Los Angeles, USA – If you clicked on this post expecting to read about the mighty new V8-powered Ford Mustang and feel a bit short-changed to find it’s a driving impression of the 2,3-litre EcoBoost model, you’ll now also have a sense of the anguish future owners of the new entry-level Mustang might experience when inevitably asked to rev their pony cars at a traffic light.
While some may accuse Ford of exacerbating this anguish by affording the new Ecoboost Mustang all of the brawn and presence of its more powerful eight-cylinder sibling, based on first impressions, you nevertheless get the sense that a lot of planning and engineering has gone into these both South Africa-bound models in order to ensure no owner feels short-changed at the lights.
And traffic lights there is no shortage of in-and-around the city of Los Angeles. Fortunately though there’s also no shortage of sights and sounds to occupy your time; including, as it happens, one of the largest contingents of all five generations of one of the most iconic names in the automotive world – Mustang.
Sharing the road with some of its most famous family members it’s obvious the sixth-generation Mustang has been designed with the classics in mind. Certainly compared with the previous model the new cars fastback rear is an altogether sleek and neater affair – mimicking arguably the most Mustang of them all; Eleanor.
Standard 19-inch wheel are likely to be blackened once South African spec has been finalised and, as expected, models destined for our market with carry the same small design changes necessary for European homologation. These adjustments will thankfully include larger (more practical) side mirrors, though it would be a pity if the funky three bar rear taillights which in the US double as flowing indicator lamps don’t make it to our market.
It remains to be seen whether a Performance Pack (optional in the US) will be included as standard in our market but this adds, amoung other styling upgrades, figure-hugging Recaro bucket seats for the front occupants. With rear leg- and headroom already particularly tight the fitment of these sport seats has little impact on the usability of the rear seats.
Much like the exterior the cabin of the new Mustang is a mix of retro quirkiness and modern application. One example of this is the great-looking three-spoke steering wheel with its integrated multi-functionality. Another is a row of dash-mounted toggle switches that access the car’s various modern-day driving modes.
And here lies the biggest test for the new Ford Mustang. While throughout its fifty years of production every generation has stirred the senses simply by association, not every incarnation has been as impressive to drive as they look. The new car fixes this.
Escaping the city limits and heading into the famous canyons surrounding Los Angeles, the new Mustang impresses most with its sense of balance. While the car doesn’t so much wrap around its occupants there’s a newfound confidence towards on the limit handling characteristics. Most impressive for me is the amount of front-end grip that’s been dialled into the chassis. Once turned in, and despite some play in the suspension over mid-corner road imperfections, the newest Mustang holds its course. While the damper settings remain unchanged through the various driving modes (normal, snow/wet, sport and track) the driver can nevertheless adjust the throttle, steering and stability control mappings via the aforementioned toggle switches.
Impressive Brembo-sourced stopping power boosts the appeal of the Performance Pack.
With 231 kW and 434 N.m of torque the 2,3 Ecoboost may not possess its V8 siblings spine-tingling soundtrack but it’s clear that a lot of work (think Focus ST-like resonators) has been done of nevertheless give the twin-scroll turbocharged four-cylinder some character. Likewise, while there’s not enough punch to unsettle a very sorted (fully-independent) rear end, there is certainly enough satisfying low-down grunt available to genuinely slingshot out of slower corners. An inevitable overall weight saving over the V8 GT helps this model feel that much more nimble.
I drove the Ecoboost Mustang with a six-speed manual transmission that impressed with both its precision and satisfying short-throw action.
Ford says its new entry-level Mustang opens the car up to a new audience that includes owners less-inclined to need (or due to wet/snowy climates be able to make full use of) the performance offered by the V8 GT model. Not forgetting, of course, very real modern constraints on efficiency and fuel consumptions in many of the new markets (including South Africa) Ford plans to sell the Mustang.
All things considered it was inevitable Ford would offer the Mustang with a modern and efficient EcoBoost engine. And, while I doubt the words “Ecoboost” and “Mustang” will ever sound right rolling off the tongue in the same sentence, based on my experience with the four-cylinder Mustang I have to commend Ford for giving this model as much character and presence as was possible.
What is also very clear, based on a very sorted chassis and the dynamic-ability displayed by the entry-level model, is that Ford has created a very impressive platform on which to create an inevitable plethora of more powerful (including four-cylinder) model variants in the future.
Look out for a driving impression on the mighty V8-powered Mustang in the November issue of CAR magazine.
Expect the Mustang to launch in South African towards the end of 2015.
Follow Ian McLaren on Twitter @Ianm_Carmag
