Jalopnik Review of the EB

[OppoLock]

It could lose four inches of rear overhang without too much difficulty.

But muh trunk space and roofline. :(

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[JonnyMustang]

It could lose four inches of rear overhang without too much difficulty.

Pictured: the 2018 Mustang

 

[benanderson89]

Americans want sedans or crossovers. If they have more money, they move up to a bigger class of car. It's a different market from you guys.

Yeah, Western Europe became an almost hatchback exclusive place in the early/mid 70s thanks to the original VW Golf, and since then a Hatchback has always been the cool car thanks to hot models (especially the boom in performance models in the 80s). In the late 90s the D-Segmant (USA: Mid-Size Sedan) market just collapsed, and the number of hatches and wagons just sky-rocketed. We've never had compact Sedans, either. We're far more pragmatic when it comes to car buying, and we just do not see the point in buying a compact Sedan that'll be bigger than the Hatchback its based on with a substantially less usable load bay.

Even now, several decades after the launch of the Golf, the Hatchback is still the go-to car for pretty much everyone young or old - hell, for a lot of people a Hatchback doubles as a fashion accessory. The Fiat 500, Citroen DS3, Audi A1, Hyundai i20 Coupé, VW Up!, Vauxhall Astra GTC, SEAT Ibiza etc. are all cars that you want to be seen in. It helps that Euro hatches aren't just boxes on wheels anymore, and can be genuinely pretty.

Gratuitous picture of my Hot Hatch after a wash for illustrative purposes.

Just because its a hatchback also doesn't mean that its going to be cheap, either. Hatchbacks can be some of the most expensive cars on the road. The hot version of the Astra, called the GTC VXR, has around the same RRP as a Mustang EcoBoost (£27~£28k). The most expensive hatchback I know of is the Mercedes A45 AMG - a 360hp AWD mega hatch that retails for £38,100.

Given the high price tags for a physically smaller car is probably the reason why they're not sold in the USA. Quality of the product be damned, if you're spending the cash, you want something big is the vibe I get from the USA.

Meanwhile, Saloon cars such as the Audi A4, Jaguar XF, Mercedes C-Class etc. are cars for old, stuffy business men. Hell, the nickname for a Sedan in the UK is a "rep-mobile". Very few people here buy a Sedan unless they have too (such as a company car scheme for company reps, hence the nickname).

 

[JimmyTwoTimes]

Given the high price tags for a physically smaller car is probably the reason why they're not sold in the USA. Quality of the product be damned, if you're spending the cash, you want something big is the vibe I get from the USA.

This exactly. The more money you have to spend on a car, the bigger car you get -- you'll hear a lot of "why would you spend $X on a 3 series when you could get a 5 series instead?" or "why would you spend that much on a Focus when you get a Fusion / Escape instead?" (Mondeo/Kuga, for you guys).

 

[benanderson89]

This exactly. The more money you have to spend on a car, the bigger car you get -- you'll hear a lot of "why would you spend $X on a 3 series when you could get a 5 series instead?" or "why would you spend that much on a Focus when you get a Fusion / Escape instead?" (Mondeo/Kuga, for you guys).

I've never gotten that mindset, not even once. I can understand going up to a bigger car if you need the space, but if you're paying XYZ for a 3-series, making the price encroach on the entry level 5-series, its because you're getting a damn good 3-series.

My friend Zach has actually fallen victim to the go big or go home mentality. He was looking at new cars to replace his dead 2009 Honda Fit. I recommended the Audi A4 or Cadillac ATS, and I was almost certain he'd go for the Cadillac.

He ended up with a 2014 Dodge Charger (w/ 8-speed), because for less money he got a bigger car. Its a nice car, well screwed together and the definition of a land yacht, but he admits that its nowhere near as well screwed together as the Audi or Caddy and sees where the extra money went with the two smaller offerings.

 

[mustang#16]

I've never figured out why Ford and GM design their Mustangs and Camaros on such heavy frames nowadays. If the back seat was more substantial, like in a Challenger, that would be one thing. But it's almost useless anyway.
I know there is a lot of federal requirements that add weight, but it isn't 800 lbs worth. That Camaro is very heavy and I don't knwo why they made it that way. It didn't use to be.

Mustangs, Camaros, and Challengers are mostly unique in that they are designed around a heavy V8. The heavy engine, combined with the high torque they produce, requires the entire drive train - clutch, bell housing, transmission, driveshaft, rear suspension, differential, halfshafts, plus rear suspension, etc to all be heavy duty. Same with the front suspension that carries the engine weight. All of these components directly or indirectly attach to the frame. Since the Mustang is a unitized-body design, the entire body/frame also has to be extra-strong -- which means more weight -- to properly handle all of this weight and torque at a very high degree to allow for excellent handling. When you factor in the cost segment these cars sell in, that often rules out lighter and more expensive materials to offset some of the extra weight.

Most other cars don't have the high levels of torque, engine weight, and drive-train weight that the 3 pony cars have.

 

[JimmyTwoTimes]

I've never gotten that mindset, not even once. I can understand going up to a bigger car if you need the space, but if you're paying XYZ for a 3-series, making the price encroach on the entry level 5-series, its because you're getting a damn good 3-series.

Status.

A well-optioned 3 series might cost the same as an entry-level 5 series, but with one you'll be perceived as the type of person who could afford a 5 series, and with the other you'll be be perceived as the type of person who could only afford a 3 series. "Keeping up with the Joneses" is a very important thing to a lot of people. Money spent on upgrading your interior can't be seen by people looking at your car in the driveway.

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