Poco

Your right about in town fuel mileage but I was getting around 29-30 on the hiway.I took a nice long trip to Iowa and the mileage was really good.Oddly enough my last trip in the GT was around 27.8 mpg which was pretty good for a GT.

kevinb120

Well, if you REALLY want performance you should of bought something with more ***** like the GT500 or the S281E and not just a plain old GT-which most auto journalists consider just middle of the pack performance wise in its price range.

rmays06

@ Kevin great posts man you hit it on the head.
@ Corey GT, V8 only way to go? Why didn't you get a GT500? That is the only way to go!!

I hate this conversation and Its tiring to talk about.
I bought my car cause its mine...plain and simple. Its cheap, looks classy and fast as I need it! Just like I like most of my women!

I've owned 2 other mustangs and this is the best of the bunch and the others have been GT's.

HEADACHEZ

I would never ever buy a V6 Mustang!!! It's just not a Mustang unless it has a V8 in my book!! I am sure plenty of people would disagree but to me what would be the point of a V6? A musclecar needs a V8 peroid! When I went to the dealership to get my Mustang the sales guy said V6 or V8, I told him straight out if you try and sell my a V6, I will leave right now!!!

V8 or go home poser......Just my 2-1/2 cents!!

kevinb120

jay_wx

Yes there are those who agree with you, and that's cool - but please, don't call people names just because they bought a V6. Cost wasn't an issue for me and I could have bought a GT in any configuration I wanted, but I *chose* to buy a V6. How am I a poser? I mean I respect your opinion and all, but to call everyone who bought a V6 a poser is rude.

MN_Mustang06

Definitions (courtesy of wikipedia)

The term muscle car generally describes a rear wheel drive mid-size car with a large, powerful engine (typically, although not universally, a V8 engine) and special trim, intended for maximum torque on the street or in drag racing competition. It is distinguished from sports cars, which were customarily and coincidentally considered smaller, two-seat cars, or GTs, two-seat or 2+2 cars intended for high-speed touring and possibly road racing. High-performance full-size or compact cars are arguably excluded from this category, as are the breed of compact sports coupes inspired by the Ford Mustang, the "pony car". Another factor used in defining a classic muscle cars is age and country of origin. A classic muscle car is usually but not necessarily made in the US or Australia between 1964 and 1975.

The pony car is a class of automobile launched and inspired by the Ford Mustang in 1964. It describes an affordable, compact, highly styled car with a sporty or performance-oriented image.

The Mustang provided the template for the new class of automobiles. Although it was based on the platform of the Falcon, it had a unique body (offered as a hardtop coupé and a convertible) with distinctive, "long hood, short deck" proportions. In basic form it was mechanically mundane, with a 170 cu. in. (2.8L) six-cylinder engine and three-speed manual transmission. It carried an attractive base price of $2,368, and had an extensive option list offering a range of V8 engines, Cruise-O-Matic automatic transmission or four-speed manual, radios, air conditioning, power steering, and other accessories. A V8 Mustang with all available options would cost about 60% more than a basic Six, which made it an extremely profitable model for Ford.
The requirements were therefore set:

• Attractive, sporty styling
• Affordable base price
• Extensive options, including six-cylinder and V8 engines
• Aggressive, youth-oriented marketing and advertising.

While most of the pony cars offered more powerful engines and performance packages, enough to qualify some as muscle cars, a substantial number were sold with six-cylinder engines or mundane, "cooking" V8s, with the high-performance models largely limited to drag racing, road racing, or racing homologation purposes.


The only modern Mustang that qualifies as a muscle car is the GT500 in my book. Garden variety GT's and V6's are modern day pony cars. The new Camaro and Challanger will be modern day muscle cars. Some of the V6 haters on this board should learn a little Mustang history.

poldrv

I bought a V6 so I don't drive around later saying "Oops I wish I had a V6!" The V6 has plenty of power, those that think it doesn't have never driven a V6 to it's full potential. V6 or V8 is a personal choice. The key question to ask yourself is were are you going to be able to drive the V8 to its full potential without being tagged by the boys in blue other than a legal track? Even the V6 will accumulate violation tickets.

Kryten

Hey you...Viper owner over there, yeah you... Go home! You have an over abundance of cylinders and can't be called a muscle car. And no more lip about about having over 500 horses, you don't have a V8 just accept it .

HEADACHEZ

I was not calling anyone names my apologies I am just saying that a most people are now putting duals on their V6's and trying to make theirs look like V8's. It just my opinion period. If you have a V6 good for you, if money or gas was an issue well thats not my fault. I live in Cali and gas is brutal but I said V8 or nothing. I know about Mustang history and all but let's be realistic does a cobra have a V6, Mach 1, Shelby??? NO!!! Sorry to offend anyone but it's my opinion and that's all. Anyone and everyone can disagree no problem. My intentions were not to rain on anyone's parade

metroplex

The GT is the BEST bang for the buck. You get a modern fastback muscle car for under $26k brand new factory ordered. No other car comes close. The STi and Evo are well over $30k after TTL no matter how you cut it unless you buy used. The V6 Mustang is not a muscle car because its weight to power ratio is well above 12:1 (the unofficial limit). The GT500, S281E still pale in comparison to a C6 Z06 or the Ford GT. These cars begin to have larger and larger sticker prices, but yes, they do offer MORE performance than the S197 GT but what is your point? The FIA 2003-2004 Ferrari 550 Maranello has 650 hp with a 2400 lb chassis. Does that mean the S197 V6 or GT sucks? No.

FWIW, with a 11 psi bolt-on FRPP Whipple, the S197 GT gets 470-500+ fwhp without the extra weight of the GT500 or the extra $20k price-tag.

Regardless of what the biased auto journalists say, the S197 GT gives a lot of bang for the buck. I was looking at getting a V6 S197 due to the lower initial cost, but it just wasn't worth it unless you really really wanted a V6. I know I'd kick myself for years to come if I bought the V6. I subscribe to the thought (am I'm probably in the minority) that a Mustang isn't a Mustang unless it has a manual transmission with a V8 engine.

Martimus

Ahhh... Brian! I understand what you said was simply your opinion but remember that there are people on THIS forum who are trying to remove the fog lights from their GT's thus making them look more like V6's... and what about the Web Electric pony corral which attaches to the grill and makes the front end look reminiscant of a V6 Pony Package? The challenge that some people on these forums have had is realizing that "posing" goes both ways... and that its really only posing when you're intentionally trying to fool someone (for example installing GT emblems on a V-6 or Cobra emblems on a GT).

And to SteelTownStang, give us all a break with that juvenile "but those who driven a GT know that they're not being totally honest" logic. I can't speak for any other V6 owner but I've driven several 05+ GT's including a Supercharged GT that would blow the doors off many V-8 Mustangs, including in my estimation YOURS! I have another friend who just installed a Turbo into his V-6 Mustang. That car now has more raw Power and torque than most near stock GT's, including in my estimation YOURS. Please understand that my point here isn't honestly to disparage your car, its to help you realize that GT's aren't the only game in town.

We no longer live in the 1960's where gasoline is 25 cents per gallon and many highways have no posted speed limits. This is the 21st century dude where gasoline costs are slowly approaching what they pay in Europe and police have at their disposal electronics that make it difficult to escape detection or avoid arrest.

The best and safest place to cruise in triple digits is the race track. And even there I'd still take torque over horsepower any day of the week. Wasn't it Carroll Shelby who said "Horsepower sells cars but torque wins races"?

metroplex

That's just in retaliation for the V6 owners putting GT stuff on their car

As for the turbocharged V6s, well, you can install twin turbochargers on the V8, or go with a Whipple blower FRPP kit (470-500+ hp). There's no replacement for displacement and number of cylinders. The Ford Falcon XR6T has a turbocharged 6-cylinder making about 330 hp (respectable), but the Ford Falcon XR8 has a naturally aspirated 5.4L quad-cam V8 which makes 350 hp, and the Ford FPV GT-P with a naturally aspirated 5.4L quad-cam V8 makes 380+ hp. Slap turbos or blowers on those engines and you get even more power.

Knight

This is an endless debate if you just fight for one side or the other.

Basically to each his own. Some people just like the mustang cause its a mustang. Great looks great price. Why pay for a V8 or limited slip differential if you are never going to use them or care if they are there.

For me I love performance, and the performance the V8 offers stock or modded bests the V6 so I am willing to pay more for the car and insurance cause that extra money spent makes me much happier and its really part of my entertainment budget.

But whatever reason you bought a mustang its great to me. If it weren't for the V6 guys i wouldn't be able to have my GT for $25k.

rmays06

I can't believe some of you guys here!
No they did not put V6's in Mach's or Shelbys but the small block (which the 4.6 is) was laughed at as well during that time.
Hey you know the Viper has a V10 in it....why didn't you get that? THe Shelby is a 5.4L so the GT isn't really the cats meow anymore either....

@Metroplex and Headachez- I can't believe you didn't buy a Tungsteng grey mustan....wow it really isn't a mustand unless its grey. WHY, when I went into my dealer I said hey man your not selling me a car unless its a certain shade of grey or I'm leaving...............


The fastest production Firebird ever was the 1989 V6 turbo 3.8L buick motor Indy model, it needed no modification to run pace, I guess there is a replacement for displacement or every car would be running around with V10 or V12's besides the 4.6 is tiny....

HEADACHEZ

hhbh720

I couldn't let that offer pass me by... 1-year old car, 10000 miles, $16k...

jay_wx

No hey, that's cool - like I said I totally respect your opinion. And I have to agree that owning a V8 Mustang is a real treat, I love my SN95 GT! But when it came to getting a convertible, I preferred the looks of the V6 Pony over the GT, and after driving both it was an easy choice for me. I'm sure I may have chose differently if I didn't already have a GT and could only have one Mustang, as a matter of fact I wouldn't even have a vert more than likely. There are things about both versions I'm not crazy about, but there's good reasons we all made whatever choices we did when we got our cars - they are *both* Mustangs and fun to own.

kevinb120

Well I was a GM fan with my 60's cars, Mustangs were never anything to worry about and usually weren't worth risking a ticket picking a fight with a Mickey Mouse car. When we all drove hot rods in the late 80's, when street racing on the back roads, Mustangs just stayed home. Plenty of guys in hopped up Nova's would thrash anything that wasn't a Boss 429(and no kids owned those). Any kind of reworked GM with a 350 or better could play the odds that maybe 1 in 100 Mustangs would possibly be a challenge.

I became a Mustang fan after the rather revolutionary '86 GT(I had a Jalopino red one with T-tops), but for the next half dozen I owned, without a power adder you really weren't king of much. I still thought it was a better car then an F-body anyway. Come full circle to the modern version, it is in a class of one. Its funny that even if GM figures out a way to make some existing platform into something that looks more then 15% of what the phony show car does(which I still hate) and somehow cost the same and are formidable cars, I really couldn't care less anyway. I have had people in S class mercedes benzes come across a gas station parking lot to look at my 21k V6 and compliment it. Funny enough, over 90% of my non-mustang crowd gawkers I have talked to over a year didn't know if it was a V8 or V6. In all forms now, it is an American icon first, and a car by its mettle 2nd. Considering how much we have sold out our country over the years, it's one of very few remaining. I would venture to say as far as a product/commodity it is the number one American icon. Unfortunately, a smart bomb is probably #2.

What other car could be put in a parking lot without a single badge on it(including the GT one) and get 100% recognition by random people over and over and over. But as some 'powerhouse' GT that is so much better then its V6 version? whatever. Sure the GT is great, and considering my cycle of ownership is about one car every 9 months, I know this car is a keeper. As long its not wrecked/repaired along the way, I will pay her off in 3 years, keep it, and just buy a 2010 model. Hopefully I can track down another '86 in great shape at some point too when I have the room, even if my 06 V6 could stomp it.

Martimus

Heck dude... the freaken Tuetel's put a turbo on a chopper! They seem to make turbo's that fit on lots of modern motors anymore.

In Europe Yamaha sells a turbocharged MOPED!! And I even found a video on YouTube of someone who installed a turbo on a LAWNMOWER:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qAGz4i2_Iuk

Each instance tends to make me wonder WHY did they even bother? Install a turbo on a 49cc scooter?

Power simply for the sake of bragging rights seems rather silly! Power when you can use it makes a lot more sense to me...