A BMW owner looking @ the 05's

[Dukes]

Hello everyone.

I grew up wanting the 5.0L mustangs. I just knew I would get his once I turned old enough to drive but he sold it.

But the Mustang wasn't the only car I had an affection for. I loved the BMW cars as well. I went to the dealership 1 year ago to test drive some cars. I drove the 2003 Mustang GT and a BMW 3 series. I walked away with the 3 series. I absolutely love this car. It has everthing I've wanted in terms of refinement and drive satisfaction.

Now these 05 Mustang GTs come out. I went to the local int'l car show and I was glad to see the ol stang. Very nice improvements to the interior. The exterior, specifially the grill is what disappointed me. See, I saw the concept pictures and I believe I was spoiled. The fog or daylight lamps in the grill look absolutely horrible IMO. My excitement level went from great to iffy. And now I think I'm just going to wait another year or so to buy the car. I was REALLY looking forward to that front look in the concept drawings. What the heck happened?

I fired off an e-mail asking Ford to return its look as close to the concept as soon as they can and I was surprised they responded.

Anyway guys, I may or may not be getting the mustang as soon as I thought. But at least I have my bimmer.

 

[dont_know]

2005 Mustang

Hi

Does anyone knows how much the new Mustang (coming out in 2005) will cost? And anyone knows if this car will be exported to other countries? Wanna have one here in Switzerland

Thanx

 

[SLIGHTLY_INSANE]

Try reading other threads, but at this point its all heresay, nothing is final. as far as export, a friend of mine saw a 99+ gt right hand drive over in england, the only one he ever saw over aside from his little 97 v6.

 

[TrueBlueCajun]

Dukes, I'd wait until you can feel the way it drives, the performance, you've seen the looks, but that can change with aftermarket stuff or just get the V6 Grill and change it out. I'm waiting for the full line to come out before jumping on the buying bandwagon. Having only the GT and V6 to choose from is not an option for me right now. With all the Rumors about the Shelby returning, the Mach 1, Boss Shinoda, Saleen, Roush, etc., I like to have as many options as possible. Also rumors about the Camaro and Challenger coming back also has me drooling for information. The new GTO and Vette do nothing for me.

 

[GaPonyFarm]

Anyway guys, I may or may not be getting the mustang as soon as I thought. But at least I have my bimmer.

Dukes..... (In the voice of Darth Vader) This is your father...come join us on the dark side.....

 

[66Satellite]

Well, I hope you like the looks of the new taillights, cause that's mostly what you're gonna be seeing from your Bimmer, unless you're driving an M3.

 

[vrpirata]

Bimmer

I also don't like the grill

 

[Dukes]

Well, I hope you like the looks of the new taillights, cause that's mostly what you're gonna be seeing from your Bimmer, unless you're driving an M3.

Hmm....ummk.

I think I'll take the advise and wait. I will definately schedule a test drive. I just hope the dealership actually lets me drive it. Out of three dealerships last year only one let me test drive the car I was interested in and guess what, I bought it. I hope the salesmen are not pricks like the ones at Nissan, Audi/Porsche, and others.

Now are those tailights progressive tailights on the production model? Does anyone know? From the concept videos it appeared that they were. And what I mean is the harder you press on the brake the more brake lights light up.

 

[Ron Jeremy]

Why would you want to buy another car when you already own a brand new 2003 BMW 3 Series? Your BMW is not even 1 years old yet. You just bought that BMW. Why would you want to buy another one after just 2 years. Keep your BMW and pay it off. If you already paid it off, just drive it. Put the miles on it until you start having problems with it. Then you can sell it and buy something else. This is what I would do.

 

[GelatiCruiser]

I think they tried progressive tail lights back in the 60's or 70's, but people didn't know what the hell they were. I don't think they're very practical either as long as your depth perception is turned on.

 

[Dukes]

Why would you want to buy another car when you already own a brand new 2003 BMW 3 Series? Your BMW is not even 1 years old yet. You just bought that BMW. Why would you want to buy another one after just 2 years. Keep your BMW and pay it off. If you already paid it off, just drive it. Put the miles on it until you start having problems with it. Then you can sell it and buy something else. This is what I would do.

Why? Because I'm a car nut and I grew up loving the Mustang as well. My car is 2 years old but you're right it still is virtually new.

I don't sit here really thinking about the BMW name or the Ford name. These are just two of the cars that I wanted to have in my lifetime that's all. A test drive should put things in perspective methinks.

 

[Ron Jeremy]

What are progressive tail lights? Are you talking about the tail lights that were indented that were on the 67 and 68 Mustangs?

 

[Sean`03///Zed4]

What are progressive tail lights? Are you talking about the tail lights that were indented that were on the 67 and 68 Mustangs?

I have a 03 Zed 4 and it has progressive tail lights. In progressive tail intensity of the brake lamps increases with increase in brake pressure or how suddenly the driver jams on the brakes. I am pretty sure only the 03 BMW models have it. It depends on electronic brake assist.

I also have a 87 IrocZed, have owned a 02 325 coupe and a E36 97 328i and absolutely love the handling prowess of the bimmers (it's perhaps the most and only neutral handling car in the market), albeit the Camaro holds it's own very good for a 16 year old car..

But i also liked the look of the 64.5 Mustangs and when i saw the upcoming 05's.... they are too delicious to pass on.

I think Ford has taken suspension/chassis inputs from the M3/3-series. The lower l-arms in the front with McPherson struts with direct sway-bar linkage on the struts along-with a sharper rack and pinion setup, is the best design to gain direct steering feedback, precision steering and handling.

I have'nt seen this apart from the E36 /E46 3'ers/M3's and now the 05 mustangs have it. It's defniitely a step above the sluggish A-arm set up which also hinders the lengthening of the wheelbase.

The wheelbase of 107 inches is very similiar to the 3-series and the weight distribution is a perfect 52-48.

The rear setup is very similiar to the F-Body 3rd gen. Camaro and that car with lowered springs, redone panhard bar, pulls close to .9 g's. So the solid axle GT should not only handle very well but also impart less stress on the chassis (a classic disadvantage with IRS). Moving the rear-shocks to the outer end of the axle and placing it straighter should increase the stock g-'s of the 05'er as it will react faster to the change in spring rates. The only concern will be occasional wheel-hop and some loss in comfort but it's a sports car.

As a bimmer lover i must say the 330 owners better watch out for the GT The M3 will hold it's own but only towards peak rpm though.

Although i agree with Duke on Ford's passing on the concept design, I won't be surprised if Ford starts to introduce refereshened, subtle styling changes to newer models as years go by, s.t the concept look will eventually be seen in later years or the upper end models like the SVT Cobra.
Like BMW they may be going for this theme. It keeps buyers aware of the car's presence in the market.

 

[dhjones]

I am seriously considering getting an 05 Stang, I will probably wait for the cobra though. I love the way the car looks. Every so often manufacturers change headlight shapes to get a "new" look. I remember when the first changed to rectangular headlights from the round ones. Guess what ? Everyone hated it at first.