MUSTANG: independance Day

The launch of the new Mustang last month on Los Angeles’ Sunset Boulevard was perfect in terms of geography and automotive style. Starting from Mel’s Drive-in, the iconic eatery for car fans in the city of the automobile that has seen it all, but amidst all the usual new model hype, this time there really was a substantial car breaking out, and as we were to find out, a car that can compete with far more exotic brands than the Detroit iron its original was aimed at.

The Mustang has become the newest member of a very exclusive club that for vehicles in continuous production for 50 years. In its first  49 years, the Mustang gained a worldwide base of avid fans, including more than 5 million on Facebook, the most of any vehicle nameplate. The all-new 2015 Mustang reached showrooms during October in its native US, with right hand drive markets like ours waiting until 2015 for their serving.

While most previous Mustangs save for those very first cars perhaps have been power first, style later sorts of designs, there’s a subtle elegance about the new car that will attract people not previously attached to the brand. Having said that, there are still all those Mustang styling cues, like the  shark nose, lidded ‘eyes,’ side strakes and three-lens vertical tail lights, that ignite sequentially when indicating, to light up the eyes of Mustang fans.


At first, the offering of a four cylinder entry point engine for New Zealand to go with the range-topping 5.0-litre Coyote V8 would seem anathema to ‘Stang fans, but the Dearborn researchers’ numbers say it should not be looked at that way.

The larger engine, known as the 5.0-litre Ti-VCT V8, has a lot of horsepower on tap with 320kW and 542Nm of torque available, but the little engine is the big story. The new 2.3-litre EcoBoost engine called the ‘2.3-litre GTDI I4’ has been developed specifically for Mustang. The intake manifold and turbocharger housing are optimised from the previous 2.0-litre unit familiar to New Zealanders in the Falcon, Focus, Mondeo, XF Jag and Range Rover Evoque to provide better breathing and higher output in the Mustang.

With 228kW and 434Nm of torque, Ford says the EcoBoost engine fits the bill for the Mustang.Those numbers mean in fact that the least powerful of our new Mustangs produces more horsepower and torque than the hottest of the two 4.7-litre V8s on offer in the original Mustang.

The most powerful ‘289’ made 199kW in 1964, so even if the customer opts for the four-cylinder unit in 2015 they’ll have a quicker car than the quickest you could get 50 years ago. At the strip, expect a thirteen flat for the quarter from the new V8 and just under fourteen for the four. Both the EcoBoost four and the  V8 work through a six-speed manual  or automatic transmission, the latter with steering wheel mounted paddle shifters.

Among the other big news for the new car, the Mustang’s achievement of independence for the very first time [although the special run SVT Cobras from the early 2000s did feature an independent rear Ed], by the use of modern suspension all round, now the double-ball-joint independent MacPherson strut and tubular stabiliser bar front set-up is accompanied by a fully independent rear end. It uses integral link independent suspension with coil springs, solid stabiliser bar, and twin tube dampers in the fours or mono-tube dampers for the V8.

Our new ‘Triple-Yellow’ sixth generation Mustang is set for a blast along Sunset for the effect and then to the serpentine Angeles Crest highway and the car’s muscular yellowness certainly looks the part, all penned and sculpted by a team of designers headed by Moray Callum, who led Mazda’s design team during the creation of the series III MX-5. He’s the brother to former Aston Martin man and now Jaguar’s design chief, Ian Callum.

Watching other ‘15 Mustangs as we flick-flack though LA traffic it can be seen that the new car has a deliberate flair over its rear track, made necessary by the widening of the wheelspread by 70mm and the result is remarkable; it’s tight blend of curve and cleverly sporting proportions create a car that could be European if it didn’t have a shark-like maw sucking on a chromed horse.

There are other cues borrowed from 1964, with the three vents close to each side of the first car’s grille rendered now as triple driving lamps in the main headlight clusters, so much better to see its prey.

That’s probably the only gimmick on the car, which starts to get very serious once you filter warily into the seen-it-all traffic of Los Angeles, where supercars stud the pavement outside every eatery. Even then eyes follow the gleaming Ford and ears take in the rumble emanating from America’s most advanced engine block: short of a litre or two in size but in all-alloy and with quadruple cams moving four valves per cylinder instead of the pushrod two-valve iron used by others.

Oh, and its 4.5 second zero to 100km/h time is right into Porsche territory. Our Mustang erupts through tightly packed cars, its long yellow prow aimed for the hills, with that shark-like upper lip responding neatly to the driver. Thundering through the streets and up into steep hillside boulevards, the ‘15 Mustang is the sharpest Mustang ever, with meaty, informative steering, tonnes of grip and an engine that loves revs as much as the old ones didn’t.

Not even available in showrooms on its home market yet, the Mustang is a rare sight and constantly on the hillside sections of our drive we’re interrupted when taking photographs by passers by in their own cars, wanting ‘selfies’ or to ‘shake the hand of the guy driving my next car.’ One couple even hauled up in a late Porsche 911 - what a compliment.

The new independent rear suspension comes into its own. Previous Mustangs made do, and not very well with live axle rear underpinnings which meant that every bump and rill would be felt by both rear wheels, often nudging the back of the car off line when pressing on through twisty routes. The ‘15 car’s set up works to separate the reactions of those rear wheels, and the result is remarkable, with a car that goes where it’s told to, calmly and without any bad habits.

The front end had to be reworked to match the new rear-end too, resulting in a car of surprising back road talent, one so nimble and biddable that it belies its near two-tonne weight, with passengers.

Coursing through the canyons used for myriad TV and movie car chases, the Mustang feels as much at home as it did at Mel’s. This racer road is populated by Angelenos in their Porsches, Ferraris and a BMW i8 or two, even on the mid-week day we chose, exercising their cars hopefully Out of the gaze of the California Highway Patrol.

The cabin of the new Mustang is as much a mix of the old and the new as the exterior. The familiar ‘wing’ shaped double cowls hark right back to ‘64 while a touch screen that works at the behest of fingers or voice sits under the centre of the dash, which can be had with a textured or plain alloy pelmet. A chunky, three double-spoke wheel feels just right while the optional Recaro front seats
locate and cosset just as a performance car’s should. In 1964, they were sadly flat, but looked great for the time.

In the back, the new Mustang supplies adequate if not spectacular knee and legroom, but as with the front buckets, the rear pair are well shaped, and once in through the pleasingly wide opening doors (better duck for that low roofline) a couple of hours travel is not going to be too uncomfortable.

While the 5.0-litre V8’s soundtrack adds a high revving end-note to the Mustang’s repertoire, the smaller, EcoBoost four that powers the entry-point version of the new Mustang is nowhere near as orchestral, though Ford has attempted to imbue it with something of a voice, artificially.

In the all too-brief time I spent with the 2.3-litre unit, I was deeply impressed with the unit’s blend of power and torque. There will be customers and indeed journalists who’ll get sniffy about the ‘little engine’ but they should try it first. The car is also lighter at the front with this unit, and this shows with even more responsiveness than the V8. While the four is marginally slower and may not turn heads with its engine note, it’s going to be just as much fun.

Ford’s tight-lipped about New Zealand pricing, but every optimistic suggestion I threw at them gained a retort that I was way off, but in the right way. In other words they’ll cost less than I thought they would. With a price at a bit more than a Falcon with the same engine, this Mustang can’t fail and when it arrives in New Zealand next year (exactly when, we don’t know) you’d better get your order in quick. Not only is it better than I had ever hoped, it’s the most European American performance car ever, which is exactly as it needs to be if it’s to conquer the world and not just America. Independence day came at just the right time.

Ford Mustang GT

Price  TBA
0-100 km/h  4.5s (Claimed)
On sale in New Zealand  2015
Claimed fuel use  12.3L/100km
Engine capacity  4951cc
Engine format V8/DI/longitudinal
Max power 320kW@6500rpm
Max torque 542Nm@4250rpm
Specific output 64.6kW/L
Weight-to-power 5.4kg/KW
Bore x stroke 92.2mm x 82mm
Compression ratio 11.0:1
Cylinder head dohc/32v/vvt
Gearbox 6-speed auto
Drivetrain Rear-wheel drive
Front suspension Mac strut/sway bar
Rear suspension Multilink/sway bar
Front brakes ventilated discs
Rear brakes ventilated discs
Stability systems ABS/EBD/BA/TC/ESP
Tyre size 255/40R19
Wheelbase 2720mm
L/W/H 4783/1915/1382mm
Track 1582/1638mm
Fuel capacity 60L
Luggage capacity  382L
Weight (claimed)  1728kg