Mustang may gallop to UK

[iGav]

I don't know why Ford are making such a big fuss about whether to bring it over or not... :rolleyes: it's not like that haven't imported coupes over before to fill a gap in Ford's UK range... *cough* the appalling '80's Probe *cough* and sharp suited Cougar in the late '90's, so what's the problem now??

You can bet if they do though, it'll be ridiculously priced in comparison to the U.S. list price, at current exchange rates the 300bhp V8 would come in at £13k... or in other words mid range Focus money. :eek: :D and the V6 at £10k or Fiesta money! :eek: it'll more likely cost £25k to £29k :rolleyes:

Oh... and retool to RHD you muppets.

rinky dink link (http://www.autocarmag.com/news_article.asp?na_id=212637)

[edesignuk]

Oh... and retool to RHD you muppets.Yeah! Some of us drive on the correct side of the road ;) :D

Even though only getting 300bhp from a 4.6 (or 4.7?) is pathetic, for £13k I'd get one! ...but as we all know (and as you said) you can bet your life it'll be more like double that figure :rolleyes:

[Sun Baked]

Yeah! Some of us drive on the correct side of the road ;) :D

Even though only getting 300bhp from a 4.6 (or 4.7?) is pathetic, for £13k I'd get one! ...but as we all know (and as you said) you can bet your life it'll be more like double that figure :rolleyes:We drive on the right-hand side of the road, and you guys drive on the left.

So we're right, and you guys are leftists. ;)

---

That's not pathetic HP numbers, look at the Crown Vics and their uberpatheric 225HP-240HP from the 4.6L motor.

Of course they don't want to drop the 5.4L truck motor, the High Output 4.6L 300HP motor, or the 400HP supercharged motors in the vehicle -- because they'd take sales away from the Mustang.

Sure the motor is tuned for torque, but... years of no 5.4L due to CAFE numbers mean people (aka police agencies) will buy the Chrysler RWD vehicles instead. :(

[edesignuk]

We drive on the right-hand side of the road, and you guys drive on the left.
Yes, left being the correct side :p :eek: :D

[Sun Baked]

Yes, left being the correct side :p :eek: :DRight... :)

[edesignuk]

Right... :)
This could go on and on...so I'm going to stop now...


...safe in the knowledge that the left hand side is the correct side...:p

[iGav]

Even though only getting 300bhp from a 4.6 (or 4.7?) is pathetic, for £13k I'd get one!

Quick hide, otherwise we're going to get it from Counterfit... :)

To be fair though, if memory serves (and it probably doesn't) it's better bhp/litre output than that lazy arsed Viper engine! heheheh

Seriously though, I've wanted one of these puppies so bad ever since I first laid eyes on the concept car a while ago! :) I'd be happy with just the 200bhp one, I think that'd be more than enough in a car with a live rear axle. :eek: :p

I'd even have it in LHD that's no biggie, if Enzo owners can live with it, then it's not too shabby for iGav. :)

I'd like to know what the interior quality is like though, the hobbit wasn't especially complementary about it's quality but I guess as long as it stays screwed together than that's a start. The only other issues is that rear suspension... it may be fine in the land of straight roads, but it could be a bit of a challenge down a streaming B road come November! :eek:

[mpw]

...I'd like to know what the interior quality is like though, the hobbit wasn't especially complementary about it's quality but I guess as long as it stays screwed together than that's a start...

I would imagine it's built tough...Ford tough!

[edesignuk]

I would imagine it's built tough...Ford tough!
er...yeah...ok :p :D

[jeffy.dee-lux]

I'd like to know what the interior quality is like though, the hobbit wasn't especially complementary about it's quality but I guess as long as it stays screwed together than that's a start. The only other issues is that rear suspension... it may be fine in the land of straight roads, but it could be a bit of a challenge down a streaming B road come November! :eek:

I;ve spent a good portion of my life over the past months reading about this car (yes... obsessed...), and i can say that just about everyone who's driven the car has come away quite surprised at how well that live axle performs. Everybody's admitting that their initial skepticism after reading the specs on paper was not necessary. The guys at car and driver were apparently looking underneath the stang's butt just to make sure it actually was a live axle. I know you guys have somewhat high standards as far as handling goes though.

But i actually just watched the Top Gear review of the car. They made a few cracks about how it wouldn't do very well in the corners when they got there, but in the end, they didn't actually really comment on how it did. Jeremy asked whether it was able to take the cornering, he just said yes which is surprising considering the "stone-age" rear suspension, and that's all he said. I think they didn't want to admit that this "stone-age" technology was actually performing a lot better than they expected.

Sure they could've put in an IRS, or they could've squeezed more power out of that displacement, or gotten similar displacement out of a smaller engine, or they could've improved the interior quality (it looks nice to me from the pictures i've seen), but they were limiting themselves to $25K US. I think they really did a good job of optimizing all their criteria.
And hey, 500 watt stereo standard on the GT? not bad! i'd settle with that, who needs 1000 watts anyways.

Now if they could just make a hybrid version of this car, i could drive one without being a complete hypocrite. :D

[gwuMACaddict]

after more than a few years of *hating* the mustang styling, i have to admit that i really like the way this new car looks. it's even more fetching in person.

[jeffy.dee-lux]

This just in:

The mustang won the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada award for Best New Sports/Performance Car. It was up against the corvette, the crossfire srt-6, the cts-v, the 645 and the C55.

check out www.ajac.ca if your interested, click on anything to do with CCOTY.

[iGav]

I;ve spent a good portion of my life over the past months reading about this car (yes... obsessed...)

I forgot you loved Mustangs... :) are you going to buy one?? :D

I quite like the idea of just a basic V6 (a V8 would be great, but the insurance would probably kill that for me) keeping it simple and pure like the original with minimal options.

It's a shame they've added those extra 3/4 windows behind the B pillar, I preferred the window-less concept car version, it looked more like the original.

I'd have it in a deep gunmetal metallic, and I know it's a cliche but I'd have those dual racing stripes added (painted, not vinyl) in a very dark grey! :)


and i can say that just about everyone who's driven the car has come away quite surprised at how well that live axle performs. Everybody's admitting that their initial skepticism after reading the specs on paper was not necessary. The guys at car and driver were apparently looking underneath the stang's butt just to make sure it actually was a live axle.

Cool, that sounds promising! live axles haven't been used on cars over here for a couple of decades so I'm really not sure what to expect, my only benchmark for a non IRS car is a Beetle, not that I'm expecting the Mustang to handle anything like that of course. heheh


I know you guys have somewhat high standards as far as handling goes though.

I'm not sure if our standards are higher necessarily just different, we do like our firm suspension though. We don't have many straight roads over here (certainly not like what's on offer in the U.S., I can't speak for Canada though) even the Romans (bless em') decided that corners are the way to go in Britain :D and as such even small cars such as the Ford Fiesta are focused on being sorted drivers cars that offer up thrills on the twisty stuff.

The biggest issue we have is that road surfaces are quite often poor, with multiple repairs and cracking tarmac (only a small percentage of what drivers pay in car tax is actually spent on maintaining the roads) so good handling cars are a must we also have a disturbingly high number of off/negative camber corners that from experience are near lethal in a car that doesn't have IRS because the way they upset the rear of the car in lift off or heavy positive throttle conditions and that's before we even add the (frequent) rain into the mix.


But i actually just watched the Top Gear review of the car. They made a few cracks about how it wouldn't do very well in the corners when they got there, but in the end, they didn't actually really comment on how it did. Jeremy asked whether it was able to take the cornering, he just said yes which is surprising considering the "stone-age" rear suspension, and that's all he said. I think they didn't want to admit that this "stone-age" technology was actually performing a lot better than they expected.

That's the thing with Top Gear, they don't tell you what the cars are actually like to drive and often just result to cliches. I'd have liked to have seen the Mustang on the track to actually see for myself how it handles, I'm not expecting it to be euro-class leading, but then I'm not sure I want a Mustang to handle like every other eurobox out there, but I'd like to know that it's not going to unexpectedly sling me off into a hedge backwards when I do want to make some cross-country progress. :eek: :p

Sure they could've put in an IRS, or they could've squeezed more power out of that displacement, or gotten similar displacement out of a smaller engine, or they could've improved the interior quality (it looks nice to me from the pictures i've seen), but they were limiting themselves to $25K US. I think they really did a good job of optimizing all their criteria.

I have read that Ford carried out a survey and the feedback they got drove them in the live axle direction, which is interesting. I've also read that the Shelby version is going to have IRS... :D and probably a seriously hefty price tag, even in $$$.

I can't believe the price in the states though, it's a giveaway price, £10k is just no money at all.... that'd buy you a mid range 1.4 Fiesta here. You can bet your life though if Ford does see sense and import it then they'll double the price here in the U.K. and that's when it enters TT, Boxster, and Z4 territory 3 of the best made cars on the planet, that's when the Mustang would begin to look like not especially good value for money. If they could scrape it under £20k that'd be fine.

I think the interior looks great, they'd done a good job with that. I've just read stories that the plastics aren't especially good quality, I presume this is in comparison to european cars and know that from previous models such as the Probe and Cougar (which was refitted to try and improve quality for the euro market) that the plastics are generally very hard, and not at all tactile.


And hey, 500 watt stereo standard on the GT? not bad! i'd settle with that, who needs 1000 watts anyways.

I think that'll probably be redundant in the V8 version... :D I'm just hoping the euro-bureaucrats don't silence that naughty exhaust and engine note if they do import it to us :)

[Xtremehkr]

The new Mustang beat the Chrysler Crossfire? No way. The new Mustang looks cheap close up.

[3rdpath]

i haven't driven one yet but the 2 i've seen parked in the neighborhood have actually looked better in person than in print...which is a nice change. the window behind the b pillar(imho) is a nice modern touch to the retro design. sure, it makes it look less like the '68 "bullitt" fastback but thats ok by me. i do have a gripe about the psuedo k/o wheels...they look kinda cheesy. put some nice retro American wheels on the puppy and it will look sweet. the interior looked ok though i'm not thrilled by the chrome rings around the a/c vents. i'd prefer textured gunmetal throughout the interior.

i'm not a fan of "detroit" cars but this new mustang has really got my interest; i plan to drive one this weekend and see if it lives up to all the fuss. of course, the new GT would be nicer but the mrs. would implode if i spent 150k on a car. i guess i could just do it and keep it hidden somewhere but i know she'd think i was having an affair by the big smile i'd be sporting everyday.

oh well....

[evoluzione]

I can't believe the price in the states though, it's a giveaway price, £10k is just no money at all....

cars are dirt cheap over here. having said that, watching fifth gear, and you can pick up some seriously nice old cars for a couple of grand, try finding an 8 series bmw for less than $20k, and that's the 840!

i guess it's the same as everything on opposite sides of the atlantic, swings and roundabouts...

oh! there's a roundabout close to me (traffic circle or rotary they're called here, and are very rare) and NO ONE knows how to drive around it, you get people driving all the way around in the outside lane, and people pulling out onto it in front of you, it's kinda scary! absolutely no clue about how to handle it whatsoever....at least on this one you give way (yield) before entering it, others i've seen you actually stop on the roundabout itself, crazy i tell you!

[panphage]

i haven't driven one yet but the 2 i've seen parked in the neighborhood have actually looked better in person than in print...which is a nice change. the window behind the b pillar(imho) is a nice modern touch to the retro design. sure, it makes it look less like the '68 "bullitt" fastback but thats ok by me. i do have a gripe about the psuedo k/o wheels...they look kinda cheesy. put some nice retro American wheels on the puppy and it will look sweet. the interior looked ok though i'm not thrilled by the chrome rings around the a/c vents. i'd prefer textured gunmetal throughout the interior.

i'm not a fan of GM cars but this new mustang has really got my interest; i plan to drive one this weekend and see if it lives up to all the fuss. of course, the new GT would be nicer but the mrs. would implode if i spent 150k on a car. i guess i could just do it and keep it hidden somewhere but i know she'd think i was having an affair by the big smile i'd be sporting everyday.

oh well....

Wait, which car are you talking about? The mustang is a ford, and the GT starts at 25k USD.

And it doesn't look cheap, it looks hot. Best mustang since the 69 Mach I (my first car.)

As far as the rims go, check out the 17" painted aluminum rims. I haven't been able to see them in person, but the pics make them look a lot like the "mags" you could get on the mach I's.

[3rdpath]

Wait, which car are you talking about? The mustang is a ford, and the GT starts at 25k USD.



sorry to be confusing...

i was talking about the new mustang...then the new GT ( GT 40 redux). i guess its on my mind since i watched a docu last night on the GT40 at le mans. what a machine.

btw, i think the mach 1 is still a beautiful car. i think its destined to go the way of the boss 302 in value...up, up and away...

edit: and i meant "detroit" cars instead of " gm"...geez, i need either more sleep or more coffee...

[Lord Blackadder]

Seriously though, I've wanted one of these puppies so bad ever since I first laid eyes on the concept car a while ago! :) I'd be happy with just the 200bhp one, I think that'd be more than enough in a car with a live rear axle. :eek: :p

What's all this then? People from the UK expressing DESIRE over an American car? cue the twilight zone musc!

Not that I blame you. The 'stang has always been a car to have (except for the crappy mustang II which we have all tried to forget). It's hard to get more car for the money, especially in V8 form. It isn't as "refined" as euro sportscars, but it makes for some hairy-chested thrills.

I remember reading an article in CAR awhile back where they proclaimed the Chevy Camaro the worst car on sale in the UK. Damn that's harsh, I mean, is it really worse than those little Daihatsu sh*tboxes? (insurance maybe?) I don't think my pride could withstand people knowing that I drive one. I might as well have a Trabant or that Tata monstrosity or some such.

[jeffy.dee-lux]

If you prefer the car without the 3/4 windows (those windows by the way are a throw back to the '66 shelbys), you should see some of the cars from the SEMA show this year. The mustang was the featured vehicle for this years show. Here are a couple examples, but there were about 25 different companies giving us their take of the new stang.
CDC glassback (yup, glass roof that turns from opaque to transparent at the flick of a switch):
http://bradbarnett.net/mustangs/timeline/05/05/CDCBlueGlassback-6.jpg
MRT interceptor:
http://bradbarnett.net/mustangs/shows/sema04/SEMA-82.jpg
Steeda Q400:
http://bradbarnett.net/mustangs/shows/sema04/SteedaQ3.jpg
3D Carbon:
http://bradbarnett.net/mustangs/shows/sema04/SEMA-265.jpg


check out this page for the rest of em:
http://bradbarnett.net/mustangs/shows/sema04/

bradbarnett.net (aka www.themustangsource.com) is an amazing site for mustangs. Even Hau Thai Tang, the dude who designed the 2005, checks the site. The site owner Brad has met him and spoken to him a couple times. You should check the site out, the timeline (http://bradbarnett.net/mustangs/timeline/) has all the information and pictures of every generation of mustang you could ever want. And its the only online forum other than macforums that i'm a member of, i post under "mustang_sallad" if you're curious.

If you check out that other thread "a realistic discussion of hybrids" (http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=101254) you'll understand why i could never own mustang until they give me one with a v6 plus a torquey electric motor with regenerative braking and cylinder cut-off and so forth, plus maybe some extra exterior speakers to gimme that v8 rumble. Then i could at least pretend i'm not a complete hypocrite, lol. But ya, maybe i could just swap a hybrid accord drivetrain into a stang body, it'd probably be even quicker than the base v6. some day...

As for the stang beating the SRT-6 for that canadian award... keep in mind that coty competitions often involve cars of very different price ranges going against eachother. If the stang looked cheap compared to the crossfire, keep in mind that it is about half the price. It says it all in the headline at the top of the new Motor Trend issue: "Bang for the Buck: why the mustang GT rules".

[3rdpath]

went to the local dealership this morning hoping to test drive the mustang GT only to find they had none in stock. i guess they don't update the ford on-line database that often because it showed they had 2 on the lot.

i will say that the 6cyl stang seems like quite a bit of bang for the buck...most were around 20k to 22k loaded out with auto trans/nice wheels and other add ons.

as for the interior...blah. i was hoping for something unique but it really is quite similar to my wife's '04 honda cr-v...boring plastic without much substantial weight to it. some anodized aluminum would've made a stronger statement.

still, it's the best looking stang since the mach 1.

[jeffy.dee-lux]

this is what the stang looks like with the interior upgrade package plus the interior colour accents package (the red stuff), its available on either the GT or the V6:
http://bradbarnett.net/mustangs/timeline/05/05/38.jpg


my only complaint is the stereo controls. Sure it can be a 6 disc mp3 cd player with 1000 watts, but the controls are so plain and are actually the exact same as on the freestyle and 500.

everything else looks awesome to me, super retro.

[jeffy.dee-lux]

and you want unique?
check out the video of the mycolour feature towards the bottom of this page
http://bradbarnett.net/mustangs/timeline/05/05/int.htm

[Counterfit]

Quick hide, otherwise we're going to get it from Counterfit... :) TOO LATE!! :p
Ah well, someone beat me to it. Anyways, in regards to the weak as hell Crown Vic, I like it that way, considering they're only driven by old people and cops over here. Hell, that's still too much power for most of the people I see driving it. I doubt they ever give it more than 15% throttle anyway :rolleyes:

[Counterfit]

You know, the one thing I really really liked about the Mustang they had at shows where the gauges, seen here (http://www.modernengineuity.com/gallery/showphoto.php/photo/151/sort/1/cat/512/page/1). Really nifty, but do they put it in production? Nope. Probably too intricate too mass produce :(

I wish Ford could make a NEW design, instead of rehashing stuff from their golden days...

[~Shard~]

Ford can do whatever they want with this new Mustang, whether it's sending it to the UK or the moon, I think it looks horrible. A failed attempt to "go retro". If you're going to do the retro thing, do it well, otherwise, try and come up with some *gasp* new ideas *gasp* - what a novel concept...

Mid- to late-60's Mustangs were the best, and haven't really been topped since. I could go into the specific details on why I don't like this new Mustang, but I'll stop for now.

Just my thoughts, I realize there are a lot of people who love the new Mustang as well, so to each his own... :cool:

[jeffy.dee-lux]

Just my thoughts, I realize there are a lot of people who love the new Mustang as well, so to each his own... :cool:

yes indeed. the average life of a mustang on a dealer's lot is like 15 minutes.

even the guys at Top Gear admitted that this car is super cool, and put it way near the top of its "cool wall".

I definitely haven't heard many opinions like yours.

[3rdpath]

i'm not so much disappointed by the design of the interior as the materials used. it just feels cheap. and the whole flat front stereo area is butt-ugly.

as far as the color guage scenario...isn't that the adult version of shoes with LED's? its just silly fluff.

someone needs to send ford shirts for their designers to wear that say
"WWSD?"...*






*"What would Shelby do"

[Chip NoVaMac]

At least those of you on the other side of the Big Pond might see diesel alternatives that offer decent performance but better gas milage than what we have here in the States.

[iGav]

At least those of you on the other side of the Big Pond might see diesel alternatives that offer decent performance but better gas milage than what we have here in the States.

I was thinking that as well... TDi's are so popular in europe that even Honda, the Kings of anti-diesel decided they needed to have one to try and get a slice of the cake, even Lamborghini are developing a TDi engine now.

I think they'd be well suited, the high torque output would be well suited to such a car, it'll never sound as sonic as a petrol V8 but we already have V6, V8 and V10 diesels now that with todays tech are almost devoid of the dieself chatter and indeed do sound a little throaty.

[Chip NoVaMac]

I was thinking that as well... TDi's are so popular in europe that even Honda, the Kings of anti-diesel decided they needed to have one to try and get a slice of the cake, even Lamborghini are developing a TDi engine now.

I think they'd be well suited, the high torque output would be well suited to such a car, it'll never sound as sonic as a petrol V8 but we already have V6, V8 and V10 diesels now that with todays tech are almost devoid of the dieself chatter and indeed do sound a little throaty.

If it weren't for experiences with the `98 Cabrio and a '99 Bettle; and the p*ss poor VW quality I would have loved going with a TDi from them. Great cars to drive, but poor ones from repairs.

[~Shard~]

yes indeed. the average life of a mustang on a dealer's lot is like 15 minutes.

even the guys at Top Gear admitted that this car is super cool, and put it way near the top of its "cool wall".

I definitely haven't heard many opinions like yours.

Like I said, just my opinion. I just don't like the looks of it, it seems to lack "edginess" or "sexiness". Let's see, if you want some specifics...

- oversized air intake
- rear quarter glass looks like an afterthought
- industrial looking grill
- too heavy in the rear
- too stubby in the front overhang
- rear overhand too clunky - should have gave it more taper and a small spoiler lip moulded right into the rear fascia

I guess those would be some of them...

And I am by no means anti-Ford/Shelby/Mustang. In fact, I quite enjoy riding around in my manager's factory replica (NOT a kit car) 1966 Shelby Cobra. Practically just like it came off the line in '66, and stupidly powerful.... amazing car... :cool:

[njmac]

37 years and still going strong..... 1967 All Original . I love my mustang

http://forums.macrumors.com/images/attach/jpg.gif

[~Shard~]

37 years and still going strong..... 1967 All Original . I love my mustang

http://forums.macrumors.com/images/attach/jpg.gif

Now that's a nice Mustang! :cool:

[jeffy.dee-lux]

- oversized air intake
- rear quarter glass looks like an afterthought
- industrial looking grill
- too heavy in the rear
- too stubby in the front overhang
- rear overhand too clunky - should have gave it more taper and a small spoiler lip moulded right into the rear fascia



ya, i hear ya on the heavy butt. Its pretty chunky, apparently something to do about crash standards. I like the big air intake, industrial grill, its a muscle car after all. And i don't think the 3/4 windows were an afterthought, they made a list of all the highlights of classic mustangs that they wanted to include on the new one and that was one of them. But that sucks if it looks not so great to you.
as for the spoiler lip, you mean like a ducktail? there are a couple aftermarket companies that are offering ducktails, and its possible the new cobra or a special edition will end up with one.

http://bradbarnett.net/mustangs/shows/sema04/SEMA-52.jpg

[jeffy.dee-lux]

i should mention that that's the Paul's High Performance mustang. I like it cause its got nice thick tires as opposed to those low profile one's you see everywhere, and also cause its got a GIANT cowl hood.