Does the Mustang compete with FWD coupes?

[SVT666]

Not to start anything but I don't know one female that's impressed with a guy driving a Mustang. A "Pussy Magnet" it is not.

Then you know nothing but lesbians.

[Onslaught]

Then you know nothing but lesbians.

Most of the girls I know would only be impressed with a cars made in Italy and end with i. A car that cost less than $50K is just a car to them. Not saying that I agree with them.

[ro51092]

Most of the girls I know would only be impressed with a cars made in Italy and end with i. A car that cost less than $50K is just a car to them. Not saying that I agree with them.

Hyundai? Wow, that's easier than I thought!

[Onslaught]

Hyundai? Wow, that's easier than I thought!

Yes, pull up in a Tiburon with fart cans and the panties fall down.

[MX793]

Hyundai? Wow, that's easier than I thought!

Those aren't made in Italy.

[SaltyDog]

I voted yes, but it's kind of an oddball(in a good way) competitor.  With RWD and the styling it has it's quite different.

[Vinsanity]

But a Mustang is freedom personified in sheetmetal--a poor man's starship, a family man's ticket to adventure, an individual's nod to affordable escape from the humdrum routine that holds us back like parasitic drag.? And it's a pussy magnet--what more do you want???

not even when I was 17 did I think my 1986 V6 Mustang resembled anything remotely to that described above especially not a pussy magnet

at least it was fun to drift in dirt roads in south Georgia...until it fell into a ditch. again.

[Champ]

Hyundai? Wow, that's easier than I thought!

AND not OR

[omicron]

Never, never, never confuse stated purchase intentions and stated loyalty with actual purchase data and actual loyalty.

Of course Mustangs compete for buyers with FWD coupes; of course Mustangs compete for buyers with a BMW 3-series; of course Mustangs compete for buyers with used GTOs; of course Mustangs compete for buyers with Camry XLEs; of course Mustangs compete for buyers with 350Zs.

[Nethead]

not even when I was 17 did I think my 1986 V6 Mustang resembled anything remotely to that described above especially not a pussy magnet

at least it was fun to drift in dirt roads in south Georgia...until it fell into a ditch. again.

Vinsanity:? When the Nethead here was seventeen I was gettin' so much I had to put three rows of barbed wire around my member to get a little rest--and I was drivin' a four-year old station wagon with a two-barrel V8 and an autofriggingmatic!? Today, I think of the offers I turned down from the cute, nubile, and willing because I had a steady girlfriend, I'd weep? ? --except for how delightfully good that steady girlfriend was at all the things I taught her !? Shit, if I'd had a Mustang--any Mustang except for those bloated '71s--'73s--I woulda had to have hired a support staff to handle all the excess chicks I couldn't service in a day!? Donna, Cathy, Linda, Jackie--Ohhhhh yessss, Jackie--the two Patricias, yummy Cecelia, Carol (a little encouragement woulda been required here--two weeks, maybe three), Lynne,--oh, yeah--Anna, Shelby, Suzie, Diane, Laura, Bonita, Louise, Faye, delicious Kitty, and bound to be some others--like Michelle and Carolyn (who knew what a bootyhound I was) for instance, who woulda required a little encouragement like Carol above...

Maybe the problem wasn't your '86 ?

[Nethead]

I think the V6 Mustang could indeed compete with the V6 Z car or the rotary RX7. It's not as fast nor handles as well, but it's a cheaper V6 RWD competitor. It also competes with teh FWD sport coupes as a low cost sport cooupe, regardless of drive wheels.

I just feel that if it were offered by a Japanese manufacturer, even as an identical car as it is now, it would be hailed as the best RWD performance bargain on the planet, and the best base to build a tuner car from. due to being RWD and low cost As it is, it has to compete primarily with it's own higher powered sibling and comes off as a weaker car. On it's own, it's not. Against the GT it is.

Basically, if the GT didn't exist, the V6 Mustang would be crosshopped against the FWD sport coupes as a similar cost RWD competitor, and against the RWD sport coupes as a cheaper alternative with potential. I feel it's a great bargain, and with the manual and real tires, an adequately quick, balanced handler with a lot of potential.

Another thoughtful posting by ChrisV here--the V6 Mustang would be hailed as the "AT LAST!!!" vehicle of the year if it came from a Japanese manufacturer...And the 350 HP CS6 from Carroll Shelby would be worshipped!

But it's sorta taken for granted when there's a 300 HP V8 available for under $26,000 or a 500 HP V8 available for under $41,000.  Maybe it'll get out from under the V8's shadow when the new 3.5 V6 becomes available (which the Nethead doesn't see as happening soon because of all the other Fords, Mercs, & Lincs that genuinely need that V6 much more than does the Mustang at this point).

[565]

Those aren't made in Italy.

Hey I heard the Tiburon was styled by Pininfarina, so the outside is Italian.

[MX793]

Hey I heard the Tiburon was styled by Pininfarina, so the outside is Italian.

The current Tiburon ('03+) was styled in-house by Hyundai (but was no doubt inspired by Pininfarina's work).  The first generation Tib ('96-'98) was actually Italian-designed, but it was penned by Giugiaro, not Pininfarina.

[Vinsanity]

Vinsanity:? When the Nethead here was seventeen I was gettin' so much I had to put three rows of barbed wire around my member to get a little rest--and I was drivin' a four-year old station wagon with a two-barrel V8 and an autofriggingmatic!? Today, I think of the offers I turned down from the cute, nubile, and willing because I had a steady girlfriend, I'd weep? ? --except for how delightfully good that steady girlfriend was at all the things I taught her !? Shit, if I'd had a Mustang--any Mustang except for those bloated '71s--'73s--I woulda had to have hired a support staff to handle all the excess chicks I couldn't service in a day!? Donna, Cathy, Linda, Jackie--Ohhhhh yessss, Jackie--the two Patricias, yummy Cecelia, Carol (a little encouragement woulda been required here--two weeks, maybe three), Lynne,--oh, yeah--Anna, Shelby, Suzie, Diane, Laura, Bonita, Louise, Faye, delicious Kitty, and bound to be some others--like Michelle and Carolyn (who knew what a bootyhound I was) for instance, who woulda required a little encouragement like Carol above...

Maybe the problem wasn't your '86 ?

to be honest, considering where I lived at the time, I would have gotten way more tail if I had an old Siverado with glass packs or an 80's Cutlass Supreme sitting on dubs

I don't know if the car was my problem, but I did have an easier time with the ladies when I moved back to SoCal and drove a fecal brown Volvo 240

[Ron From Regina]

to be honest, considering where I lived at the time, I would have gotten way more tail if I had an old Siverado with glass packs or an 80's Cutlass Supreme sitting on dubs

I don't know if the car was my problem, but I did have an easier time with the ladies when I moved back to SoCal and drove a fecal brown Volvo 240

I drove a rusted out dodge pickup in high school. When I picked up chicks, I knew they weren't after the truck.

[SVT666]

to be honest, considering where I lived at the time, I would have gotten way more tail if I had an old Siverado with glass packs or an 80's Cutlass Supreme sitting on dubs

Sounds like where I grew up.

I don't know if the car was my problem, but I did have an easier time with the ladies when I moved back to SoCal and drove a fecal brown Volvo 240

Hahaha!

[Nethead]

to be honest, considering where I lived at the time, I would have gotten way more tail if I had an old Siverado with glass packs or an 80's Cutlass Supreme sitting on dubs

I don't know if the car was my problem, but I did have an easier time with the ladies when I moved back to SoCal and drove a fecal brown Volvo 240

Vinsanity:? Yeah, VinDude, environment makes a world of difference in what's hot and what's not!? In SoCal somewhere, there are sweet chicks who like every conceivable vehicle--probably some who dig mopeds if you look long enough...When I was takin' some evening courses at Goldenwest Community College in Huntington Beach, even a bicycle built for two would keep you in the regular if you'd let the chick have the front seat--she could steer while you scope her rear?, a generous and selfless gesture on your part, right?

But I digress--or is that "Butt I digress":? If you line up a '65 Mustang 2+2 (the true name of the first semi-fastback Mustangs), a '67 Mustang fastback, a '69 Mustang fastback, and an '05 (or later) Mustang coupe (also a semi-fastback), you'll see the direct progression of Mustang DNA.? The new Mustangs aren't "retro"--they're just returning to the heritage that was abandoned when Mustangs wandered in the styling wilderness for the 34 years of the '71 through '04 Mustangs.? No Mustangs from those dark and dreary years ever made my wish list except for the 2000 Mustang Cobra R--the car that started Ford taking the Mustang market seriously again.? Upon hearing of the galloping (heh heh) success of the S197 Mustang that sprang from the renewed corporate commitment to the Mustang inspired by those three hundred 2000 Mustang Cobra Rs, Winston Churchill said "Never in the field of automotive success have so many owed so much to so few."? ? Wha'? You don't believe me???

Ford hasn't made the current Mustang retro.? Ford has made the Mustang young again!

[ro51092]

Nethead: Hey NetDude, "The new Mustangs aren't "retro"--they're just returning to the heritage that was abandoned when Mustangs wandered in the styling wilderness for the 34 years of the '71 through '04 Mustangs." that means the same thing as retro!

[SVT666]

Vinsanity:? Yeah, VinDude, environment makes a world of difference in what's hot and what's not!? In SoCal somewhere, there are sweet chicks who like every conceivable vehicle--probably some who dig mopeds if you look long enough...When I was takin' some evening courses at Goldenwest Community College in Huntington Beach, even a bicycle built for two would keep you in the regular if you'd let the chick have the front seat--she could steer while you scope her rear?, a generous and selfless gesture on your part, right?

But I digress--or is that "Butt I digress":? If you line up a '65 Mustang 2+2 (the true name of the first semi-fastback Mustangs), a '67 Mustang fastback, a '69 Mustang fastback, and an '05 (or later) Mustang coupe (also a semi-fastback), you'll see the direct progression of Mustang DNA.? The new Mustangs aren't "retro"--they're just returning to the heritage that was abandoned when Mustangs wandered in the styling wilderness for the 34 years of the '71 through '04 Mustangs.? No Mustangs from those dark and dreary years ever made my wish list except for the 2000 Mustang Cobra R--the car that started Ford taking the Mustang market seriously again.? Upon hearing of the galloping (heh heh) success of the S197 Mustang that sprang from the renewed corporate commitment to the Mustang inspired by those three hundred 2000 Mustang Cobra Rs, Winston Churchill said "Never in the field of automotive success have so many owed so much to so few."? ? Wha'? You don't believe me???

Ford hasn't made the current Mustang retro.? Ford has made the Mustang young again!

From those so-called dark and dreary years these Mustangs make my wishlist:
1. 1987-93 5.0L LX
2. 1996 Cobra
3. 1998 Cobra R
4. 2004 40th Anniversary GT
5. 2000 Cobra R
6. 2001 Bullitt
7. 2003-04 Mach 1
8. 2003-04 Cobra

[ChrisV]

Well put Nethead, I honestly think a girl would be more attracted to a pink beetle than a Mustang,

I've had both, and you're right. The Mustangs were faster and handled better, but the Beetles drew the girls, as much as any Ferrari (mostly because Beetles don't scream "prick driver" the way Ferrari's do. OTOH, even my replica Ferrari got women, and I'm not talking me trying to pick them up. I got asked to dinner by a girl driving a 240Z while driving down I5! She just pulled up beside the car, rolled down the window and asked...)

But, the Mustang does have it's own brand of appeal and heritage, and the V6ers are less "threatening" and more appealing to women, even if you're the one driving. And to be honest, I love the V6 pony edition. Clean, like a classic Mustang should be:

[ChrisV]

Nethead: Hey NetDude, "The new Mustangs aren't "retro"--they're just returning to the heritage that was abandoned when Mustangs wandered in the styling wilderness for the 34 years of the '71 through '04 Mustangs." that means the same thing as retro!

Not really. Retro is styling a car to look old. The Mustang is styled to look like a continuation of the evolution of the car, not simply like an old car. The PT Cruiser was Retro, as is the HHR. The Mustang isn't trying to look old, simply like it would be at this point had the styling continued to evolve naturally.

[Raghavan]

I've had both, and you're right. The Mustangs were faster and handled better, but the Beetles drew the girls, as much as any Ferrari (mostly because Beetles don't scream "prick driver" the way Ferrari's do. OTOH, even my replica Ferrari got women, and I'm not talking me trying to pick them up. I got asked to dinner by a girl driving a 240Z while driving down I5! She just pulled up beside the car, rolled down the window and asked...)

But, the Mustang does have it's own brand of appeal and heritage, and the V6ers are less "threatening" and more appealing to women, even if you're the one driving. And to be honest, I love the V6 pony edition. Clean, like a classic Mustang should be:

Those driving lights things looks so much better than the huge ones on the GT.

[Nethead]

Nethead: Hey NetDude, "The new Mustangs aren't "retro"--they're just returning to the heritage that was abandoned when Mustangs wandered in the styling wilderness for the 34 years of the '71 through '04 Mustangs." that means the same thing as retro!

ro51092:  Like Hell!
 
Retro means to look to the past just because it's different--such as the Chevy SSR.  There never was a previous SSR--and mimicking a hodgepodge collection of odd-&-end body parts from old Chevy trucks sure made one certified POS today...An overpriced, trouble-prone POS at that.
 
Returning to your heritage is to admit you strayed from the true path and are now seeking to bring that heritage forward to where it should have been today.  Note that DNA metaphor I used in my earlier posting--no one here can deny the lineage evident in the '65 2+2, the '67 fastback, the '69 fastback, and the 2005 coupe.   Those first three built the legend, the fourth one continues the legend right where those ancestors left off. 

Life is good!  Really, really good!

[Nethead]

From those so-called dark and dreary years these Mustangs make my wishlist:
1. 1987-93 5.0L LX
2. 1996 Cobra
3. 1998 Cobra R
4. 2004 40th Anniversary GT
5. 2000 Cobra R
6. 2001 Bullitt
7. 2003-04 Mach 1
8. 2003-04 Cobra

HEMI666:  Yeah, Hemi, cars like that Mach 1 in item 7 or the Bullitt in item 6 have a lot of appeal.  But they were option packages on Mustang model years that didn't define Mustangs like the '65s, the '67s, the '69s, and the '05s.  Truthfully, the '74-'78 cutesy Mustang IIs look more like Mustangs than the Fox-bodied Mustangs, but don't tell anyone you heard me post that!

If I was a collector on a budget, I'd want a white '65 2+2, a white '67 fastback, a white '69 fastback, and a white '05 coupe.  I'd want the interior colors to be the same, but being "on a budget" I might have to settle for one or more of them with an interior color other than the interior color of the others.  Too bad, but there it is...
I've avoided specifying submodels--there were too many stripes and/or flat black panels options over the years (I want 'em the same on all four, or else no stripes or panels at all on any of the four).  I've avoided engines and transmissions because some engines were available in only a limited number of colors--I've never seen nor heard of a white Boss 429, for instance).  And I'm not sure every engine was offered with a straight drive.  Engines of choice if they came in white Mustangs without stripes or flat black panels:  the High Performance 289, the 390, the Boss 429, and the 4.6 SOHC.  Transmissions of choice if they came in white Mustangs:  the top-loader four-speed for the first three if available, and the five-speed for the white '05.

[SVT666]

HEMI666:? Yeah, Hemi, cars like that Mach 1 in item 7 or the Bullitt in item 6 have a lot of appeal.? But they were option packages on Mustang model years that didn't define Mustangs like the '65s, the '67s, the '69s, and the '05s.?

Big deal.  They're still Mustangs, and they are good cars, with good performance, great potential, and still have some styling cues from the 60s...except the Fox body cars.  The 2003-04 Mach 1's shaker is made from the same mold that they made the shakers for the 1970 Boss 302.

[ChrisV]

I've avoided engines and transmissions because some engines were available in only a limited number of colors--I've never seen nor heard of a white Boss 429, for instance).

Seen 'em.

[MX793]

I don't see why the Mustang wouldn't compete with FWD coupes at a similar price.  Particularly the V6 model.  I don't think anybody would argue that the old 240SX didn't compete with cars like the Celica, Integra, Prelude, and Probe/MX6 simply because it was a RWD car and the others were front drivers based on economy car or otherwise mainstreamer platforms.

[omicron]

Oh my, Chris.

[Nethead]

Seen 'em.

[S204STi]

Not to start anything but I don't know one female that's impressed with a guy driving a Mustang. A "Pussy Magnet" it is not.

Maybe he means that the car attracts pussy drivers?