Nothing divides the internet quite like a new performance car, and the new Ford Mustang — a thorough reimagining of America’s favorite four-seat coupe with new bodywork, a fresh interior, and updated powertrains — is no exception. Some people already love it, some people dislike the styling, and some people are wisely waiting to pass judgement until they drive it. Speculation can be brilliant fun, but cars aren’t driven on the internet. Besides, this seventh-gen model is far more important than digital bickering. If the electric push maintains momentum, this could be the last generation of all-combustion Mustang the world will ever see. If you’re going for a last lap, make it count, right? To find out how Ford’s evolved its pony, we started by grabbing the keys to the fundamentals — the entry-level four-cylinder 2024 Ford Mustang Ecoboost.
The S650 Mustang isn’t an entirely new car, but that doesn’t make it insignificant. From substantial exterior alterations to a fresh new cabin to updated engines to chassis tweaks, it represents a substantial leap forward from the outgoing model. Think SN95 versus Foxbody and you’re moving in the right direction. Oh, and did I mention that the Mustang has been the world’s best-selling coupe for the last six years? Thanks to global sales, you’ll be seeing this new Mustang on every continent except Antarctica. Funnily enough, Ford wanted to land a Mustang on Antarctica to complete a tour of the continents, but a representative claimed plans were dashed. The 2024 Mustang is a pretty big deal; how new does this new car feel? Let’s fire it up and see what’s what.
[Full disclosure: Ford flew me out to Los Angeles to drive the new Mustang and put me up in a hotel with a nice view of a park. The automaker also provided sustenance and refreshments, most notable of which being Nerds Rope, a candy that fulfills the childhood urge to eat aquarium gravel stuck to a giant gummy worm. If you have the means to spare, I don’t know, $2 or so, I highly recommend picking some up.]
Nip Tuck
Given the nearly 60-year legacy of Ford’s pony car, it shouldn’t be surprising that the new Mustang looks like a Mustang. Although Ford’s dialed back the retro cues in recent years, this new model sports a prominent grille reminiscent of the 1967 model. I’m not crazy about the thick plastic bezel around the upper grille, but I understand why Ford did it. Making that entire area mesh would expose the bumper beam, and shrinking the grille would add more body-color surface to the bumper cover, visually pushing the leading edge of the hood taller (the front end, and thus the hood, are fairly tall, but a wide and tall grille-shape help make it appear lower), which might look weird with how the hood line sweeps downward at the front of the car. You can’t really lower the hood much further without risking running afoul of pedestrian safety requirements, so consider the trim piece an interesting area for owners to wrap should they feel like it.
While we’re on the subject of the front end, I’m moderately concerned about how the new Mustang will look with a front license plate. The advanced driver assistance system sensor in the lower grille needs to be free of obstruction, and while European plates should be fine, North American front plates may partially cover the upper grille should Ford use a center plate mount. If you live in a front plate jurisdiction and want a new Mustang, you may want to make a tow hook plate mount your first mod.
Side-on is unquestionably the best angle of the new Mustang. In profile, Ford absolutely nailed it. The softer character lines down the flank, the sharper creases atop the fenders, the nifty chevron on the quarter panel — I have a strong feeling it’s mostly going to age well. Is the undercut along the lower body edge a bit heavy? Sure, but that’s not the worst sin to commit.
However, I’m just not sold on the rear end of this new Mustang. The designers were going for deep shadow on the decklid and I reckon it could work, if not for the strange taillights. Neither dramatic nor beautiful, these plain rectangular elements set in wide swaths of cheap-looking black plastic really take the back of the Mustang down a peg. Perhaps the aftermarket will produce a solution. Still, taillights aside, this is a handsome coupe that’s instantly recognizable while looking substantially fresher than the outgoing car, and that sounds like something that shouldn’t alienate loyalists. It isn’t my cup of tea, but that doesn’t make anyone wrong for liking it.
What’s Under The Hood?
At the heart of the 2024 Ford Mustang Ecoboost sits a revised 2.3-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine with some interesting stuff going on. The exhaust manifold is still integrated into the cylinder head [Editor’s Note: Integrated exhaust manifolds are HOT these days for a number of reasons including packaging, catalytic converter warmup speed, weight, engine oil warmup time, and reduced engine enrichment necessary to protect the catalytic converter. See my article on the topic. -DT], with the turbocharger bolting directly onto a port in the right side of the head, but the turbocharger itself is smaller. Another neat trick is the implementation of both port fuel injection and direct injection, which should mitigate carbon buildup concerns plaguing DI-only engines. While not a night-and-day revolution over the outgoing 310-horsepower, 350 lb.-ft. of torque 2.3-liter Ecoboost engine, its potency is best acknowledged by taking a step back and reflecting.
Boasting 315 horsepower and 350 lb.-ft. of torque, this base-model Mustang offers the power of a 2010 Mustang GT (that’s the 4.6-liter V8) and 25 more lb.-ft. of torque. What’s more, the Tremec TR3650 five-speed manual in that 2010 Mustang GT had fourth as a 1:1 ratio, while the 1:1 ratio in the 2024 Mustang Ecoboost’s ten-speed automatic is seventh gear (so you’ve got three overdrive gears). Thanks to all that torque, and short gears in that 10-speed auto (4.70:1 first gear!), you’ll be seeing substantially more torque to the ground in the first few gears than in the mass-market V8 from 14 model years ago, especially if you tick the box for the optional 3.55:1 axle ratio. Isn’t progress amazing?
Mind you, progress isn’t always comfortable. Should you want to heel-toe your own downshifts, it’s V8 or nothing for 2024 as the Ecoboost goes automatic-only. Mustang brand manager Jim Owens cites withering, shriveling demand for manual Ecoboost models as the primary driver in this decision, although he also “fought hard” to keep the three-pedal base model alive. Hey, we can’t win every battle, and few could’ve predicted the automotive landscape being a much different place during the early stages of 2024 Mustang Ecoboost development than it is now. Manual entry-level performance cars like the Toyota GR Corolla, Honda Civic Type R, and Toyota GR86 are seriously hot since the joy of rowing your own gears is disappearing. Speaking of disappearing, even Ford seems surprised to be going it alone in the pony car segment. As Owens told us, “We expected the Camaro to stick around.” Perhaps if owners and checkbooks scream down hotlines enthusiastically enough, a manual could possibly have a slight chance of happening, but don’t hold your breath. Calibration, validation, and homologation are all seriously expensive procedures, so we could be talking millions of dollars to cover development costs.
Given the Ecoboost’s monospec powertrain, the optional 2.3L High Performance Package isn’t just recommended, it’s a must-have option because it lets you have proper control over the ten-speed automatic gearbox. Without it, the Mustang Ecoboost doesn’t even get a manumatic mode (the absence of which is pictured above), let alone the convenience of paddle shifters, and that’s a problem. I’m not just saying this to be a hardo: The default transmission calibration in normal mode is as difficult to tolerate as a Poli Sci major roommate. While usually smooth, it’s an arrhythmic dance partner with shocking low-speed lag. Roll into wide open throttle from 20 mph or so, and the gearbox takes a few seconds to figure itself out. Transmission mapping in sport mode is noticeably sharper, but commanding your own gears makes the turbo motor’s hair-trigger response and cornucopia of torque shine at 10,000 lux. It’s no CAFE special, but instead a quiet, friendly juggernaut with the flexibility of a Cirque du Soleil performer, and it also happens to return a rated 26 combined MPG (9.2 L/100km) without the performance pack and 24 combined mpg (9.8 L/100km) with.
If that isn’t enough for you to pop for the $3,475 High Performance Package, consider the smorgasbord of equipment it comes with. I’m talking about 220-treadwear 255/40ZR19 Pirelli PZero PZ4 summer tires at all four corners, six-piston Brembo front calipers and four-piston Brembo rear calipers with semi-metallic pads, stiffer front springs, a larger rear anti-roll bar, a strut tower brace, a 3.55:1 axle ratio with a Torsen helical limited-slip differential, revised electric power steering, electronic stability control, and ABS calibration, and an exceedingly special electronic handbrake (more on that later). It’s such a massive set of actual go-fast bits that you almost can’t believe Ford’s making any money on this package at all in America. Canadian buyers will have to pay $6,500 in loonies to get all this goodness, but even north of the border, if you tried to price out all the components as aftermarket parts, you’ll soon realize this package is worth every penny.
Treadwear Testing
Back to that special electronic handbrake for a second. Co-developed with the tuners and drifters over at Ford tuning firm and professional Formula D drift outfit RTR, the electronic drift brake available on the 2024 Ford Mustang Ecoboost might just be the second-best feature ever invented for a vehicle after the synchronized six-speed manual gearbox because it allows you to enter everywhere completely sideways like you’re 18 again without wearing out pesky brake shoes. Just activate it in the touchscreen, rip the electronic lever hard, and the car will lock its rear wheels using the calipers. Intriguingly, because it uses the ABS module for activation, it doesn’t flip out if you need to get on the whoa pedal like an inline hydraulic handbrake does. A factory-installed hydraulic handbrake? Sign me up.
Playing around with the handbrake at Irwindale Speedway, the resistance of the handle felt as natural as rip-starting a lawnmower, and the sheer clamping force broke the Mustang’s rear Pirellis free with absolute steeze. Flick it in, drag the handbrake, and because the 2.3-liter Ecoboost lump will deliver buckets of torque way down low, you don’t need to stay at wide open throttle to gain meaningful wheel speed on tighter corners. Just lock it in a gear, flutter the pedal, and you’ll be drifting with an ear-to-ear shit-eating grin on your face. Sure, it may just be an evolution of the Ford Performance Drift Stick available for the Focus RS, but it’s still some of the most fun you’ll have on four wheels, right up there with extreme downhill Barbie Jeep racing.
Forcing the rear tires to have a treadwear of “no” is an absolute riot, but what if you’re more interested in cutting a surgical line through a corner? What if your primary love language contains the phrase “off-camber decreasing radius” and you shriek with delight every time you see accidental pointer cones in the wild? Good news, the Mustang Ecoboost isn’t bunk at high performance driving.
New rack innards grant the 2024 Ford Mustang Ecoboost a tighter 15.5:1 steering ratio (shared with all other 2024 Mustangs) and noticeably better low-steering-angle response than its predecessor, although steering weight is on the light side in most drive modes. Once you learn to trust that the front end grip is there, you’ll find the Mustang Ecoboost Performance Package as malleable as plasticine, breathing with the road and maintaining utmost composure over camber changes as excellent magnetorheological dampers and well-sized anti-roll bars keep body motions in check through slaloms. It’s not the most lithe performance car you can buy for the money, but I’ll be damned if it isn’t capable. Plus, once you dial back your vigor, the Mustang is still comfy over bad roads, never threatening to decant your coffee or jiggle your ribcage. With bandwidth like this, you’ll never want to fly from LA to San Francisco ever again.
Oh yeah, speaking of suspension, since the S650 Mustang is an evolution of the outgoing car, it still gets MacPherson strut front suspension and an integral link independent rear setup. The integral link rear suspension is particularly cool because integral links tie each rear knuckle to its respective lower arm, increasing caster stiffness and aiding packaging over a trailing arm. Translation: It mitigates hub twist under hard acceleration and braking, minimizes axle tramp, and allows for more interior room thanks to not needing a trailing arm attachment point in the rear floor or subframe. How’s that for a little bit of pub trivia?
Cabin Pressure
Inside the 2024 Ford Mustang Ecoboost, its makers have thrown out the dual-cockpit interior styling of previous Mustangs for a driver-centric, screen-heavy cabin that’s sure to attract some haters. In case your memory is fuzzy on what the outgoing base-model cockpit looked like, here’s a brief visual reminder:
Some of my pictures don’t do the new cabin justice because the screen height is actually a very clever optical illusion. From the driver’s seat, the top of the upgraded single-frame display setup is almost level with the height of the dash-mounted center speaker, meaning that all this tech doesn’t impinge on visibility.
What’s more, the center stack is tilted 10 degrees towards the driver, meaning that all corners of the richly-colored, glossy infotainment screen and even the furthest-flung physical controls are still within easy reach. That being said, not everything is an ergonomic success story. To clean up the center stack, Ford moved controls for stuff customers will use fairly often into the infotainment system. Stuff like the heated seats, the automatic climate controls, and every stereo control aside from volume and power.
Mind you, the single-frame screen setup is only on the Premium trim, as the base model makes do with two separate screens (see the one directly above versus the image before that and at the top of this section) that garnered hatred all across the internet when they were first unveiled. Here’s a straight-on angle of the base interior so you can compare it to the outgoing car’s shown three photos up:
The base interior isn’t exactly barbaric. The separate screens still have excellent black levels, respond rapidly, and get wonderful thin bezels. It’s a fine setup that doesn’t feel like a massive downgrade over the uplevel option. What’s more, general fit-and-finish is remarkably good, and the standard base upholstery is this lovely, soft, high thread count cloth that will cosset your cheeks for mile after mile.
Speaking of comfort, don’t let identical on-paper rear legroom to a Subaru BRZ scare you. Thanks to an additional four inches of front legroom over the other popular affordable coupe set to last beyond 2024, the rear seat of the new Mustang is surprisingly commodious. I’m five-foot-ten and found myself with room to spare sitting behind the front seat adjusted to my normal driving position. Oh, and each rear position sits slightly inboard of the front seats so that rear passengers still get a nice view out the windscreen. The new Mustang coupe could be a reasonably practical family car for four, provided said four are around average height.
Roominess, tech, and comfort are nice, but what about build quality? It wasn’t that long ago when a Mustang felt like getting what you paid for, and Ford’s had numerous quality troubles with new vehicle launches as of late. Well, I have some good news: Every car I drove on the launch was a production-spec unit, and every one felt as well-built as pretty much any Toyota. Were there some minor imperfections? Sure. Some of the interior trim on the right C-Pillar of one example was misaligned, leading to a very quiet squeak on California’s lumpy freeways, and general paint had typical levels of orange peel, but that’s it. While it’s possible that Ford paid extra special attention to this particular batch of cars knowing who would be driving them, the one case of trim misalignment gives plausibility to the theory that most Mustangs will come out of the factory feeling pretty solid.
So far, so good, and thankfully, the worst thing in the new Mustang’s cockpit is an option. The available B&O audio system is unusually bad, to the point of ruining songs you love. A muddy, heavily V-shaped mess of atonal bass and shrill treble, it’s an option best avoided in my opinion. The 12-speaker non-branded stereo offers better imaging, and it will save you a bundle that you’re sure to spend on tires and other hooning-related sundries.
What’s The Verdict?
Trading in some of the snotty, rip-snorting American Silvia vibes of the previous model, the 2024 Ford Mustang Ecoboost has grown up in most of the right ways. With a vastly improved interior, heaps of equipment, a sleeker profile, and more satisfying handling than the outgoing car, it cranks the dials up on both capability and livability as it prepares for the throne as Detroit’s only affordable coupe come early 2024. It’s a car that kept growing on me the longer I drove it, a fabulous daily driver that can leap into life or fade into the background, depending on your current mood.
If you’re a particularly keen driver, you might compare the 2024 Ford Mustang Ecoboost to a Toyota GR86 or Hyundai Elantra N, at which point you’ll likely be disappointed. The Mustang is objectively very capable, but it shouldn’t be surprising that it doesn’t have the tactility of the Toyobaru twins, nor the focus of the Elantra N. However, this entry-level pony car straddles the line between comfy coupe and tire burner so finely that it occupies another sphere from sport compacts entirely.
Instead, with refinement in spades, the 2024 Ford Mustang Ecoboost feels more like a competitor to the BMW 230i than anything [Editor’s Note: This is high praise coming from a BMW fanboy like Thomas. -DT]. Sure, the 230i is more refined and has nicer steering calibration, but it doesn’t offer quite the same flavor of stupid, sexy, dirtbag fun this thing does. I mean come on, could you ever imagine BMW building an electrically-actuated hydraulic handbrake into its cars? Oh, and a BMW 230i definitely isn’t this inexpensive either. Pricing for the Ecoboost coupe starts at $32,515 including a $1,595 freight charge ($39,195 in Canada) and rises to $38,040 ($45,395 in Canada) for the Ecoboost Premium trim. Should you wish to drop the top, the cabriolet variant is a pricey option, but a unique one. The base Ecoboost convertible starts at $40,615 ($46,095 in Canada), ratcheting up to $43,540 ($50,695 in Canada) for the Premium trim, but once the Camaro bows out, your only other options for entry-level four-seat convertibles all have transfer cases and full frames.
While a handful of hardcore fans will likely be miffed at the mandatory two-pedal layout, the 2024 Ford Mustang Ecoboost does everything right for the bulk of entry-level Mustang owners. The fact that I’m even mentioning it in the same sphere as the BMW 230i shows that it’s a true world-class sporty coupe — a testament to how far we’ve come over the past 59 years. From retirees to young fun-loving parents to rental car agencies, there’s a whole world of people out here who’ll love how this is unquestionably the best entry-level Mustang yet. Oh, and as for the Mustang GT? Come back Tuesday at 6:00 a.m. ET for something a little more personal.
(Photo credits: Thomas Hundal)
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Everything else aside for a moment, I’m glad Ford has apparently finally decided to put hood struts on at the factory. No more bar holding the damn thing up.
I had a couple Ecoboost Stangs with the manual. I thought they were both great, until I was finally able to afford a GT (also mit stick) this past December. I shan’t look down on the 4 bangers, though, regardless of having the wrong transmission.
I’m really bummed out that the 7th gen Camaro didn’t happen, because the Silverado and Colorado’s 2.7L 4 cylinder would have been a perfect foil for the ecoboost. In some trims, the 2.7L can produce *430 pounds of torque.*
Oh what could have been.
If it makes you feel any better, that’s exactly what a CT4-V (non-Blackwing) is. I’ve driven a RWD one with Magna-ride and it’s a wonderful little sport sedan. It gets no love because of it’s lack of three pedals.
breaking the screen on the cheap one is….cheap. Not a cool move by Ford imo.
Also, this is a chevy clone on the exterior, or at least used for a big hit of inspiration.
We always gripe that manuals are only available on base engines. Let’s celebrate that they kept the manual on the engine you want. Let’s be honest, if there’s only one manual option, which would you rather?
Not sure who made you gatekeeper of the engines.
Tail light query…Jason Torchinsky to the yellow courtesy phone…
What is going on in the third image tail lights? Is that an optical illusion making it look like the left signal lights are joning in on the right given the chevron direction, or do they actually signal form both sides? My brain can’t quite figure out what is going on there.
If you look at the straight side pics, the lights angle in from the top and bottom, forming a < shape in the side view. This means they look like they are <<< >>> or >>> >>> depending on the angle they are viewed from.
This isn’t a car I’m particularly interested in, but 350ft-lbs from a 2.3l production 4-cyl is really impressive. The ecoboosts have been interesting from the start, but the fact that you could slap that in a mustang and have it acquit itself that well is really quite an engineering accomplishment.
every physical button that gets moved to a touchscreen should be another count against the manufacturer at the hague
Just read that Lincoln is getting rid of all of the console buttons on its SUVs. Sigh.
The EcoBoost engine in the Mustang has always had a cylinder head with integrated exhaust manifold. Nothing new there since the S550 first came out in 2015(?). My dad has owned a 2017 EcoBoost with performance pack and 6-speed since new, and I have spent a lot of time driving it over the years. It’s been a good car to him, but the sound of the 2.3L 4-banger engine just does not match the character of the car. It’s just not the right experience for the Mustang. It needs the V8 to be right.
Counterpoint: it doesn’t. Boomers have proven time and time again that they’ll never change their opinions about anything ever and they’ll take “muh V8”to the grave. That crowd will never be won over, but for younger buyers the Ecoboost makes a lot of sense. It’s exponentially cheaper to insure, gets significantly better gas mileage, and it’s not a reckless amount of power. Not only up front, but over time as well they’re significantly cheaper to own.
Not to mention literally anyone can get behind the wheel of an Ecoboost and have a good time, and it doesn’t come with the COME RACE ME BRO stigma and expectations that the 5.0 badge does. The GTs are also objectively dangerous cars. The stock manuals can’t really handle the torque of the Coyote and blow frequently. The base brakes are sketchy. Turning traction control off turns it fully off. I’m sure we’ve all seen the compilation videos of idiots wrecking GTs as they’re all over the interweb.
The Ecoboost is fine. It’s the Mustang for the masses, and all the folks who are still all NO V8 NO MUSTANG are conveniently glossing over the fact that Mustangs have had base engine options since their inception. It’s not like it’s sacrilege to put a smaller engine in a Mustang. I’d rather a bunch of NPCs buy Ecostangs as their first performance car than GTs.
The GTs can be left to us enthusiasts. The Ecoboost ain’t hurting anyone by existing.
Also, people forget that this very idea (a turbo 4) has been done before, back in the ’80s. And as an alt high performance version of the car; it was an SVO for Ford’s sake! And it very much fit Jack Telnac’s European-style conception for the Fox, at least IMO.
IMHO the SVO is one of the coolest Mustangs of all time
It turned heads plenty back in the day with that spoiler and the offset hood duct.
So I’m fairly impressed that Ford is essentially offering it as the base model Mustang now. Just give it some Koni dampers to complete the package!
As I’ve said several times, I think the last gen HPP Ecoboost that was a skunkworks project with the Focus RS engine mounted longitudinally was very cool and didn’t get enough attention because *intense Mr. Regular voice* NO V8 NO DICE! I think they should have called it the SVO and I’m holding out hope that we eventually get some sort of super Ecoboost variant with the S650 as well.
That being said I also fully acknowledge that I am decidedly not the target demographic for pony cars. I’ve owned two hot hatchbacks in a row, and although I’ve driven an S550 and V6 and V8 variants of the last gen Camaro I don’t think I’d ever want to own one because of the amount of trouble they attract and the fact that the muscle car crowd and I don’t see eye to eye on most things.
…which is exactly why I like Mustangs that don’t necessarily come with the full burden of Mustang ownership, if you will. Not to mention the costs of owning a V8 version of any of them are absurd between the gas mileage and insurance rates. I remember briefly considering replacing my old GTI with a V6 Camaro and my insurance rates would have doubled, even with my clean driving record…and the V8s were even worse.
Unfortunately the cost of entry is only the start…
I agree with you…and I’m part of the Mustang faithful. I’ve owned mine for 21 years now.
Mustangs were conceived to be an everyman’s sporty coupe, a stylish jack-of-most-trades that was easy to buy & live with and offered a reasonable amount of fun as standard across the range. To me, that’s the Mustang formula, not a particular type of engine or design.
People forget now, but when the Fox Body came on the scene, it jettisoned many of the things most non-us people now think of when they think “Mustang.” For years they didn’t even have pony emblems.
I can’t say I strongly disagree with anything you said but if that is the way anyone feels here, I would argue the Toyobaru option is a better fit for anyone with these concerns.
Granted, there may be some small niche buyer really looking for this styling, American car buyer or just wanting the extra HP with just a bit worse MPG tradeoff.
It is and it isn’t. I like the Toyobaru on paper, but the extra power is significant. These will hit 60 a half second quicker (or more depending on which publication you trust) than a Toyobaru does…not to mention if you want an automatic (hot take: that’s fine, drive what you want) the consensus is that the Aisin slusher in the Toyobarus absolutely ruins them and it makes them significantly slower.
The 10 speed in these is faster than the manual, so it has actual benefits. Also the Ecoboosts get better fuel economy. The S550 does 22/32 and apparently they’re aiming for 22/34 in the S650. The Toyobarus only manage 20/27 in manual form. I’m not sure which I would choose if it was my money (in fact I’d probably still take my Kona N for the practicality), but the S650 is better in a few areas.
I mean, I’m officially a Millennial, so not a Boomer. I own all kinds of different cars with different vibes, and am not myopic in my attitudes toward cars or engines. But having driven my dad’s EcoBoost Mustang a lot over the years (i.e., direct firsthand experience over an extended period), they just don’t do it for me. They don’t sound good, they don’t make you feel good behind the wheel, it’s just not as fun of an experience as the V8. My dad is a Boomer and he likes his EcoBoost Mustang. For me, every time I get in and hit the start button and hear that 4-cyl clatter to life, it just kind of sours the experience. It’s so much more fun with the V8 in a car like the Mustang.
“Boomers have proven time and time again that they’ll never change their opinions about anything ever…”
Ironic that some folks will forever lump us all together and not realize they’re doing exactly what they say we do.
” it’s V8 or nothing for 2024 as the Ecoboost goes automatic-only”
BOOOOOOOOOO.
And I blame dealers for not stocking enough of them and pushing automatic on everyone.
Edit: And if they’re gonna make the 4 cyl automatic only, they might as well have just made it a hybrid.
Hell… for what they are charging now, a hybrid powertrain should be standard.
I kind of agree, but perhaps not in the same way. if it goes hybrid, please make the electric motor(or maybe better-motors ala rivian) turn the other wheels. give it a plug in hybrid setup so I can front drive it to work and back without turning on the gas motor, but when I want to lay down performance or even go 300 miles on a trip the vehicle should not struggle to launch without the rear tires going up in smoke, or have to wait at a fueling station longer than 5 minutes.
Still like the front end. Still don’t like the rear end
Tourists in Hawaii will love renting this.
Maybe it is just me, but this seems less “Fox body -> SN95” and more “SN95 -> New Edge”. I never thought the Ecoboost Stang was a joke, but it always seemed like Ford treated it is an also-ran. It is nice to see Ford allowing it to have an affordable performance pack, though like others have said, it is sad the manual is no more with the 2.3L.
Alright so I’m one of the sickos who has always considered the Ecostang to be valid. I had an S500 drop top as a rental about a year ago and honestly it was a lot of fun for what it was. They’ve never been meant to be hard edged sports cars…they’re supposed to be peppy tourers that give you a little taste of the Mustang brand.
Most of these will wind up in rental fleets, but that doesn’t mean they’re not worth a look for enthusiasts. I’m not sure why so many of us poo poo them…if you can’t have fun with 315 horsepower and rear wheel drive I don’t know what to tell you. We’re spoiled for speed in this era…not all that long ago that was the sort of power base 911s were making.
The S650 styling has grown on me for sure. I disliked it initially but now that I’ve seen non-press photos and some videos on it I think it’s fine. I have concerns about the screen centric interior but unfortunately they had to do something, because the last gen interior was straight out of an early 2010s econobox in the lower trims.
All that said I have some concerns here. While I’m not one of insufferable members of NO MANUAL NO DICE GANG I do think that this should come with 3 pedals, and the fact that they’re putting manual control of the autobox behind a paywall is criminal. Unlike our dear friend RootWyrm I don’t have beef with the Ford/GM 10 speed. Maybe I’ve only gotten good ones (a distinct possibility) but I found it to be good in the Camaro SS I drove as well as the Ecostang as long as you don’t send it confusing signals.
If you go from all out to cruising to stop and go over the course of a minute or two then yeah it can get hung up, but it’s not that hard to drive modern autos well. You just have to use your right foot liberally to let them know what your intentions are. That being said if they’re forcing you into an auto in the base car, which is inherently lame, it should come with paddles.
I’m also glad that some of the HPP Ecoboost (it was cool, goddammit!) is living on in the sport package. All that go fast/handle well gear seems pretty mandatory to me, and I think the way to buy this car is to option basically nothing but the high performance package. For the 36k or so it’ll run you it’s a good buy. For a little more than a Toyobaru you get nearly a hundred extra horsepower and nearly DOUBLE the torque.
Whether or not that’s worth giving up the manual is for you to decide. That being said this becomes a terrible buy once it’s kitted out. The price climb on the Mustang in general is a tough pill for me to swallow. A base Ecostang drop top cresting 40 grand is nearly as inexcusable as the mid 40s cost of entry to GT land now. Yeah yeah, inflation and such…but right now you can still get new S550 Ecoboost Mustangs in the mid to high 20s and base GTs in the mid to high 30s.
To me that’s where these cars belong. I think Ford is risking alienating the core Mustang audience that’s looking for cheap, dangerous speed. I get that the American manufacturers’ attitude is “finance everyone with a pulse and offer terms as long as we have to to make the monthly payment doable for average people” but that approach is already starting to blow up in their faces…and it’s only going to get worse.
Ultimately I think if you want an S650 you should wait a year or two. They’re going to be a hot commodity for a little while, especially considering they’re now the only game in town when it comes to pony cars…but ultimately I think the market is going to prove them to be overpriced and we’ll eventually see the big discounts that have been customary with Mustangs for years. I’ll bet that in 2025 you’ll be able to get an Ecostang in the high 20s and a GT in the high 30s with incentives/dealers putting money on the hoods.
Yeah but a 6 speed manual can go from all out to stop and go and not get hung up. I’m not all that interested in automatics as long as they’re literally worse than manuals.
I’ve had 0 issues in either of the DCT equipped cars I’ve owned other than them being a little jerky at low speeds and the fact that the DSG in my GTI would auto upshift at redline which pretty much rendered the paddles useless. Other than that they’ve been telepathic and always had me in the power band when I needed it. I can drive stick and enjoy it but I’m not the manual diehard that so many on this site are.
For my wife and my day to day needs DCTs in my cars work perfectly and I’ve found the Ford/GM 10 speed to be nearly as sharp in sporty applications. If I ever get a weekend/fun car it’ll be manual though. That being said from a performance standpoint the current autos in the pony cars are objectively better. The auto equipped cars are faster in pretty much every statistic.
You might not like it, and that’s fine….but to say they’re literally worse is just not true. Subjectively worse, sure. You can make an argument there. But the numbers don’t lie.
Thomas, thank you very much for including CAD pricing for things! It is appreciated.
And metric fuel consumption! (l/100km) – for a car sold so widely internationally, it’s extremely valid.
You lost me at Auto only.
That whole dash screen deal just really sucks. WTF were they thinking?
Sorry, not sorry.
I was in the market for a S650 GT until the rumored AWD turned out to just be a drift stick. The overly-screened (you can file me with the rest of the haters) interior with the busy and chunky steering wheel, along with the yawn-inducing front end sealed that deal. Interestingly to me, I actually kind-of like the rear end and I’m eager to see it in person. Our views of the front and the rear seem to flip flopped from each other.
As someone else said.. without a stick option and what seems to be only a tiny increase in mpg, I’m not seeing why someone would choose this over a V8. Looking forward to the V8 piece tomorrow!
Meh. 2 gens back was peak Mustang IMO.
Strikes one, two, and three. “Manumatic” in Ford’s criminally bad 10 speed is just like every other unlicensed wannabe – it’s nothing more than an electronic command to the hydraulics. And the 10R80 is notorious for not only bad programming but extremely premature failure. And locking about $3 of switches behind a that package is just offensive.
Hint: unless they bought a license from Porsche AG (Tiptronic) or Mitsubishi (INVECS-II and later,) it’s just a switch sending a request to solenoids.
Yep, that’s definitely the 10R80 in a nutshell. The hydraulics of a geriatric with heart failure and the programming was done by someone with Alzheimer’s.
Complaints about the 10R80 in everything it’s ever been installed in date back years now, with zero improvements, aside from Ford issuing more TSBs and silent TSBs by the dozen. 1-3 slams, 6-7 flares, delayed engagement (the low-speed lag,) basically non-functional kickdown, severe slip, gear flip-flop, the list goes on. Every 10R80 made to date has been recalled multiple times. To say nothing of the lawsuits.
Basically, don’t buy one unless you want a very expensive boat anchor.
I was having a chat a few months ago with a friend whose spouse decided they needed a new vehicle. They had been a loyal Toyota customer for decades, but decided that Toyota had let their vehicles rot on the vine (old infotainment, old transmissions, etc.) and decided to pick up a 2022 Expedition Limited. It was purchased in Q1 2022, and as of a few months ago only had about 5,000 miles on it because it spent most of 2022 and early 2023 at the dealer trying to sort out the transmission issues. My friend was complaining about transmission #3 or #4 stranding them by the side of highway, and was calling to vent while searching for a lemon law lawyer. My friend wasn’t willing to pay the markup on a new Sequoia last year, but the Expedition woahs changed that.
I generally hate manumatics, mostly because I either want to be in control or I want to rely on a system, not some awkward middle ground. However, for all the hate automated single-clutch gearboxes get, I’m actually partial towards the one in my MR2 Spyder. It’s a bit jerky at low speeds, and isn’t the fastest shifter. I most appreciate that does not shift for you, except into 2nd and 1st when you slow down below 10mph and then come to a stop. Otherwise it will let you hang in gear and bang off the limiter if you do please. And there is one thing it won’t let you do- it won’t let you downshift if that would mechanically over-rev the engine. I’m sure I would love the speed of a DSG especially with launch control. But I think I would still hate that most of them will start shifting for you if you do something it doesn’t quite approve of.
Really curious what my reaction is in person. See it from some angles and my brain thinks “that’s looks like a Mustang.” Then I see an angle where that character line running down the side and under the rear fender haunch and think “that’s a Camaro.”
I think the fact the door recesses have completely disappeared causes it to loose that mustang look. I know they were basically non-existent on the previous gen, but at least the character line still gave the illusion they were there. Now it is is such a smooth crease my brain basically doesn’t connect it to the Mustang’s of old and instead links it to the modern Camaro…..
Me too. That’s one of my big hangups with the styling in general – elements seem to mimic the Camaro’s. Sure, the overall package says “Mustang,” but in the past, Mustangs have generally been made up of the model’s own particular styling cues, not those of a competitor.
Do the turn signals still go “clop clop, clop clop, clop clop…”?
What’s the point of getting the boosted four if it gets barely mediocre fuel economy? There’s almost no penalty with the V8. And it comes with a manual? V8 all the way.
Yeah… if the 4 cyl is gonna be automatic-only, they might as well just make it a hybrid.
I think what gets me most (now that the shock has worn off for a bit) about the screens is that they’re almost the same height. Seems like a more asymmetric setup might look a little better.
If the gauge cluster screen were a little shorter/placed a little lower, it would simultaneously evoke the ’90s Fox body vibe for which the interior seems to be going (evidenced by that pretty cool retro gauge display option and those vents) plus it would distinguish it a bit from the center screen.
Electronic handbrake? You don’t say.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/ZKmfaMERjhkJNm5g6
Nice whip. Based on my terrible experience with the 1.5 Ecoboost in my 2018 Fusion, I think it will be many years before I even remotely consider buying a Ford product.
Did yours had the coolant issue getting into the engine block? My spouse had a 2019 Escape with the 1.5 ecoboost, the engine was replaced at 30K miles. Our neighbor had an older one and the same happened to him but he was out of warranty
I mean.. if you’re buying a mustang though, you should probably buy the V8. I’m on my second one with zero engine complaints.