Introduction


The big foglights are still the classic dominating trait of the Mustang's face.

By Mike Magrath, Associate Editor | Published Jan 12, 2011

"Mike, wait just a second. Sit down." The meeting with a key executive was going well until this. "One more question." Uh oh. Those are words you never want to hear. "We've got some budget to burn. What should we get: a 2011 Ford Mustang GT 5.0, or a [generic family hauler *redacted*]?"

The generic family hauler would certainly sell more units than the 412-horsepower V8-powered Mustang GT, and so the reply was carefully calculated. "I want the Mustang, but the GFH sure does have a lot going for it. It'll sell well and is crucial for that brand. But that new 5.0-liter engine is cool. And we did just give up our 2010 Chevy Camaro. And we don't have a muscle car right now...."

"And we haven't had a Mustang since 2005. That was before the blog," he replied.

A few days later, the search was on for a 2011 Ford Mustang GT for a 12-month/20,000-mile road test.

What We Bought


No nav, but we do have plenty of buttons, Sync and satellite radio.

The 2011 Ford Mustang GT Premium starts out at $32,845. And for that you get some serious performance by way of a 412-hp DOHC V8 connected to a slick-shifting six-speed manual transmission. And with a curb weight some 200 pounds lighter than a Chevy Camaro, 412 hp is more than sufficient. A six-speed automatic is optional, but really, no thanks.

Apart from a manual trans and a V8 we had three more rules for our long-term Mustang: 1) It couldn't be a stupid color; 2) 3.73 rear end; 3) keep the price as low as possible. This is a Mustang; it's supposed to be cheap fun.

We managed two out of three.

Early in the shopping process we realized that a GT would be harder to find than a GT Premium. The Premium gets you Bluetooth, iPod integration, satellite radio, leather seats, a power driver seat, leather-wrapped steering wheel and color-adjustable gauges. It also adds $3,200 to the price. Rule three was already looking difficult.

The first Mustang we found was yellow and the second was Kona Blue. See Rule 1 for why those wouldn't work. And then came a spate of fully loaded navigation-equipped cars with dealer-installed wheels. No, no and no.

So when a black 6MT showed up with the requisite 3.73 gearing ($395), and the Brembo brake package ($1,695), we jumped on it despite some extras.

We could certainly do without the $1,200 1,000-watt Shaker audio system that has two trunk-mounted subwoofers. The rear video camera ($385) is nice, but unnecessary. HIDs are $525 and the Rapid Spec 401A package is $395 and gets us contrasting leather and a cool ball shifter, which the aforementioned executive really digs.

Altogether, our 2011 Ford Mustang rocks the register to the tune of $38,780. That price, however, was before the negotiation began. We were offered the Ford Executive Plan, which got us the car for just about $200 over invoice. There were also $1,500 in incentives on the hood so our price was $34,717.61, or, $38,850.94 out the door including all tax/title/license fees.

It's a lot of car for $34,717.61.

Why We Bought It


Yeah, that's a high redline for an American V8. It gets there quick, too.

Life with a 2010 Chevy Camaro SS didn't end the way we expected. The limited visibility and Martian ergonomics meant that unless you had a need for speed, you passed on the Camaro. Despite 426 horses, it was often the last car out of the garage at night. In comparison, another muscle car, the 2009 Dodge Challenger R/T came in as a lame duck — low on power, big on flashy looks — but won us over in the end with its real-world livability and addictive soundtrack.

The Mustang seems to split the difference. It looks just wild enough to be cool and has just enough power to make you grin. The test remains, though, whether this "just right" blending of style and function works in the real world, 365 days in a row for 20,000 miles.

There is accommodation to be found in the middle ground, but rarely greatness. The Chevy Camaro outsold the Ford Mustang in 2010 without a convertible and without owners being able to see out of it. Still, our long-term Camaro lost us somewhere during the test, and the Challenger won us over. Will the Mustang cruise along in mediocrity, rise to the top choice in the fleet or simply fade away and make us wish we'd chosen that generic family hauler?

Twelve months and 20,000 miles will help us decide. Follow along on our long-term road test blog for a year of living with a brand-new 2011 Ford Mustang GT 5.0.


Yes, the blinkers go in order. Yes, it gets old.

Current Odometer: 1,573
Best Fuel Economy: 21.5 mpg
Worst Fuel Economy: 13.0 mpg
Average Fuel Economy (over the life of the vehicle): 17.2 mpg

 

It's a nice looking and great performing car. I would consider owning one.

 

I like their initial approach to this one, cost wise. I "cough" actually don't mind this new 5.0 and have even considered having the new Boss in my garage. Having said that, I can't get over the rear of the car, and I would rather own a Shelby - but in that company I will probably end up with a vette and never look back. Really though, that's just my opinion and means nothing.....

Just looking forward to seeing what they think of it at the end.

 

Yep... That's it. Call us when it's over.

 

http://blogs.insideline.com/roadtest...az-part-1.html

And it's broken already

 

How does it have less miles now than the first post?

 

I think I read about this kind of issue a few months ago and eventually the group seemed to conclude there's an issue in the fueling system and cars had already been changed... I'm only guessing that Ford hasn't truly figured out how many cars were effected and hasn't decided to simply change them all, which would cost money, but not customers.

Still, I'm not ready to call a fueling issue a serious "break down" when it seems more like an engineering problem... It shouldn't be a problem at all, but surely this can be worked out, as it works in the trucks. I don't like the capless filler, regardless. This ain't a race car and I can remember to re-install my cap.

There's also the chance they've had this car since before many people new of any issue and just got around to adding the story, which makes previous conversations kinda moot, as their issue would've been taking place along with the others. If that's the case, surely the car is "repaired" and the story will continue. Must suck running out of gas and not really BEING outta gas...

 

Yup, I wouldn't consider this a huge issue if Ford already knew about it and have been fixing the issues(even if they hadn't, it's still a minor issue). The transmission in the Camaro they had needed to be replaced at 15k, this is nothing compared to that(although something big could happen to the Mustang before the 15k mark).