I mostly lurk around here because I like the RX8, don't actually own one, but I thought I'd throw my two cents in on this topic. Im sure Ford will sell a ton of new mustangs, it's the only place your going to find an affordable V8 sports car. Some people will like the styling some won't, it was the same with the 99+ cars. I think all the people that are really worried about the difference between the concept and production version will be happy when the cobra comes out, Im willing to bet it'll look a lot more like the concept than the production GT. BTW I might be a little biased when it comes to mustangs, I've owned 5 and Im only 20. Still own two, a 68 coupe and a 70 mach 1.

 

I have a coworker who is a mustang fanatic. If you bring up mustang be prepared to talk for a while. He loved the concept but was totally turned off by the production and will not be buying one. I know he was really looking forward to getting the new one but he just doesn't like it at all and as much as he loves mustangs that was a strong opinion. I personally like them but see where he is coming from. The concept made me think that would be my new car if it was close to that. He still has a couple of stangs so he will be alright

 

I think that as well, that the Cobra is going to wow.

 

dang, that's pretty sweet

 

Pre-ordering my RX-8, without ever seeing one in person was very difficult, as pictures are deceiving.

I am awaiting judgement on the new 'stang until I can see it with my own 2 eyes. I have not ruled out owning one -- but it would have to be a Cobra with an independent rear suspension.

No live axle for me. Motor Trand dogged the car because of its subpar handling compared to the 350Z and our beloved RX-8.

 

I took the concept and production car photos and did an animated .gif for the purposes of comparison. Click on the thumb below.

WARNING: 843K download ahead! 56k abandon all hope!



The changes they made to the production car:

1) Smaller wheels. Not surprising, and you have to save money somewhere.

2) Front end--headlights have grown bigger, and the bumper has grown shorter. My guess is they're saving the big/aggressive front end for the cobra next year. A good front end kit will hopefully be able to restore a good bit of the concept's style.

3) Top is higher by a couple inches. Again, not surprising. Concept cars often have a sort of a "chopped" look. The production car is making headroom concessions to the "fat chick" demographic (lol V6 Mustang lol) If you reeealy dig the concept car, hire a body shop to chop the top, like they do with street rods.

4) Rear end--way way longer in the production car. Like 6 inches or so, maybe. Probably has to do with crash standards, or saving money. The new mustang is based on a Lincoln LS sedan, right? The LS was no doubt designed to have decent trunk space unlike the Mustang, and it's probably not worth the effort for Ford to redesign the rear of the Mustang. You might be able to change this if you can afford to pay a shop to do the custom metalwork...but between that and the chopped top, I think you'd be able to afford a Ford GT.

Also, they felt the need to gay up the rear with a ho-hum dime-a-dozen spoiler.

5) Production car actually has passenger windows, concept just has sheetmetal with scoops. This looks cool, but concessions are being made to safety I guess. It won't take long for the aftermarket to come out with body-color window covers I imagine.

6) Production car has door handles, versus shaved handles for the concept. I'm not really sure why production cars with keyless entry have door handles...but anyway, you can do shaved handles fairly easily, lots of street rods and custom trucks do this.

7) Body color mirrors--easy to change.

 

Not bad Baron...too bad it didn't morph into an 8 :p

 

drool

 

i think the new mustang looks badass! the outgoing one looks to generic for me.

 

I'm surprised by how many of you don't like the styling of the new 'Stang. I have yet to come across a review of the new Mustang that doesn't rave about the styling. I think Ford really nailed the balance between retro and modern, because it has sparked interest in many young buyers who previously wouldn't have considered one, yet also appeals to the older crowd that likes the Mustangs of the late 60s and early 70s. I have never been a fan of Mustang styling, from mid-80s until now, and I would have never considered buying one, but I would definitely consider one of the new ones. There have been over 23,000 orders placed for the new Mustang so far, and they won't even start hitting dealers until next week or later.

For those of you who won't consider buying a new Mustang for one reason or another, consider a few things that the new car has going for it.

Drastically improved handling due to a much stiffer body, improved suspension dynamics (albeit not in the same league as RX-8, 350Z, etc.), front-steering (steering gear in front of wheels)

Completely new shifter linkage (feels much better than the old one)

New 4.6L SOHC aluminum engine with 3V per cylinder and variable cam timing (the output of this engine is essentially identical to the Mach 1 engine, the 4.6L 4V DOHC).

Assembled at AAI, the same plant that builds the Mazda6. This plant operates in a much different manner than Dearborn Assembly, where the old Mustang was built. Build quality is much improved.

The Cobra version of the new Mustang will be incredible. I think most of you will be very surprised by the potential of this car. I'm not at liberty to say why, but you'll find out soon enough.

To address one other point, the manual version of the GT will definitely have a sub-5.0-second 0-60 time. The fact that the automatic transmission has a taller 1st gear than the manual does not make up for all the energy loss in the torque converter. The input shaft to the transmission never exceeds 95% of the engine speed during WOT acceleration. In fact, during the launch, the input shaft speed has to ramp up from 0% to 90% of engine speed. This more than offsets the taller gearing of the automatic transmission.

 

That's it. I'm going to apply at Ford to get my internship.

 

It still should be independent suspension for all trim levels, not just the Cobra.

 

I was looking HARD at the new Mustang.
I purchased a new GT in 1992. Drove 166k miles.
Sold in 2001 and got a 2001 GT.
I drove that until 2 weeks ago when I got a 2005 RX-8.
I went back and forth for a few weeks over getting a new Mustang or an RX-8.
I have always liked the Mustang, but I needed something new.
The new body was not enough to win me over vs the RX-8.

I am totally happy with my choice. The RX-8 is a big step up in style and overall feel. The lower torque has never been an issue for me. The RX-8 makes up for it 10000 times over.

My 2 cents..
-B

 

IRS costs too much. The point of the car was to bring a boat load of performance for a cheap price. At $25k the GT is the only RWD car with 300hp. It also runs mid 13's which the only other car that comes close is the EVO RS.

 

Also, don't suprised when Mustang-saavy suspension tuners like Hotchkis make the Mustangs handle like FD's, or something to that magnitude.

 

Exactly how much more would independent suspension cost?

As a drag car, it's great, for anything else I don't buy into it.

 

IRS costs too much cause ford is only using it on the cobra. Spread it out over the entire lineup and I doubt it would be that bad. The explaination I read from a ford exec was that they didn't want to alienate the hardcore buyer. The guys who love the solid rear axle and bud light.

 

A solid axle is superior to IRS for drag racing, and let's not kid ourselves...the Mustang is more about drag racing than handling and finesse. If it were possible to add the IRS and only charge say $1,000 extra...someone out there would be offering a $26k car that has a V8/6-speed/IRS. As far as I can tell, no one is. Also, most people don't have the slightest idea what the difference is between a solid rear and a IRS. If you're talking about the fat chicks driving their V6 stangs, they probably couldn't even tell you if it's FWD or RWD.

When are the Mustangs getting here? I have to admit I'm a little bit curious. Actually, my mouth is really watering about next Cobra. I hear rumors of a only slightly detuned (or not at all) motor from the Ford GT. Plus maybe an IRS that actually works well. I'll take mine in black with a red interior. (cue Black Sunshine by White Zombie) My only concerns would be:

A) It's a first-year Ford.
B) A trillion other cars like it. Although Cobras do stand out more and are much better looking than the lower trim levels.
C) Local stealerships acting as though they've come into possession of the Holy Grail, and pricing accordingly (hello there, $38k sticker!)
D) What I REALLY want is a GTO with the concept Judge bodywork. Isn't the current GTO just a placeholder for a lighter/better looking replacement in 2006 or 2007?

 

The Mustang could be a lot more than a straight line bandit, I would certainly have a greater appreciation for it if it were. As well, Holden offers a V8 powerd Commodore for 40000 AUD (approx 28000 USD) and it has IRS. It is a pretty sweet car IMO. Granted, it is not sold to the american market, but we get the **** end of the stick for most cars. . I am sure that Ford could do IRS if they wanted too for a 1-2k increase in price. They don't want to get away from the cars roots and its hardcore fans.

the Holden Monaro CV8 :D

I hope you are tight about a new GTO. I was pissed when the current version came out as they just took the holden and massaged it a little for the NA market.

 

Same here. I was pretty set on waiting for the '05 Mustang, but then I got my eyes on an RX-8, and, well, changed my mind. Mostly, I think because of some disappointment in the production design; I was even considering just getting a used '01 or '02 GT. If I didn't, I'm sure I would've been happy with the Mustang, too, but I haven't had any regrets at all on buying the '8.

Kern

 

Adding gasoline direct injection allows and engine to make more power because the compression ratio can go way up say from the 10.3:1 of the VQ35 to ~11.8:1 because fo the cooling effects of evaporating gasoline. (The VQ25 has ~200 ft-lbs of torque, damn good for 2.5 liters) also the intake manifold ports can be better designed (no fuel injector considerations needed).

The Mustang still doesn't have enough traction (give a 50/50 front rear) so having a short first gear with the manual will result in nothing but wheelspin (not talking drag tires here). Didn't ford look around, the Lexus IS300 could have used a taller axle ratio and larger tires (225/45 17 vs. 215/45) and probably would have been quicker to 60.

Where is the 6 speed manual? The camshaft phaser is more of mileage and emission device, not there for power. Will this mustang brake 150 mph for top speed? If it had a 6 speed manual, no doubt.

What is with the 'fog lights' in the grill, that is not where they go. Low mounted with a SHARP horizontal cut off and no up light, see the ground-not the fog.

 

MikeW,

We're talking about a car that for $25k can go from 0-60 in around 5 seconds. All kinds of compromises have to be made to bring the cost down. Things like gasoline direct injection, a 6-speed manual transmission, and larger, grippier tires all add significant cost. Trust me, the engineers would have loved to include all of those features on the new Mustang, but where are you going to cut corners to make this a $25k car?

For those critical of the SRA, the Motor Trend article clearly states that it was the only rear suspension/driveline configuration that would allow the V6 model to be sold for under $20k yet could handle the 320 ft-lb of torque from the V-8. If you're going to make IRS standard on both models, it has to be engineered to handle the V-8 output, yet cheap enough to keep the base model under $20k... it couldn't be done in the time frame Ford had to work with. Maybe this is something we'll see in the next major freshening.

 

The local Ford place has (2) '05 GT's, so the wife & I stopped to take a look. Both were automatics, and looked good in person.

No doubt these will be very popular -- V8 power for cheap $$.

 

so when's the camaro coming back, I think GM really screwed up dropping that thing, now there's only one sub 30 grand muscle car with a v8, maybe dodge might have something but when I priced stuff there wasn't anything close to the stang as far as price and what you get, someone prove me wrong, please?

 

New charger should change that