I'm pretty sure not many of you seriously considered the mustang v8 when buying the ms3. However, after reading all the car magazine reviews about the new and improved 2010 mustang, I just had to go for a test drive and compare it to our ms3.
First off, the 2010 mustang is nice looking, inside and out. When I stepped in, the biggest difference was that the outward visibility wasn't as good as the ms3. But after turning on the ignition and hearing the v8, I really started liking it. As the revs go up, the v8 sounds even better. That's 1 area I don't like about the ms3: I like to rev to 5000+ RPM, but the turbo 4 sound isn't that good.
Of course, I chose to drive the manual GT, which felt pretty good. The shifter is shorter throw than the stock ms3. The clutch pedal is not as stiff as the ms3, and engagement was quite good. Being 4.6 L, there is definitely more low end torque, but above 4000 RPM, the ms3 feels just as strong.
Cornering ability was also pretty good for a muscle car. It didn't feel as heavy as I thought it would be. The GT is also less noisy than the ms3, both on the street and on the freeway. The ms3 has the exhaust drone which I don't like. The only significant noise with the mustang is the v8 roar when you hit the gas which sounds pretty good.
At the end of the test drive, I asked whether the salesman can sell it for invoice price. He said he could sell it for $500 under invoice. Wow, that puts it at about $26k before tax/title/license.
If I were really in the market right now, I would have chosen the mustang over the ms3.
First off, the 2010 mustang is nice looking, inside and out. When I stepped in, the biggest difference was that the outward visibility wasn't as good as the ms3. But after turning on the ignition and hearing the v8, I really started liking it. As the revs go up, the v8 sounds even better. That's 1 area I don't like about the ms3: I like to rev to 5000+ RPM, but the turbo 4 sound isn't that good.
Of course, I chose to drive the manual GT, which felt pretty good. The shifter is shorter throw than the stock ms3. The clutch pedal is not as stiff as the ms3, and engagement was quite good. Being 4.6 L, there is definitely more low end torque, but above 4000 RPM, the ms3 feels just as strong.
Cornering ability was also pretty good for a muscle car. It didn't feel as heavy as I thought it would be. The GT is also less noisy than the ms3, both on the street and on the freeway. The ms3 has the exhaust drone which I don't like. The only significant noise with the mustang is the v8 roar when you hit the gas which sounds pretty good.
At the end of the test drive, I asked whether the salesman can sell it for invoice price. He said he could sell it for $500 under invoice. Wow, that puts it at about $26k before tax/title/license.
If I were really in the market right now, I would have chosen the mustang over the ms3.