Trackaholic
Well-Known Member
- Thread starter
- #1
Hello All,
Decided to stop by a local dealer today after work to see what they had in stock. Didn't plan on a test drive, but the salesman asked, so after telling him I wasn't ready to buy (just in case he wanted to back down), we went out on a quick drive.
The dealer had 4 cars, all automatics, no GTs. I looked at the panel gaps on all cars and, to me, three of the four looked very good, while one had a very slight over-compression on the center of the hood. Overall I was pleased by the quality of the exterior. Car looks very good in person. A bit lower and wider than it does in pictures. Quite a bit smaller than the 2014s that were nearby.
I sat in the base Ecoboost model, and the interior seemed very nice. It was dark, so I couldn't see all the details, but the buttons and materials had a nice feel, the HVAC controls were quite nice, and nothing seemed terribly cheap. The base radio was a bit intimidating in the dark, as there were illuminated buttons all over the place on the center console, but they seemed well organized and logical, so I'm sure one would get used to the layout quickly. Still, I'd personally prefer the touchscreen to help simplify things.
The steering wheel stood out as a very nice unit. It had a good thickness to it, and was perfect for the 9-3 driving position. It had bulges at 10-2 as well, and would likely work fine for those that prefer that. My GTI, for example, has a very cool LOOKING wheel, with pretty crazy contours and a flat bottom, but it sucks for 9-3 driving which makes it pretty annoying in actual use, so the Mustang wheel is much nicer for me. The steering ratio was also just about right. My GTI's ratio is too slow, which forces me to "shuffle-steer" on my commute. The Mustang's ratio allowed me to keep both hands at the same position on the wheel through all but the very tightest of corners. The feel of the Mustang's steering was also much better than the GTI's, although I don't think it was quite as good as my Z's. My Z does have various suspension mods that have increased camber and caster, so it may have more feedback than it did stock. It is also a hydraulic unit. I think the Mustang is doing very well to be so close in feel IMO.
The Ecoboost's power was very good, and I wasn't really getting on it that hard. Probably only every went to half throttle. There is definitely some lag, and coupled with the automatic transmission it felt a little soft. Less lag than the GTI though, which was nice. I think this will be a great engine, but I'd still get the V8, mostly for responsiveness and sound (not necessarily outright power). I did like how easy it was to hear the turbo spool up when accelerating. I did have the windows down, but that whine gave the car a nice personality.
The automatic was a bit slow in manual mode (totally fine when in automatic mode). It probably took about 1/2 a second for downshifts to occur. Just enough to make you wonder if you actually clicked the paddle shifter. The paddles are pretty basic, and don't have much travel. That lack of travel does make the response time of the transmission seem a bit slower, because the paddle actuation is so fast in comparison. On my wife's Volvo you can put the selector into a manual mode, and then shift by bumping the lever forward and back. The motion takes much longer to complete because the travel is much greater, so the shift seems to happen sooner because some of the time is absorbed by releasing the shifter. In the Mustang you have almost no time taken up by the paddles, so that's partly why the shifts seem slower than they might otherwise. I did like how you could enter manual mode at any time by pulling a paddle, and also how you could shift to the S gate for permanent manual action.
One nice feature is the transmission will let you bump off the rev limiter if you are in manual mode and don't click the paddle. I like this feature very much. It will automatically downshift as you slow, so if you forget as you approach a stop the car won't be trying to start in 4th gear.
The ride was very nice. I was on mostly straight roads, so I didn't get to do much cornering (just one on-ramp, but came up on a slow-poke halfway through). I did take a couple fast right and left turns, enough to make me think that the handling was decent. The car certainly wasn't as stiff as my Z, but it felt more composed than my GTI, which seems a bit underdamped. The Mustang absorbed bumps well, but passed enough through to the cabin that you still felt as though you were in something at least slightly sporty. Chassis felt very stiff and quiet.
I was able to find a pretty good seating position, but since the car was an auto I wasn't able to check the clutch engagement or shifter feel, which was disappointing. I did climb into the rear seats after adjusting the fronts to my liking, and was able to fit with plenty of leg room. The headroom was tight, and I needed to tip my head forward just a bit to clear the glass. I'm 5'10" ~185 lbs, and can sit in a 2014 with the glass just touching my hair. So the 2015 is about an inch lower (I realize the specs say the two are the same, but the specs are not accurate in that regard).
Overall I was very pleased with the car. I would definitely get the GT with stick shift, but this Ecoboost was a great engine. I wasn't a fan of the automatic when in manual mode because of the delay, but it was fun to use the paddles, and I think a little time with the car would allow one to adjust and compensate. The ecoboost is probably a very good match for the auto due to the abundance of torque. It makes shifting less of an issue.
I was pretty disappointed in Ford when I first saw Motortrend's review of the GT PP compared to the 1LE (and another guy checking out the Mustang mentioned specifically that he wanted to drive the Camaro because it was faster than the Mustang around the track, even though he didn't really like the Camaro because it was so large - but the point is that review has had an impact on people's impressions), but after seeing the C&D review, and what the aftermarket is doing, and after test driving one (and not a PP version), I think I would be very happy in the Mustang (maybe with some shock updates). It is a great car. Can't wait to see what 11/17 brings.
-T
Decided to stop by a local dealer today after work to see what they had in stock. Didn't plan on a test drive, but the salesman asked, so after telling him I wasn't ready to buy (just in case he wanted to back down), we went out on a quick drive.
The dealer had 4 cars, all automatics, no GTs. I looked at the panel gaps on all cars and, to me, three of the four looked very good, while one had a very slight over-compression on the center of the hood. Overall I was pleased by the quality of the exterior. Car looks very good in person. A bit lower and wider than it does in pictures. Quite a bit smaller than the 2014s that were nearby.
I sat in the base Ecoboost model, and the interior seemed very nice. It was dark, so I couldn't see all the details, but the buttons and materials had a nice feel, the HVAC controls were quite nice, and nothing seemed terribly cheap. The base radio was a bit intimidating in the dark, as there were illuminated buttons all over the place on the center console, but they seemed well organized and logical, so I'm sure one would get used to the layout quickly. Still, I'd personally prefer the touchscreen to help simplify things.
The steering wheel stood out as a very nice unit. It had a good thickness to it, and was perfect for the 9-3 driving position. It had bulges at 10-2 as well, and would likely work fine for those that prefer that. My GTI, for example, has a very cool LOOKING wheel, with pretty crazy contours and a flat bottom, but it sucks for 9-3 driving which makes it pretty annoying in actual use, so the Mustang wheel is much nicer for me. The steering ratio was also just about right. My GTI's ratio is too slow, which forces me to "shuffle-steer" on my commute. The Mustang's ratio allowed me to keep both hands at the same position on the wheel through all but the very tightest of corners. The feel of the Mustang's steering was also much better than the GTI's, although I don't think it was quite as good as my Z's. My Z does have various suspension mods that have increased camber and caster, so it may have more feedback than it did stock. It is also a hydraulic unit. I think the Mustang is doing very well to be so close in feel IMO.
The Ecoboost's power was very good, and I wasn't really getting on it that hard. Probably only every went to half throttle. There is definitely some lag, and coupled with the automatic transmission it felt a little soft. Less lag than the GTI though, which was nice. I think this will be a great engine, but I'd still get the V8, mostly for responsiveness and sound (not necessarily outright power). I did like how easy it was to hear the turbo spool up when accelerating. I did have the windows down, but that whine gave the car a nice personality.
The automatic was a bit slow in manual mode (totally fine when in automatic mode). It probably took about 1/2 a second for downshifts to occur. Just enough to make you wonder if you actually clicked the paddle shifter. The paddles are pretty basic, and don't have much travel. That lack of travel does make the response time of the transmission seem a bit slower, because the paddle actuation is so fast in comparison. On my wife's Volvo you can put the selector into a manual mode, and then shift by bumping the lever forward and back. The motion takes much longer to complete because the travel is much greater, so the shift seems to happen sooner because some of the time is absorbed by releasing the shifter. In the Mustang you have almost no time taken up by the paddles, so that's partly why the shifts seem slower than they might otherwise. I did like how you could enter manual mode at any time by pulling a paddle, and also how you could shift to the S gate for permanent manual action.
One nice feature is the transmission will let you bump off the rev limiter if you are in manual mode and don't click the paddle. I like this feature very much. It will automatically downshift as you slow, so if you forget as you approach a stop the car won't be trying to start in 4th gear.
The ride was very nice. I was on mostly straight roads, so I didn't get to do much cornering (just one on-ramp, but came up on a slow-poke halfway through). I did take a couple fast right and left turns, enough to make me think that the handling was decent. The car certainly wasn't as stiff as my Z, but it felt more composed than my GTI, which seems a bit underdamped. The Mustang absorbed bumps well, but passed enough through to the cabin that you still felt as though you were in something at least slightly sporty. Chassis felt very stiff and quiet.
I was able to find a pretty good seating position, but since the car was an auto I wasn't able to check the clutch engagement or shifter feel, which was disappointing. I did climb into the rear seats after adjusting the fronts to my liking, and was able to fit with plenty of leg room. The headroom was tight, and I needed to tip my head forward just a bit to clear the glass. I'm 5'10" ~185 lbs, and can sit in a 2014 with the glass just touching my hair. So the 2015 is about an inch lower (I realize the specs say the two are the same, but the specs are not accurate in that regard).
Overall I was very pleased with the car. I would definitely get the GT with stick shift, but this Ecoboost was a great engine. I wasn't a fan of the automatic when in manual mode because of the delay, but it was fun to use the paddles, and I think a little time with the car would allow one to adjust and compensate. The ecoboost is probably a very good match for the auto due to the abundance of torque. It makes shifting less of an issue.
I was pretty disappointed in Ford when I first saw Motortrend's review of the GT PP compared to the 1LE (and another guy checking out the Mustang mentioned specifically that he wanted to drive the Camaro because it was faster than the Mustang around the track, even though he didn't really like the Camaro because it was so large - but the point is that review has had an impact on people's impressions), but after seeing the C&D review, and what the aftermarket is doing, and after test driving one (and not a PP version), I think I would be very happy in the Mustang (maybe with some shock updates). It is a great car. Can't wait to see what 11/17 brings.
-T
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