Quick drive: Ford Mustang GT 5.0
Of course it’s a thoroughbred. Ford invented the “pony car”!
There are many legends surrounding the birth of the Ford Mustang, one of America’s most well-known performance cars. I will avoid the word “iconic” because it’s so overused in this context that I challenge you to find a launch or drive report without it. One such legend has its name inspired by the legendary P51 Mustang fighter aircraft used by the USAF, which makes sense seeing its “aviation inspired” interior on this 2015 model we drove. Other stories tell of how the entire allocation of the original run of the Ford Mustang sold out in just a few months. It has been an immensely popular vehicle since its birth in 1964–65, and this is its 52nd year in continuous production, despite the challenges of the ’70s oil crisis, various downturns and such. Other muscle cars have come, gone and been resurrected, but the Mustang has been a constant.
The model Ford has launched in India is the Mustang GT and it wears all-new bodywork compared to the outgoing model. The previous generation started the “retro-futuristic” craze back in 2005 and has served the company well, spawning innumerable special editions and variations on performance and body style. This new model bears the same basic shape, but has a much more stylish, swoopy visage. The front is more aggressive with a wider grille and three slashes in each headlamp, while the rear looks more old-school with the same three-segment design following through. The classic long bonnet and short boot with a fastback roofline remains, covering a 2+2 cabin and a surprisingly roomy boot! It’s all very well executed, betraying no irony or cheesy nostalgia. This truly does look like many decades of progress have been made to get to this handsome shape.
The Mustang is only available in the V8 engine option for India, which makes perfect sense. There’s an intimate connect in most minds between muscle cars and big, brawny engines. That’s not to say that the Mustang has always had a V8. There have been many inline-four options over the years as well, but we suspect the international EcoBoost version would not be accepted in our market. The naturally-aspirated motor makes 395bhp and 515Nm of torque, which is down somewhat from the international model. This is to accommodate the varying fuel quality available in India. We’re pleased with this decision; a car like the Mustang deserves to be driven, not bragged about when comparing specs, while your staff takes a jerrycan to the nearest 97 octane bunk, which is probably an hour away. Trust us: we know what it’s like to have a hoot of a car in the garage because it’s out of fancy fuel. The Mustang also wears beefy tyres shod around 19" wheels and uses large Brembo brakes to bring things to a halt.
We only had five short laps in the Mustang, but the saving grace was that those were around the lauded Buddh International Circuit, India’s only F1 track. As you’d expect, the Mustang is pretty fast in a straight line. This time round, it isn’t too bad around the corners either, having an independent rear suspension instead of an ancient live-axle type found in most generations of the car. This is clearly a grand-tourer sort of car. The suspension feels quite plush, there’s perceptible body roll when you’re hustling around the corners and things are generally smooth at speed. I suppose we should be pleased as consumers that we’ve come to a point where we can choose: comfortable GT car or corner-carving AWD sled, as is the case with some of the competition in this price segment.
The V8 sounds nice inside the cabin, but isn’t particularly evocative inside or out. It’s a deep but muted burble that comes to the ear; no snap crackle and pop drama of European tyre-burners. The India edition only comes with the 6-speed automatic. It’s a traditional torque converter so you won’t be banging up and down the gearbox like a dual-clutch unit, but it’s okay. In terms of speed, it’s somewhere in the middle of a economy automatic and a performance-tuned dual-clutch. It can be sluggish, but we think it matches the character of the engine. For sure, we’ve driven slower. Paddle shifters are present and are best used in sport mode or one of the sharper driving modes. There are four of those, including a “Track” mode that turns off the traction control, unleashing all 515Nm upon the rear wheels. Some of our colleagues were caught unawares as their cars did unintended 180-degree turns.
The Mustang isn’t for the hardcore track-junkie, despite what the driving modes may say. The tendency is to safely understeer as opposed to snap-oversteer. Of course, you can get it to do the latter but it’s a deliberate effort. The upside is that it’s very easy to get used to and just, well, drive. Suspension is pliant and comfortable, ground clearance is generous, which should make it good to use in our road and traffic conditions. The interior is a bit bland — all black and grey surfaces, but with a surfeit of buttons. The steering wheel has no less than four separate clusters of buttons for various controls. Everything is generally where you expect it, save for the bonnet release, which is inexplicably in the passenger footwell. We had to get off the car to open the hood! Comfort is good, however, with supportive leather seats, usable rear seats (but not for adults), cup holders, armrest with storage, two USB slots, an SD card reader and an 8" information/navigation screen.
All this at Rs 65 lac, ex-showroom Delhi, which should translate to about Rs 77 lac on-road. Maharashtra buyers will be disappointed however, as the recent revision in RTO taxes means that the imported Mustang GT will probably cost north of Rs 80 lac. Still, in this price segment, one’s options are cars like the Audi TT and the Mercedes CLA 45 AMG. Both are smaller, all-wheel drive and much sharper around a track, but also less practical in terms of ground clearance, comfort and space. With the Mustang, you have the heritage, machismo and enough space in the boot for a very grand tour, as long as you leave that giant spare tyre at home.
