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Development mule

"Mule car" redirects here. For mule-drawn cars, see horsecar.

A development mule, also known as test mule or simply mule, in the automotive industry is a testbed vehicle equipped with prototype components requiring evaluation. They are often camouflaged to cover their designs.

Porsche 918 Spyder development mule in Monaco (2013)
A camouflaged pre-production BMW X5 mule near Munich (2013)
Honda Civic mules in California (2015)
Hyundai Grandeur mule in South Korea (2022)

Application

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Mules are necessary because automakers must assess new aspects of vehicles for both strengths and weaknesses before production. Mules are drivable, sometimes pre-production vehicles often years away from realization and coming after a concept car that preceded the design of critical mechanical components. A mule or engineering development is not the same as a preproduction car because changes are made constantly as the vehicle goes through the engineering development process.[1]

Some mules are built to function as test beds for entry into new market segments such as the mid-engined test mules developed in Italy and Germany for American Motors Corporation (AMC).[2] Surviving examples of these mules are unique.[3] Manufacturers also explore different solutions such as developing an "Urban Concept" car where not only a rotary engine and front-wheel-drive were considered for a small car, but "the first mule was made by cutting down a Matador by 30 in (762 mm) in front and back."[4] Mules using modified existing cars may also be used as a development tool to simulate battery-powered vehicles by incorporating their weight, mass distribution, and suspension to evaluate ride and handling.[5]

Mules may also have advanced chassis and powertrain designs from a prospective vehicle that need testing, which can be effectively concealed in the body and interior of a similarly sized production model.[6][7] In some cases, a completely unrelated vehicle is adapted to hide the powertrain and other mechanicals being tested. Ford used a Transit van that was modified with a mid-mounted Jaguar XJ220 engine and it had candy wrappers and tabloids on the dashboard to make it look like a regular work vehicle.[8]

If no comparable vehicle is available in-house or an external benchmark is being used mules may be based on another manufacturer's model. For example, in the 1970s the new powertrain package of first-generation Ford Fiesta was developed using mules based on the then class-leading Fiat 127, as Ford had no comparable compact model of similar size to utilize.[9]

Mules are also used to conceal styling changes and visible telltales of performance alterations in near-production vehicles, receiving varying degrees of camouflage to deceive rival makers and thwart a curious automotive press. Such alterations can span from distracting shrinkwrap designs, somewhat reminiscent of dazzle camouflage, to substituting crude cylindric shapes for taillights, non-standard wheels, or assemblages of plastic and tape to hide a vehicle's shape and design elements.[10] The wraps may also serve as part of marketing techniques to promote future car reveals.[11]

Development mules are often used very heavily during testing and scrapped.[12] Automakers also use auto racing and develop components for race cars that serve as development mules for their performance parts, such as AMC’s "Group 19" program.[13][14][15]

Occasionally, mule vehicles are acquired by members of the automaker's engineering team or executives overseeing the design process.[16][17] In some cases, the test mules may be evaluated as being better than the final products.[18]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Lamm, Michael (July 1983). "PM First Hand Report: Dodge Daytona". Popular Mechanics. Vol. 160, no. 1. p. 88. Retrieved 28 December 2022 – via Google Books.
  2. ^ Chin, Chris (27 November 2019). "First-Ever AMC AMX/3 Prototype Bound for Restoration After Sitting for Nearly 50 Years". The Drive. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  3. ^ Perez, Jeff (26 December 2016). "This AMX/3 could be the most expensive AMC ever sold". Motor1. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  4. ^ Niedermeyer, Paul (2 November 2022). "Vintage R&T Technical Analysis: AMC's New Pacer – As Short As A Pinto; As Wide As A Chevelle". Curbside Classic. Retrieved 7 January 2023.
  5. ^ Near-term Electric Vehicle Program. Department of Energy. 1978. p. 13. Retrieved 28 December 2022 – via Google Books.
  6. ^ Healey, James R. (1 May 2009). "Drivers could get a charge out of Chevrolet Volt". USA Today. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  7. ^ McCraw, Jim (September 1992). "Sneak Previews of U.S. Cars to Come". Popular Science. Vol. 241, no. 3. pp. 68–72. Retrieved 31 July 2022 – via Google Books.
  8. ^ Demuro, Doug (5 November 2018). "The Jaguar XJ220 Development Mule Was a Ford Van". Autotrader. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  9. ^ "Fiesta is a worthy UK record breaker". worksopguardian.co.uk. 8 November 2014. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
  10. ^ Dunne, Jim (December 1991). "Detroit Spy Report". Popular Mechanics. Vol. 168, no. 12. p. 108. Retrieved 31 July 2022 – via Google Books.
  11. ^ "Maserati's New Supercar Mule Teases New Powertrain". MoparInsiders. 23 November 2019. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  12. ^ For example, "...pushed the development mule to 150.583 mph (242.340 km/h)..." Schorr, Martyn L. (March 1993). "Show of Force". Popular Mechanics. Vol. 180, no. 3. p. 59. Retrieved 31 July 2022 – via Google Books.
  13. ^ McClurg, Bob (20 March 2017). "6-Year Restoration Resurrects AMC's First Super Stock Drag Race Car, Topel's 1967 Rambler Rebel". Tamrazs. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  14. ^ Tom, David (2013). The cars of Trans-Am racing: 1966-1972. North Branch, MN: CarTech. p. 153. ISBN 9781613250518.
  15. ^ Eisenschenk, Wes (15 March 2016). Lost Muscle Cars. CarTech. p. 47. ISBN 9781613252253. Retrieved 28 December 2022 – via Google Books.
  16. ^ Truesdell, Richard. "John Goergen's 1966 343 prototype" (PDF). Musclecar Enthusiast. p. 59. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  17. ^ "1966 Drivable AMX Prototype". 5 July 2007. Archived from the original on 9 May 2012. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  18. ^ Silvestro, Brian (5 March 2018). "Nine of the Coolest Test Mules". Road & Track. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
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