Will the 05 Mustang Take my Glory!!!
 

Right now, I feel my car is one of the hottest vehicles on the road!!! People love it, and most think it cost more than it did. My question is do you all think the new Mustang will end the RX-8's reign at the top! I'm sure the Mustang wont have a better interior, american cars always suck! Heres, some links, the real thing will be much cheaper lookin im sure, but its still a nice vehicle.

05 mustang



05 Mustang 2

That car does absolutely nothing for me...

looks nice
but I dont like american cars in general
not enough rice

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The profile is OK. But I'd never buy anything with rear lights like that. It's ridiculous.

Oh, wait... the steering wheel is ridiculous too.

Lets wait to see the production car not the concept (everybody remember the RX-Evolve interior, etc.). I saw that concept car at the Detroit Auto show last Jan -- it looked pretty good in person but I am very doubtful that the actual production car will look much like it (details) once Ford's cost cutters get hold of determining the actual production materials.

Besides that it only has two seats -- so it must get the thumbs down from me.

it's OK but i'd never choose it over the 8...I bet there will a heck of alot more of them on the street than there are Rx-8's since i'm sure it will be priced cheaper...So I think the 8 will still be one of the more unique cars on the road. Also it is kinda weird to see a modern exterior design but with a 1960's interrior..

I don't like it one bit. I hope the production model goes through some serious changes....

I'm sure the Mustang will sell more, unless it's truly awful. Right or wrong, the Mustang has a huge following among the 'buy American' enthusiast crowd.

But I doubt it will take any glory from the RX8.
1. There's at least a 95% chance that the Mustang will have poorer handling characteristics because Ford will cut costs on production and it's much harder to give a front engine V6 or V8 vehicle a 50/50 weight distribution.
2. The current Mustangs cost in the teens for the V6, low to mid 20s for the V8, and low 30s for the Cobra. Ford may increase the price for the new model, too. So if you want a Mustang that can beat the RX8 in a straight line, you probably won't be able to get it for cheaper than an RX8. If it is cheaper, it won't be much cheaper.
3. The RX8 will get more attention because it will be less common on the road than the new Mustang. Rarity increases value. (Of course, if it is too rare Mazda will stop making them and we don't want that.)
3. The RX8 is the best looking car on the road you can buy for under $100,000. The new Mustang looks decent, but it is still way out of the RX8's league. My boss has a G35, and his boss has an RX8. The 8 gets attention all of the time, and people always ask about it. Nobody cares about the G35.

You know, a car looks a lot worse with 16 inch rims, rather then 20s like that concept has.

All concepts look good. But the production version won't look nearly as good.


G35 > RX8

The G35 has style to spare. + 280hp

Forgive me for asking, but how do you get 400bhp out of a supercharged 5.4ltr engine and call that sporty?

Which engine are you talking about? The 4.6 liter DOHC supercharged V8 in the Mustang Cobra is 390 horsepower.

The 4.6 liter Northstar V8 in the Cadillac XLR is 320 horsepower, I believe. The 4.5 liter V8 in the BMW 545 and Nissan M45 are around 330 horsepower. Compared to those numbers, the Cobra's engine looks reasonable to me.

The G35 is fast, no question. Put into gear, push gas pedal, and take off faster than 98% of the vehicles on the road.

But more style than the RX8? Of course that is a subjective measurement, but I disagree. The G35 interior is classy and comfortable. The car looks great. The RX8 interior is flashy and unusual. The car looks awesome.

Thanks guys, yeah I hope mazda makes only enough to keep them in production, I've had mine for weak and havent seen any others on the road, and plus the Chicks Dig IT!!!!!!!!!!1

Agreed. However, 50/50 weight distribution does not ensure that in itself.
The current Mustang GT will beat the RX8 in a drag race and its cheaper.

How many Mustangs are going to be produced? 30,000 RX8s produced a year in the US is going to make the car far from rare.

Please stop the delusion!!! S2000, Lotus Elise, Z06, Viper, 911 Turbo, Z4, Boxer, NSX are all in that price range my friend.

Please stop the delusion!!! S2000, Lotus Elise, Z06, Viper, 911 Turbo, Z4, Boxer, NSX are all in that price range my friend.

S2000 never turned my head, that car is like a boxy lookin Miata, It sucks! Lotus Elise would turn heads just because its a lotus, the lines aren't better than the 8 and the interior definately isn't. The viper's interior sucks as well, but it will turn heads. And I hate the way the Z4 looks too, long @$$ hood. So that leaves the 911, Boxter, and NSX, I give you those.

I hate that S2000 though!!!

get a 8 then talk!!

No offense my friend, but a car with suicide doors and a "bulbous profile" are not going to win int he looks department over these more expensive dedicated sports car.

IMHO, the 8 is halfway to being a much more radical looking design. It seems as if they backed-off and scrapped the last draft, and they went for a hybrid between radical (not Radical!) & conservative.

No matter what the 'looks,' Enzo's, Z4's, Elise's - those are radical designs following function. On the other hand, your Evo is an example of dedication to the performance department. Our 8's are an example of an all-around tourer -it might not shine on any particular dpt., but its above average on all of them (looks left aside...)

Eventhough, I think the Elise looks beautiful.:D

I like Mustangs to some degree, and I like the exterior of this new one pretty well. But IMHO, they went way too far with the retro thing with the interior. Might pick one up in a few years and play with it. But you'll notice that even though I knew these were coming out, I still bought the RX-8. :D

I agree, RX8-TX. The RX8 looks amzing from the front, but some of the other angles area bit off with the suicide doors, elongated wheelbase and roofline. That being said, I think a 2X2 version with 2 doors would have been a car that perhaps would have eclipsed the others mentioned here. Who knows, it may still come out in a couple of years?

Seen it up-front and in-person. It's pretty ugly, and the interior components are so badly combined (combination of 50's diner and 80's BMW - seriously) there's no was I could stand it for a full test drive, let alone years of ownership.

True. Handling is more than weight distribution.

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The current Mustang GT will beat the RX8 in a drag race and its cheaper.

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I did say in my post that a faster Mustang will cost more, and if it is cheaper it won't be that much cheaper. Currently the base MSRP for a Mustang GT is $24,000 - not too much cheaper than the RX8's base MSRP of $26,000.

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How many Mustangs are going to be produced? 30,000 RX8s produced a year in the US is going to make the car far from rare.

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The only link I could find was http://www.mustangworks.com/articles...res/2003Mach1/
but basically Ford sells over 120,000 Mustangs a year --> 4x as many as the RX8. Plus, of course, there are already millions of Mustangs on the road while the oldest RX8s in the US are not even six months old.

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Please stop the delusion!!! S2000, Lotus Elise, Z06, Viper, 911 Turbo, Z4, Boxer, NSX are all in that price range my friend.

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Some of those cars look sweet, and a lot of them are tremendously fast and would blow the RX8 away, but I think it looks better than all of them.

Its still cheaper. The Sport Package of the RX8 (basically the cheapest high performance package) adds a bit to that, right?

[B]

True, Mustangs are all over the place, but perhaps this one will be a bit different looking. Still, both cars will be common on the road.

Its tough to argue looks, but I like them all! :D

I love Mustangs! Mostly 60's stangs. I'm pretty excited to see a new platform. I think it will be manufactured at a Mazda-Ford plant... so I wonder if it's 100% Ford! Wouldn't that be a kick in the pants!

The Mustang is one of the best selling cars in american history (icon). I don't think it would be fair comparing the two cars.

I'd imagine the V8 will be faster than the 8 in most categories but as usual, less refined... that's why it's a Muscle Car and not a Sports Car. A Mustang will always be a Muscle Car. They tried to make a Mustang into a sports car with the 2005 concept and people hated the fact it might have an independat rear suspension... so back to the live axle... like the one in my '81 RX-7... see Muscle car.

I make fun of my friend's Mustangs all the time. They make fun of my rotary, but we both appreciate their differences. That's why there's choice.

I'd love to read somewhere that a Mazda engineer designed the chasis of the Mustang (though I think it's off the Tbird/luxuray lines).

First Mazda had a hand in the Ford Fucus and Futura (?) ... imagine if they made the Mustang! That would be such a slap to american "ingenuity". I love it.

:) T

Just a quibble. Sports package adds nothing to performance. Non of the options for the 6 speed MT are performance enhancing in any way. They are all cosmetic packages.

I don't believe that is the reason they ditched the Idependant rear suspension. It was a cost cutting measure.

If IRS is so bad then whey did Ford put it on their top of the line SVT Cobra? Better handling, thats why.
When the new Mustang comes out, once again only the SVT Cobra will have IRS.

Don't get me wrong, I think the Mustang is a great car for what is designed to do. Cheap, fast, strait line fun and the new model will be no different.

In San Antonio, I couldn't swing my dick in a parking lot without hitting a Mustang. I'm glad to have a car that turns heads (even mine, after 4 moths of ownership).

Isn't the Sports Package the lightest of the high power packages? I know technically you can get a base high power model, but are they really on the lots? Also, doesn't that model have smaller wheels and brakes?

The base 6 MT already has the 18 wheels and larger front rotors. The sport package adds xenon headlights and DSC.

Touring adds upgraded stereo, moonroof, Homelink Mirror and leather. GT finishes it with seat warmers, electric driver seat and heated mirrors I beleive (this is all from memory but can be found on the mazda site). Navigation is an option for any package. The base and sport are the same weight. The others add about 50 pounds total I think from the options. Some people weighed their cars when it first came out so a quick search I am sure would find the posts.

Close, but the touring doesn't include the leather. That is the main draw of the GT.:)

i am a mustang fan, and i do like the new mustang, but however successful and popular it turns out to be, it won't really be on the same par as the 8. it'll be a much more mass-produced coupe, cheaper, less exotic, and low-tech. it caters to a much larger crowd, whereas the 8 is more of a cult car, a lot sweeter, compared to it. i'm pretty sure you'll see more people lining up for the new 'stang, and you'll see a mad rush of it on the road initially, just 'cuz it's a mustang. don't really think it's right to compare the two, mustang's a big muscle pony car that's traditionally not high in the handling department but more of an american standard-issue sports car. in any case, the 8 will hold its own

you really stand by your magazine, those're words taken straight from car and driver. well, looks are very subjective. sam mitani of r&t thought the 8 is the best-looking car ever to come out of japan. i whole-heartedly agree; the 8's maserati-ish front grill is so well-penned, as are its front fenders and canted headlights, the rear end, the greenhouse, to me it is a very beautiful, very sporty yet distinctive design with a good dose of traditional sports car cues. on the contrary, i find the G35 coupe and 350z ugly, though i do like the 350z. but i love the elise

I tend to agree with the criticism of the RX-8s looks, and C&D is not the only car mag to point out that it's kind of a mish mosh of designing ideas. I think it looks great but 10 years from now the FD will still look better, as will the G35, and early Z models, maybe even Supra to some degree. They are clean classic and elegant designs. Understated (the Supra less so) yet still eye catching. The RX-8 looks great now, but I would liken it to a woman with plastic surgery and a boob job. Looks great now, but 10 years from now it will look overly done up and like it's trying too hard. <awaits the flames>

Ike

Ike

Is the Base Model actually avaialble on the lots? When I went for a test-drive they only had Sport, Touring and Grand Touring.

Yup, that's why I used quotation marks. :p Seriously, looks are hard to argue, but come on, you have to admit the design compromises hurt the looks to some degree. I still will stand by my remark that a 2X2, 2 door design would have been an amazing looking car.

They will obviously push the ONE with the goodies. I believe those looking for a base model, are probably gonna have to wait. Let's see what Mazda's Inventory says:

Mazda Inventory Search

For those who might say the Search is not accurate: I found mine through this thing. I wrote down the VIN and called the dealer. 5 minutes later, they confirmed it was in stock. So, from my perspective, it should be pretty accurate. Oh, BTW, there is at least 1 page of 6sp base models (nearby me)

ok, I am a die-hard Mustang fan. The new 2005 Mustang going to be a 4 seater, it'll have a 125 color selection for backlighting for the dash,

Here are some photos:
Production version of 2005 Mustang
Production version interior
4.6L 3V V8 GT engine photo
Guage Cluster lit green
Production version rear end
Gauge Cluster - blue

Production version interior view of driver's seat:
http://www.svtperformance.com/forums...?postid=795757

Test mule version of 2005 Mustang:
http://www.svtperformance.com/forums...?postid=795797

The 2003/04 SVT Cobra has independent rear suspension (IRS) as most of you know, which is good and bad. Good for handling of turns and twisties. Bad because with 390 bhp and 390 lb ft torque - it produces a tremoundous amount of wheel hop, which you wouldn't get from a solid live axle. IRS is not the greatest confirguation if you plan on going to the track. Another good with the Cobra is it is highly mod-able and could give 450+ hp with not much trouble or money. I read an article that said "$1199 in mod will yield lows 11's in 1/4 mile on stock tires" and said what you need and how to do it for $1199 without having to remove anything from the interior.


oh btw... I think the Audi TT is one of the best looking cars on the road, but that is my own personal subjective opinion.

Remember, it's a RUSTANG every Mullet head will have one, they sell a shitload of those cars but they are a dime a dozen, the 8 is in a class all by itself

the dash reminds me of the 99 cougar dash the vents look the same. Its probably a similar interior with shiny silver plastic

I completely agree...and this is coming someone with a car desiging background. The Rx-8 looks great now, and I'd love to have one. Its just that the looks scream "LOOK AT ME!! I'm a top performance machine!!" Very flashy, yet it doesn't quite have the power to back it up yet. Amongst the automotive designers, its a great design, but not a classic. It will die earlier than the classier styled cars: g35 (not the 350Z though), FD etc....although the Supra is considered pig ugly to us designers except for the tailights. Our main complaint is: It needs more power to back up it's looks.

Personally, I love the way it looks. I don't care whether it will remain good looking after 6 years or not, I want one now. I sold my FD and bought an S2K which I kind of regret...I'm thinking of selling the S2K and pickin up an 8. The S is good looking, but not Great looking....kind of conservative, but thats just the way Honda is. Always playing it safe. The Element was their most valiant and risk taking effort in the design department (unfortunetly to most of the untrained eye its a disaster) thats sold in the U.S....

I still consider the Acura NSX to be a Honda! :D

yup. Love the NSX (my other choice apart from the 8), but even thats considered conservative. They could have easily made it even lower....smaller green house, more "swoops" etc....had one behind me yesterday...I really want one now.

I must say this is the best EXTERIOR looks a Mustang has ever had! But that interior has GOT TO GO! They better make some major changes to the interior for sure.

I think the '67s and '68s looked better... I know many people disagree, but personally I would have preferred if they had copied the exterior styling of one of the late 1960s models exactly. Those were sweet looking cars.

Same way the new Pontiac GTO is getting rave reviews for performance and supposedly has a surprisingly good interior for a GM car. Still, if it had looked like a 1960something GTO, I think they would sell out in an eyeblink. Instead, the exterior is bland.

maybe not EXACTLY, but yes, a closer emulation (without sad-sack eyes, and gaping Japanesque front ducting) with aggressive, sharp, geometrically pleasing lines would be far more attractive than this POS. i really hate the new Mustang design... the ugly one from the early-to-mid nineties was better, IMO.

Re: Will the 05 Mustang Take my Glory!!!
 

Out of curiosity what are you basing your statment above on? Specifically 'reign at the top'

Don't get me wrong - I think the 8 is a great looking car if a bit under powered but the top of what? The sports car class?

Funny you say that about the S2000 since the 8s front end looks strikingly similar to the S2K.

It may not turn your head but everywhere my Berlina and I go we get heads to turn and interest raised...and the cars been on the market for 4 MYs now...

Appreciate your opinion just disagree with it and your hatred of the S2K is misplaced I believe

And here's a pic with my friend's Z roadster
http://home.austin.rr.com/thes/SZ2.jpg

Same in Austin they are freakin everywhere - there are so many even I can't believe it sometimes...talk about a cookie cutter :)

Yup
 

I used to live in Corpus Christi, TX and still go there often to visit family... and Mustangs are absolutely everywhere!!!

Since I've moved out to CO, I don't see near as many... but when I do i still get really pissed off just cause of how many I've seen in Texas!

So, I'm pretty sure the point I was trying to make is that there's just alotta Mustangs in Texas... but I'm still not sure.

*Post ended for sake of further embarrasment*

Brit

Mustang will never be a two seater.

The car wont look anything close to the design study.

It will smoke the RX-8 in GT trim and cost less to boot.

Handling has never been a Mustang strong point but the Cobra does have IRS but its built around the same mouting points as the GT so your kind of limited. Word is the new GT wont get IRS.

Your correct the GT won't get the IRS which I'm kinda disappointed in a way. But anways here are some new pics of the 2005 in GT trim and the interior.
or at least the link


http://forums.bradbarnett.net/index....opic=1787&st=0

Well, now that I have seen pictures of the production version of the new Mustang's interior, I've just gotta say...

BLLLLEEEEAAACH!!!! YUCK!!!

What a crappy looking, plasticky, CHEAP looking interior! WHAT was Ford thinking?!? I am so glad I didn't wait for this car.

Still love the exterior tho, at least from the front and side. The back leaves a lot to be desired.

I agree, great looking retro style, horrid inside.

Will appeal to diffrent people then the 8