Mildly interesting, IMO.

Way too much straight-on repro(duction) rather than a more thoughtful and evocative retro(spective) iteration. And really, this car doesn't indicate much about any future Boss. The motor's just a yestertech Windsor crate motor that will never be seen in a production engine bay. The Boss stripes are as vintage as a polyester leisure suit and look more dated than cool. The powder blue paint is more appropriate on a nursery-room's walls than a road-rats flanks (yeah, I know, the original Boss 302 had that shade too, didn't like it then either).

Rather, I'd like to see a more fully modern interpretation of the Boss 302 theme and spirit rather than a simplistic aping of old, specific Boss design elements. Again, the distinction between retro and repro -- the former connotating a sophisticated appreciation of the heritage and spirit of an earlier car which is then executed in a fully modern way while the latter seems to imply a simple lack of any fresh ideas beyond a reflexive grasping at the past for salvation.

I do hope and expect Ford will do a Boss Mustang at some point, I just hope it goes far beyond just sticking on such dated schtick and is a far more sophisticated execution of the Boss theme and spirit.

 

Rhumb,
Your learning curve is comparable to the Whipple's torque curve (relatively flat, for the illustratively impaired members reading).
I'm just kidding with you. Ford just doesn't see it your way as far as making a Mustang "sophisticated." I want a six speed, nice leather, and IRS as much as you do. The mustang just isn't that car, even though it seems like Ford could "step up" relatively easily. Ford will wring every nickel out of any badging it can get its hands on ( I.E. Bullit, Shelby GT, 40th Anniversary) with little or no added value.
My hope is that the Hurricane/Boss engines make it into a nice package in the near future. If Ford follows past trends they will unfortunately wait until the last MY (or two) before they change the bodystyle, before they put anything worthwhile (Read 2003/4 Mach and Cobra).
I'm hoping for a 2009 Mach with 450hp NA engine! A man can dream can't he?

 

Actually, a lot of the basic elements you describe -- six speed, leather, 4V motors, Brembo brakes, etc. -- are already, or recently have been, in the Ford parts bin, if not in the Stang itself. And it seems as if a Control Blade IRS may well be coming online too. It really will only take Ford to mix those ingredients together to make a compelling Boss.

By "sophisticated," I mean more than a one-trick, straight line pony, one that, in a sense, returns to its very original conception of NOT being a big motored muscle(bound) car but rather, a better balanced sport coupe that combines European refinement with American V8 power, all at a reasonable price and good value.

That this combination of attributes is beyond reach will, I believe, be belied by the upcoming Camaro and Challenger, both of which do have this suite of features and attributes (strong V8, 6 spd, IRS, etc.). Price is still up in the air, but given GMs recent holding the line on the Sky/Solstice and that these cars are based on existing platforms (economy of scale and all that), I suspect the prices will be VERY competitive with the Stang and may easily represent better values if Ford doesn't get on the ball.

Ford's had the game pretty much to themselves with the Stang, and could get away with a lot, but those salad days are quickly coming to an end and Ford's gonna have to get a lot more serious to stay in the game. Hopefully Ford will step up to the plate and offer real engineering substance and excellent value rather than vacuous SEs at bloated prices.

 

I have to ask because I'm sure I'm reading this incorrectly...

A pushrod engine in a new Mustang? 11 years after they last stuffed one in there?

 

Thats just the blue show car.

The production Boss will be the OHC "Hurricane" motor thats been in development for a couple years.

 

Like I said....same old song and dance. For the past twenty-some-odd years the Camaro has always beaten the Mustang at "bang-for-the-buck" as far as factory engine and tranny combos. They jusdt can't get the packaging right (Confirmed by the recent GTOs). It wasn't until the Terminator Cobras that Stang guys could really hold their heads high. If GM would spend a little more time on styling and refinement they would really damage Mustang sales.
Don't get me wrong, I love my S197. Mostly for the styling. But if Chevy puts the Z06 engine in a new SE Camaro (almost a given), I for one, would definitely go down to the Chevrolet dealership to check into it.

 

Boss! Now we're talking!

 

now when is the new boss (hurricaine) engine going to be availible for me to buy and slap in my car?

 

Color me excited and if there is a list put me on it for the 2009 Boss, there is no way I am not getting one of those, hope the 2010 doesn't out class it in looks though. Thank you Ford!
Though one has to wonder what one of those 09 Boss's are going to sell for ( without ADM of course ) maybe 35K?

 

Yeah, the GM F-cars were terribly let down by the horrible quality of their materials and construction, and a bit in the packaging too. A shame because they were otherwise excellent performers, generally if not always, faster than the contemporary Stangs of the time.

The GTO was, I think, an underappreciated car, hampered a bit by slightly aging though not bad, mid-90's styling. Recall that the original GTOs were nothing more than pretty drab Tempest variants. Otherwise, it had excellent performance and chassis dynamics and great interior quality (hopefully the Camaro designers will take their cues from the Aussies in this area).

However, the new Camaro looks much closer to the more upright and practical Stang in terms of packaging and GM seems to be getting a bit more serious about build and material quality too. Not a given they'll get it right on the Camaro by any means, but I wouldn't count them out either.

Add in the very impressive LS2 (or 6.2 LS3 by the time it comes out), backed by a six speed and riding on a fully contemporary IRS chassis and you have a potential killer combo.

 

have you seen the new gm interiors on their tahoes/yukons/esalades? they are like benzes inside! i think they might could have finally realized interiors are important. chrysler might not, judging from the interiors of the magnum/charger

 

Rhumb, you and I have both marched to the same beat for some time. We had both desire a balanced performer capable of delivering stellar handling and braking performance instead of being a one-dimensional acceleration king. I also expect any future Boss Mustang to be a thoroughly modern interpretation of the original intent of the Boss 302 and not simply a regurgitation of previous digested ideas.

I believe the car presented at the SEMA show was intended to showcase the new Boss 302 pushrod crate engine and not to reveal design elements of the reported '09 Boss 302 Mustang. Those details will certainly be revealed in the coming months. Due to that fact, I would believe Ford intended to copy the original Boss with the car and not provide a glimpse at a modern interpretation. However, I do think some of the '09 Boss Mustang exterior design cues could be revealed in the Ford Mustang GT project car in an attempt to mask the intention. IMHO I would submit that Ford spend their time and limited R&D dollars on providing the following top shelf hardware in the '09 Boss Mustang:

<O</O
· 400+ HP NA 5.0L Boss series engine<O</O
· 6 spd close ratio transmission<O</O
· Control Blade IRS<O</O
· 14" 6 piston Front Brakes<O</O
· 13" 4 piston Rear Brakes<O</O
· 19" Light Weight Alumimum Wheels<O</O
· Extensive us of light weight materials in the body/interior
<O</O

For me, borrowing the exterior styling cues from the PJ Saleen would be all that is required from an appearance perspective.

I am very excited about the news of the '09 Boss Mustang and hope Ford finally gets this one right. Personally, I hope not to repeat the disappointment of the GT500.<O</O

 

Okay, so "Boss" is the new name for the Hurricane engine program. I can understand that, but what happens to the modular engine? Does it get phased out? I really wanted to see a 4.6 DOHC with variable cam timing on all 4 camshafts, along with a 2 stage intake manifold (like the FRPP one). I mean, that's about 380 horses right there, ain't it?

 

My guess is that the Boss engine family would eventually supplant the Mod motors. The main problem with the Mod motors is their very tight bore spacing, which pretty much limits how big you can go with them without going to a longer, thirstier, heaview, more expensive V10. Thus, I think a main feature of the Boss motors will be wider bore spacing allowing V8 displacement well into the 6-7 liter class without absurdly long strokes. Sounds like OHCs are in the cards, perhaps starting with 3V SOHC heads out of the blocks and then rolling in 4V DOHCs for hi-po apps. What sizes might apprear is anyones guess, but mine would be to be a .5 liter or so notch up from the Mod motors, i.e., perhaps a 5.0 small motor, a 5.8ish mid size and a 6-6.5 tall block. Perhaps, somewhat like the Mod motors, you'll have two deck heights, but with two strokes and two bore combos to mix and match along with an SOHC 3V and DOHC 4V heads to cap them off. That would give a wide range of flexibility to create the right motor for every need -- small, more economical motors; big long stroke torquey truck motors; oversquare, deep breathing 4V hi-po motors and everything in between.

 

Wasnt it reported that the Hurricane had 2v heads?

Also, I was thinking the small Boss would be a 5.0 small block, a mid size 5.8 tall block, and finally the 6.2 would a big bore tall block.

Hopefully these new Boss engines have the same transmission bolt pattern as the mod motors for easy swaps.

 

My guess is that the first Boss series engine for the F-series will feature 2V heads (or possibly 3V) with a 4V head later for hi-po applications.

Rhumb, I also agree that the Boss engine series will certainly replace the current mod engines. I believe Ford will adopt a similar architecture for the Boss engine that was used on the new 3.5L V6 which should lower manufacturing costs and establish a new standard for American V8's. The new 3.5L V6 has been widely heralded since it's introduction and we can only hope the new Boss engine series is at least equally well developed.

 

so what heppend to the "redesign" of the '09 Mustang?

too early maybe

 

I'm with a buch of the other people around here. The new hurricane based boss engines are going to be pretty darn interesting especially if they add the newer technologies of direct injection and VVT and so on. There could be a lot of potential - a 5.0 and 5.8L engine actuallys spells Boss 302 and Boss 351!

As far as that push rod thing is concerned. I'm with a bunch of others. If it doesn't have the Clievland style canted valve heads, then it is not a 302 Boss. They would have done better making a modern "Boss" style motor by using a high quality aluminum (or even Iron) block and aluminum Clievland style heads on a "Clevor" style motor. That would be the closest they could come to a true Boss style motor without reproducing the old motor part for part. They could have added modern fuel injection and called it the "CrossBoss" injection system. What a blast from the past turned into something seriously modern!

 

My guess is that Ford will keep making 4.6 / 5.4 Mod motors until the tooling wears out. At that point they'll move over to other variants of the Hurricane / Boss engine as the marketplace demands.

Given Ford's continual downsizing, in the long term they'll only be able to profitably manufacture 1 V8 engine family, so eventually other displacement & head design variations of the Boss will replace the Mod, but it will be 5 - 10 years before the Mod Motor fades away.

 

put a smile on your faces guys and gals. Check out blue oval, on the right hand side of the page. "Latest news". The 392 hemi is back with avengance. competition for the Boss. Let the games begin!