Well, I did it. This was probably one of the toughest car-related decisions that I've ever had to make. I traded her in :/ I loved my 5.0. I knew what I was getting into a few years ago. Everyone told me that a mustang isn't a great daily driver, especially in the winter on the East Coast. I didn't care what anyone said. I really wanted a 2013+ Mustang and went for it -and it was a BLAST to drive. However, over the past 3 year the traffic became completely unbearable. My commute is 65 miles a day round trip. The morning and evening rush hour traffic on the Garden State Parkway did me in. NJ sucks for many reasons and the traffic is right at the top of the list. There were days that I sat in traffic for over an hour, never getting out of 1st gear. Neutral, first, neutral, first, neutral, first...for miles. I drove it in every kind of weather, all year long. In addition, I wasn't getting better than an average of 17mpg. Since I can't move to a new home anytime soon and I can't afford 3 cars (my wife has her own vehicle) I decided to part ways with my mustang for a more economic and utilitarian mode of transportation... a 2016 Subaru Forester. Yup, the complete opposite of a Ford Mustang. My second passion other than cars is the outdoors…so it kind of makes sense. One of these days I'll get another Mustang to keep in the garage, take out on the weekends. I've always wanted a 13 or 14 GT500. Anyway, I thought that I'd give a little review of my experience for anyone who cares. TMS is a great group of people and I had a lot of fun reading these forums. I've also learned a lot from you all. So, here it goes:

The good stuff…

You feel like a rock star driving this car. No question about it. This car is an experience like no other. You feel like you are connected to muscle car history. From the way it looks to the way it sounds. Sure, there were other muscle car options out there that I could have went with, but to me nothing looked better than 12-14 Mustang.

The acceleration. My engine was pretty much stock. At stock this car is pretty **** fast. No, not the fastest thing on the road and far from it…but it’s powerful. You feel it from every gear especially with a tune. The car pulls and wants to keep going. One of my favorite things to do was punch it in 2nd or 3rd gear on the Turnpike entrance ramps. What a feeling.

The handling. After some mods. Out of the box this car doesn’t handle great at all. It felt like going around a turn in a waterbed on the stock suspension. But once I lowered it a little and upgraded the shocks/struts, etc… the car handled like a dream. I could take quick turns and still hold them very well.

The looks. To me, the mustang is a head turner. It is a beautiful looking automobile. I got many compliments/thumbs up in traffic. I made friends at work and in my neighborhood because of this car. People love a great sounding Mustang. One of my favorite memories was when I was driving home one evening. I was coming out of the toll booth and next to me was a very nice looking BMW 7 something. The driver rolled his window down and shouted “I love your car!” and gave me thumbs up. I thought it was pretty cool that someone who dropped a lot of money on his luxury vehicle could appreciate a Mustang.

The interior. I actually really liked the interior of my car. I had a GT Premium/CS. The seats were extremely comfortable and adjustable compared to my new ride. I also really liked that the center portion of the seats were suede.

The not so good stuff…

As much friendly attention as my car got, I also had my fair share of unwanted attention. It became ridiculous how many people would harassed me on the road to goat me into racing at a traffic light or just drive dangerously to show off. Best thing I could do was ignore them and hope they don’t crash into me.

The fuel economy. Yeah, I know it’s a Mustang. But this car NEVER got the advertised mpg issued by Ford. I would conduct many experiments to try to save gas and the absolute best I ever got was 23 mpg highway and 19 mpg average. I would’t put anything but premium in her and I was filling up every 3-4 days. I was spending between $200-300 a month on gas.

The quality of some of the stock parts. Lets face it. The stock shifter is a complete piece of garbage. If you still have a stock shifter in your car than you don’t know what you are missing. I went with the MGW and never looked back. It is a fantastic piece of equipment and pretty much solved any kind of shift issues I was having. There were inconsistent gaps in the body panels, some of the paint started to chip off around the hood and trunk areas but nothing too concerning. It was very minor. I didn’t have the bubbling or rust that others have experienced. Also, as stated earlier, the stock suspension is embarrassing. From the odd wheel base/height to the poor handling. You can definitely see how corners were cut by Ford to meet a price point.

Sync. I hate you, Sync. Never again will I have to hear “Bloompthoof Awwdiow” and still have it not work. I tried resetting and would still experience trouble after a week or 2. Not a great system in my model year. Hopefully they updated it.

Anyway, that’s about it. I had a great time with the 5.0 and would definitely get another mustang one day. The Mustang Source is a great bunch of people and Deysha was such a big help to me many times.

As for my new ride, I already got myself a roof rack and am shopping around for a couple of kayaks. Outdoors here I come…

 

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Thanks for posting, I'm sure you will miss your old ride. FYI...the body styles were 2010-2012, then 2013-2014...with these last two years having minor updates to front and rear fascias. And, I agree, the last few years of S197 are gorgeous to me, too. I especially like 2010-2012, but I do love the 13-14 taillights.

 

I understand and agree with everything you've said. If I couldn't drive mine year round, I'd probably get rid of it too.

It's weird how the good is so enjoyable and the bad is so intolerable. This is the first modern car I've had that's like that.

 

I hate to see you go man, I can relate to the Black GT with Quads. Good
luck with your Subie and whatever the Future brings.

 

Good for you. I'm not loyal to any brand either. I've owned Corvettes, Camaro's, Porches's, Toyota's, and yes a '85 Ford Mustang GT that I won first place in a car show. I gave the trophy to my ex girlfriend's son, (Doh!) My wife say's I can get a new car when I'm 60, in about three years. The Corvette Grand Sports are looking good, along with the Camaro ZL1. The new 10 speed looks awesome. Who knows what will be available in 2020, but I will be satisfied with my baby until then. Good times to be alive.

 

Sorry to see you go Last1, and all the best. I always wondered how you put up with driving your car through the hazy salty winters.

I have 3 cars for this very reason. My wife has a small SUV, and I have a winter beater as well. My mustang is a summer car and weekend road curse warrior only. I only drive it April - Nov, it never sees salt or snow. With summer only tires it wouldn't go anywhere anyway. Good write up, and I mostly agree with your sentiment. Hope you get your Shelby at some point in the next few years!

 

Wow... sorry to hear you go buddy. As stated above, if one can afford to have 3 cars, that includes a daily/beater, that's the way to go. I understand that everyone's situation is different so that's understandable.

Good luck in the future.

 

I've always felt like one of the best mods I've done to my car was getting a daily driver. It makes the mustang so much more fun and feel so much tighter and faster when I only drive it selectively.

Subarus are great every day cars and hopefully you'll eventually be back in a stang.

 

Amen to this. I've had daily drivers for as long as I can remember having fun cars to drive. It really makes ownership and driving it that much more enjoyable

 

Yeah....it keeps from getting "used" to the power and the handling.

Bonus points if your DD is a real junker......then your car REALLY feels good to drive!

 

 

Sorry to see you go, I think you are nuts, and I am not going to follow you.

I am like some of the others and have 3 vehicles. I have a 40 mile RT commute and agree the TP Mustang in thick traffic is not a real fun time. I have a couple of Jeep Grand Cherokees for the winter and daily driving. An older 2004 and a 2012. Best daily drivers ever. They will take me anywhere in any weather. Then the Stang for the fun and thrills.

Bet you will have withdrawals within days, especially when you push that accelerator in your Forester. Who's going to tell you nice ride when you get out of that mini-SUV. Goodbye rumble. Goodbye the thrill of a V8. You will be back...

Best of luck with the new car.

 

Forever grateful I can drive my 2015 convertible year round in Northern California. That being said I still try to drive the pick up when it rains. My wife laughs at me

 

Thanks man. You were always a big help to me on here. As I said, this is temporary. I will be in a Mustang again in a few years when it makes more sense financially to have one for the weekends. I miss it already, but not as a DD. Noway. Maybe if I lived in Arizona or something, then yes. I'd drive it every **** day until it died.

 

I drive my 13 GT in snow, people think I'm crazy but I enjoy it as a daily DD. YOLO!

 

No problem at all. That's what forums and members should be doing as a community. Helping and bettering and enjoying ourselves.

I think Subarus as dailies is perfect! Maybe you should have just gotten the 2.5XT version (not sure if they still have it), then soup it up with 400hp.

 

I don't know what I'd do if I lived in an area that I needed a DD. My Mustang is my DD. 49K miles in 39 months along with 3 long driving trips that added to the total. I refuse to have a garage queen. When I use it up, I'll get another.

 

I know what you'd do. You'd have a winter car just like the rest of us north county folk

 

It wasn't the winter that did me in. I drove my 5.0 in the snow and it actually wasn't that bad. It was the insane amount of traffic that keeps getting worse every year. My only other options were to either move or get a second car in addition to the mustang. Since I couldn't swing the second car (saving up so that I actually can move) I had to get rid of the Mustang. It really sucks, but I made the best decision economically. Yeah, you only live once, but I prefer to live without struggling and being pissed off all the time while driving a car that I loved to drive. It just wasn't fun anymore.

 

Last1, I noticed you said you drive it all year and lowered it.

Do you get much snow accumulation where you live? Did lowering your Mustang cause any issues driving in the winter?

I drive my 2013 all year but we can have a couple of inches of snow on the ground and I need to be able to drive through it. Last winter we broke a record with about 20" of snow in one day and the plows couldn't keep up with it but my Mustang made it home without any issues.

I've thought about lowering mine but with the snow in the winter and potholes in the spring I'm hesistant.