Spork3245

Just upgraded from my previous 2001 GT Convertible to a 2013 GT Premium (I'll miss the rag-top when spring hits but things were starting to go on the '01 and it was time to move on) - Just got it last night with 23 miles on it, got a sweetheart deal on it too.

Anyway, I've been skimming through the manual (mostly to figure out all of the options/settings in the nav & front panels) and I noticed that Ford seems to recommend 91 grade gasoline while saying 87 "regular" is fine but my give a decrease in performance - Why kind of decrease are we talking about here? Is it worth it to spring for plus or premium? I know with my 2001 I only had to use regular unless I had my tuner on in which case I would use premium, which brings me to my next question...

What do you guys think about tuners for the 2013 models? I had a Diablo Predator on my 2001 GT and it definitely gave me a boost in performance, but I also had a cold air intake and a magnaflow exhaust put on. With my 2013 I'm probably not going to mod it much, maybe a cold air but it wouldn't be for awhile. However, I'm highly considering a tuner as I've been reading people with coyote engines are not only picking up approx. 31hp to the wheels but also getting increases of gas mileage on the highway of 5+ per gallon (darn thing would pay for itself ). The main thing I'm curious about is that most of the people who are claiming this large increase seem to have a 2011 or a 2012, Ford seems to have messed around with some of the leaning and what-not to get that extra 8hp in the 2013's - Is the tuner still worth it for a 2013 and would my mpg and performance still go up in-line with the things I've read?

I'm trying to figure out all the things I can do with all the computer-gadgets, especially MS Sync, mainly ripping audio and what-not to the car's harddrive - The car manual is a bit vague in the "ripping" area unfortunately. I installed an aftermarket head-unit in my old car (Pioneer AVIC-N1) which could play MP3-CDs (CDs with MP3 files burned in data-format), as such I have a ton of them. My new car can read the MP3s off of the disc just fine, it also has a USB port I can use to play MP3 files off of a flash drive (or a smartphone/tablet) and I can stream from my phone/tablet via bluetooth too - However, I can't seem to figure out how to get these files copied to the hdd from any of these methods? Is the only way to get music onto the physical harddrive to use actual audio CDs? I surely hope not as this would take a tremendous amount of time to rip a sizeable audio-collection into the car, not to mention the amount of discs I'd need and/or go through.

Finally, I seriously love this car more and more each time I get behind the wheel... Especially once I figured out how to change all of the lighting (the dealer had everything set to red; gauges, halos, ambient - everything... It destroyed my eyes on the way home last night haha). Such an upgrade from my (already nice) 2001 GT... Are there any other cool things people tend to miss you guys feel is worth mentioning?

Sorry for the long post and all the questions!
Thanks so much!

LossPrev

There's a horsepower drop in using 87 someone will come along and give you the exact numbers but on the pre-13's it was around 20-25hp I believe. My F150 has the same sync system in the stangs minus the nav and I just use a USB jump drive and plug it in. If you want add or remove songs you just have to hook the jump drive up to your computer. You can also stream music from your phone with blue tooth connection but this doesn't display the song info like title and artist. I had a hard drive in my Cadillac CTS and never used it, it was much easier to use a jump drive. You also get the sweet track apps with accelerometer and acceleration timer. This same screen is in the F150 as well but my "truck apps" are pretty useless, I just keep the fuel economy screen up all the time.

mph07alloy

Throughout the summer when gas was nearly $4/gallon I was using 87. Ive been using 91 or 93 since October and maybe it's just my imagination but the car seems to have a little more power and I have definitely noticed an increase in MPG using the higher octane.

LossPrev

Definitely not your imagination. The 5.0 changes the timing depending on the octane. The 5.0 in my F150 doesn't though(i think), It recommends 87. You're probably better off just putting 91 in and paying the extra coin and getting the best gas mileage possible.

Stang010

If I'm not mistaken depending on your location but the colder air of winter would cause your car to get better horsepower as the air is easier to com-bust. Same basics that apply to a CAI apply here I believe. Not to say that higher grade fuel wouldn't help as well.

Gary Ugarek

I just run 91 and above, prefer Ultra 93, or anything 93 Octane. Gas Prices be damned, you own a Mustang now, Fuel Economy shouldn't even be a thought rattling around in your noggin.

Spork3245

The more money I save on gas the more money I have for future mods (or pay off this stang faster)
Seriously though, my avg mpg for my 2001 GT with a CAI, exhaust and programmer/tuner was ~19mpg with Premium, when I first purchased it was 16ish, if I took the tuner off so I could use 87 it was around 18mpg avg. My 2013, according to the built-in estimator, is 22 (it's only been a day and a half have, I've been driving around town a lot (not too much on the highway besides earlier this morning and driving home from the dealership) so it may go up to 23ish but I don't know) - If premium keeps me at this level it's worth at as it's already ~4-5mpg higher than my '01 with regular... But if another programer/tuner bumps me up to 27-28mpg (as some are claiming) while pushing the bhp over 450hp, how could I resist spending that extra $350-400? I just need some type of confirmation from one of you guys before I put the money out haha

Thanks so much so far everyone!!!

Mob Bomber

So I've been able to average 20 in city with moderate driving. To answer the octane rating, if you use 85-87 you will go from 420 hp to 402. Only an 18 hp drop. Obvioulsy 91-93 will give you 420 hp. I can't wait to get a tuner on mine to see the increase all around. On the highway straight cruise with 85 oct in my tank I got avg 27.8 mpg.

Spork3245

Awesome, thank you! So it sounds like using 87 doesn't really affect mpg on the '13s then? Also glad to hear that the bhp stays at/over 400 on it - I could still live with that. Any idea about my tuner question? Looking at either a bama or an SCT iTSX, the SCT comes with a color screen and touch display which may be worth it when trying out/downloading different mods to try.

moosestang

Why would anyone want to use 87oct in this car? I personally don't trust the ecm ability to pull timing fast enough, so I'd run 93 if available. It has an 11:1 compression ratio, come on!

On second thought, if you are going to drive like an old lady to and from work and never use wide open throttle, then run 87 all day long. Go ahead and wrap a rubber band around your nuts, cause you don't need them! lol!