Especially since serious racers already have access to the Ford Racing Mustangs.

 

Couldn't have suggested anything better myself. This hits the nail right on the head.

 

I believe that removing the rear seat would put such a Mustang model into a different EPA vehicle class requiring a whole set of separate certifications. So not likely to happen unless it's a racing model not certified for street use.

 

Thought of that. If Ford leaves the seat belts in place, making the actual rear seat cushions a dealer installed option, the car should still be marketable as a four seat model. But as I implied earlier, the entire program would be of questionable benefit so I'm not holding my breath.

 

I'm all about the SVO.

 

...5.4 DOHC N/A 400 HP, target should be 3400lbs, rear end at least 3.73, prefer 4.11.
GT suspension-ish with ford racing drag pack. ford racing CAI etc. KR hood with some functional ram air ducts etc...ala, shaker-ish. splitter, duck tail etc.
Only bagdes should be 'powered by ford" and "ford racing"........
Call it the Mustang "Hurricane" or "Ram charger" or "R-sport" or "Drag pack".......something different and inventive, yet an affordable and serious muscle car.

If that were the minimum goal, I would think it would sell great........

Since we are wishing......lets ask for grabber colors and other "made to order" options and
make all dealers except MSRP orders from everyone.

 

Had the back seat of my 06 GT out a couple of times, it weighs practically nothing, the base might only be about 5 lbs, nothing but foam and plastic.

 

That's about where the dream went up in smoke

 

+11111
and be under $30k

although a 3.55 or so wouldnt be bad either

 

Even if we guess that the top and bottom portions of the seat together weigh 10lb, which admittedly isn't much by itself, automakers go to greater lengths than this to save less weight. The truth is that 10lb here and there adds up, and a lot of small cuts are often how we end up with 'lightweight 'models.

 

Well V10 Mustang aside, I've always thought about something akin to the FR500S except fully street legal, a car that used the best chassis and drivetrain bits from the GT500 sans the engine in the V6 body and base interior. The engine could be the 5.4 3v with about 360-370hp

 

You may have a good point. If so, why not just offer something as over-the-counter for a rear-seat delete then ... ???

 

Thanks, TX

 

As far as a 'NEW' SE mustang, why not a Ultra lightwieght model? Keep everything the same as a regular GT, but use ultralight wieght materials (Carbon fiber for example) all over. I dunno how much more that would cost over a regular GT, but if they could shed 4 or 500lbs for an extra 10k, that might be something worth looking into. . .

 

Sounds like the perfect receipe for a Boss 302 Mustang...just add 400 hp 5.0L V8...

 

Let me fix that, take a look at the upcoming ZR-1 and its cost premium over even the Z06. While its more of a "mass-neutral"or minimized weight gain exercise rather than pairing down the weight to minimum exercise, the cost is pretty substantial.

 

Since this seems to be an "out of the box" exercise, howzabout:

Mustang GT-D(iesel): That's rigth, diesel! Rather than denying or hiding from the realities of expensive fuel, or just throwing in the towel on performance, how about obtaining performance in new, different and more energy efficient ways rather than, say, the blunderbuss approach of the GT500. To wit, stick in that upcoming 4.something liter turbo diesel V8 into the Stang. I forget what the hp is, probably something in the mid 200 range or more, but the torque is probably deep into the 400lb/ft range. While obviously not much of a top end screamer, instead, you'd have the inexorable John Deere low end torque to grunt your way ahead. And if the modern European diesels are any indication, you'd probably get close to 30mpg average economy. A different approach to performance, sure, but these are different times and Ford could really use a few actual Bold Moves to move the Mustang from being simply an exercise in misty eyed nostalgia to an actual cutting edge performance car for the future.

Mustang GT-L(ightweight): Mass and drag are the mortal enemies of performance and efficiency, so how about attacking those two demons of fast and frugal directly rather than raiding the engine room of the Rock Island Express train. Cars have grown ever fatter over the last two decades even more so than their drivers. Yes, there are a myriad excuses, err, reasons why, with engineering and design discipline not among them. And yes, lightweight designs and materials might boost the cost of purchase, but I'll posit that those initial costs would be recouped through significantly cheaper cost of ownership over time, to say nothing about the across the board increases in performance -- acceleration, handling, braking, top speed, agility -- that would be realized as a huge bonus. While limited amounts of fat and drag trimming could be realized on the current chassis, the next Stang in, say, 2014, could represent a concerted effort to make the Stang a viable performance car into the future.

 

Thats pretty much what I want. A Mach1 with 400+hp. I would love for it to be GDI, but at this stage even a 400hp 4.6L or 5.4L would do the job.

 

How about a stepped escalation approach? Run aluminum sheets thru the Mustang body/frame stamping equipment to produce six or so aluminum Mustangs. Heli-arc all the seams, assemble a standard Mustang GT with production parts, and see how much it weighs, see what fuel economy it would have, see what performance gains it would yield, test the body/frame for rigidity, and crash a couple to see how it compares to its sheet steel half-brothers upon impact.

If it should happen to do many things well, figure out how much they'd havta retail for to make good money (heli-arc welding is costly, unfortunately, but you can't use regular oxyacetyline welding on aluminum). Would the performance/mileage gains over a sheetmetal Mustang GT be enough to get you 'n' me to fork over the extra bucks? I certainly don't know, but Ford should make the effort to find out...

Greg "Eights" Ates

BTW: Chevy just cancelled the Z28 Camaro, as the supercharged LS8 that was to power it just seemed like the wrong way to go at this time. Top power offered in the new Camaro may be 450 horsepower--or less. Smirk.

 

Holy ****
No the Z28 isn't canned...

And it'll probably be the LSA not LS8