Vaughn Gittin Jr. debuted his all new Monster Energy / Falken Tire Ford Mustang at the Formula Drift opener in Long Beach this weekend, and while it might look a lot like last year’s championship-winning car, it’s actually quite a bit different underneath the the carbon fiber skin. A new naturally aspirated 5.4L engine replaces the supercharged 4.6L V8, and a revised chassis setup has been developed by ASD. Gittin felt great about the car in pre-season testing, calling it “the most nimble, agile and quick Mustang I’ve ever had.”

Things didn’t go that well in Long Beach, though. Despite dominating the street course last year, Gittin failed to qualify for the Saturday’s knockout round due to errors in both of his qualifying runs. He stayed positive, though, stating “the Formula Drift season is far from over.”

Although Gittin’s new Mustang didn’t bring a win in Long Beach this year, we still think it’s the best looking car on the grid. The new motor is particularly a thing of beauty, and the Mustang’s engine bay is probably the cleanest of any race car’s we’ve ever seen. You can see every detail of Vaughn Gittin’s new 2011 Mustang in our huge gallery of photos below.

Photos ©2011 MustangsDaily.com

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