BBC Review (EcoBoost)

[Devon]

Interesting comments on the EcoBoost here...

http://www.bbc.com/autos/story/20140922-can-mustang-win-the-world

"I. Don't. Do. Ugly." That is the mantra of Dave Pericak, chief engineer for the new Ford Mustang. It may seem like a philosophy befitting a stylist rather than someone who measures mid-corner tire loads.

In real terms, Pericak is referring to things such as a convertible top that folds flush with the top edge of the back seat, rather than angling upward at an ungainly cant, as in the case of the old Mustang. "Ugly," Pericak says flatly.

This also applies to details such as the convertible top's resting place, which deftly hides the mechanical works from view. This was born of Pericak's insistence on de-uglying Ford’s long-running – if not always galloping – pony car in this, its 50th anniversary year.

Did he and Ford’s global team of stylists and tinkerers succeed? Almost.

Through an engineer's safety goggles, the 2015 is the greatest pony car in the Mustang’s half-century history. Compared to the 2014 model, the frame is 28% more rigid, the independent rear suspension and dual ball joint front suspension are more sophisticated and the engines are more powerful and efficient than ever before.

This is partly thanks to Ford's strategy, hatched under recently departed chief executive Alan R Mulally, to sell the same cars globally. So the 2015 model is the first Mustang designed with international markets, and not just North America, in mind. That meant accommodating right-hand drive, as well as multiple standards for collision resistance, fuel efficiency and fit and finish.

Naturally, the signature 5-litre V8 engine featured on GT models is the standard-bearer, producing 435 horsepower and driving the rear wheels through either a six-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmission. Befitting an engine known simply to its admirers as the 5.0, the power plant is superb. And for GT customers, the car’s on-board computer is a co-conspirator, packing a line-lock feature that lets drivers freeze the Mustang’s front brakes to hold the car still during rear-wheel burnouts. The Mustang’s base engine, a 300hp 3.5-litre V6, carries over little changed from the outgoing car.

Far more notable is an enigmatic newcomer: the turbocharged 2.3-litre EcoBoost four-cylinder engine. On paper, the power plant delivers, with 310hp and 320lb-ft torque. Perhaps most importantly, the US EPA rates this engine at 32mpg in highway driving with the automatic transmission, which will be the specification of interest to drivers who want pony car kicks without the pony car petrol premium.
Again, on paper, it should be good. On the road? It’s complicated. The engine genuinely delivers the power characteristics drivers want, pulling with authority from astonishingly low revs. In sound and character, the EcoBoost 2.3 has the feel of a bigger Volkswagen Golf GTI engine. Turbo lag is perceptible, but it is so slight as to be irrelevant.

This is all good, if incongruous for a pony car. Mustangs are not expected to sound like hot Golfs around town, and drivers who would otherwise thrill to the EcoBoost's performance may reject the engine purely because of its uncharacteristic note during their test drive.

But they should drive farther, and harder, before making that call.

When pushed, the engine’s song develops into something not quite sonorous, but definitely exciting. This is a note even Mustang traditionalists could appreciate – but could they live with the sound the engine makes on the car’s trip to the slalom course?

Unsurprisingly, the manual transmission – despite sacrificing a couple mpgs to the automatic – works beautifully with the EcoBoost, with short, light throws and confidence-inspiring clutch feel. The manual gearbox happily abets any misbehaviour the driver might be considering.

The excellence of the automatic transmission with the EcoBoost engine may surprise, given automatics’ historical unsuitability to four-cylinder cars, as well as Ford's not-so-recent difficulties of properly programming its six-speeds. But the automatic, regardless of engine choice, clicks off perfectly timed shifts, and when the car's mode selector is switched to Sport or Track, it downshifts aggressively under braking and rev-matches the engine speed on gear changes. This feels and sounds fabulous, giving the car an effervescent, premium character rarely encountered among sub-$50,000 sports cars.
The drive modes – Normal, Sport, Sport Plus, Track and Snow – vary throttle response, automatic transmission shift schedules, shock absorber settings and power steering assist. While the differences among settings are clearly discernable, they are not so great as to render some unusable under normal driving conditions (though amid the chaparral-lined twists of southern California’s Angeles Crest Highway, the Snow setting didn’t get much use).

There is no question that the 2015 Mustang will resonate near and far. The slate of engines and leading-edge technology back up the racy lines, and should ensure a steady flow of buyers to showrooms – for the first year or two. That's when this Mustang's success will be determined. Ford will surely dole out specialty editions periodically, mining the car's history of Shelbys, Mach Is, Bullitts, Bosses, Cobras and other variations to kindle interest among enthusiasts.

But the hope is for non-enthusiast, mainstream drivers to buy Mustangs after the newness has worn off. And Ford has made no secret of its desire to capture young buyers who might otherwise consider a Scion FR-S or even a Golf GTI.

That is when Pericak's diktat will truly be tested. If such attention to detail creates converts for Ford, the Mustang will become something far more valuable than a racehorse; it will become a cash cow.

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[wilkinda65]

Another article that mentions the adjustable suspension........

 

[rodslinger]

Another article that mentions the adjustable suspension........

Almost like they are all copying and pasting everyone else's misinformation and just adding their own snippets to be different.

 

[Malikona]

He says that the EB loses fuel economy when paired with the manual - pretty sure it's the other way around. It gains an MPG combined with the manual. Right?

 

[Spartan]

He says that the EB loses fuel economy when paired with the manual - pretty sure it's the other way around. It gains an MPG combined with the manual. Right?

Nope. The EB gets better fuel economy because of the modern ATs. Been that way for a while.

 

[Malikona]

Nope. The EB gets better fuel economy because of the modern ATs. Been that way for a while.

From the wiki on the EB:

21 city / 32 hwy / 25 combined (Auto)
22 city / 31 hwy / 26 combined (Manual)

Granted we are probably splitting hairs here, but it looks to me like they are a wash at the very least, and any gains from the AT are only on the highway (which might just be down to gear ratios for all I know - can't think of another good reason really...).

 

[CisternaChyli]

From the wiki on the EB:

21 city / 32 hwy / 25 combined (Auto)
22 city / 31 hwy / 26 combined (Manual)

Granted we are probably splitting hairs here, but it looks to me like they are a wash at the very least, and any gains from the AT are only on the highway (which might just be down to gear ratios for all I know - can't think of another good reason really...).

25 is pretty damn good...i believe my father's F30 328i gets 27 combined.

 

[Malikona]

25 is pretty damn good...i believe my father's F30 328i gets 27 combined.

For a performance car - which the EB still definitely is - these are great numbers. If I get around 20 in actual DD use, I will be stoked. If I get better than that, I'll be super-stoked.

 

[Spartan]

I think he was talking about in the article highway mpg.

Yah the EB is going to surprise a lot of people. I just have this nagging feeling they are going to do something over the next 9 months to improve it for the 2016 and I'll regret buying the 15.

 

[Malikona]

I think he was talking about in the article highway mpg.

Yah the EB is going to surprise a lot of people. I just have this nagging feeling they are going to do something over the next 9 months to improve it for the 2016 and I'll regret buying the 15.

Well they will definitely improve it, but that doesn't mean you should regret it. The next year's car is always going to be better. It's like buying a new iPhone - just love it until your contract is up and don't even go back into the Apple Store until then. ;) Not so easy with the Mustang, I know. But I seriously can't imagine regretting having a 50th anniversary Mustang, and the first of the EB's, no matter what they do next year.

Only when they come out with a V6 EB will I regret getting this one.

 

[Spartan]

Well they will definitely improve it, but that doesn't mean you should regret it. The next year's car is always going to be better. It's like buying a new iPhone - just love it until your contract is up and don't even go back into the Apple Store until then. ;) Not so easy with the Mustang, I know. But I seriously can't imagine regretting having a 50th anniversary Mustang, and the first of the EB's, no matter what they do next year.

Only when they come out with a V6 EB will I regret getting this one.

V6 won't be for at least the 2017 so that's years away.

My concerns are some improvements to the HP, exhaust note and possibly the 10 speed AT.

But yeah it's hard to pass up.

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