Understated/Overlooked Cars

[MX793]

I'd consider a new V6 Mustang if Ford made the following changes:

1)  Offer it with the GT's suspension tuning
2)  Give it a motor that doesn't rev like a piece of agricultural equipment

[280Z Turbo]

I'd consider a new V6 Mustang if Ford made the following changes:

1)  Offer it with the GT's suspension tuning
2)  Give it a motor that doesn't rev like a piece of agricultural equipment

Doesn't it use the Ranger's 4.0L? I don't think that engine is bad. Much more car like than a Dodge 3.9L!

The V6 Mustang is made to be cheap. If it ends up being fast with a truck engine, so be it, but they're not really trying.

[3.0L V6]

Doesn't it use the Ranger's 4.0L? I don't think that engine is bad. Much more car like than a Dodge 3.9L!

The V6 Mustang is made to be cheap. If it ends up being fast with a truck engine, so be it, but they're not really trying.

It would be cool if they used the new 3.5 DOHC engine from the Taurus in it. Probably would have to put some $ into it to convert the engine to RWD form, but it would be a step up.

[Nethead]

It would be cool if they used the new 3.5 DOHC engine from the Taurus in it. Probably would have to put some $ into it to convert the engine to RWD form, but it would be a step up.

3.0L V6:  Good news, 3.0Dude!  The 3.5 V6 has the engine mounts and the transmission bolt patterns for both transverse mounting for FWD/AWD and longitudinal mounting for RWD!   And it's slated for the Mustang, although there are other Fords/Mercs/Lincs that need the engine more so that will not be a 2008 offering and possibly may not be a 2009 offering...It all depends on whether they can build the numbers reliably and affordably to meet all the needs.  It will be an optional engine in the Mustang V6 line--the current 4.0 will be the base engine for those who have to reach to afford the base V6.  That affordability issue accounts for a sizable chunk of V6 sales, and gets a customer into a Mustang for under $20,000.  For those who have the 4.0 V6, Shelby Performance Parts will install the Terlingua package to give it Shelby GT handling and massive disks for something over $8,000--with optional supercharger to crank it up to 350 HP.  The Terlingua is a great-looking package--better than all the other Shelbys--and has a new and functional air-extractor hood that should be on every Shelby.  Terlingua Shelbys get the serialization & documentation for Barrett Jackson down the road, too.

[Nebtek2002]

Understated and overlooked is the very definition of an Aztek.

[nickdrinkwater]

How is the Aztek understated?  If anything it's one of them more distinctive designs on the road.

[Tave]

Part of the reason Jaguars and Astons are so gorgeous, IMO, is because their designs are understated.

[Raza]

Part of the reason Jaguars and Astons are so gorgeous, IMO, is because their designs are understated.

Were...

[Nethead]

How is the Aztek understated?  If anything it's one of them more distinctive designs on the road.

And they're never overlooked, in a turd-floating-in-the-punchbowl sort of way....

[Nethead]

Part of the reason Jaguars and Astons are so gorgeous, IMO, is because their designs are understated.

Which is why Astons are always overlooked in a parking lot full of Hondas...

[Nethead]

I finally found the article I've alluded to in Car and Driver, April 2007:

The Quickest Cars of 2007: Less Than $20,000 - Feature

Last time we had this much fun, we were using our lunch money and somebody got four hours of detention.

April 2007

At our 2007 10Best competition, we calculated that the average U.S. transaction price for a new car was $28,400. That was the average. So you wouldn't expect you could slice $8400 from that sum and still be rewarded with a full measure of vehicular va-va-voom. Tell the bartender you want to deduct a buck from your next draft beer, and all you'll get is foam, right?

It used to be that the bottom feeders inhabiting this niche were plasticky and good for about three years' worth of hard daily use. They were the cars you'd get when you told the rent-a-car clerk, "I'll take whatever's cheapest," an utterance you'd regret about a mile from the airport.

But you know what? The sub-$20,000 category is nowadays populated by some alluring characters, and they aren't all as slow as politicians doing math. Consider: The average 0-to-60-mph sprint in this 10-car group consumes only 7.4 seconds. That's just a 10th behind, say, a Saturn Sky roadster.

To make the cut, contestants must boast a base price at or below $20,000 and must be available in showrooms throughout the bulk of calendar-year 2007. Production cars only?no aftermarket specials, although tuners aplenty exist, should you desire more puissance. If two cars post identical 0-to-60 dashes, then the car with the quicker quarter-mile sprint gets the nod. If they're still tied, then the winner is the car that first reaches 100 mph, then 110 mph, and so forth. Simple. Like us.

We know it's unlikely that any of these 10 will draw the sort of attention that causes parking valets to bump you to the head of the queue. But neither will they draw attention from the constabulary or from your insurance agent.

There's a Zen-like purity in that.

Tenth Place: 2007 Subaru Impreza 2.5i

Ninth Place: 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer GTS

Eighth Place: 2007 Honda Civic

Seventh Place: 2007 Hyundai Tiburon GT

Sixth Place: 2007 Honda Accord

Fifth Place: 2007 Scion tC

Fourth Place: 2007 Mazda 3 s

Third Place: 2007 Nissan Altima 2.5

Second Place: 2007 Chevrolet Cobalt SS and Pontiac G5 GT

First Place: 2007 Ford Mustang V-6



2007 Ford Mustang V-6 - Feature
First Place: The Quickest Cars of 2007: Less than $20,000

Base Price: $19,995
0-to-60-mph time: 6.5 sec
Quarter-mile time: 15.3 sec @ 93 mph

Enthusiasts assume that drivers of V-6 Mustangs are dental hygienists and hair stylists plotting revenge on flaky ex-husbands. Call us sexists, but Ford will tell you the same: The majority of V-6 Mustangs get parked on the distaff side of the garage.

Nowadays, however, the girly-car reputation is increasingly bogus, as the base Mustang's 4.0-liter SOHC V-6 demonstrates. It is an engine familiar to drivers of Explorers, Mountaineers, and Rangers?nothing wimpy about that?producing 240 lb-ft of torque as low as 3500 rpm. Step-off is, well, macho. Fitted with the five-speed manual, this Mustang posts an astounding 6.5-second dash to 60 mph, and even the automatic is only four 10ths behind.

Thing is, the trip there is somewhat riotous. The shifter is stiff, and the V-6 becomes raucous north of 4000 rpm. By 5000 rpm, pieces of interior trim begin to buzz. At idle, at 70 mph, and at wide-open throttle, this Mustang makes way more racket than any of the five full-size pickup trucks in our April 2007 comparo.

Perhaps catering to the femmes, Ford has lightened the steering, dialed out the traditional Mustang oversteer, and tuned the suspension for ride, not grip?0.81g on the skidpad, versus the Mustang GT's 0.89. You don't have to be Danica Patrick to notice the difference. Still, this V-6 pony offers decent fuel economy and a quintessentially American driving experience.

VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, rear-wheel-drive, 4-passenger, 2-door coupe

BASE PRICE: $19,995

ENGINE TYPE: SOHC 16-valve V-6, iron block and aluminum heads, port fuel injection
Displacement: 245 cu in, 4009cc
Power (SAE net): 210 bhp @ 5300 rpm
Torque (SAE net): 240 lb-ft @ 3500 rpm

TRANSMISSION: 5-speed manual

DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 107.1 in
Length: 187.6 in
Width: 73.9 in
Height: 55.4 in
Curb weight: 3439 lb

C/D TEST RESULTS:
Zero to 60 mph: 6.5 sec
Zero to 100 mph: 18.5 sec
Zero to 110 mph: 23.1 sec
Street start, 5-60 mph: 6.9 sec
Standing ?-mile: 15.3 sec @ 93 mph
Top speed (governor limited): 113 mph
Braking, 70-0 mph: 183 ft
Roadholding, 200-ft-dia skidpad: 0.81 g

FUEL ECONOMY:
EPA city/highway driving: 19/28 mpg

As of today, 4/25/2008, that article is available on the C&D website, but likely not for long since it is now a year old.  In sheer boredom I cruised the C&D website and was elated to find that long-lost article I have referred to often in this thread.  Reviews of those cars that finished second through tenth are there, too, for those who are interested.  A good read!

[Tave]

Which is why Astons are always overlooked in a parking lot full of Hondas...

Being understated is different from being overlooked. I never said Astons are overlooked.

[S204STi]

Dunno if this is OT or not, but I drove an 08 Grand Prix GXP (with the 5.3L V8)  and oh my is that a sleeper...

[CALL_911]

Dunno if this is OT or not, but I drove an 08 Grand Prix GXP (with the 5.3L V8)  and oh my is that a sleeper...

Well, it is overlooked.

[S204STi]

That's my point.  I didn't know it existed till yesterday... and it was rather quick.  Still drove like a H-body Pontiac, but in a straight line I think it would own me.

[CALL_911]

That's my point.  I didn't know it existed till yesterday... and it was rather quick.  Still drove like a H-body Pontiac, but in a straight line I think it would own me.

And my point is that your point was not OT. 

MOVING ALONG

I don't think you would necessarily get owned. Your car is no slouch either. It would be close, though.

[nickdrinkwater]

I guess that kind of car will be thing of the past soon.  How long until they stop making the V8 Ford sedans?

[Sigma Projects]

What about the 88 Fiero GT? magnesium frame, basically the only production MR car from GM. Or the RWD Celicas. Of course I'm looking at these are cars to modify. I mean yea the Fiero had its fare share of being used as a base for a kit car, but they aren't really used as cars to mod and show off that they have a fiero. And Celicas are a light weight RWD car that can be found for cheap. Both cars I wouldn't think about using the original motors, but I think for a base project car these two are really interesting and highly overlooked for potential projects.