I am an old Mustang fanatic from the early 80's. High school through college, Mustangs were my thing. Car clubs, cruises, Car Kraft Nationals. Then I grew up, got married, raised kids (first one goes to college next week), got into gardening, and bought a Honda Accord! Real Mustangs hadn't been made since '73, or more like '70, as far as I was concerned. Heck, real cars weren't even made anymore! They all had computers, you couldn't work on them, they had no style, classics were out of my price range, and new "muscle" cars were for teenagers who couldn't remember what real performance was. Then my wife (really, I'm not kidding) suggested I buy "something for myself". And there on the internet was the '05 Mustang. I could've cried. Real honest-to-goodness styling, honoring the past without really repeating it. I start to study and realize I've been under an automotive rock for 20 years. I can't believe what you guys have been doing to late model Mustangs, getting performance to beat the original Shelbys! I can't believe what I've been missing. I told my wife of her mistake, because now I am completely hooked again, and can't imagine not having a new Mustang with the spirit of an original. (And then I find out about the GT40 and Shelby's brand new Cobras) Thank God for Carroll and Ford. It's good to be back. Sorry to Ramble. Just wanted to say Hi.
Good for you backafter20. Even better, good for your wife. Give her a great big hug and a kiss from all of stangers. My situation is very similar to yours. I have not had a real muscle car since 1979. What are you getting? 6 or GT, color? I'm getting the GT for certain. The colors have me all screwed up though. I have to see them up close and personal before I decide. Welcome aboard and congrats. Don't forget to thank your wife every day. Cheers
Thanks Ponyboy66, Definitely a GT, hopefully premium. I want charcoal leather and that Shaker 1000, too. Color is driving me nuts. I immedietly thought white with blue Le Mans stripes, a la '65 Shelby, then thought that was living too much in the past. I then thought Sonic Blue with white Le Mans stripes, like a Cobra or '66 Shelby. Third, I envisioned Screaming Yellow with black outs and stripes like a Boss 302. Then I read some comments on these forums and realized that we can honor the Mustangs heritage without copying it. I just love that metallic grey GT with the silver stripes you see on the show circuits. That's old, with a modern twist. I'd certainly welcome ideas. I'd also like to get a hood with scoops similar to those on the concept car. Surely someone will come out with that? This is so fun, and I haven't even talked to a dealer yet!
welcome backafter20, I'm one of the "younger" crowd lol hardly young at 28, but the 05 is gonna be my first, I've always loved the early 70 stangs and haven't been much impressed with them since I graduated High School. I also got into the married, kids... family car situation until the '05 pics came around. A friend of mine that owes an '01 mustang GT was looking at them and got me hooked. Fortunately for me, my wife loves the early stangs and agrees that it's time for me to do something for myself. Welcome to the board
Don't be so quick to trash the "modern" muscle cars. Having lived through both the golden age and the new age of muscle cars (my first car was a 1970 SS350 Camaro with the RS option which I bought in '72), I can tell you that the new breed of muscle car is a much better rounded vehicle. The new Cobra, Mach, etc. will run just as well as most of the legendary muscle cars in the 1/4 mile, but they can then stop and turn too. They'll run circles around the old cars in braking and handling. They also get at least 50% better gas mileage and have alot better driveability. Don't get me wrong, I love the old cars and had a blast with them, but I also loved my '92 5.0 Mustang that I just sold to make room for an '05. To me, the '05 combines the best of both worlds; classic look and modern style performance. FYI: In my high school class we had 3 SS Camaros, 2 383 Challengers, a '67 GTO, a '70 Mach I (351) and best of all a '70 Boss 302 Mustang. Man, the streets were crawling with muscle cars!
I say get what you want. I do remember the 60's Mustangs (I'm 40 yrs old) and you can put stripes on your '05 if you want without any complaint from me. I think with this new design and the old Mustang heritage, it would look great! I say do it.
My first new car was a 1970 Camaro SS350. The new Mustang is going to be SO much better. In my high school class we had lots of little 50 and 55cc motorcyles. It was in Japan.
That would put a new Mustang V-8, manual transmission about 31-32 MPG on the highway. Hmmmm, really??
In response to RandyP. As someone noted, I am definitely not trashing the newer muscle cars. At least not anymore. I never had any respect for them because I didn't realize what was going on in the automotive world. Then I read in a recent "40 Years of Mustang" magazine put out by Mustang Monthly that the 2000 R Model Cobra was the fastest Mustang ever produced by Ford. EVER, including Shelbys, Bosses, and 428CJs! That blew me away. Muscle still does exist, and my new '05 will be better in nearly every way than the older cars, (except in the nostalgia department). As far as those stripe go, that's what I fell in love with. That Grey/Silver GT on the show circuit just killed me. I figured a pretty sum to have them painted on, since Ford isn't going to offer them, then I realized that these stripes are available in many colors in 3M tape! You can do it yourself for under $300, even if you get them in reflective material! I would be interested in anyones opinion of these tape stripes. Are they difficult to install, do they chip, tear, fade, get dull, etc? I'd want them to shine like the rest of the paint job, but tape sure seems easier than painting. I've noticed hood stripes on some newer Mustangs lately, and was surprised that they were also tape. Does this stuff hold up ok? - Again I ramble. Thanks for your comments: It's good to be back!
I'm with you man, although I say there hasn't been a real looking mustang since 78. I Love the 05 and I can't wait to get one. I'm 18, but have a good grip on what muscle car mania is about. =)
