jimmbbo

Sorting thru the forum was tremendously helpful in the year-long search for my car... Thought I'd start a thread I would have liked to have had - Mustang pluses and minuses in one spot - What do we LIKE or NOT LIKE about the cars...

Please avoid the well (overly) covered 6MT issue.

What are the UPS and DOWNS of your latest generation Mustang?

For me, the UPs:

• Styling is outrageous... not crazy about the rear end, but overall a massive winner.
• Color choices/combinations - more than many manufacturers. Was able to have any one of four colors and two interiors that I'd be happy with.
• Acceleration (!)
• Features/toys
  • NAV - way too much fun.
  • Sync - great potential
  • MyColor/Ambient lighting - just plain cool.
  • 401A package - upgrades the interior, better "optics"
• Rear view camera - Wouldn't want to be without it.
• Rear view blind spot mirrors - small but very useful
• Acceleration (!)
• Sound - a real V8 blast from the past.
• GT ride/handling
• Cruising comfort, noise level
• Acceleration (!)
• 5.0 L and 400+ HP! gotta love the technology in this engine.
• Ergonomics and layout of the instrument panels are excellent
• HIDs - the light is fantastic
• Steering - precise and tight
• Leather interior
• Turning radius remarkably tight
• Sequential tail light turn signals
• Fuel economy - if I can keep my foot out of it...
• Choice of differential gearing
• Did I mention Acceleration?!

Things that make me go "Hmm"...

• Poor cabin storage - small glovebox, aft console and door bins.
  • Aft console is nearly impossible for a non-acrobat to reach without twisting around (NOT good in traffic)
  • Getting USB/Audio cables out of the storage box is a challenge - looks like an "afterthought" notch was placed to allow cable run to the cabin.
• Reverse gear selection being LEFT, push DOWN, then FWD -
  • WTF? IMO that is an UNnatural motion for putting the car in reverse...
  • S/B far right into a spring, then aft - simple, safe, one motion in the same direction as the car will move...
• Tinny and plastic look and feel on many items.
• Not a fan of the GT fog lights - think it detracts from the front end lines, especially with the HIDs
• A bit confining view from inside, but far better than the Camaro, which is like driving a bunker.
• There is never any confusion as to whether the trunk has activated on opening... the 500 dB solenoid noise leaves no doubt... Is that part of the security package - scares off anyone nearby?
• Easy fuel - good idea, but having an interior release would keep theft of $4.00+ a gallon gas to a minimum.
• Would prefer direct fuel injection, even as an option/additional cost..

wannabe

I'd really like to have a sunglasses holder up high, and it's just dumb of Ford to not put a telescoping wheel on the Mustang. Probably the only vehicle in the whole lineup without one. This is still the only car I've ever bought new that I'd buy again after a year of driving it. .

hawkeye18

I did a year in Iraq - first time I opened the trunk I thought a mortar had landed and dove for cover... NOT COOL

SI_stang

Thank you for your service and the chuckle from reading that comment.

FCMalie

Haha is it really that bad? At least it's been quieter out here since you guys headed home. Only 23 more days left for me.

hawkeye18

Dude, I'm not even kidding... they should make it so WAVES goes off for 5 seconds before every time the trunk opens. The entire car goes THUNK... the solenoid that opens it is more appropriate for locking the outer doors at NORAD.

I can't even imagine what it must be like to have only 23 days there after being there for, what, 75 months? (for those that don't know, FCMalie and I were in the same unit over there... I left after a year, he decided he loved it so much he'd stay another while)

2010MustangGT

How many review threads are you going to make?

Adam

3 in one day so far

FCMalie

Should be fun to scare the crap out of some people then.

Haha 75 months.... I wish I had collected that many months of tax free checks. Will be just under 18 when I leave though.

jokerstars

I totally disagree, but I got the glass roof. Everyone comments how spacious the car feels. Although when I close the retractable shade I feel noticeably more confined.

Double-EDad

LOL, when my top is down it's VERY spacious!

The big ups I noticed is in terms of noise/rattles. The car has a VERY quiet and smooth ride, and so far makes not a peep going down some rather rough roads that I travel on the way to work.

This is my first-ever Mustang, but based on what I'd been told about previous-generation Mustangs, this kind of refinement is a very recent improvement for these cars, something I think Ford can be proud of.

The other things I love are my 5-spoke 19" wheels.

Agent

Thumbs Up: HP, torque, glass roof, Kona Blue, Sync, clutch pedal stiffness, shifter throw, lumbar support, retro styling cues, turning heads = priceless.

Thumbs Down: puny visors, non-locking gas cap, metal trim on steering wheel perimeter & gear shift ****, cup holder location, cheap floor mats, scratch-prone radio screen, headrest angled too far forward, glove compartment too small for owner's manual, blobby center disk on the steering wheel.

Wish List: pop-up glass roof, white fog lights included in HID headlight package, digital speedometer display, individual tire pressure display, SKIP SHIFT DELETE option, bigger side bolsters on seats, optional front & rear roll shades like the one for the glass roof, seat belt optionally convertible between 3-point and 5-point configurations, shorter front doors + rear quarter-size suicide doors, hardtop convertible.

KonaBlue5.0

About your negative views on the capless fuel door - you cannot siphon from this tank, that's part of the design. Every time I see someone post this, I have to wonder, do you really think Ford didn't think if that? :P

Anyways, my input: not a fan of the interior, but, I have the base model. It's ergonomically sound, just, cheap feeling compared to my 'base model' cars of the past.

Everything else is a massive win to me. I've even gotten so attached to the rear end that I don't particularly care for the 05-09 rear anymore, which I never expected!

jimmbbo

LOL! I had a similar thought... WTF was THAT!!??

Welcome home....

jimmbbo

Dunno... do you have a maximum number in mind?

I greatly appreciated the information I received from the forum, and am attempting to help potential new Mustang buyers more easily find information it took me a year to gather...

You are free to block or not read the threads, and are equally as free not to respond.. Ain't democracy great?

jimmbbo

Educate me... If I place the Ford-supplied (or locally manufactured) plastic filler cone down the throat of the fill pipe past the trap door, what keeps me from putting a 1/2 inch diameter plastic tube thru the cone into the gas tank and doing an "Oklahoma Credit Card" defueling?

jimmbbo

Sorry.. would have done more, but I had work to do...

Double-EDad

I know I already gave my thumbs up in my previous post, but I had to submit my single biggest thumbs-down:

- Automatic climate control not available in this $41,100 car unless one pays an additional $2340 for the optional Nav/Electronics pkg, whereas my previous car, a 4-yr-old Honda Accord V6 ($28k new) had it as standard equipment.

Rubbing salt in the wound is that the standard (non-ESP) radio display has the capability of showing all automatic climate control functions, but for some reason someone at Ford didn't want to do the work or allow the packaging to make the electronics feed it.

Inconsiderate Bastards.

rodmoe

Not a big thing but took a bit of getting used too was the Seat backs not returning to last set position when used to access the rear seat . But maybe I am doing something wrong..
Otherwise the more I drive it the better it gets!!!!

StangMahn

RX-8 much?

a manufacturer will never put 5 point harnesses on a non supercar, it's very expensive with lots of engineering and testing problems that arise. If you really want one, spend 1k for a roll bar and harness bar to go with it.


I'll be honest, I've driven a new 5.0 with the Brembos, and it was fantastic, but (I know I'm in the minority here) I prefer my 04 GT. I didn't feel like I was doing anything with the 5.0. Distanced I suppose is the term I'm looking for. Seems everyone wants the new Mustangs to be a Lincoln version with dumbed down suspension and more gadgets than you have use for. I prefer mine more simple.


and yes, the Stangs definitely need a telescoping wheel. When I sit far enough away from the wheel to be comfortable leg wise, I have to stretch my arms all the way out, and at that point, the airbags do no good in an accident, trust me.