Trade Mach “up” to a GT350 or keep it and modify?

[young at heart]

Why don't you try getting a take off set of HP wheels and mount up some PS4's They come in the same size as the HP cup 2's but you will get much longer tread life out of them. 305/30's F and 315/30's R

I would try that before I would downgrade a perfectly good M1 for a used 350.

Mike, my car already has PS4Ss but of course they are staggered 255/275s. The HP setup might be some better but I don’t find these lacking.

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[I Bleed Ford Blue]

So does mine. I just suggested that because they are a descent street tire and last a lot longer than the PS2's

 

[9secondko]

GT350 is the more special car-and by a mile.

but… the Mach low end torque feels better. you don’t have to rev it out as much to feel the power.

the 350 design, suspension, engine itself, high end, etc. are all wins over the Mach.

but in the end, it’s all about what you prefer.

I’ve a feeling you’re leaning toward keeping and modding the Mach. And that would be a fantastic choice. I think it will end up the faster and more reliable car.

 

[young at heart]

GT350 is the more special car-and by a mile.

but… the Mach low end torque feels better. you don’t have to rev it out as much to feel the power.

the 350 design, suspension, engine itself, high end, etc. are all wins over the Mach.

but in the end, it’s all about what you prefer.

I’ve a feeling you’re leaning toward keeping and modding the Mach. And that would be a fantastic choice. I think it will end up the faster and more reliable car.

My friend, you’re very perceptive. No question I really like this Mach.

I will say this though: If they were still making new ‘23 350s when I bought this one there would be no question. And yeah, who knows what will come down the pike in a year or two but right now the S650s don’t really blow up my skirt too much. And with due respect to the early owners, the Dark Horse seems to me kinda like a giant step backward compared to a Mach 1. Except the $ of course.

 

[TonyNJ]

GT350. Why? You'll know when you drive it.

 

[Hack]

If the choice is possibly buying a GT350 and modding the Mach, I wouldn't do that. In stock form I prefer the GT350, but you could just modify the Mach and then put it back to stock at a later date if you decide you prefer it without the modifications. The cars have similar gearing and similar suspension - the biggest differences are the brakes and the engine - both of which could be modified if that's what you want.

I personally think the 2015-2017 MT82 has better gear ratios than either of those cars. You should drive an early PP1 and see what you think of the MT82 with 3.73 rear gears in those years. Buying that as a second Mustang with manual transmission would give you more of a different feel - and the engine could be modified to be more like the later cars or a power adder bolted on.

I would buy a different manual transmission car rather than owning two Mustangs, though. Something like a Cayman or a 911. I bought a GR86 and I really like it. I would prefer the Porsche if money wasn't an object, but the GR86 is pretty fun. It's not good in snow, but I'd still say it's the best winter beater I've owned. I'm thinking a mid or rear engine car would be better in the snow, but driving a Porsche in the salt just doesn't seem right to me.

 

[ecoboost321]

Lots of good advice in this thread. Bottom line, would be best to drive a GT350 first if you get the chance, before making a decision. The power delivery, sound, and gearing make the majority of the difference between it, and other S500 mustangs. Around town my GT350R is not as smooth or torquey as I expected, but really comes alive, and it’s without comparison above 6000 RPM. And the rest of the experience from the brakes, steering, and balance at the limit are only appreciated on a road course.

 

[dpAtlanta]

This sounds very familiar.

Did you do a video of this?

No video was made…

 

[Hack]

Lots of good advice in this thread. Bottom line, would be best to drive a GT350 first if you get the chance, before making a decision. The power delivery, sound, and gearing make the majority of the difference between it, and other S500 mustangs. Around town my GT350R is not as smooth or torquey as I expected, but really comes alive, and it’s without comparison above 6000 RPM. And the rest of the experience from the brakes, steering, and balance at the limit are only appreciated on a road course.

I agree, but to me the brakes on GT350/R are terrific to use even if you just street drive the car. They are a huge upgrade over typical Mustang brakes. They have an immediacy and a lack of play/slop in them but yet aren't overboosted and are very easy to modulate. The sound of the Voodoo and the feel of the brakes are the two things I miss the most from the GT350.

The GT350 gearing (similar to 2018+ Mustang and Mach 1 gearing) is a negative on the street, but it does function really well on track.

 

[shogun32]

Save the downgrade talk for Mopar

How many full size adults can you fit into your backseat? Or regale with flashy colorful performance graphs and sequencial lighting on the maps to indicate relative traffic speed?

Depends on your use case.

 

[MAGS1]

How many full size adults can you fit into your backseat? Or regale with flashy colorful performance graphs and sequencial lighting on the maps to indicate relative traffic speed?

Depends on your use case.

My comment was mostly a joke.

My son is 6’1” and fits in the back seat of my Mustang just fine. He’s not back there often but he fits. When I test drove a Challenger Scat Pack, he had a harder time getting into back seat of that than the Mustang. And he wasn’t that tall at that point.

 

[Concretevol]

A Mach 1 is a special addition GT. The GT350 is its own unique thing with that beautiful, hand built, 5.2 VooDoo. If you have to pick one definitely go with the scream of the flat plane crank.

 

[shogun32]

He took off and never let it get lower than 4000 RPM. I mean every chance he got he was redlining it. I never imagined that someone would want to drive this way on purpose

Hey I warned you.
Us motorcycle guys live to zing the engine. I cringe inside every time I'm riding along with someone and they shift at 2300 rpm.

 

[shogun32]

I've been a Steelers fan since

I just wish they would figure out how to stop grabbing defeat from the jaws of victory.

 

[shogun32]

My comment was mostly a joke

Ditto.
The challenger needs all kinds of chassis help but the tremec forgives many sins.

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