2005 Ford Mustang - UGLY

From what I've seen of the 05 coming soon, I ...

  • Dislike the front end. Wishing they would not have gone SO retro with the "flatness" of that front end and those big, round lights! Wondering how many years before they let go of the 60's "look" and move ahead again.
  • Like the rest of the exterior, mostly... the wheels on the GT do not impress me.
  • Do not like the dashboard. Again, wishing they had not gone quite so retro with that.
  • DO LOVE the seats and decision to move the seatbelts and the levers to tilt front seats for easier rear seat entry/exit!
  • DO like how they made the car wider and longer for more comfort and better ride and wider stance.
  • DO like how they moved the battery and shifted other things to give a much better front/rear weight balance!
  • DO LOVE that new 24 valve GT engine with the variable valve timing and ?300? HP!!!

Scotter

96 GT Convertible 3.73 gears K&N Filtercharger
Reply to
Scotter
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I have a stock looking 89 LX 5.0.

Have wanted to replace it for several years because of efficiency and increased safety of newer models (air bags, etc.). However I love the look of the late 80's and early 90's mustangs and have not been impressed by the 94+ models. I passed up the chance to get a leftover new 03 cobra vert for $30K last April because I really didn't like the cobra wheels or the red accented leather interior.

I have hopes for the 05 mustang but have only seen pictures on the Ford web site. My concerns so far

Non functional "wing" on trunk (probably can be easily removed or trunk lid replaced with 6 cyl trunk lid).

Funky looking instruments.

Other than that it looks good and I will be very interested. Have to see what the convertible looks like.

Howard

1989 LX 5.0 vert 3.73/subframe connectors/camber plates/tower struts/springs/shocks
Reply to
Howard Nelson

"Joe" wrote

Except that '69's are different from the previous years. Do you mean '67 & '68?

Reply to
66 6F HCS

I like 94-98 body style... actually, I like everything from 86 and up.. or is it 87 & up.. i believe 86 & up. Except the 05... I can't stand the friggin 05!!!!!! Ah well. Maybe it'll change when I see one in person. I've only seen pictures. My favorite "old school" Mustang is probably 73.. I like that..

-Mike

-- A happy kid behind the wheel of a 98 Mustang GT Cold air intake FRPP 3.73 gears Steeda Tri-Ax Shifter Full Boar turbo mufflers Hi-speed fan switch

255/60R-15 rear tires

Reply to
<memset

Ah... thx for that.

-Mike

-- A happy kid behind the wheel of a 98 Mustang GT Cold air intake FRPP 3.73 gears Steeda Tri-Ax Shifter Full Boar turbo mufflers Hi-speed fan switch

255/60R-15 rear tires

Reply to
<memset

"66 6F HCS" wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@comcast.com:

Should've clarified - I like the '67-'68 and also the '69. The '69 is closer to the '67-'68, moreso than the '70s on up and the '65-'66.

Joe Calypso Green '93 5.0 LX AOD hatch with a few goodies Black '03 Dakota 5.9 R/T CC

Reply to
Joe

Unfortunately, they went from this:

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To this:
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They also went from what looked like an interior with billet aluminum to the typical el cheapo interior we see on the Mustangs

-Rich

Reply to
Richard

snipped-for-privacy@rogers.com (Richard) wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@posting.google.com:

It still looks better than _any_ sn95 or "edge" car.

Joe Calypso Green '93 5.0 LX AOD hatch with a few goodies Black '03 Dakota 5.9 R/T CC

Reply to
Joe

The interior definitly needs work. I like the exteriour though. I am going to wait for the convertable to come out in 2006 before I pass judgement.

Note to Ford, I don't want the interiour of my Mustang looking like a reject concept from the Jetsons.

Nick

Ahgnis wrote:

Reply to
Nick

Ay-mehn!

Reply to
Dan

I actually think they kept the important outside styling cues for the produciton car. Hopefully some of those dropped styling items will (re)appear on the SVT or the special editions. All-in-all, despite the slab-sided look, I think the car is pretty nice outside.

I agree completely. The retro chromed plastic crap and deep, goofy tunnels around the instruments needed to stay in the '60's where they died. It was merely cheesy back then but on a modern car it's disgusting. I like shiny appointments on an interior but make them real metal or let me put them on myself later. As for the instrument cluster itself I just thank all the deities that the '03 Mach I designers were beaten into unconsciousness so that a silly retro dash didn't reappear on the production S197. Styling cues are one thing but the point is use them as *cues*, not bring everything including the bad, ugly stuff back to life :).

Reply to
Dan

I think it's the flared fenders that detracts from its looks, especially in the front. It makes it look droopy-nosed, like it has a bad cold.

Reply to
doc

I am going to reserve judgment until I see one up close and personal, but just going by those two pictures you have to admit the concept is a lot hotter looking than the real thing. I like the hood, grill and headlight area a lot better in the concept picture, JMO.

Dennis

Reply to
Dennis

That's disappointing. The concept photo is what I've had as my PC wallpaper since it came out. This is the first I've seen of the production version, and I definitely won't be trading in my '02 GT on one.

Reply to
Mitch

I agree. The concept car looks much better. If they made this big of a change to the front of the car, I hope the dash is less retro than the concept car.

Reply to
Mark Jones

The concept looked nice, too bad what came out. The real truth will emerge not from this NG but from sales figures. Personally, I would look at a GTO over this Mustang.

Ahgnis

Reply to
Ahgnis

Guys, give the new design some time to grow on you. Seems every time a new Mustang comes out, a decent percentage of the Mustang enthusiasts think it's ugly. Then about 6 months to a year after its debut, that decent percentage shrinks a very small number. Just going back a few years, the '87, the '94, and the '99 designs were all criticized. Again, give it time.

Patrick '93 Cobra '83 LTD

Reply to
Patrick

Have you heard any specific reasons why they changed the appearance so much? I liked the front end design of the concept car, but I think they changed the production design too much.

Reply to
Mark Jones

Bitch and Moan... this is the greatest news since they scrapped the pinto platform.

Look at the other cars that will be made on the DEW platform.TBird, Lincoln Ls, Jag

Sure they'll detune the chassis a little for price/model differentiation but that will make it easy to mod for real roadability.

And a 200 hp base engine?

Later, they can tune it for looks.

Garth Almgren opined in news: snipped-for-privacy@uni-berlin.de:

Reply to
Backyard Mechanic

I agree, a 97 GT Convertible was my first Mustang. I loved the smoothed look of it and how it flowed. In 99, when the new style came out, I about barfed as all of my flowing styling was replaced with much more defined lines.

But after a year or two, I really started to dig it, at least, as much as my much pined for previous style. It looks aggressive and confident. Now, being the proud owner (at least for a little while longer, I'm selling it unfortunately because I'm relocated cross-country) of a 2003 Cobra Convertible I really love the styling.

Just an example that, tastes and [snip]

Reply to
Matt Kulka

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