Picture: Sajeev Mehta

For the 2011 Mustang, Ford looked to the past for inspiration, revitalizing one of the best-known monikers in the automotive world. That would of course be the 5.0. While not at all related to the original 5.0 (pushrod versus overhead camshaft), the name dredges up lots of memories. Just because the 5.0 is new though, doesn’t mean Ford isn’t already planning on upgrading and improving it down the road.

Need proof? Check out this editorial by Sajeev Mehta, an observant writer for The Truth About Cars, who noticed something that slipped by most of the automotive media. Namely, this little knob in the Ford’s 5.0 engine. Is it an indication of direct injection?

In the picture above, highlighted by a red circle, is a bump. This bump appears in the new 5.0 engine’s combustion chamber. The bump has no apparent use, and Ford’s representatives were mum on the subject. Mehta believes it is an indicator for future improvement on the 5.0 engine, namely for direct injection. Ford already uses direct injection in other engines, mainly its EcoBoost. Maybe soon the 5.0 engine will get these improvements too.

Direct injection squirts fuel directly into the combustion chamber, which provides for a better burn, more power, and less harmful emissions. This is important because more stringent fuel economy standards are right down the road, as are stricter emissions standards. If Ford hopes to keep a V8 Mustang on the road, it will need to meet these tighter regulations. Direct injection could even take the Mustang closer to 30 mpg with the V8 engine, and it would bump power up too.