3rd Nov 2009, 10:55
Like some others have already posted above, there is too much of the tacky add-on fake airscoops, stripes, etc. offered for this car. Dealers in my area love to stick this stuff on to their Mustangs in their inventory and then do big markups on them. A salesman explained it to me as meeting consumer demand... buyers want these things so that's what they get... no stripped down GT models unless you order direct from the factory.
As for the engine choices... meh. My only experience with the V6 was in a 2009 rental I had for the weekend and it was awful. The 2010 V8 GT 5 speed I test drove was okay, but the lack of a 6th gear in the transmission was noticeable, especially with the shorter FD that comes with the trackpack option. It's great for acceleration, but it's tiring at highway speeds and doesn't do the fuel economy any justice. I'm going to have to wait for the rumored Ecoboost twin-turbo V6 and the coyote 5.0 V8 that is supposed to come in 2011... fingers crossed!
4th Nov 2009, 18:03
Of course dealers love to add scoops, spoilers, etc. to their cars. They mark the stuff up about 1000% and make a killing on it. My wife fell in love with a mildly tricked-out Mustang and wanted it. When I discovered the dealer had added TWO THOUSAND DOLLARS for a rear spoiler and quarter window louvers, I told her "NO WAY". Since both of us hate plain-looking cars, I bought a well-equipped but fairly basic car and added the GT-500 striping, rear spoiler, front spoiler, rear quarter window louvers and rear window louvers all for less than $1000 by ordering the stuff and doing all the work myself. It's far more of a head-turner than the one the dealer tried to rip us off on. To me a stripper Mustang is about as exciting as a Toyota Camry.
6th Nov 2009, 08:39
"To me a stripper Mustang is about as exciting as a Toyota Camry."
I'd put the $1,000 into more go fast hardware, and my lighter GT would pull away even faster than it does from your slower tack on model now.
Also, there is in no way ANYTHING out there that is a "stripper" Mustang. If you get one with no tack on parts, it certainly does not look AT ALL like a stripped down car. Give me a break. People act like the car has 15" steel wheels with white walls on it and crank windows.
Just because you did the work yourself and only spent $1,000 instead of $2,000, doesn't mean you are any less into useless tack on parts that make your Mustang look like every other one on the road... which to me is more boring than a Camry. Just another Mustang with stripes and scoops.
6th Nov 2009, 08:47
People are too funny... stripper Mustang. Heh!! My Premium GT is anything but a stripper, and it has no add ons to the body. The leather seats and aluminum trim sure don't feel stripped down to me though. The 3.73 axle doesn't feel like low end equipment. Huh, I must have missed something.
It goes really fast though and drives amazingly well. I am going to use the $1,000's I saved from NOT adding a bunch of tack on junk to the car and add a supercharger when it is all broken in nicely. Then I'll have a 400+ h.p. Mustang for about the same as you paid for your striped up, tack on heavy car.
6th Nov 2009, 10:37
A plain looking car is a plain looking car, be it a Mustang or a Hyundai Accent.
9th Nov 2009, 08:31
"A plain looking car is a plain looking car, be it a Mustang or a Hyundai Accent."
If all you see is add-ons to make your car look better, then try another car. Does a Viper look plain to you without ground effects and spoilers added to it? How about a Corvette? I feel the same way about the Mustang. It looks great just as it comes off the assembly line without any added plastic parts to junk it all up.
Besides, when virtually ALL of the Mustangs you see out there have some sort of spoilers or ground effects plus stripes all over them. What is so original about that? To me that is what makes a Mustang so ordinary. Everyone does the same thing so it is now the ordinary look. Simple and straightforward is so much more original.
If they release a model like the Mach 1 with the striping and spoilers, then that would be cool as it is a factory original design that dates back to the 60's and is tasteful in its approach. Trying to mimic that look with cheap looking parts just doesn't do it for me.
Not into being a sheep and following what everyone else does just for the sake of spending thousands on useless parts. To each their own. Also trying to compare a high performance muscle car to a Hyundai makes me feel that you shouldn't really be looking at Mustangs as you've surely missed the point in owning one.
9th Nov 2009, 11:46
I drive a customized Mustang and it has not only gotten attention, but BUSINESS. I run a design firm, and the car is a sales tool. Just last week a man (who has since become a customer) made the remark "WOW! if you can do that with a base Mustang I can't wait to see what you can do with my design project". If I'd been driving a plain-looking base GT, he'd never have given it a second look.
9th Nov 2009, 15:43
He wasn't comparing the two, he was simply stating that a plain looking vehicle is a plain looking vehicle, no matter what kind of vehicle it is.
10th Nov 2009, 11:59
Hey, glad it works for you really... but it just goes to show how much the "cheese" factor sells these days. Everyone follow the leader!!
10th Nov 2009, 12:03
They basically said you might as well drive a Hyundai Accent if you don't want to be looked at by everyone. Obviously, this person has no idea what the difference between a high performance Mustang and an Accent is.
Just having a car loaded up with add-ons doesn't make it a performance car. I'd say he should look into buying an Accent and adding $1,000's in upgrades and tack-ons to make it look cool!!
10th Nov 2009, 21:57
My wife laughs about people who are afraid of flashy vehicles. Two of our 4 vehicles are pretty heavily customized because we LIKE for our cars to stand out. Neither of us likes driving a car you can't find in a parking lot because it is a boring non-color and looks like all the other boring non-color cars. We were so disappointed that Ford dropped its beautiful Grabber Orange and Screaming Yellow Mustang colors that we'll be looking at a Camaro or Challenger next time around.
22nd Oct 2009, 12:12
I too would love another Fox body. The '85 or '86 is a nice looking car in GT or LX form. I would probably buy another, but I'd be looking for the mint example with super low miles on it. I regrettably passed up on a '91 Saleen a few years ago with 6,500 original miles on it. If I find that car for the price they sold it for again ($16,500), I will buy it in a heartbeat.