Ford is confusing me?
 

Ok so as most of you know the next generation mustang is said to be significantly lighter and also less powerful. My question is why are they making this move? I think most would agree that they pretty much dominate the muscle market. It's only competitor's are the camaro and challenger. And I think the mustang is by far the superior car compared to them and I think most would also agree.
So why go into an ever increasingly competitive market when you already own one?

Big brother saying they have to get better gas mileage.

This

Lightness trumps hp in all performance aspects. So long as they keep the same power/weight ratio as what exists now what is the problem?

yep.

BTW: Nissan has the same plan in mind for the next gen Z.

:iagree:

I haven't read anywhere reliable that they are going to less power.

Also, they are building it as a global platform now.
Which means certain things have to change not just from regulation but to be 'competitive' against Europe & Asian car makers in other countries.

and who the hell uses all that power legally on the streets anyway...?

so i think making them lighter is a good idea even if they dial back some power.

Oh I completely agree. I'm just saying for the average consumer that has money to spend and wants a "fast" car, when they see that 650 HP they will probably only look at that number and not much else.

Yeah Nissan really needs to cut the weight down on the Z by a pretty significant amount. Theirs no reason they shouldn't be able to either.

The core demographic for mustangs are suburban housewives. Therefore, there is no reason for them to get caught up in a horsepower war when our moms barely drive over the speed limit anyway. Well played Ford...Well played.

:eek:

:tiphat:

True, but they also look at things like 0-60. If that's a smaller number than the last gen car, it's a win.

For the Mustang, I would totally accept lighter and less power...this next generation Mustang could easily be a bit more true sports car and a bit less muscle car. It's that new design that's been floating around that worries me a little, though. Can they still make it scream Mustang without the retro look? We shall see.

Also heard a next generation Challenger is in the works, and you guessed it...it will supposedly shed a lot of weight.

New lighter weight Challenger prototype concept.....

http://www.fprado.com/armorsite/Abra...ms-USMC-01.jpg

However, I doubt the gun will be on the production models.

I doubt they could get it to be that light.

They're confusing me by using a stick axle now

THE MAIN REASON...

GEN Y HATES THE LOOK OF MUSCLE CARS.

http://www.autoguide.com/auto-news/w...ng-concept.jpg

I personally think they are going in the right direction. Except i want to see a 5.0 option to that ttv6.

It's that way with most concept models. They always tame them up before mass production. :mad:

The lightweight Challenger is to be replaced as a 'Cuda.

The 5.0 in the 'Stang came out in 2011 and has been insanely popular, I highly doubt they will scrub it that quick unless they have a fitment issue they can't work around. I can see them driopping it a few years down the line but it's weight anf fuel economy are quite good for it's HP class now.

Depends how much smaller and lighter the next gen is...if it is a considerable amount you could have huge handling and balance issues with that V-8 sitting in front. It will be interesting to see what they come up with.

I've read that the new 5L only weighs about 440 lbs. That's fairly light for it's displacement.

That's correct. Out of curiousity, how much does the VQ37HR weigh?

I found it a long time ago and now can't remember (oldtimers). It's like the greatest secret in all of cardom! :eek:

So what are the [rumored] specs for the next gen stang?

I've heard it will be a smaller package, more of an actual sports car, not just muscle. You can see they're moving towards that direction already with the improvements in handling. I seriously doubt they would burn all this R&D to come out with the current 3.7 V6 and renew the 5.0 just to get rid of them after one partial generation. I can see them making the engines with lighter materials? Either way, I think the current engines are to stay for awhile, with improvements along the way.

Biggest rumors are 250 lb drop and IRS. If that holds, it will be formidable.

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If it drops a little weight keeps some good V8 power and looks something like ones of these.

Yeah there's no way Ford is going to drop the Coyote engine after putting so much time and development into it. That thing is a beast and is here to stay for a while. What we're likely to see in the next gen is some improvements to it. I remember reading somewhere a while ago that they were going to add DI to the 5.0 for the next gen, which should help it out in terms of power and mpg.

I'm excited to see what Ford has in store for the next mustang, and if they deliver everything they're promising I will have to consider it as a possibility for my next car. It's probably gonna have like 450 hp in a car that weighs close to what the Z does now and have 4 seats. It's gonna be a beast.

I know they won't, but if they would drop the v6 model. To just have the GT and up models then they wouldn't be on every coner. Then i'd have to consider one for sure, but they won't the 6 sells to well.

Honestly, I used to care that mustangs were so common, but I have gotten past that now. I could care less if every car on the street was the same as mine as long as I enjoy driving it. If everyone was driving Lamborghinis and Ferraris I wouldn't hate them, I'd still love to have one.

That's also where modding comes in IMO. You can customize your car to make it stand out from the rest.

I can't get past it. That's why i went with the Z instead of a vette, i used to have a vette and will always love them, just to common. Now if i could afford the ZR1 that would be a different story even though non vette people can't tell the difference.

:icon18:

If they dropped the V6, it would be to put in a turbo-4. they would never drop out the inexpensive side of Mustang, it's what pays the bills.