just saw the motorweek review of the 05 gt...they seemed to give it a fair shake in their appraisal. i was so surprised to see the battery under the hood rather than in the trunk. they did move it up to the firewall rather than in the front of the engine compartment, but it's still not as effective for balance as being in the trunk compartment...that would have been an inexpensive way to help with the weight distribution...oh well...still a steal at 25k. jackg 90seville 95k

 

Yeah, trunk-mounted would be nice, but usually isn't cost-efficient. Plus, they don't want you to lose any more trunk space in a Mustang!

Front/rear weight distribution on the new Mustang is a very reasonable 53/47.

 

Well Actually wtih a Driver and a Tank of Gas it's Pretty Near Perfect, Because Perfect 50/50 Weight Distribution is not really the best set up for driving, It makes things really twitchy. You really can't get much beter than 52/48 for Weight Distribution.

 

Good point, TampaBear67.

I look forward to distributing MY weight in one of them!!

 

I guess that's why the BMW 3 series F/R weight distribution is approximately 49% F / 51% R.

 

Yeah I got a BMW 325is with the battery in the rear and it seems pretty well balanced, although I don't know the exact figures.

 

I had a 95. Nice car. Needed more power though..... I guess that's why they made M3s.

 

Infinity G35

Under DYNAMIC HIGHLIGHTS click 53/47

It goes on to describe the benefits of a slightly front heavy weight distribution -like the 2005 Mustang.

 

Having the battery in the trunk plus the shaker sub back there would cut too much into trunk space.

 

Thank You Guth.

See I Told You So! Just Kidding guys but I knw what i was talking about. Just because BMW Makes it, Doesn't Make It Perfect!

 

uhhh...you don't put the battery IN the trunk...you put it BELOW the trunk, in a metal container with a lid covering the top...that's the location on the ls and other cars with batteries placed in the rear. putting the battery in the trunk wouldn't help much....the weightwould be above the centerline of gravity...not good for balance.
the best placement would be in the passenger compartment under the rear seat...between the axles...very good for balance. jackg 90seville 95k

 

Honestly, battery placement is as much about space as it is about weight. 40lbs is not that much. You can move the engine back an inch and get a bigger effect.

Also as someone else mentioned 50/50 is really not perfect for most conditions -- it is just a marketing myth.

I have an M3 -- it is a great handling car, and has plenty of power. The 325's are a little softer in power -- but the 330's are very peppy. Frankly the battery in the trunk might be a bit better for weight distribution, but it isn't very intuitive. And batteries occasionally (rarely) explode. I prefer them in the engine compartment.

I'm a little curious though on the Cobra's. Going to an IRS should reduce the rear ends weight, and they're putting in a bigger (see heavier) motor. This is probably going to throw the weight distribution off, unless they do other things.

 

Regarding how BMW does it:
wieght distribution %Front/%Rear
M3 Coupe 50.3/49.7
M3 Conv 49.9/50.1
325ci Coupe 50.4/49.5
325ci Conv 48.9/51.1
330ci Coupe 50.1/49.9
330ci Conv 48.7/51.3

It looks like any convertible version will be heavier toward the rear. The Mustang designers probably accounted for this too so that the convertible version of the Mustang wouldn't be too rear-heavy.

 

50/50 would be ideal, if the suspension is tuned for it. But a little weight in front provides a bit of understeer, which is more predictable for the average driver. Plus, you can adjust the suspension to tune it back to neutral handling if you like.

The Mustang engineers left some understeer in to keep the car from getting away from most people. The suspension tuning can get you back to neutral handling in most cars that are not grossly imbalanced, but the ride tradeoff might not be acceptable in most production cars.

 

50/50 weight distribution is ideal for handling and balance...lots of compromises must be made in order achieve even weight distribution...the further back you move the engine (behind the front axle plane) the less interior room you have...that's why bmw's have such a tight interior....another reason why they are one of the few auto makers to still use straight six engines...very bad for packaging, very good for performance, but with a major trade off in compromising the interior space.

bmw's are NOT known for their balance...they are great cars to drive in decent weather BUT until the advent of electronic intervention for traction control, bmw's (and mercedes too) were notorious for being downright dangerous in the snow. they may indeed have only 52 per cent of their total weight over the front end but it didn't help them with traction in the snow...that 2 per cent discrepancy is enough to make a world of difference in the snow...it doesn't take much weight to make a big difference in such a light car...that's why filling up the gas tank is the first step in a rwd platform to aid in the traction for snow conditions.

40 lbs of weight for a battery NOT being under the floor of the trunk is a significant amount of weight and the placement of the battery under the trunk floor will dramatically extend the life of the battery...the underhood temps of a modern engine are extremely high...some auto makers have gone back to putting the battery under the rear seat to extend the life of the battery and to aid in handling of the car...when cadillac did their remodel of the deville in 2000 and moved the battery inside, it helped to move that big monster around with a little more deftness. jackg 90seville 97k