Personally I like the 2005-09 best with the exception of the dreaded 4x4 height and high waist belt line.. Other than that, the 05-09 recaptured the classic 1st generation 65-70 Mustangs best..

The upcoming S550 most definitely needs to be lower and lighter, however I disagree with it being wider as the current S-197 is too wide as it is and needs to be narrower IMHO

 

I'm very curious on what they do with the rear lights. After the 13-14 tail lights, they have to equal or impove on them. Hard to go down in design. I personally think they are the coolest design treatment out of any car (at least at night).

 

I agree at night but I think the shiny black panel makes the rear end look cheap in daylight. I also do not like that extra black plastic on either side of the license plate.

I'm a diehard Mustang fan but the best taillight treatment to date is the recent Charger - very cool at night. But it's a Dodge thing that wouldn't work on a Mustang.

 

I liked em too, but always felt that the headlights looked droopy. The first redesign fixed the front but ruined the back. Also the 05-09 look better without a spoiler. The 10-14, with.

My faves in order from a visual standpoint are 65-66 Fastback, 67-68 Fastback, 69 Fastback, '05-09 Fastback, 13-14 Fastback, 70 Fastback, 71-73 Fastback, 10-12 Fastback, 65-66 Droptop, 69-70 Droptop, 82-83 Hatchback, 84-86 SVO, 69-70 Notchback, 85-86 5.0 Notchback, 65-66 Notchback... I'd happily put any of these in my driveway or an equivalent German T5. Funnily enough, I think the last fox body Stangs (The clean not blobby ones) sill look like modern cars, especially compared to the current car, but not like a Mustang, or certainly not one I would ever lust over. I also like the basic look of the Mustang II, but wish there had been a real performance version rather than a ridiculously stickered version. My least favourite Mustangs were 71-73 Notchbacks, too big and bulky. And the view from inside makes a current Camaro seem open and airy. Also not a fan of the beautiful 67-68 cars as anything but a Fastback. The 88 to 93 cars could be boring and some of the 94 to '02 cars could be blobby and ugly although by this point Ford had lost me to European cars so the detail of each year escapes me. The '04 Mach Ones and '01 Bullet cars redeemed the chassis with good looks while the Terminator had to get by on performance alone. Also liked any cop car Mustang.

Best of the best visually, a black '65 Fastback. The compound curve at the rear of the roofline... Stunning.

 

I liked the first generation Mustangs, but never owned one from the sixties. I still like all the early Mustangs from the sixties.

 

I don't know why being wider is an issue. I like how the M3 has a slightly wider stance and flared fenders. Not sure why this would be do bad on a Mustang.


On another note, I see exactly what Fenderaddict is saying about the Focus and Fiesta. The Mustangs materials are ok but really need work. The newer models of the ford line benefit from newer design and materials. The Mustang will now finally get it's due.

 

Exactly. Beautiful design poorly executed, kind of like ALL Mopar cars.

 

Yeah, I don't mind some of the other issues of looks... but the interior needs revamping... Better materials for sure!

 

I would like to see some additional gauges fill the dash area just right of center. Would be so cool !

 

The current car is too wide as it is now, as for the M3.. I'm not really sure if it's width is wider than the current S-197 or about the same

 

2013 M3 is 71.5" wide and 55.6" tall
2013 GT is 73.9" wide and 55.8" tall

I drove behind a '13 GT the other day and it's plenty wide already. I think if it was a little lower in the rear it would appear a little wider and I'd be good with that. By this I mean I wish the top of the trunk was lower than it is now.

 

Larry...this is just as bad an idea in this thread as the other one

 

Just remember that it's supposed to be a world car so it can't be too wide. So to hear that it's wide and low then they're using these terms loosely.

 

Why can't the new Mustang look like this?

 

In my head I was thinking the standard 3 vs the M.

Also the theory of wide being a bad thing confuses me. As a performance car, wide is good. But it doesn't have to be super wide, it just has to distribute the weight well. Take the Miata for example.

I think I like the idea of a performance variant of the mustang with a slightly wider stance.

 

I most definitely agree with you about the current car being plenty wide enough as it is now.. So why not have the upcoming S550 the same width as the current S-197 and just make it lower by getting rid of the dreaded high waist belt line..

The Mustang is supposed to be a pony car, not a luxury car or SUV and my concern is if the Mustang becomes any larger/wider, it's going to lose more of it's Pony car/Sports car feel to it

 

i would just make it shorter, about 2-3'' shorter and then get rid of wheel gap. That would have a very nice stance on the road.

 

4 inches shorter would be better. Seems silly that after all of these years the Mustang is still as tall as a family sedan. My 1972 Olds 442 was 2 inches shorter than the current Mustang.



76.2 inches wide.
53.8 inches tall.

 

Ever see how stupid your car looks with 20" wheels on it. Older cars could get away with being lower overall due to smaller diameter wheels and bodies which kept green houses lower as well.

Modify your car to proportionally account for the larger diameter wheels while keeping the overall same height and you end up with a green house like the current Camaro.

 

Is this not the reason fans want the Mustang to scale back a bit? Not to be cartoonish.

My 335i had 18s on it with 40 series and 35 series tires. Plenty low profile. I thought they looked great. Too low profile for my typical taste but super slick none the less.

I think the Mustang could benefit from smaller footprint in that way.

I know we've covered this topic over and again but it is what separates the Germans from the American design. The 3 series retains that sedan structure so a user friendly sports car. Look back at the Falcon based 65 Mustang. The same could be said. I think that's what draws me in. If I wanted sports dedicated I would have many other options.

Muscle cars and pony cars alike are the thesis behind regular car turned awesome.