PICTURES TO FOLLOW......
ok, here's some driving impressions. they're pretty much short term, so far, as i've not had the time to put the mileage on my machine that golfer has on his as yet. i've had only a couple of highway runs on her, then mostly stop n go driving.
in general, ford has finally gotten the mustang right. this car is nearly perfect. the engine, delivers smooth power from right off idle on up. i've not yet taken her over 4500rpm though, as she's not broken in. i'm pretty sure she'll pull right on up to the 7000rpm redline though. at a mere half throttle, she's at 4500rpm in the blink of an eye.
this transmission is a six speed manual. i think i read it's german, rather than borg warner, as the previous five speeds were. the shifter so far is a little notchy, but i don't mind that at all. it's not a fight to go into any gear, and considering said notchiness, this thing shifts smooth as silk otherwise. the gear spacing is absolutley perfect. when driving in rush hour traffic, the spacing is perfect for those stunningly slow accelerations. when you're running down an on ramp onto the freeway, the gear spacing is perfect getting you up to speed.....and even keeping her below half throttle, you can VERY easily be going fast enough to lose your license well before having to merge into traffic, should you get caught. one thing i've been having a bit of trouble with, however, is getting a feel for the clutch. it's not hard, and doesn't require extreme effort, but i'm just having a bit of a time getting the "feel". it could be due to my dakota engaging nearly all the way up(this truck's been this way the entire time i've owned it), and my jeep, engaging just off the floor. once again, ford's gotten this perfect, in as much as this clutch engages at about the level of the brake pedal.
steering is like no other mustang i've ever driven('cept that 201 demo car that one dealer tried to sell me). when i picked her up, the steering was set to "normal", and to be honest, i had forgotten that it was adjustable. the steering on the new mustangs is electronically assisted, rather than hydraulically, as they were in the past. golfer had reminded me of this. he's tried the other settings, and advised me to set it to "sport" and leave it there, as that's the most fun setting. i switched it to "sport" the other night, and it is phenomenal. the feel that you get of the road is amazing. the handling of this car, is once again, like no mustang i've ever driven. he was right, and she'll be staying set on "sport".
when i ordered her, i was torn between opting in the brembo brake package, or putting some appearance options on her. namely, the hood scoop, lower air dam, and the rear wing, which would've given her more of a 60's look. i swear i was like a woman(no offense intended towards our female members here) making this decision. i truly couldn't make up my mind. while the appearance options would've cost a few bucks more, the sales manager suggested to go with the brake package. bear in mind here, that i could afford one or the other, but not both. i am grateful for him nudging me towards the brake package.
the brembo brakes give my four piston calipers in the front, with 14" vented brake rotors, standard brake calipers in the rear, but i believe a better pad material, along with vented rotors back there. while i kind of wanted to go with the 5 spoke wheels(again going for that 60's style) the brembo brake package takes us from 18" wheels, to 19" wheels, with pirelli p0's. for the cost of this upgrade, the price was well worth it.
as for the brakes capability? i've not needed to "panic" stop as yet, nor have i raced her yet, but i've come upon two different traffic lights, that i could have(and seriously should have) just continued through as they turned yellow. both times, i noted no one behind me, so i decided to see how she stops. the first time, i nearly launched my eyeballs out through those two little holes just below my forehead. i went a bit heavy on the pedal, as i would have in my dakota, or even in my old fox body mustang. that was a mistake(not necessarily a bad one), and not even remotely necessary. she stopped perfectly. on the second occurrence, i went easier, and she repeated that perfect stop.
here may be the place to note, that ford has also positioned the pedals perfectly. they're slightly farther apart than the old fox body mustangs, but they very easily allow heel/toe operation. it's slightly harder under light braking, as the brake pedal is a tad higher at that point than the throttle, but moderate braking brings them even, making it easy.
inside the car, is much bigger than in previous mustangs. when i used to race my fox body mustang, i had to hunch over a bit, due to my helmet hitting the roof. such would not be the case in this mustang. i'm 6'2, and had to raise the seat, and bring it considerably forward, to find my comfortable driving position.
inside, is also a whole new world for the mustang. she has an instrument cluster very similar in appearance to 60's mustangs. looks like a cross between 66, and 67 mustangs. the gauges are backlit, and the coloring can be changed at a couple pushes of a button. they are also perfectly positioned such that all six of them can easily be seen past/around/over the steering wheel.
the steering wheel is well laid out, with cruise controls on the left spoke, and the radio & sync controls on the right spoke. i ordered the gt premium, and this package comes with the shaker 500(fords name for the 500 watt stereo system), and if i remember correctly, either 8 or 10 speakers. she also comes with sirius radio built in, am/fm, and a single disc cd player. in the center console, is an audio input jack, to hook any music device to, and a usb port, which you can hook any usb device to. this will also play music off of a simple memory stick.
through the sync system, one can make calls, without ever touching their phone, get directions(even without having the $2300 option of the navigation screen), and a host of other things, that i'll be going to a seminar about.
the interior is leather(part of the premium package), and i opted the comfort group, which gave me heated seats, and added a power seat for the front passenger. i didn't care about making that seat power adjustable....i just wanted heated seats.
the hand controls for all of this has been kept simple. the radio is simple dials, both for volume, and tuning, as is the HVAC system. i didn't opt in the higher end HVAC, so i don't have dual zone in my car. even after only a week of ownership, i can easily switch between sat. radio, fm radio, and stations without taking my eyes off the road.
if i recall, both dichotomy, and golfer mentioned about the placement of the cup holder. they're right. whomever put a cup holder there should be shot with pepperspray. i don't really mind it though, as i don't bring drinks in my car with me, and on the rare occasion i do, there are 2 possibilities of a cup holder. either myself, or my passenger is i have one. thus, to me, the cup holder is a cool lit storage bin.
then on to the lighting. ford's installed ambient lighting in the mustangs. it's pretty cool to be honest, although i have to admit that when i'd seen it in pictures, i thought it was kind of silly.
overall, driving, she is a bit bigger than mustangs of the past, and there isn't much feeling of the speed you're doing. i truly find it hard to keep her below 70 on the freeway. i shall be getting well acquainted with the cruise control. i shall also be installing a VERY good radar detector. not because i intend to drive stupidly fast all the time, but because i don't want to be getting caught if i slip up and let her get up there again.
i had had a dozen different things i wanted to/was going to change on this car before next spring, from a ram air hood, to a different exhaust, to a grille with the '67 style fog light spacing. to be honest, none of that is going to happen i think. the more i look at her, the more i think that ford has perfected perfection.
the mustang is the only pony car to be in constant production for nearly 50 years, and this current incarnation shows exactly why that is. she was born and raised in America, and she's now showing her true colors with her styling(which many have taken cues from through the years), and performance.
you cannot touch this cars performance for this price range, bar none.
