After rumors spread that the next all-new Mustang platform might arrive two years ahead of schedule, now there is a chance the program is dead before arrival. To remain cost-effective, the Mustang often has to share platforms and technology with other more mainstream models, and apparently that couldn’t be sorted out.

According to a report on The Virtual Driver citing anonymous sources, “Ford executives, under the direction of new CEO Jim Hackett, have canceled the S650 Mustang program, and will cull up to 10,000 development personnel from the company’s engineering ranks by late next year.”

What is perhaps even more unsettling about this news is that it is apparently the second time in recent memory that a major Mustang platform was stillborn.

“This is the second time in less than a decade that Ford has canceled a clean-sheet Mustang,” the report added. “Early planning for the current (S550) Mustang centered around a lightweight rear-drive chassis, previewed by the Evos Concept that debuted at the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show. Rumored to be as much as 700 pounds lighter than the 2005-2014 Mustang, that platform was shelved…”

While the story certainly seems credible, as it was crafted by experienced auto writers, we have our fingers crossed that there is still hope for a giant leap forward with the next Mustang platform. The launch of the already promised hybrid Mustang is just two years away, so it will be interesting to see if that powertrain is placed in something new, or simply on an iteration of the existing S550 foundation.