Test Drive: two thousand fifteen Ford Mustang GT kicks the pony car wars into top gear!

Few nameplates have the distinction of being around for fifty consecutive years. The Mustang is amongst that elite company, and Ford made sure to feast this milestone by producing what is intended to be the company’s best pony car to date. Nothing was off the table when it came time for this accomplish redesign, and this comes across the 2nd you strap in and fire it up.

Leave behind everything you knew about Mustang: this is a fully fresh breed!

The previous generation was an undeniably successful revitalization for the Mustang line. Debuting in 2005, it kicked off ten years of American muscle that hit car culture so hard, it actually brought competitors like Camaro and Challenger back from the dead. That version was a tribute to everything we loved about Mustangs of the past, from its “retro-futurism”styling to its drag-strip-friendly solid rear axle. As well received as these things were, it anchored the nameplate to the past and it was time for Ford to look forward, particularly because sales of the prancing pony were set to officially go global.

This forward thinking is instantly evident when you see the sleek and lubricious exterior design: no corny retro throwbacks here, thank you very much. This look is fully contemporary while still retaining the hallmarks that are distinctly Mustang. Broader, lower, and with a longer muscular bondage mask, they’ve managed to make the Mustang even more aggressive looking.

The two thousand fifteen Mustang GT looks downright sinister in black-on-black. Witness out, Chevy and Dodge!

With rubber hood vents, a front splitter, and the “shark bite” grille of previous GTs, it’s effortless to tell the two thousand fifteen Mustang GT apart from its less powerful brethren

The two thousand fifteen Mustang is longer, lower, and broader than the previous generation, and all of this enlargement makes for a much more imposing presence on the road

Ford has kept the iconic three-bar taillights for this generation of Mustang, but they’ve ditched the trunk-mounted fake fuel cap in favor of a sleeker “GT” badge

The mainstay “shark-bite”fascia carries over with a more modern interpretation, along with the trapezoidal grille which houses one of the world’s most recognizable badges. The HID headlamps are finely designed, to the point where the Mustang looks like it’s staring down prey. Sloping more steeply forward are the lines of the fastback rear, which nudge out the tri-bar tail lamps for a more fluid look.

While the radical exterior design may be divisive amongst the more tradition-oriented enthusiasts, the interior is undoubtedly one of the best seen in a Mustang to date. Everything in this aircraft-inspired design is a true improvement and not an update for the sake of updating. The lines look chunky and feel solid, and the genuine aluminum accents give the cabin a quality feel.

The interior of the two thousand fifteen Mustang is much improved over the previous generation, and does away with all of the ergonomic issues that plagued Mustangs past

If you ask us, the interior of the two thousand fifteen Mustang GT looks best when fitted with the six-speed manual transmission

The interior of the two thousand fifteen Mustang is “aviation-inspired,” and this is clear in the generous use of toggle switches and gauges in the cabin

Leather seats are available on the top-of-the-line Mustang GT Premium, and do an excellent job of holding you in place when things get twisty out on the road

The interior ergonomics have been greatly improved, permitting for everything from more knee room to lighter treating of the shifter. Anyone who’s spent time in the previous Mustang knows that if there’s anything taller than a phone sitting in the cup-holders, driving the stick-shift ‘Stang became near unlikely. Ford has moved them back, so that they no longer impede your gear selection.

The previous two thousand eleven refresh also brought a questionable redesign of the center console storage compartment where the push-button latch was right at elbow length, causing the lid to pop open when just resting your arm. This is mercifully gone, thanks to a solid armrest with an off-center latch. Other interior improvements Mustang owners will recognize and appreciate are a dedicated sunglass holder, a slew of charging ports, and a lockable glove-box with a separate compartment for the owner’s manual – this usually predominates the bulk of available storage space.

The three-bar LED running lights on the two thousand fifteen Mustang are a nod to the metal “gills” to the left and right of the grille on the one thousand nine hundred sixty five original

The Mustang may have taken many shapes and sizes over its 50-year history, but it’s unlikely to mistake it for anything else on the road when that famous badge is on the grille

If you look closely, you’ll spot the vent effect inbetween each bar on the two thousand fifteen Mustang’s taillights. This is a nod to Mustangs of yore that featured vented spaces inbetween each light.

The two thousand fifteen Mustang features a body-color rear splitter that runs underneath the rear plastic journey and adds continuity to the overall design

At the heart of the Mustang GT is a Five.0-liter V-8 engine that puts out 435-horsepower and four hundred lb.-ft. of torque to the rear wheels. This is a 15-hp and ten lb.-ft. increase over the previous gen’s Five.0-liter engine. The spectacle gains are accomplished by a broad range of improvements, like straighter intake ports in the cylinder head, and a fresh intake manifold for a better air-fuel combination. The result is not only an increase in power, but also improved fuel economy.

Any thoughts of economy vacate your mind, however, once you eventually get behind the wheel of the Mustang GT. With the engine rumbling and twisty canyon roads beckoning, the roads out of Los Angeles seemed a grueling test-bed for a car that’s made a name for itself shooting off the line, rather than carving however corners.

Fortunately for fans of tearing up tires, the two thousand fifteen Mustang features the “Line Lock” burnout assist for maximum traction on the haul unclothe, and maximum awesomeness!

Hitting the push-button starter button, the very first thing I notice is the fresh and more substantial harass note. I slot the shifter into very first gear, and make my run for the hills! The clutch pedal has softened in latest Mustang refreshes, and Ford has hit a sweet spot in the fresh model. It’s not too strenuous, but undoubtedly not light and flimsy.

In the initial series of turns, I realize I’m driving the car all wrong because, well, I’m still driving the car like a Mustang! I’m being way too cautious in turns, attempting to avoid the bod lean that would have reared its head in previous generations. Once I readjust my settings and find a comfy groove, I eventually begin to shove the boundaries a little and take advantage of the fully independent front and rear suspension. Everything coalesces into a moment of clarity: I’m not driving a muscle car, I’m driving a sports car!

With this in mind, the Mustang comes alive in the next series of mountain forms. You feel the suspension hold things plane as you let the car attack the corner and fire out the other side, ready and primed for the next one. Quick left-right jukes are now much less intimidating. And with an engine that climbs all the way to 7,000 rpm, you can stay in gears longer while powering through tricky treating maneuvers.

The fresh Mustang also comes jam packed with slew of technology to keep you safe as well as busy. Features like front collision warning and blind-spot monitoring are a duo of the fresh safety features found in this latest Mustang. A big and welcome addition is selectable drive modes, such as Convenience, Sport, and Track. These permit you to optimize the spectacle of the car to fit the suitable conditions. Granted, this isn’t mind-blowing tech, but it’s utterly handy and makes the Mustang more of an all-weather sports machine. The “Snow/Mud”drive mode is especially useful for rear-wheel-drive pony car owners in snowy climates.

If you opt for the GT, make sure to budget a large amount for gas. We averaged 11-mpg with a lot of hard driving. But for fuel economy fans there’s always the EcoBoost 4-cylinder.

For anyone who likes to light up the rear tires, the Track apps permit you to monitor G-forces, and record your 0-60 mph times. Launch control, previously found in the Boss three hundred two and Shelby GT500, is now available in the base Mustang. Another fresh fucktoy (and by far the flashiest) is the Mustang’s “Line Lock” feature. At a drag-strip it’s significant to get a little spin into your rear tires for them to be at the grippiest temperatures. Line lock makes this a breeze by engaging only the front brakes for fifteen seconds, holding the car while you light up the back tires. No doubt this will be the most manhandled function as non-racers will see how rapid they can smoke through a set of Pirellitires – that doesn’t make it any less joy, of course.

What some die-hard Mustang enthusiasts might grind their teeth about is the fact that this iteration steps away from its raw muscle car nature. Instead, the fresh Mustang favors a sportier and more European driving dynamic. Now would be a good time to remind any doubters that other traditional American muscle machines – like the Camaro and Corvette – have fully independent suspensions that permit them to drive rings around the competition. Make no mistake, there are sportier and more nimble cars out there than the fresh Mustang, but this is the most dynamic one yet.

The two thousand fifteen Mustang GT remains a pony car icon, but improved treating and driving dynamics make it almost more sports car than muscle car

Worth mentioning is the addition of a turbocharged, Two.3-liter 4-cylinder “EcoBoost” to Mustang’s engine lineup. This is Ford’s very first rear-wheel-drive application of the technology, and I took a drive in one to see how a 4-cylinder Mustang fares. The punchy engine offers up a solid 300-horsepower and, combined with a projected fuel efficiency of twenty one city/32 highway/25 combined mpg, it’s a very enticing option for a Mustang fan that doesn’t require the raucous power of the V-8. Speaking of the 8-cylinder, Ford rates its fuel efficiency at 15-mpg city/25 highway/Nineteen combined. That’s not too shabby, considering the spectacle on suggest here. Then again, after a day of horseplay, I was averaging 11-mpg in the GT.

For fans of carving corners and turning tires into smoke, there are few better options for the money than the two thousand fifteen Ford Mustang GT

The two thousand fifteen Mustangs will be rolling into showrooms in the coming weeks, and prices embark at a base MSRP of $23,600 for the entry-level 6-cylinder, and up to $36,925 for the premium GT trim. This is without optional features that could thrust the price over the $40K mark.

Will some traditionalists scoff at the latest example of the Mustang? Very likely. But the naysayers will be drowned out by the sound of the next generation Ford pony car peeling out and leaving them in the dust –most likely after heating the rear tires with Line Lock.

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