Radio controls on the steering wheel????

RICKS said:
Anybody who would poo poo the prospect of steering-wheel-mounted controls obviously has never spent time in a car that has them. They're great, especially if you're tall where your seat is adjusted all the way back and it's a reach to get to the dash. Lazy? Absolutely. But think about the time you spend in your car. Would you rather save money and sit on a milk crate?? Luxury that doesn't cost much, doesn't weigh much, and doesn't get in the way of the sporting fun or personality of the car, is always welcome in my book. It would be cheap to do, and I'd imagine that it comes on board in a couple years after the initial development and production costs of the car start to amortize, allowing them to toss some more upgrades and enhancements into the mix.

:stupid:

I can't understand how so many people here on StangNet are having orgasms over useless things like the color changing instrument lights. Many of the same individuals are dumping on things that are actually useful like steering wheel mounted radio controls, Navigation System, heated - cooled seats, climate control, etc. :shrug: :shrug: :shrug:
 
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RICKS said:
Anybody who would poo poo the prospect of steering-wheel-mounted controls obviously has never spent time in a car that has them. They're great, especially if you're tall where your seat is adjusted all the way back and it's a reach to get to the dash. Lazy? Absolutely. But think about the time you spend in your car. Would you rather save money and sit on a milk crate?? Luxury that doesn't cost much, doesn't weigh much, and doesn't get in the way of the sporting fun or personality of the car, is always welcome in my book. It would be cheap to do, and I'd imagine that it comes on board in a couple years after the initial development and production costs of the car start to amortize, allowing them to toss some more upgrades and enhancements into the mix.

:nice: :hail2: :flag:
 
Why would we need to add more luxury items to a Mustang for? It seems like a pretty cool feature and all, but please. Alright, the Mustang is gonna cost like 26-27 grand. Why must we have color-changing gauges for? Why must we have a certain stereo? Why can't we just buy a less expensive stereo as an option? Why? It makes no sense to put extra luxury items into a car that's not supposed to be luxurious at all. All that any of these items are going to do is raise the mustangs price and weight. The 05 Mustang can't have either. 26 grand is going to put it out of competition with the SRT-4 by far. There's no reason the Mustang should have luxury items. NO 6-disc CD Changer; There should be a 3-disc at the most on the GT and Cobra. NO steering-wheel radio controls; If you want that, buy a BMW. NO color-changing gauges; A cool, but stupid extra for a Mustang. Every luxury adds more weight and that price goes out of range for a young guy when you add extras together. 20 year olds can't afford what might be a $30,000 car (with the best package and options). Hopefully the car doesn't cost $27,000. If it costs more than 26 grand, I will lay in the tub and drown myself......Alright, maybe not that extreme, but I'll be bothered.
 
ryanrule said:
most cars have both

My Mazda 6 has both on the steering wheel:

PDR_0086.jpg


As for driving the cost up, my 6 stickered at around $26.5k, dead on with the price of a well optioned GT. In addition to the steering wheel controls, it also has heated seats and auto climate control so it's possible to get these nice luxury doo-dads within the price range. The one caveat I have is that the engine package in the GT is a major chunk of the cost of the car whereas it isn't as much in the Mazda, thus freeing up more money to add the conveniences within the price range.
 
the Mustang is gonna cost like 26-27 grand.
For a well equipped GT.
It makes no sense to put extra luxury items into a car that's not supposed to be luxurious at all.
Where'd you come up with that bogus and false statement? Mustangs have ALWAYS had a large range of options, they were REVOLUTIONARY in that respect in the 60's, and could be VERY luxurious. Ever heard of a Grande'? My loaded up 1969 Mach 1 is VERY luxurious, and probably almost twice as old as you are, which brings into question your level of "authority" on this subject. The whole formula for Mustang when it was introduced was a sporty and practical car that offered upscale features and options comparted to other cars in it's size and price class. Before Mustang, most small American-built 2-door were spartan and bare-bones tin cans that had the amenities of a prison cell.
26 grand is going to put it out of competition with the SRT-4 by far.
:rolleyes: The Mustang was never IN competition with ANY 4-door econo-box tuner car built from a $12K economy entry-level compact alternative to rice. And why don't you look up the sales figures of the SRT-4 and ask yourself why those expensive Mustang GT's will outsell the SRT-4 probably 10 to 1.
NO 6-disc CD Changer; There should be a 3-disc at the most on the GT and Cobra.
Woooooo, that would REALLY drop the price! LOL!!!! It doesn't cost hardly a dime more to manufacture a 6-disc changer than a 3-disc. Doing a 3-disc wouldn't cut costs, it would just be a moronic compromise.
NO steering-wheel radio controls
Absolutely. Those would add at least 3 ounces to the weight, and really add to the price!!! (I'm being disgustingly sarcastic there, for those who may be a little sluggish)
20 year olds can't afford what might be a $30,000 car (with the best package and options). Hopefully the car doesn't cost $27,000. If it costs more than 26 grand, I will lay in the tub and drown myself......Alright, maybe not that extreme, but I'll be bothered.
Your forcasted price keeps rising, WAY beyond what the GT will actually cost. No, most 20 year olds can't afford a $27,000 car. Most 20 year olds have NEVER been able to afford a brand new Mustang GT, be it 2005, 1995, 1985, or 1965. I had to work 80 hour weeks for a year and a half and spent my life savings (up to that point) to buy my '88 GT when I was 21. I could have worked less, spent a bit less, and still gotten one with less equipment, but I wasn't so PATHETICALLY CHEAP that I was going to COMPROMISE and buy some stripped-down rental-car-grade Mustang. I knew what I wanted, and what I got was every single option on the option list. If the price insults you, go buy a Kia Rio....
 
Mustang_Maniac said:
Why would we need to add more luxury items to a Mustang for? It seems like a pretty cool feature and all, but please. Alright, the Mustang is gonna cost like 26-27 grand. Why must we have color-changing gauges for? Why must we have a certain stereo? Why can't we just buy a less expensive stereo as an option? Why? It makes no sense to put extra luxury items into a car that's not supposed to be luxurious at all. All that any of these items are going to do is raise the mustangs price and weight. The 05 Mustang can't have either. 26 grand is going to put it out of competition with the SRT-4 by far. There's no reason the Mustang should have luxury items. NO 6-disc CD Changer; There should be a 3-disc at the most on the GT and Cobra. NO steering-wheel radio controls; If you want that, buy a BMW. NO color-changing gauges; A cool, but stupid extra for a Mustang. Every luxury adds more weight and that price goes out of range for a young guy when you add extras together. 20 year olds can't afford what might be a $30,000 car (with the best package and options). Hopefully the car doesn't cost $27,000. If it costs more than 26 grand, I will lay in the tub and drown myself......Alright, maybe not that extreme, but I'll be bothered.

20 yr olds buying a mustang gt has already been discussed before. They sales figures show the median age of a mustang gt buyer is in the 40's. Which means generally speaking 20 yr olds can't even afford the 04 models. Or any other year unless they get it used. Which when I see someone in their 20's with a gt. Most (not all) bought it used. And saved up for a while to be able to afford it.
 
call me a purist, but I don't want ANY controls on my steering wheel

20 yr olds buying a mustang gt has already been discussed before. They sales figures show the median age of a mustang gt buyer is in the 40's. Which means generally speaking 20 yr olds can't even afford the 04 models. Or any other year unless they get it used. Which when I see someone in their 20's with a gt. Most (not all) bought it used. And saved up for a while to be able to afford it.

man, now I really feel old :rolleyes:
 
Ok...I knew I'd get a comeback like that. I don't think I'll give a real response to that, because it's pointless and now it'll be a money thing that'll go on forever. One thing though...I don't believe the Mustang should be for 40 year olds, as it was never originally designed for them. It was designed for younger people, not people going through their mid-life crisis. Just my thoughts.
 
Mustang_Maniac said:
Ok...I knew I'd get a comeback like that. I don't think I'll give a real response to that, because it's pointless and now it'll be a money thing that'll go on forever. One thing though...I don't believe the Mustang should be for 40 year olds, as it was never originally designed for them. It was designed for younger people, not people going through their mid-life crisis. Just my thoughts.

Um I think they designed it for people who could buy it. Why should it not be for 40 yr olds. Do you have some personal bias against people in their 40's? I'm not 40. But some of the people that I know that are 40 have more going for them than most 20 yr olds. And they know how to have more fun. The gt was for people who wanted more performance and could afford it. Not for people who were in their 20's. The market you are thinking of is the new Scion vehicles. Or the srt-4. Not the performance V8 car market.
 
Mustang_Maniac said:
Ok...I knew I'd get a comeback like that. I don't think I'll give a real response to that, because it's pointless and now it'll be a money thing that'll go on forever. One thing though...I don't believe the Mustang should be for 40 year olds, as it was never originally designed for them. It was designed for younger people, not people going through their mid-life crisis. Just my thoughts.

I just turned 40 and if (or should I say when) I buy an '05 Mustang, it'll be my third. I bought my first when I was 21. It wasn't a GT but it was a stripped down '85 LX 5.0 and it was plenty fast. I bought my second (a '92 LX 5.0) when I was 29. Again not a GT but I loved it just the same. Don't dare tell me a Mustang shouldn't be for me because I've been buying the damn things most of my adult life!
 
I don't believe the Mustang should be for 40 year olds, as it was never originally designed for them. It was designed for younger people, not people going through their mid-life crisis. Just my thoughts.
How on earth do think that you know "who" the Mustang was designed for???? Thanks for your thoughts. I didn't realize that you were part of that original clandestine project development team at Ford in the early 60's that determined the original target demographic for the Mustang. Are you still tight with Lee Iacocca? FYI, the demographic for the Ford Mustang has hardly budged, median sales ages has always floated around high 30's early 40's, ALWAYS. Your delusion that the Mustang is designed precisely for "young people" is, based in nothing more than your own head. 20-year-old people can hardly get or afford insurance for a 300 h.p. muscle car, let alone have the money to buy the car. The Mustang is actually designed to appeal to both young and old and all in-between, which it does, as is readily apparant when you visit any larger Mustang show. That's why the Mustang is a legend. If it was a car for people in their 20's, it wouldn't be a legend that transcends generations, it would just be a cheap car that got no respect or admiration from people 30 and up. Quit trying to assume exclusive ownership of an icon, it's rather silly.
 
alright...alright...calm down. You act like I said it's not aloud to be for a 40 year old. I said it was intended for younger people. Fine...if it wasn't, then it wasn't, but jeez...that's what I've come to know the Mustang as. I've heard that it was supposed to be to bring along younger buyers. Excuse me if I'm wrong, but that's the information I got over the years. If you don't believe it, fine. Nothing's wrong with that. I wasn't trying to start a fight, just giving an opinion...whether it be stupid, smart, dumb, or genius. There's no reason to get offended. I didn't mean anything like that. Why you took it that way is beyond me, considering I said nothing about 40 year olds not being able to drive a Mustang.
 
Mustang_Maniac said:
alright...alright...calm down. You act like I said it's not aloud to be for a 40 year old. I said it was intended for younger people. Fine...if it wasn't, then it wasn't, but jeez...that's what I've come to know the Mustang as. I've heard that it was supposed to be to bring along younger buyers. Excuse me if I'm wrong, but that's the information I got over the years. If you don't believe it, fine. Nothing's wrong with that. I wasn't trying to start a fight, just giving an opinion...whether it be stupid, smart, dumb, or genius. There's no reason to get offended. I didn't mean anything like that. Why you took it that way is beyond me, considering I said nothing about 40 year olds not being able to drive a Mustang.

Your problem came from saying that it was not intended for people having a midlife crisis. "It was designed for younger people, not people going through their mid-life crisis. Just my thoughts." True you never stated that a 40 yr old would not be able to drive one. But you definately made a condescending remark about older mustang drivers. Ignoring in your own post the comment about 20yr olds not being able to afford it if it's more than $26k. The reality is that a fully loaded one. Quite possibly will be. And in vert form. I would bet it will be more. Whereas a peron in their late 30's early 40's has the extra money to afford a car like the mustang. I'm not yet in my late 30's but I bought my Cobra just after I turned 30. And the only reason I got it was because I had a high enough paying job. Many of the 20 yr olds I know don't have a very well paying job (As an average, yes quite a few do have high paying jobs. But many do not.). And I don't think any bought their mustang new.
 
When you build a car like the Mustang, young people WILL be drawn to it and dream of owning it, that's a given. But just because the car appeals to very young people is only a small part of the picture. When I was a kid, all of my friends had a poster of a Lamorghini Countach and a 930 Turbo Porsche hanging in their bedrooms. Does that mean that those cars were, in your words, "originally designed for younger people"? Puhhhhleezzz. No, cars like that, and yes, even cars like the infinitely more affordable Mustang are designed to appeal to the youthful spirit in ALL OF US, no matter what your age. You can be 80 years old, and still desire to have a car that is "kick a$$" looking and performing. What Ford accomplishes in the Mustang is a car that has wide appeal. The younger buyers may not be able to afford it (just like they can't afford the Lambo), but they are smitten, and they dream of owning one. They instead buy used Mustangs, and some day, they finally are able to realize their dream and buy a brand new one. And in the Mustang's case, that's not a pipe-dream, because they always have been and still are relatively affordable cars. Hence the Mustang's widespread popularity. What Ford has in you (the frothing at the mouth, kicking and screaming younger person who is dying to get that new Mustang) is a future customer, and a current customer (coming on the lot to check out the used trade-ins), and overall a Ford fan. OR, you may just turn bitter and pout because you couldn't get your instant gratification because you couldn't afford it, and you'll wind up driving some econo-toy SRT-4. Even still, that seed is planted, you'll always have a keen desire to own a Mustang, and someday when your pockets are a little fuller, you'll be plunking it down and grinning ear to ear. So yes, the Mustang appeals to you. But Ford doesn't need to sell you one tomorrow. They've got enough folks standing in line for the '05 as it is. They're counting on you to keep sales flowing strong years down the road.