way-adjustable front coilovers as well as adjustable front and rear sway bars. This allows owners to alter the ride height, stiffness, and just how neutral or tail-happy they want their machine to behave.

Each Spec 5 Mustang features a set of 20-inch RTR forged wheels wearing Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S tires. The sound arrives courtesy of a Borla exhaust system that's been developed in conjunction with RTR to create a signature tone.

RTR plans to build just 50 examples, with each one starting at $159,999. Each car can be ordered directly through RTR's North Carolina facility or via RTR-authorized dealers and includes a 3-year, 36,000-mile Ford factory warranty.

Photo by: RTR Vehicles

When you raise your hand to let RTR know you want a Spec 5 Mustang, the company works with you to make it your own.

There's a run of standard colors available, but RTR also offers unique colors it considers premium color choices for an extra $7,500. Or owners can jump to unique finishes like the Mystichrome you see above for $15,000. That upper tier of paintwork also opens the door to RTR's paint-to-sample program.

RTR says it wants to offer something that appeals to car enthusiasts, both young and old. As RTR Vehicles Director of Marketing and Sales, Josh Hipp, notes:

'Our motivation to break out as a performance division alongside Ford comes from 20 years of hard work honing in our craft, design language, engineering prowess, and our performance capabilities, both on and off the track. Plus, we've spent two decades cementing our place in automotive culture and the enthusiast community, which is the basis of how we look at where we're going in the future. We would like to define ourselves as a brand that is a way-shower for those young and young at heart.'

That's where our partnership with Ford finds its greatest strength as we are attracting a young audience into the Blue Oval and into RTR. Our ultimate goal is to curate a larger community, both young and old, that appreciates cool shit.

Photo by: RTR Vehicles

While the pony car remains a staple vehicle for RTR, the brand also cooks up some great versions of other members of the Blue Oval lineup. Hipp says that the Mustang Spec 5 is RTR's "apex product," with a strong likelihood of the Spec 5 moniker making it to other Ford models.

I pressed Hipp on the possibility of an RTR Baja-ready Bronco Spec 5, and he said:

What do you think?

'It would be fair to assume that RTR could eventually release a Spec 5-level Bronco-type vehicle, but there’s no information to share on that front at this time.'

That most certainly sounds like a "just wait" answer to me. And would I be crazy to hold out hope for a wild Maverick iteration, too? Regardless, RTR has plenty of fun directions it could take with all sorts of vehicles in the current Ford lineup.

More RTR News

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Extracted and lightly reformatted for readability. · Source: pt