Should You Buy a Used 2018+ Mustang GT?
YouTuber That Dude in Blue bought a 2018 S550 Mustang GT. It’s been a great daily driver and an excellent choice for a modified vehicle.
Most Mustang fans are probably familiar with David Patterson and his YouTube channel That Dude in Blue. Patterson’s Grabber Blue 2013 Mustang GT “Smurf” has gained quite a bit of notoriety being featured on his channel. The blue Mustang recently gained a stablemate in the garage by way of a white 2018 S550 Mustang GT that Patterson bought with about 11,000 miles. After he added another 5,000 miles he decided to give an update on his ownership experience and the modifications he’s done so far to it. So is the 2018 Mustang GT a good choice for a daily driver?
According to Patterson, using the ’18 as a daily is a piece of cake. Which isn’t surprising. The S550 is sporty but also pretty user-friendly. Throw in things like heated and cooled seats as well as a heated steering wheel and it only gets better. The S550’s digital dash is a huge improvement over his 2013 GT’s more conventional gauges, which look outdated. Patterson has put considerable effort into improving the GT’s exterior looks. The stock wheels have been replaced with Niche alloys wrapped with Michelin PS4S tires. The red taillights were swapped for clear Euro-spec taillights. At the rear is an MMD V-series spoiler from American Muscle. Patterson has also installed a front lip spoiler from the same company. The front upper and lower grilles were also replaced to give the car a more unique look.
By far the biggest improvement Patterson has made to the Mustang is the Fortune Auto 510 coilovers, the installation of which dramatically transformed the way the Mustang drives. Even Patterson was surprised at what a difference the suspension change made. He’s no stranger to coilovers and he’s driven plenty of cars with them. “My Integra has coilovers, my 240 has coilovers,” he says. “I know they make a difference. But coilovers on an S550 Mustang transform this car. Of course, combined with a nice tire, that’s when you’re in business.” But the improvements extend far beyond the aesthetics. “Since the center of gravity is lowered, the stiffness of the chassis is better. It doesn’t have that old man floppiness.” The steering is better and overall “everything is buttoned up.”
A Magnaflow exhaust was also installed to give the GT’s V8 engine a better sound. “It makes the motor just seem a little bit more alive,” says Patterson. “Coyote cars are very quiet.” Surprisingly, the Mustang is equipped with an automatic. Which is unusual, since all of the other cars in Patterson’s fleet use manual transmissions. Based on his experience, he notes that the stock GT manual feels fragile and easy to break. On the other hand, the 10-speed automatic feels much more robust and up to the task of harnessing the engine’s power. On the downside, the auto is slow to respond when using the paddle shifters.
Overall Patterson has no regrets when it comes to purchasing his S550 GT. “You can take the Mustang and truly make it your own,” he says. “There are so many different options for you. What I did to this made a lot of non-Mustang people go wow, I really like how that car looks.” The reaction from people who see the car has been overwhelmingly positive. And that’s a pretty good gauge of what a great decision he made when he purchased his S550 GT.