Drove a 05 for 28 miles - and got paid for it!

I got a call a few weeks ago to see if I wanted to be in a study by LA Focus. They pay 150 bucks cash. For it I had to evalaute 4 different cars. OK!!

I got there and in talking to some people, found out that most of us had Mustangs. I just had a feeling that we were going to drive an 05. So after checking in, we go out back, and lo and behold, there's a black 05 GT. A few other cars, and then a teal 05 GT. Yee haw.

We had to drive four cars to compare to each other(its funny, they cover all the badges so you don't know what the car is----like a piece of tape on the badge would disguise it)

The first car looked a lot like a Nissan 350Z. It was pretty fun to drive, good pickup. Cornered really nice.
2nd I drove a car that looked a lot like a GTO. It sounded nice, had some real good pickup, but I rated its overall looks as a 1. The guy asked me why. I said cause it looked like a Sunbird with a wing. lol
3rd I drove a Mazda RX-8. What a gutless turd. That car needs a turbo bad.

And lastly, I got to take out the new GT. All four cars we did the same tests. We started on a real rough road. It didn't ride too pleasant. Then, at a stop sign, we did a 0-40mph romp. Damn, the 3 valve is quick. After that we got onto the freeway, doing a 0-70 romp. And it boogies. Then we got off the highway and did a few miles of canyon roads. THis is where the Mustang really paled compared to the other cars. The Z was the best on this part, followed by the RX-8, GTO and then the Mustang. It was always loose in the rear-end. But it definetly had the most straight line pickup.

All in all, we drove each car for 28 miles. And the best part, they gave me 150 CASH after 3 hours of beating these cars.

Afterward one of the guys from the group said the testing was put on by Ford(which explains all us Mustang owners there) so they could compare the car to others in similar price range. Other than the sloppy rear-end, the only complaint I had about the 05 was the center-console. Its so cool looking inside the car(aluminum everywhere) except the radio/climate controls. THey are that damn Ford black plastic, which looks horrible mixed with the retro dash. Oh, and it could use some louder mufflers.

damn id love to do that! get paid for giving cars a ton of hell. wish there was somethin around here that did that.

umm... i dont understand...

the rear end is a all new link style suspension...

HOW WAS THAT SLOPPY?

I rate this thread a 0 cuz its bull****.

Good story.. but I have participated in real product studies held by independant research firms. They don't pay. Why would Ford PAY people to drive the '05 when they know there are hundreds of trillions of Mustang fans out there that would gladly pay Ford for the chance? I'm gonna have to whip it out here...

Wow, some braniacs here.

Pull your head out your butt quick enough to realize there's more going on in the world than what you see out of your trailers front window.

haha, and then you woke up, right?

where are the pics?

Not sure if this is legite, but it is one guys opinion. In viewing the trilogy video I would say the the pony does pretty well. Of coarse the GT(40) was better, but the mustang hung tough.
It will not stop me from buying one.

There is no such thing as a Teal '05......

I have to say on this one.

sounds like a story posted in 4.6 talk

"looked alot like"???????????????????? You can't say with authority that they WERE what they were because the badges were taped over? They put tape over badges, and that alone has you a bit lost such that you're sitting there going "hmmmm, that LOOKS an awful lot like a 350Z......I'll have to go with my instincts here, and say that it must probably-I-think-maybe BE a 350Z......". Ummmmmm,

DUHHHHHHHHHHHH

If you have to say "IT LOOKED LIKE" a car is a 350Z, or GTO, then you don't have enough authoritative expertise to analyze gas-powered weed whackers, let alone cars. I could positively identify a new "Z" from a mile away, in a fog, and you're saying "it looked like one" from behind the flippin wheel.



And even if your story is true, the results still rank as



As far as the rear end being "loose", well, the 350Z doesn't have the torque to break the rear tires loose under power in a corner, the RX8 even more-so, and the GTO is much heavier and likely is tuned to understeer and push in the corners. I HOPE that the GT is aggressively tuned to understeer slightly, so that you can control the tail-out and attitude in the corner with the throttle. Most cars dial in a bit of understeer so that bad drivers stay out of trouble and don't get sideways at the limit. If what we've read here is true, it sounds as if the new Mustang isn't compromised for bad drivers.

no pics it is all

It does sound very similiar to a supposed review between these same cars over at the Mustang Source (a week ago).....therefore, I believe it is BS. Anyways, I'm buyin one.

I was thinking the same thing. It sounds very similar to the review on The Mustang Source. Anyway, I don't necessarily believe it's BS but I do take it for what it is, one man's opinion. I'll base my decision on buying the '05 from my own experiences and opinions and not some anonymous member of a Mustang forum.

While you may have driven the car. There are a few discrepancies in your story. That make it sound just a bit untrue.
1) Teal is not a color for the 05. And EVERY test mule so far has some in standard colors. The only one that I have seen that was not. Was the titanium colored show car.
2) You seem to not be able to positively identify a 350Z or could it have been a G35. In either case it should have been identifiable.
3) Looked like a GTO? Was there tape over the embroidery of the seats? Or over the GTO logo on the guages?
4) Comparing it to others in similar price range. If it was the GTO. Does that mean they are going to price it at or slightly over $30k. Or what is the definition of price range. The rx-8 msrp is $25k-$27k. The stripped down no option base model 350z starts at $27k. And the GTO msrp $33.5k. This is an $8k price range.
5) and most importantly. This sounds just like a near repeat of a story on themustangsource. With some details changed.
http://forums.bradbarnett.net/index.php?showtopic=3621

i dont know why its compared to the mazda neway, ford owns it

I believe this is absolute because if you know ahead of time that you are going to an event of this sort, you would of taken a camera.

What fool would not ?

Man you guys are harsh, I thought it was a pretty good read. Why call BS on his story, he has nothing to gain from telling it.

Actually the biggest problem I am noticing is the car he claims to drive. On Brad's site it's an 00 Saleen. Here it appears to be an 02 Roush.
Maybe he doesn't have anything to gain from it. But what do people who create viruses have to gain? This is becoming another one of those internet myths. Something with nothing to back it up. Widely spread on the internet. The problem with it is. We have already caught him in one highly questionable instance.