The Ford Mustang races to the top spot

Ford Mustang in China. (The Ford Motor Company)

Less than two years after officially launching its Pony Car beyond its domestic U.S. borders, the Ford Mustang is the world's best-selling sportscar.

In all, Ford sold 150,000 Mustangs around the world in 2016 which, according to the latest industry data from IHS Markit, means the car is not only America's most popular sportscar, it has now conquered the world, too, despite some hard-hitting European and Japanese competition.

The Mustang has outsold the Mazda MX-5 Miata, BMW 4 Series, Nissan 370Z and the venerable Porsche 911 among others to claim the top spot, leaving many to ponder why it took Ford so long -- 51 years -- to finally offer its most famous muscle car to European and Asian customers.

Over the past 12 months, 45,000 Mustangs were sold beyond North America and every time the car arrives in a new territory, demand surges. For example, since arriving in China, sales have climbed 75%, making it the country's most popular sportscar. But that's to be expected from a country that wants to buy into US culture.

What is a surprise is the reaction in Germany. The birthplace of the automobile and home to some of the world's most desirable and performance-focused automotive marques, the Mustang is proving more popular than the Porsche 911, Audi TT and the hardtop and soft-top Porsche 718 models (Boxster and Cayman).

While in the UK, the Mustang can claim to be the most popular car in the country that sends more than 250hp to its wheels.

Not even less than impressive performance in recent EuroNCAP tests seem to have dented demand for the car, especially in V8 GT guise.

"The legacy of Mustang continues to grow, and in places it never reached before," said Mark Schaller, Ford Mustang marketing manager. "We continue to make it available in new markets, and drivers in those markets continue to respond with resounding approval."

As the new, heavily refreshed 2018 model year Mustang rolls out towards the end of this year, Ford expects demand to surge again and forecasts that by the end of next year 30% of production will be for export, compared with 17.5% over the past 12 months.