If you can’t get enough of those 2018 Mustang details, John McElroy and the crew at Autoline After Hours conducted a lengthy interview with Mustang Chief Engineer Carl Widdman, Mustang Engineering Manager Tom Barnes, and Mustang Marketing Manager Mark Schaller, who touch on a variety of subjects including lessons learned from other vehicles, performance improvements added, and the variety of options available.

We were able to spend quite a bit of time speaking with these same gentlemen when we drove the 2018 Mustangs in Malibu, California, but it’s always great to hear about these cars from the people who create them. The interview hits a variety of subjects, but most interesting is that the mainstream engineers worked hard on dialing in the dual fuel system, not only for the production car, but they also collaborated with Ford Performance and Roush on the new TVS supercharger upgrade.

“We are always trying to push the 5.0-liter, right? Even 2017 we got valve change and flow changes, but the real game-changer was the fueling system. We’ve got two injection systems, but by doing that we were able to raise the compression ratio because we are controlling the fuel system. With the direct-injection system we are able to control it, atomize it better, and get a better burn.?” Carl told Autoline. “…We just announced the supercharger at SEMA, which was developed by Roush and Ford Performance, and the trick was getting it to work with the dual-injection strategy.”

While picking up a few technical nuggets definitely makes the video above worth watching, the best part is seeing the genuine enthusiasm displayed by the people charged with creating and selling our favorite pony car.

“It’s got to put a smile on your face,” Tom said of the engineering team’s mission for the car. “We want Mustang to be a daily driver, but then we and to be able to just take it out and drive it on a super-twisty road and just smile. It’s an emotional car. It’s got to have soul.”

“Our mantra is that we are going to build the best Mustang,” Carl added. “Our focus is usually inward and to our customers.”

Based on our experience in the cars, the engineers transformed that introspection and analysis into an impressive driving machine.