Comments: 1-15, 16-22
Nothing has gone wrong - yet. But I don't feel the car lives up to the legend.
Interior design is poor - my little Miata had far more usable interior cabin storage space. Materials used on interior already starting to wear at a lightly used 4200 miles.
The V-6 is a gas guzzler - doesn't come CLOSE to sticker estimates.
Power is disappointing.
Traction is almost non-existent. If all you do is drive straightaways, I guess it's great - but not on the roads I have to drive.
I traded in a wonderful little Miata to get this car - BIG mistake. I'd give anything to have my Miata back.
Purchased new, loaded, for $28,000 - Kelley says trade-in at 4,200 miles is $15,500. That is really, really poor. Pretty obvious car doesn't hold it's value.
Friend, your car will never live up to the legend, you bought a V6! The V6 Mustang is not meant to be the white knuckle thriller that Steve McQueen made famous. The gas mileage does not live up to the sticker most likely because you are trying to get the rush of a 4.6 OHC V8 out of a 3.8 pushrod V6. Take your foot out of the floorboard and you will see better mileage. The V6 does not handle as well as it's wealthier siblings because it is a BASE MODEL.
I'm quite sure you traded your Miata with high hopes of this Mustang being as fast/agile, but the truth is, they are not even in the same class of cars. If you want more power and better handling out of what you have, there is a plethora of upgrade parts available for the V6. Any suspension upgrade that will fit a GT will fit your V6. There are bolt on parts out there that can get your 6 banger pumping out 300 horsepower, but it will cost you about 2-3 thousand and a couple of weekends in the garage.
No new car hold's value, especially a base model car. There a dime a dozen because rental car companies buy them up in droves to offer a "sports car" at a premium rate.
Buying a new car is always a very poor idea!!! Depreciation, expensive insurance, plates, ect... A fool and his money are soon parted for sure!!! Buy and drive a car 3-5 years old for pennys on the dollar. A person doesn't have to have a new car= = = that silly idea is one reason the average working man is broke.
Actually, buying a new car is not necessarily bad, if you hold onto it long enough so that depreciation is not that much of a factor when you dispose of it.
For most cars, that means at least 8-10 years so you have to be sure you are getting something you will like for that long!
And some cars hold their value much better than others. See how much a 1-2 year old Porsche sells for compared to the new price. Even something like a 2004 Toyota Prius sells for almost as much as a new one!
A 2004 Mustang, however, will depreciate much more rapidly, especially since the 2005 version is all-new.
Ford owns Mazda, too. They, in essence, produce your precious miata as well... However, I love Miatas. I think you'd be much better off in one of those than the "high I'm having a midlife crisis" mustangs.
I highly doubt the way I drive it has anything to do with gas mileage - it was obvious the first day out the car is not a sports car and I didn't drive it that way. But disappointingly, not a muscle car, either. It's an in-between joke that should have been chopped before it hit the showroom floor. I was just stupid enough to fall for the razzle-dazzle.
I know Ford has some part of Mazda, but I'm not sure it's ownership. Ford should learn from Mazda, as Mazda makes a much better quality car, as do most of the other foreign auto makers. The difference is in management and dedication to quality. Detroit seems to specialize in flash and trash and not performance and quality.
And, the problem has been solved. I went back to the Mazda dealership where I bought my original Miata. I was lucky - they had one last 04 LS with all the goodies and were anxious to sell it as the new limited editions are coming out. So, I traded el grando pieco crappo in on a new Miata - they were more than generous with trade-in allowance and threw a lot of extras in. I drove out of the lot and never looked back. I lost some money, but now I have a car again that PERFORMS. And while I may not always drive a Miata, I can guarantee I'll never drive another Ford. It's kind of nice, once again, to step and the gas and actually GO. It's also nice not to be fishtailing all over the place when I have to drive on gravel. And it's REALLY nice to have a car again that is everything, and more, that is advertised. It's also very nice to know this car will look as good in 2 years as it does today, because Mazda pays attention to quality details - better grade leather and trim, more clear-coating, better tires - better everything. So, I am once again happy - good-bye trash, hello fun.
Once again someone buys a car without driving it! Did you not see the lacking performance on the test drive? Usually you can make an intelligent assessment of a car by driving it for awhile and taking it on all different road types like winding roads and highways to get a good overall feel of its performance. If you had the sense to look at a GT you might have had a much different opinion. As far as putting Ford down... you are putting your Mazda down as well since Ford is such a big part of Mazda nowadays. The Miata is a good car as well, but they always seem to come up short on power. I'd opt for the Mustang GT as it offers much more in performance than a Miata ever could.
I picked up a 2004 Premium convertible Mustang, used in Dec 2004 for about $18 GRAND. It had been in a rental fleet. It is a V6 so I'm not blowing anyone off the road, or trying to.
It is the first Mustang I've owned. It is pretty cool.
As for gas mileage, it does stink. I'm not gunning it and I still get lousy mileage.
For me it's a cheap thrill and I can pass it on to my daughter. Will it hold value? Not in the short run. But that's what everyone said about the '71 Chevelle SS 454 I had in high school. (Car payments were $52 a month!) Wish I had that car now.
If you want good resale value, buy a good luxury car like a BMW M6 or a 3 series. If you want speed get a Mustang GT or better still a Cobra. Get that new Shelby Cobra and you'll be fine. Don't expect good gas mileage though.
I like the 2005 & later ones with the newer style, but the local car dealers have new ones starting at $35 GRAND. Used ones and I mean basic coupes are listed for $28,000. And no I'm not talking GTs or better.
Anyone who buys a new car from a dealer should have their head examined. I know a little something about advertising and car salesmen. They lie and gouge and screw anyone who walks in the door. The only decent new car experience I ever had with a dealer, was the local Honda dealer 20 years ago.
I bought my 2004 Mustang 40th Anniversary (V-6, 5-Speed) in July 04. I tested it and compared it to the GT. Sure it is not the muscle car the GT is, but it was fun. After adding a traction kit to it, the fishtailing is not a problem. The gas mileage is not the best nor does it compare to my wife's Accord. I guess it was a mid life crisis buy and not very well planned, but I still enjoy the little monster. So far I have not had a problem out of it as I did my 2002 Mazda 626. It was in the shop more than I owned it.
I would buy a used clean 1995 Mustang GT Convertible for example with the great 302 V8 before buying a new V6 convertible. It is an outstanding bargain with unlimited potential.
I am not a big fan of any anniversary models and all the emblems/stripes..... especially the awful pace car treatments. Although I have only owned many GM sports cars Vettes, Camaros a 64 SS Impala Convertible to name a few not Fords... my son has owned 2 red Mustang GTs(convertible and a coupe) as well as a black 66 Mustang. All 3 shared the 302 engine... the 66 even had a transplanted 95 drivetrain with a/c. You don't buy a sports car for gas mileage..... but you do research on the insurance always. In fact you don't check mileage later after you buy one either. It ends up being accepted. You might as well cover your hand over the mileage #s... test drive and if you like it buy it. Also I would not buy a V6 American sports car... maybe an older Grand National, but that's different. His first car the loaded 95 Mustang Convertible was $15000 when it was 2 years old... new it was $28000. The second Mustang a coupe was a stick and had an aftermarket turbo installed which was not an easy task. The convertible had a lot of Cobra upgrades added by him, Cobra wheels and even 100 shot nitrous. He rebuilt the engine, powder coated it, the trans was also rebuilt at 50,000 miles and added Cobra wheels. Both cars together used cost less that one new current Mustang at time of purchase and over time he installed many add'l upgrades. As he pulled off stock parts he sold them and applied money towards new upgrades. As used cars these are real buys. The convertibles I have also owned were always black or red and always a V8. They sell quicker with these colors as well. With the top down you need a V8 instead of listening to a radio... as far as buying used vs. new... my son who is now only 30 years old has since sold his Mustang collection and has progressed to a low mileage red 2000 Viper RT/10 that cost $50,000 in Jan. 05 and drove it all the way back back to his current residence in Fla from NJ from an on line specialty dealer and its still holding its value in his area. I have always bought my sports car mainly the convertibles starting in October from dealers when they want to sell them off for the winter or Jan or early Feb when it snows is a great time for anything else. Hope this little sports car "101" helps. Good luck!
This is clearly one of those reviews that can be dismissed out of hand. He doesn't report any problems whatsoever with the car. His only source of disappointment is in being too cheap to buy the V-8 model with sport suspension, and thus he is left complaining about how it doesn't have the power or handling that he imagined. That doesn't add up to "Will never buy another Ford and will dump this thing as soon as possible?" Why not actually do some research on the car you intend to buy??
This reminds me of clones. You buy a base model instead of a true sports car pump lots of money after and what is it? Buy a real one even if you have to drop back a few years... I had a friend that cloned a Lemans once into a GTO well sort of... you end up cheating yourself.
I bought a 40 yr anniversary edition V6 convertible. It gets lots of looks, and I have found after replacing the OEM springs with Iebok suspension, OEM wheels with 18x10 custom wheels, I have had nothing, but fun. Unfortunately the little beast isn't the best on fuel, and after incurring some damages, it is difficult getting replacement parts. Can anyone tell me what the carriage is. I believe it is the cross-member which holds the engine, and the lower control arms link to. But maybe that isn't the correct word for it. If not, can someone please tell me what it is called?
Just go buy a Corvette and be happy.
The Base Mustang and the GT are 2 different cars just with a similar apperance, for example like the dodge srt4 and the neon they appear the same, but in performance and quality they differ. My dad passed me down his 96 mustang gt with 227,000 miles under its belt, never had any problems just constantly changing oil n tires not to mention I LOVED the gas mileage that's right yes I did I was gettin a good 23 highway and about 17 on the street.
But my ex-girlfriend had one those v-6 mustang's and I hated it, bad-gas mileage (which was the point of havin a 6 banger I thought) and bad tracion, but that's due to the lack of limited-slip and a feeling of being in a cheaper car.
I was amazed at the diference between the 2 my advice is to get the GT it pays of in the long run, but luckily for those of you who want a faster 6-banger there's a ton of upgrades if you have the time and money, but i'd think its safe to say your kinda beating a dead horse with that!