Internal combustion engine detractors, sports car haters and anti-car crusaders better plug their ears because this thing makes one hell of a noise. They may also rejoice, for the newly launched seventh-generation Ford Mustang is probably the last of its kind. Just 60 years after it first appeared in post-war America and 10 million units were manufactured, this model is riding against the tide of its era and is very aware of it.

The new Mustang, produced in Flat Rock, Michigan, is embarking on what feels like a farewell tour with, as its flagship, a 5-liter V8 delivering 446 or 453 hp, depending on the version, for a 0 to 100 km/h time of less than 4.5 seconds.

In contrast to some of its predecessors, this model playfully reinterprets the lines of its founding myth. This 4.82-meter-long four-seat coupé (or cabriolet) – an average size in the US – is muscular without being unnecessarily aggressive, its low, slender lines lending it a real elegance.

The signature of one of the best-known models in automotive history has less to do with its performance than with the husky sound of its mechanics. On some versions, such as the top-of-the-range Dark Horse, these vocalizations can be modulated by electronically modifying the exhaust settings to make it even more sonorous. Mustang enthusiasts may still be children at heart, but they also enjoy the satisfaction of driving this car at cruising speed, wedged into its highly contoured seat.

An old-fashioned parking brake handle beguiles drifting enthusiasts, while its gearshift lever is a firm but precise mini-knob. An automatic transmission may be available, but purists will opt for the manual gearbox.

This rear-wheel drive roadster, which was launched in 1964 to impress the emerging baby-boomer generation with the kind of car that could only be found in America – sporty, powerful, but not necessarily elitist compared to the rest of the country's car production – no longer satisfies the same goals. In the US, it remains a distinctive but gentrified model, perfectly blended into the landscape. In France, the Mustang was, until recently, an exotic product – found mainly in extra-urban areas – cherished by American car culture enthusiasts. Today, this car has become a touchy subject.

While its weight (1.8 tonnes) is nothing out of the ordinary, its technical specifications now violently clash with car taxation policies, guided by the prospective ban on internal combustion engines in Europe and even in America. Even if its fuel consumption is less extravagant than one might expect – just over 11 liters per 100 km on roads and freeways, more in urban settings – French lawmakers decided to take drastic measures.

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