Among the many aspects that Mustang enthusiasts love about their favorite model of car is the exhaust – the particular notes that let you hear and recognize a Mustang well before you see it. However, it’s that same exhaust note that can cause some headaches with your neighbors, especially if you have an early morning commute. Many a neighborly feud has been started or heated up because of a particular loud vehicle starting early in the morning or late at night and rumbling by, waking every one up.

Ford’s own user experience engineer Steve Von Foerster brought this problem to his development team after having been the source of neighborly complaints himself with his Mustang GT350. Newer Ford Mustangs are already equipped with an active valve exhaust system, with the main focus to open up the exhaust for increased performance and sound for the racetrack. Steve wondered if that same system could be used to provide a quieter exhaust on-demand.

What the Ford development team came back with fits the bill perfectly. Available through configuration settings in menu system of the instrument cluster, Mustang owners can enable this quiet mode on-demand. Additionally, Mustang owners can configure their Mustang to always start-up in quiet mode, as well as set certain times of day in which quiet mode should be enabled automatically, enabling drivers to align their quiet mode settings with their daily commute.

This system will be available in Fall of 2017 for the 2018 Ford Mustang GT.