I hope the car always has cues from the past... so I can park my '66 next to a 2066, and people passing by can see that they are both Mustangs.
I agree about it not being like the Thunderbird and PT Cruiser, in that it's always had design cues from the past, so they're not 'reinventing' the Mustang. The Thunderbird went from what? a few year hiatus, from an ugly sedan, into this Retro cruiser roadster. Of course there's not going to be a strong following for this car, because it lost it's identity a long time ago. Personally, I would take a new Thunderbird if it was given to me. Yes, they are halting production in the near future. I would also take a Prowler if it was given to me, they made one mistake with that car, no V8. The PT Cruiser... it's a wannabe HotRod, but looks like a Modified Minivan and drives like a Neon. I hate that car.
I think this body style will continue for a few years, maybe more if a lot of people like it. They will do a few minor cosmetic changes, add in a few specialty models... (say... Shelby, Mach, or Boss) to keep interest. When the time comes to change the base body's look, they might go where ever the market trends are with most of the car (like bare sides or big wheels), but also still keeping cues so you can tell it's a Mustang.
We have with the Mustang one of the cheapest V8, rwd, long hood, short deck cars. It has never gotten away from what it originally was. The GT Mustang has to be one of the least powerful V8's you can buy.... right now it's got 260 hp, every other competitor I see has i4's and V6's making the same or more power. It does make it more interesting, I guess that's why we like the aftermarket so much. It should continue to grow in power and handling... like the 300 hp for the '05 GT. The specialty models should help that out.
The Corvette hasn't gotten away from it's roots either. The most dramatic body changes were from 62-63 and 67-68. If you look at the Corvette from 68-present, you can see it's evolution very easily. They also used a lot of cues from the car's past. On a side note, the 'Vette site I went to had an awful lot of banner ads for 'hair loss' and 'male enhancement'.... I think someone is overcompensating with their car....
Of course, this is all speculation, the public and Ford have to stand behind it if it's going to continue.
I agree about it not being like the Thunderbird and PT Cruiser, in that it's always had design cues from the past, so they're not 'reinventing' the Mustang. The Thunderbird went from what? a few year hiatus, from an ugly sedan, into this Retro cruiser roadster. Of course there's not going to be a strong following for this car, because it lost it's identity a long time ago. Personally, I would take a new Thunderbird if it was given to me. Yes, they are halting production in the near future. I would also take a Prowler if it was given to me, they made one mistake with that car, no V8. The PT Cruiser... it's a wannabe HotRod, but looks like a Modified Minivan and drives like a Neon. I hate that car.
I think this body style will continue for a few years, maybe more if a lot of people like it. They will do a few minor cosmetic changes, add in a few specialty models... (say... Shelby, Mach, or Boss) to keep interest. When the time comes to change the base body's look, they might go where ever the market trends are with most of the car (like bare sides or big wheels), but also still keeping cues so you can tell it's a Mustang.
We have with the Mustang one of the cheapest V8, rwd, long hood, short deck cars. It has never gotten away from what it originally was. The GT Mustang has to be one of the least powerful V8's you can buy.... right now it's got 260 hp, every other competitor I see has i4's and V6's making the same or more power. It does make it more interesting, I guess that's why we like the aftermarket so much. It should continue to grow in power and handling... like the 300 hp for the '05 GT. The specialty models should help that out.
The Corvette hasn't gotten away from it's roots either. The most dramatic body changes were from 62-63 and 67-68. If you look at the Corvette from 68-present, you can see it's evolution very easily. They also used a lot of cues from the car's past. On a side note, the 'Vette site I went to had an awful lot of banner ads for 'hair loss' and 'male enhancement'.... I think someone is overcompensating with their car....
Of course, this is all speculation, the public and Ford have to stand behind it if it's going to continue.