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{{Short description|Prototype vehicle for testing}}
[[File:2013 Porsche 918 Spyder development mule in Monaco.jpg|thumb|[[Porsche 918]] Spyder development mule in [[Monaco]]]]
{{redirects|Mule car|mule-drawn cars|horsecar}}
[[File:Nissan GT-R test mules on truck.jpg|right|thumb|Two blacked out [[Nissan GT-R]] test mules on a truck in Japan]]
[[File:DisguisedBMW.jpg|thumb|A [[camouflage]]d pre-production [[BMW]] mule near [[Munich]] in October 2013]]
[[File:2013 Porsche 918 Spyder development mule in Monaco.jpg|thumb|[[Porsche 918]] Spyder development mule in [[Monaco]] (2013)]]
[[File:DisguisedBMW.jpg|thumb|A [[Dazzle camouflage|camouflage]]d pre-production [[BMW X5 (F15)|BMW X5]] mule near [[Munich]] (2013)]]
[[File:Development mules, Badwater Basin 01.jpg|thumb|[[Honda Civic (tenth generation)|Honda Civic]] mules in [[California]] (2015)]]
[[File:Hyundai Grandeur GN7 Development Mule (2).jpg|thumb|[[Hyundai Grandeur]] mule in [[South Korea]] (2022)]]


A '''development mule''' ('''test mule''', or simply '''mule''') in the [[automotive industry]] is a [[testbed]] vehicle equipped with [[prototype]] components requiring evaluation. They are often camouflaged to deceive competitors and thwart a curious automotive press.
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.


==Application==
==Application==
Mules are necessary because [[automaker]]s must assess new aspects of vehicles for both strengths and weaknesses before production. Mules are drivable, often [[pre-production car|pre-production]], vehicles,<ref>{{cite journal| url=http://www.motortrend.com/future/spied_vehicles/112_0712_2010_ford_mustang_spied/index.html |title=Spycam: 2010 Ford Mustang |journal=Motor Trend |date=December 2007 |accessdate=2011-09-13}}</ref> sometimes years away from realization and coming after a [[concept car]] that preceded the design of critical mechanical components.
Mules are necessary because [[automaker]]s must assess new aspects of vehicles for both strengths and weaknesses before production. Mules are drivable, sometimes [[pre-production car|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.<ref>{{cite magazine |first=Michael |last=Lamm |title=PM First Hand Report: Dodge Daytona |magazine=[[Popular Mechanics]] |date=July 1983 |volume=160 |issue=1 |page=88 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oNgDAAAAMBAJ&dq=Development+mule+car&pg=PA88 |access-date=28 December 2022 |via=Google Books}}</ref>


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).<ref>{{cite web |last1=Chin |first1=Chris |title=First-Ever AMC AMX/3 Prototype Bound for Restoration After Sitting for Nearly 50 Years |url= https://www.thedrive.com/news/31204/first-ever-amc-amx-3-prototype-bound-for-restoration-after-sitting-for-nearly-50-years |work=The Drive |date=27 November 2019 |access-date=31 July 2022}}</ref> Surviving examples of these mules are unique.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Perez |first1=Jeff |title=This AMX/3 could be the most expensive AMC ever sold |url= https://www.motor1.com/news/132251/most-expensive-amc-auction/ |work=Motor1 |date=26 December 2016 |access-date=31 July 2022}}</ref> Manufacturers also explore different solutions such as developing an "Urban Concept" car where not only a [[Wankel engine|rotary engine]] and front-wheel-drive were considered for a small car, but "the first mule was made by cutting down a [[AMC Matador|Matador]] by {{convert|30|in|mm|0|abbr=on}} in front and back."<ref>{{cite web |last1=Niedermeyer |first1=Paul |title=Vintage R&T Technical Analysis: AMC's New Pacer – As Short As A Pinto; As Wide As A Chevelle |url= https://www.curbsideclassic.com/vintage-reviews/vintage-rt-technical-analysis-amcs-new-pacer/ |work=Curbside Classic |date=2 November 2022 |access-date=7 January 2023}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{cite book |title=Near-term Electric Vehicle Program |date=1978 |publisher=Department of Energy |page=13 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=ebXrAWSed1AC&dq=Development+mule+car&pg=PP13 |access-date=28 December 2022 |via=Google Books}}</ref>
⚫
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.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/reviews/healey/2009-04-30-chevrolet-volt-early-look_N.htm |title=Drivers could get a charge out of Chevrolet Volt |first=James R. |last=Healey |newspaper=USA Today |date=2009-08-14 |accessdate=2011-09-13}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=McCraw |first=Jim |title=Sneak Previews of U.S. Cars to Come |journal=Popular Science |pages=68–72 |date=September 1992 |volume=241 |issue=3 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lwEAAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA69&dq=%22Development+mule%22+auto | accessdate =2011-09-13}}</ref>


⚫
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.<ref>{{cite news|url= https://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/reviews/healey/2009-04-30-chevrolet-volt-early-look_N.htm |title=Drivers could get a charge out of Chevrolet Volt |first=James R. |last=Healey |newspaper=USA Today |date=1 May 2009 |access-date=31 July 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |last=McCraw |first=Jim |title=Sneak Previews of U.S. Cars to Come |magazine=Popular Science |pages=68–72 |date=September 1992 |volume=241 |issue=3 | url= https://books.google.com/books?id=lwEAAAAAMBAJ&dq=%22Development+mule%22+auto&pg=PA69 |via=Google Books |access-date=31 July 2022}}</ref> In some cases, a completely unrelated vehicle is adapted to hide the powertrain and other mechanicals being tested. Ford used a [[Ford Transit|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.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Demuro |first1=Doug |title=The Jaguar XJ220 Development Mule Was a Ford Van |url= https://www.autotrader.com/car-news/jaguar-xj220-development-mule-was-ford-van-281474979894068 |work=Autotrader |access-date=31 July 2022 |date=5 November 2018}}</ref>
⚫
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.


⚫
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.<ref>{{cite web |title=Fiesta is a worthy UK record breaker |url= https://www.worksopguardian.co.uk/lifestyle/fiesta-is-a-worthy-uk-record-breaker-2258964 |website=worksopguardian.co.uk |date=8 November 2014 |access-date=28 December 2022}}</ref>
⚫
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 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.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Dunne |first=Jim |title=Detroit Spy Report |journal=Popular Mechanics |page=108 |date=December 1991 |volume=168 |issue=12 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=puMDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA108&dq=%22Development+mule%22+auto |accessdate=2011-09-13}}</ref>


⚫
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.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Dunne |first=Jim |author-link1=Jim Dunne (automotive spy photographer) |title=Detroit Spy Report |magazine=Popular Mechanics |page=108 |date=December 1991 |volume=168 |issue=12 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=puMDAAAAMBAJ&dq=%22Development+mule%22+auto&pg=PA108 |via=Google Books |access-date=31 July 2022}}</ref> The wraps may also serve as part of marketing techniques to promote future car reveals.<ref>{{cite web |title=Maserati's New Supercar Mule Teases New Powertrain |url= https://moparinsiders.com/maseratis-new-supercar-mule-teases-new-powertrain/ |work=MoparInsiders |date=23 November 2019 |access-date=31 July 2022}}</ref>
Development mules are often used very heavily during testing<ref>For example, "...pushed the development mule to {{convert|150.583|mph|3| abbr=on}}..." {{cite journal |last=Schorr | first=Martyn L. |title=Show of Force |journal=Popular Mechanics |page=59 |date=March 1993 |volume=180 |issue=3 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=c88DAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA56&dq=%22Development+mule%22 |accessdate=2011-09-13}}</ref> and [[scrap]]ped. Occasionally they are acquired by members of the automaker's engineering team or executives overseeing the design process.<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://photos.imageevent.com/mmm_mag/pdffiles/USA%201967%20AMC%20Rogue%20343%20Musclecar%20Enthusiast.pdf |title=John Goergen's 1966 343 prototype |page=59 |journal=Musclecar Enthusiast |first=Richard |last=Truesdell |accessdate=2011-09-13}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://route66rambler.com/forum/index.php?page=topicview&id=136%2F1966_drivable_amx |author=Ohio AMX |title=1966 Drivable AMX Prototype |date=2007-06-07 |accessdate=2011-09-13}}</ref>

Development mules are often used very heavily during testing and [[scrap]]ped.<ref>For example, "...pushed the development mule to {{convert|150.583|mph|3| abbr=on}}..." {{cite magazine |last=Schorr |first=Martyn L. |title=Show of Force |magazine=Popular Mechanics |page=59 |date=March 1993 |volume=180 |issue=3 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=c88DAAAAMBAJ&dq=%22Development+mule%22&pg=PA56 |via=Google Books |access-date=31 July 2022}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{cite web |last1=McClurg |first1=Bob |title=6-Year Restoration Resurrects AMC's First Super Stock Drag Race Car, Topel's 1967 Rambler Rebel |url= https://tamrazs.wordpress.com/2017/03/20/6-year-restoration-resurrects-amcs-first-super-stock-drag-race-car-topels-1967-rambler-rebel/ |work=Tamrazs |date=20 March 2017 |access-date=31 July 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Tom |first1=David |title=The cars of Trans-Am racing: 1966-1972 |date=2013 |publisher=CarTech |location=North Branch, MN |isbn=9781613250518 |page=153}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Eisenschenk |first1=Wes |title=Lost Muscle Cars |date=15 March 2016 |publisher=CarTech |isbn=9781613252253 |page=47 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=P86MCwAAQBAJ&dq=mule+car+Group+19&pg=PA47 |access-date=28 December 2022 |via=Google Books}}</ref>

Occasionally, mule vehicles are acquired by members of the automaker's engineering team or executives overseeing the design process.<ref>{{cite magazine|url= http://photos.imageevent.com/mmm_mag/pdffiles/USA%201967%20AMC%20Rogue%20343%20Musclecar%20Enthusiast.pdf |title=John Goergen's 1966 343 prototype |page=59 |magazine=Musclecar Enthusiast |first=Richard |last=Truesdell |access-date=31 July 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= http://route66rambler.com/forum/index.php?page=topicview&id=136%2F1966_drivable_amx |title=1966 Drivable AMX Prototype |date=5 July 2007 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120509010025/http://route66rambler.com/forum/index.php?page=topicview&id=136%2F1966_drivable_amx |archive-date=9 May 2012 |access-date=31 July 2022 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In some cases, the test mules may be evaluated as being better than the final products.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Silvestro |first1=Brian |title=Nine of the Coolest Test Mules |url= https://www.roadandtrack.com/new-cars/future-cars/g19087332/coolest-test-mules/ |work=Road & Track |date=5 March 2018 |access-date=31 July 2022}}</ref>


==See also==
==See also==
Line 20: Line 27:
* [[Pre-production car]]
* [[Pre-production car]]
* [[Vehicle glider]]
* [[Vehicle glider]]
* [[Clay modeling]]


==References==
==References==
{{Reflist}}
⚫
{{commonscat|Development mules}}

{{reflist}}
== External links ==
⚫
{{Commons inline|Development mules}}
* {{cite web |title=How does Renault work to develop the car of the future? A mule story! - Renault Group |url= https://www.renaultgroup.com/en/news-on-air/news/how-does-renault-work-to-develop-the-car-of-the-future-a-mule-story/ |publisher=Renault Group |date=11 July 2017 |access-date=28 December 2022}}
* {{cite web |title=Prototypes and Mules |url= https://www.italdesign.it/services-assembly-and-construction/prototypes-and-mules/ |publisher=Italdesign |access-date=28 December 2022}}

{{Authority control}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Development Mule}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Development Mule}}
[[Category:Automotive technologies]]
[[Category:Automotive technologies]]
[[Category:Vehicle design]]
[[Category:Automotive industry]]
[[Category:Automotive industry]]

Latest revision as of 06:59, 4 November 2024

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

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.

Application

[edit]

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

[edit]

References

[edit]
  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.
[edit]

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