Poco

I had a V-6 Pony car.Unfortunately it was a lemon.It leaked from the gear box and a crack was discovered.I did enjoy the fuel mileage.The v-6 had plenty of torque driving the mountains at 10,000ft.
The V-6 Mustangs are great rides.They help someone on a budget have a nice car and economy.With gas back up to $3.00 a gallon its not a bad way to go.
I love my GT but I wouldn't mind having a V-6 Pony again if I could talk my wife into one.I won't give up.Its just a matter of time.

Iceknyght

I got a V6 in '05 and had absolutely no regrets... It was the styling I was after... At the time, it was what I could afford as well. It has quite a bit of power, especially after a few mods and a tune! Then a sweet deal came my way to get into an '06 GT convertible and it's a sweet ride too! I definitely enjoy the extra power, but my V6 was no slouch either... Overall, I say get what you want, but just make sure you won't regret it later! Either way, it's a Mustang and that's what truley matters!

kevinb120

Insurance mostly. I was going to wait out a Mustang altogether but in 1/06 they had an insane lease deal for only one month. it was a .5% lease factor(interest). It went back to 7.9% the next month. By the time we noticed it at the dealer and were pushing it hard they changed it. It was strange, they never made any big announcements, and in winter there wasn't much traffic on Mustangs so we literally stumbled on it.

But I have no lack of love for V6 brethren. The V6 is a great car too, and considering I had 3 SN-95' GT before it, the 06 V6 I had still made me forget my older ones. The pony package is a super duper deal. I wouldn't remotely consider something like a thin-tin can Acura RSX or the like in the 19-23k range for a coupe. All the little import sport coupes in that range look like crap after a few years and are just crummy, buzzy cars that get boring to own after a couple months. They are just econo cars with fastbacks and bright colors with a engine that needs its neck wrung constantly and they use the absolute minimal amount of metal to make it roadworthy.

The most basic V6 is a much more substantial vehicle, and with equipment like vented rear rotors, its definitely not a down-market vehicle. The V6's have tons of torque, at some rpms it will push you harder in the seat quicker then the 4.6. They just get a little tired in the upper rpms. Most of the time when you notice its not nearly as out and out fast as a GT, you are way over the legal speed limit anyway. In normal driving there is not a huge difference between the models for fun.

The best part of the GT is when it pulls like a freight train through the 2nd/3rd gear shift and you start to feel the rush of some tunnel vision kicking in, but most of the time going 80+ is not the best idea. It can actually be a bit frustrating as it never seems there is enough of a gap in traffic, no where to go very fast, or its extremely risky with Johnny Law around. Although I used to get harassed about my Miata back in the day(of course they shut up if brougt up my RX7TT before it, or was in my 500hp 67 Firebird that day. ), but that car felt like you were racing and in touch with the car at 45mph, it was ALWAYS fun. The V6 is like that if you are not the type to push some type of limit regularly...Funny enough I finally have a car I think I may keep for more then a year and am getting a bit of motherly instinct to keep it perfect-and I am thinking about picking up a used 4-5k Miata for a beater....

And any GT owner that flames a V6(or even a 4cyl older one) owner should be ashamed of themselves. If they decide to [for lack of a better word] upgrade for whatever reason, they may just hit the Subaru dealer...

Mustangs be Mustangs.

kevinb120

I don't think there is any gas advantage in the V6, I don't think I averaged more then 16-17mpg unless it was a well behaved highway trip(I have no highway in my commute). They pretty much get the exact same mileage as GT's. Man I hear the word lemon here every other day. I'm about to hit 5 years at a major dealer in the area and have yet to ever see a car get lemon-lawed. The only thing I had close to a lemon was a 93 RX7TT that spontaneously burst into flames and burnt to the ground. Never really had any issues with it other then that though...

metroplex

The fact the V6 Mustangs come with a 7.5" rear end with an open differential is the biggest turn-off. Why?

My 1981 T-bird has a 7.5" rear with an open differential. You would think that Ford could equip the V6 Mustang with something more substantial or different than a 30+ year old design that was replaced by a slightly more robust design 20 years ago (8.8"). Open differentials do not belong in a RWD car.

The S197 GTs have 31-spline axles and carbon-fiber clutch discs in the Traction-Lok differential, being essentially the same as the one used in the 03-04 SVT Cobra and the 07 GT500. However, that isn't too surprising since most 05-up Ford RWD cars now have 31-spline axles with a 8.8" differential; the Crown Victoria is not an exception.

jcopin

i had 6 grand to put down and fordcredit wanted 12k down on a GT OR 6k down on a V6 ..sooooo...

lol the extra 50 or so a month on the payment and 100 for the insurance plus the gas didnt help either

wish i had one now tho heh

boomerman

I bought the 06 V6 because I liked the pony package better than the front end on the GT.
Also it was cheaper and has all the options (fully loaded) I wanted.
To buy the GT with the same options would have been several $1000 more.
Insurance is cheaper as well.
Also since I have mine supercharged I like to see the looks on GT owners when they find out they got beat by a V6

The price I paid for my V6 plus the price of the supercharger was still cheaper than the GT I originally looked at.

I have no regrets buying the V6.
It should be about the Mustang itself NOT about bashing someone because they bought a V6 Mustang.

metroplex

The V6's pony package front-end does appear more true to the original Mustang than the GT's front end.

06VistaPony

Several reasons:

1) Cost. Both initial and long term. $5K more for the V8, plus gas and insurance over long term. Especially when this car was going to become my new daily driver.

2) Styling. When I heard the rumors about the new V6 Pony model and then saw the 1st photos, I said to myself "That's my car". I wanted to make sure my Mustang did NOT look like the rentals out there.

3) I did not need the V8 because I am building a weekend beast in the garage. It's a lightweight '67 Firebird that will have a 450-500 hp 455 Pontiac motor in it. It's going to have all the power I am ever going to need.

I have no regrets. I feel that the V6 model with the GT suspension upgrades is an fantastically balanced car and an absolute blast to drive - every day.

Martimus

Whatever dude...

A V6 Mustang can get ya in and out of trouble almost as well as a Mustang GT can. And the top end can get ya thrown in jail for excessive speed just about as fast. Performance is a great thing when you can actually use it legally. And outside of the track neither a GT or V6 owner use that power without some degree of legal risk.

metroplex

The thing is that the weight to power ratio isn't an opinion. The V6 Stang would have a 15.7:1 ratio, similar to a 260-270 hp Crown Vic or Dodge Charger. My Vic is actually around this area with all of its mods. It's faster than stock, but I wouldn't say it is fast compared to a bone stock S197 GT that has a 11.5:1 weight to power ratio (sucks the doors off my Crown Vic from a stop or at speed). My Vic has trouble getting out of its own way, let alone pass a Dodge Hemi truck or Charger R/T.

To each his own, but if you want performance and the V8, get the GT otherwise you'll just regret it. It sounds like many of the V6 owners really wanted the V6 due to cost, gas mileage, etc... which is perfectly fine!

I just hear too many excuses from people (that I know) as to why they don't want/can't get V8s: family, wife, children, dog, gas mileage, insurance, why does anyone need that much power, etc... For me, if the vehicle isn't interesting unless it has a V8 engine. I looked at the Ford Focus ST (which is a very nice car) but ultimately went to the Stang because the Focus didn't have a RWD drivetrain and a V8 engine.

Mustang_Ed

+1

WB05stang

I just bought one so I could keep telling eveyone why I bought one. This has been done to death..

I bought it cause that is what I wanted.. nuff said. You don't like it.. that's your problem I am very happy with it..

oops.. forgot.. I traded one in for another one!!!

MN_Mustang06

+1

I will add that no matter what a person drives there will always be something newer, faster, and shinier. A man can go broke chasing horsepower.

The car does not make the man, but the man makes the car.

Enjoy your stang, and keep fighting the rice.

vistablue mustang

A Mustang is a Mustang and we should not be spending time picking on each other for what we bought. I would rather see a million guys & gals buy a V6 Stang then one guy buy some tin econo box from an import dealer. I bought a V6 last time because it was affordable and I wanted a Mustang BAD... so I ordered and saved up and when mine came in I was glad I got the V6, the car was well balanced for daily driving and once I put the magnaflow muffler on it I had the sound I wanted. Make no mistake about it I got so many compliments about my car, people would pull over while driving just to ask me about it.

In fact let me tell you a story, I had dropped my car off at the dealer for some warranty work (don't remember what) and after the finished my car the pulled it out of the service lot and into the front of the dealership, there was a guy walking around and he went inside to a salesman and said "that blue mustang outside with the white stripes, get the paper work because it's sold" The salesman was estatic he went and got the paper work came out and said "sir I am sorry thats a customers car, naturally meaning it's not for sale" The guy said "too bad, because you don't have anything like it and you lost your self a sale" When I came to pick the car up I had the owner and the salesman come up to me and ask where I got my stripes done. I told them and a few days later I got a call from the stripe shop thanking me for the referral as they just did 6 cars 2 of which were Vista blue with white stripes, I even got my cars picture on the window of their shop. I never once got asked is that a V6, by anyone even the GT Stangs that came to visit all wanted to know where and what I did to my car.

The point is I loved my V6 and even the only reason I am getting a GT this time is because I have more time to save and the insurance does not cost me anymore then my previous Stang. The other reason is I was only getting 17.5MPG so the fuel costs will be the same. Long story short, you have a Mustang reguardless of the engine and you should be proud to own it and drive it, your a part of an American legend and are the envy of most sedan driving males in this country. Enjoy it and don't worry about what others say. Happy trails!

06VistaPony

VistaBlue's story reminds me of how I have "disquised" my car in the world of non-Mustang people and the reactions I get.

1st off, the Pony package puts the 17 inch Bullet wheels on the car that were a traditional GT item. Then I put dual exhaust on it. People are always thinking it's a GT. Ricers try to get me to race and others just assume when talking to me about it that's it's got the V8. Some I correct, others I don't bother.

The point, as Vista makes, is that IT'S A COOL LOOKING MUSTANG as far as the rest of the world is concerned and it makes me smile all the time.

jay_wx

I got the V6 because it was exactly what I wanted. I was originally thinking I wanted a GT coupe but I had the opportunity to test drive a GT convertible. I already had a 2003 GT that I loved, and after driving the GT vert I realized I really preferred my SN95 and didn't want to trade it. However, I fell in love with the convertible and still loved the looks of the new Mustangs but I decided I would keep my SN95 and get a second Mustang. When the Pony package came out I fell in love with it, and knew that was the one I wanted, a Pony vert with a manual transmission. However, for some odd reason Ford wouldn't sell a Pony vert with a manual transmission for 06, which was very dissapointing. One day I was looking around the lot and found a leftover 05 V6 manual convertible, and came up with the idea I would make my own Pony convertible. I got a great deal on the 05, and brought it home with me.
After a little work and a lot of fun, I now have my Pony convertible with the maunal transmission I wanted, *and* my 03 GT. I love driving both of them and I'm very thankful I was able to have both. I do like the new GT's, and if I had to have just one that's probably what I would have. But as it is I'm very happy and the V6 was the perfect choice for me.

Mustangfreak

Some people just want the car and are happy with the 6er. Some people may use the car as a status symbol (which I HATE it when they do that)

I on the other hand, love the torquey V8 and can't downgrade to a V6 after driving several V8's.

SteelTownStang

I'm not a V6 hater... I even owned a V6 Fox, buttttttttt, for the price/performance equation- GT all the way! V6'er will always say that they're satisfied, well maybe those who have never driven a GT may think so... but those who driven a GT know that they're not being totally honest. If you want to say that you presently can't afford a GT, that cool. That was my reason. But to say that you just wanted a V6 because it had less performance- give me a break.

Vermillion06

Yup, performance-wise, the current V6 is where the GT was in previous years. A manual V6 car with the Pony package would be a really fun car...

I was just thinking the same thing the other day. I wish I lived in a more rural area like I did when I was a kid so I could open her up more. And because of all the traffic and law enforcement, I think I could have been just as happy with a V6/manual with the Pony Package...


I agree... As a former V6 owner, I know what it's like to hear "oh, it's just a V6." But a Mustang is a Mustang, V6 or V8.