The 2011 model year brought big powertrain upgrades for the Ford Mustang – that’s when the 5.0-liter V8 and 3.7-liter V6 were introduced – and for 2013, Ford’s Pony Car is getting some updated style, tech and packaging to make it a more competitive offering in the segment.

Up front, all Mustangs get a new front fascia with revised lower air intakes and a new splitter. High-intensity discharge headlamps are also now standard across the board, and GT models get a new hood with functional air extractors, as well as optional HID foglamps. New body-colored rocker panels flank both sides, and new 17-, 18- and 19-inch wheels are also available. Around back, there’s now a high-gloss black panel that connects the slightly redesigned taillamps, and the side mirrors have a pretty cool gee-whiz feature: there are LED lamps in them that project Ford’s legendary pony logo onto the ground when the doors are unlocked. New colors including Gotta Have It Green and Deep Impact Blue are also available.

The heart of the new Ford stunner is a 5.8-liter, aluminum-block V8, complete with a larger, more efficient supercharger. Nearly the entire powertrain has been upgraded for 2013, including a new cross-drilled block and heads, updated camshaft profiles, a carbon fiber driveshaft and upgraded clutch, transmission and axle. The cooling system has also been upgraded, and the new six-speed manual transmission now has a final drive ratio of 3.31-to-1 – optimized to handle the massive amounts of torque put down by the new engine.

Further enhancements can be had in the GT500 Performance Pack, which incorporates SVT-designed Blistein electronic adjustable dampers with ‘normal’ and ‘sport’ modes and a Torsen limited-slip differential. What’s more, the Track Package adds an external engine oil cooler, rear differential cooler and transmission cooler. Like the current GT500, 19-inch wheels are standard up front (20-inch rollers are found out back) and a Brembo braking system keeps everything in check when its time to control all that force. The whole package weighs in at just 3,850 pounds – 270 less than the Camaro ZL1 – and Ford says it will not be subject to the dreaded Gas Guzzler Tax.

Despite extolling their many carnal virtues for years, we know that there’s still a sizable group of enthusiasts who have never managed to wrap their heads around the idea of owning a pony car. We’ve heard all the excuses before, from complaints about refinement, Jurassic underpinnings and muscle-straining inputs to shopworn stereotypes about the people who drive them. Thing is, if we’re being honest, many of these same notions have troubled us as well – even those of us who have triumphed over our prejudices and actually bought one of the things.

Well, boys and girls, Ford finally has a four-wheeled answer for the naysayers and skeptics: The Mustang Boss 302. Just as bacon is the gateway meat for wayward vegetarians, the orange crush seen here is the four-wheeled, applewood-smoked come-on for pony car doubters. Better still, unlike that tasty bit of swine dining, it’s nearly guilt-free.

Ford is certainly embracing the weirdness of its Flex crossover – at least, in terms of design – for its 2013 model year refresh. Set to debut at the Los Angeles Auto Show next week, the 2013 Flex features a restyled front fascia that strikes us as flashier and somehow more robotic than the current model. We’ve seen it in person, and if we’re honest, we’re not sure we love it.

Ford understands the fact that not all shoppers love the Flex’s exterior as a whole, but the automaker maintains that prospective buyers will like the sort of retro-modern look to the new front end. As for the rest of the Flex’s design, things haven’t changed too much, save the addition of some new paint colors and wheel choices, as well as the now-standard Flex badging above the grille – something previously reserved exclusively for the Titanium trim. We’ll have to see what future sales numbers look like before deciding if this new schnoz is a hit or a miss, though.

Behind that new front end, the Flex receives a powertrain update: the base 3.5-liter V6 now packs 20 more horsepower – 285 versus 265 – and even with that extra grunt, fine-tuning to the powerplant has yielded one extra mile per gallon in both city and highway driving modes (18/25 mpg). Of course, customers will still be able to outfit the Flex with Ford’s 3.5-liter twin-turbocharged EcoBoost V6, which carries over unchanged.

Inside, the 2013 Flex receives a refreshed dashboard and instrument cluster that incorporates the latest version of MyFord Touch. Other interior enhancements include pushbutton start, rain sensing wipers and the addition of more safety features including optional rear inflatable seatbelts and a host of collision-avoidance technologies.

We’ll have more on the 2013 Flex live from Los Angeles next week. In the meantime, peruse our gallery and then follow the jump for Ford’s official press blast.

Ford already debuted the Fiesta ST concept at the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show, but if you recall, that show car was based on the three-door Fiesta that isn’t available here in the United States. Now, Ford is showing off a proper five-door version of the Fiesta ST, set to debut at the Los Angeles Auto Show in two weeks.

Ford still tells us that the Fiesta ST is purely a concept right now, but the fact that both three- and five-door variants of the concept have been made leads us to believe that we’ll eventually see a production version. What’s more, Ford’s own press release states, “The five-door Fiesta ST Concept shows the promise for a globally available performance model.” Here’s hoping.

Just like the three-door concept from Frankfurt, the five-door Fiesta ST is powered by Ford’s new 1.6-liter EcoBoost inline four-cylinder engine, good for 180 horsepower and 177 pound-feet of torque. Like its big brother, the Focus ST, the Fiesta ST concept uses a front-wheel-drive setup, with power being sent to the wheels via a six-speed manual transmission.

Speaking of the Focus ST, we already saw the production car alongside the three-door Fiesta ST in Frankfurt, but Ford has announced that it will debut the left-hand-drive, North American-spec version of the car in Los Angeles, as well. The Focus ST is powered by Ford’s 2.0-liter EcoBoost four, good for 250 horsepower and 250 pound-feet of torque, and features amenities like Recaro seats, a performance-tuned suspension and upgraded wheels, tires and brakes.