Why a Mustang?
02-17-2009, 12:23 AM
#1
1st Gear Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location:
Posts: 145
Why a Mustang?
As I approach 40 (will be 39 in September) I have started to reflect back on many of the choices I have made in my life. One of these reflections concerns why I have owned 2 mustangs in my life and not other performance cars that may have been available and in my price range.
My reasons: I grew up in the 70s and 80s watching TV and movies that included clasic mustangs as part of the background, this weas certainly some of the reason. I suppose the other was the fact that the cool "rich" kids in high school all had either classic american muscle to drive (restored with their parents money) or they had a shiny brand new Mustang GT. For some reason I found both to be very cool and I wanted one. Sadly I did not have the cash and the opprotunity until I was 28 years old to buy my first mustang.
In between the 2 mustangs I have owned a 2003 Honda Accord EX V6. I drove it into the ground. The car cost about 27k loaded and had 118k miles on it after 4.5 years. The trade in was only 7k, while it may have been paid off it had a bunch of miles and a bad transmissiona nd eletrical system. After the Accord I had a Nissin Altima v6 SE fro 1 year, I traded that in when I bought my current mustang over a year ago.
Having had transmission, brake, and wheel issues with both the Accord and Altima I can say that the ownership experience was worse then that of either mustang. Both mustangs performed well and while the first one had transmission issues at the end they would have been both eaiser and cheaper to resolve then with the japanese cars.
For me the reasons for going Mustang boil down to: Reliving youth, Value/Price, Cool factor, and reliability compared to other brands.
Honestly in the 80s and early 90s the reliability factor was not there from what I have heard but from mid 90s on the mustang is better overall then its competition in the reliability area.
One other thing I would love to point out: I live in the Northeast, it snows up here. Usually I don't drive my mustang much in the snow but when I do I don't have issues with ground clearance and damaging the underside. My Accord had issues with that and the repairs themseleves were several thousand each for more then 2 years. The Accord was billed as an "ok to drive in snow" car... seriously... I give honda bad marks.
My reasons: I grew up in the 70s and 80s watching TV and movies that included clasic mustangs as part of the background, this weas certainly some of the reason. I suppose the other was the fact that the cool "rich" kids in high school all had either classic american muscle to drive (restored with their parents money) or they had a shiny brand new Mustang GT. For some reason I found both to be very cool and I wanted one. Sadly I did not have the cash and the opprotunity until I was 28 years old to buy my first mustang.
In between the 2 mustangs I have owned a 2003 Honda Accord EX V6. I drove it into the ground. The car cost about 27k loaded and had 118k miles on it after 4.5 years. The trade in was only 7k, while it may have been paid off it had a bunch of miles and a bad transmissiona nd eletrical system. After the Accord I had a Nissin Altima v6 SE fro 1 year, I traded that in when I bought my current mustang over a year ago.
Having had transmission, brake, and wheel issues with both the Accord and Altima I can say that the ownership experience was worse then that of either mustang. Both mustangs performed well and while the first one had transmission issues at the end they would have been both eaiser and cheaper to resolve then with the japanese cars.
For me the reasons for going Mustang boil down to: Reliving youth, Value/Price, Cool factor, and reliability compared to other brands.
Honestly in the 80s and early 90s the reliability factor was not there from what I have heard but from mid 90s on the mustang is better overall then its competition in the reliability area.
One other thing I would love to point out: I live in the Northeast, it snows up here. Usually I don't drive my mustang much in the snow but when I do I don't have issues with ground clearance and damaging the underside. My Accord had issues with that and the repairs themseleves were several thousand each for more then 2 years. The Accord was billed as an "ok to drive in snow" car... seriously... I give honda bad marks.
02-17-2009, 12:55 AM
#2
3rd Gear Member
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: NY (Capital Region)
Posts: 581
Only two years younger then you brother. I can relate to all of that.
I also recently came to the realization that I can trace back my earliest ideas of what a car was supposed to look like to one of my first toys. this cool *** tin '69 Mach1 "stunt" car that flips over. I've still got it, and it still works.
The idea that I can look at the car that I own now and directly trace it's design to that little toy car is just so damn cool to me.
My first car was an '81 hatchback with a straight six. It was a piece of crap, but I loved it. Mostly because it was a Mustang.
Oh, as a P.S., I found one of those stunt cars on ebay
http://tinyurl.com/b5nk4d
Mine has a different paint scheme though. I'll have to take some pics and post them.
I also recently came to the realization that I can trace back my earliest ideas of what a car was supposed to look like to one of my first toys. this cool *** tin '69 Mach1 "stunt" car that flips over. I've still got it, and it still works.
The idea that I can look at the car that I own now and directly trace it's design to that little toy car is just so damn cool to me.
My first car was an '81 hatchback with a straight six. It was a piece of crap, but I loved it. Mostly because it was a Mustang.
Oh, as a P.S., I found one of those stunt cars on ebay
http://tinyurl.com/b5nk4d
Mine has a different paint scheme though. I'll have to take some pics and post them.
02-17-2009, 02:30 AM
#3
6th Gear Member
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: West Los Angeles
Posts: 5,390
A Mustang wasn't a necessary thing for me, but when driving my previous car, a 2003 Mazda Protege5 sportwagon, it had no power and getting onto the freeway was scary! I looked around and test drove other cars and it wasn't until I drove the 2005 GT that I got the power I knew I wanted! And the price was so much better than the 350Z's or the Infiniti G35. I don't drive that much so I didn't want to spend the extra $10,000 for all those gadgets.
Plus, when I drive my Screaming Yellow GT I stand out and don;t just blend in with the rest of the Japanese and Euro cars. My car screams retro, yet is just as reliable as any foreign car.
Plus I got to modify it and make it my own.
Plus, when I drive my Screaming Yellow GT I stand out and don;t just blend in with the rest of the Japanese and Euro cars. My car screams retro, yet is just as reliable as any foreign car.
Plus I got to modify it and make it my own.
02-17-2009, 06:51 AM
#4
4th Gear Member
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Western PA
Posts: 1,163
I am also 40 and for me it was working at the Ford dealership in town when I was in college. I washed cars all summer and I got to drive a 80's something GT! All I could say was WOW! I loved that car it was black and right after I finished college I bought an 84 with a blown 4 cylinder motor. I decided what the heck and dropped a 302 V8 in it and I was set! Now I had my Mustang! I drove the car almost 90,000 miles and then reality set in after getting married.... Traded it in on a Ford Tempo! :-( What a sad day that was! After several kids and 14 years of marriage I finally got my mustang back! I love driving it and with the V6 it is just as fun as that old GT I drove and get a heck of a lot better gas milage!!
02-17-2009, 07:39 AM
#5
6th Gear Member
Well, I must be the "old coot" of the bunch. I'm almost 14 years older than the OP. All I can say is the Stang gets my g/f wet (she jokes that I keep a towel handy) everytime I get on it and it (both the Stang and the g/f getting wet) gives me wood, too. Can't complain about THAT combination. Who the hell needs Viagra?!
02-17-2009, 07:48 AM
#6
2nd Gear Member
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: NY
Posts: 324
My father had a 72 Mustang in the early 70s and I was impressed with the white/blue accent Olympic model 72. When I got my first job the next year, I ordered a red 73 Mach 1 (the Olympic model was no longer available). I really loved the car (despite the poor sight lines to the side and back).
After the 73s, they went with the Mustang II. That put me firmly in the GM camp until the early 90s, when the need for a better winter car led me to a 91 Eagle Talon TSi AWD.
Mustangs didn't really start to interest me again until the early 2000 models. The large hood scoop of the later new edge Mustangs really made that car stand out from the crowd.
For me, looks come first followed by performance. If I don't like the way a car looks, I won't buy it. After the 73 Mach 1, there were many years where I just liked what GM offered more. When I got my 96 Z-28, I liked its performance and styling over the Mustang at the time. If the Mustang back then had looked like the 03-04 Mustangs or if the Mach 1 had been offered at the time, it might have been a different story.
After the 73s, they went with the Mustang II. That put me firmly in the GM camp until the early 90s, when the need for a better winter car led me to a 91 Eagle Talon TSi AWD.
Mustangs didn't really start to interest me again until the early 2000 models. The large hood scoop of the later new edge Mustangs really made that car stand out from the crowd.
For me, looks come first followed by performance. If I don't like the way a car looks, I won't buy it. After the 73 Mach 1, there were many years where I just liked what GM offered more. When I got my 96 Z-28, I liked its performance and styling over the Mustang at the time. If the Mustang back then had looked like the 03-04 Mustangs or if the Mach 1 had been offered at the time, it might have been a different story.
Last edited by ztalon; 02-17-2009 at 07:53 AM.
02-17-2009, 07:55 AM
#7
5th Gear Member
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: Brandon, Florida
Posts: 2,616
Well, I must be the "old coot" of the bunch. I'm almost 14 years older than the OP. All I can say is the Stang gets my g/f wet (she jokes that I keep a towel handy) everytime I get on it and it (both the Stang and the g/f getting wet) gives me wood, too. Can't complain about THAT combination. Who the hell needs Viagra?!
02-17-2009, 08:01 AM
#8
2nd Gear Member
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Boston, MA
Posts: 498
Rick you're still the old man, but the least I can do is add another voice closer to 50 than 40! As my g/f would say (she's 33) "OMFG this is FUN!" when I hit the gas. I have always LOVED the look & mystique of Mustangs since growing up in the 70's and all the older kids had COOL Muscle cars like Barracudas and Camaros & Trans Ams, but when I saw my first Boss 302... THAT was IT!
It took me until last year before a Mustang fit my lifestyle (needed space for cargo & kids) & I was SO thrilled that Ford created the S197 in 2005. I knew I'd have one some day... now I own TWO! My V6 daily driver & the "Monsta" Roush fulfill all my needs!
When I look around today @ the other cars, I just think - you can do whatever you want to your car, but it will NEVER be a cool as a MUSTANG!
It took me until last year before a Mustang fit my lifestyle (needed space for cargo & kids) & I was SO thrilled that Ford created the S197 in 2005. I knew I'd have one some day... now I own TWO! My V6 daily driver & the "Monsta" Roush fulfill all my needs!
When I look around today @ the other cars, I just think - you can do whatever you want to your car, but it will NEVER be a cool as a MUSTANG!
02-17-2009, 08:52 AM
#9
4th Gear Member
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: TN
Posts: 1,895
ok i guess i will bring in the voice of the younger members on here(im 28)
my obsession started when i was 11 and my uncle got a 1991 fox body gt. from the first time he took me for a ride i was hooked. talked about no other cars, just mustangs. read everything i could about the history and all knew what all the body styles looked like. since the 1991 my uncle has had every cobra svt has done. and i have gotten to ride/drive all of them. he played a huge part in my love for mustangs. and when i see him these days he always throws me the keys to his 525rwhp termie.
but now i have a one to that he likes to take out when we are at my grandparents and show me how to drive it.
always wanted one but didnt get my first one till i was 19yrs (1999). my dad had bought the other two cars before then and helped my out by paying the insurance on the 1996 v6 i had just bought. kept that for about a yr and then the head gasket popped right before i was going off to a 4 yr college(had already done 2 yrs at a community college). so my dad bought me a 2001 ford escort zx2. fun little car but not a mustang. i kept that car for the next 3 yrs. then w/in 6-8 months of graduating i was 25 and my mom and dad always told me that when i start paying for my own cars i can buy whatever i want. insurance dropped in half when i turned 25 and i was looking for new cars. and what did i get? you know it.
a 2006 mustang v6, was one of the happiest days of my life. had my dream car again. kept that one for 15 months and got bored with the power so i decided to trade up. went out and found a torch red with black cloth interior 2007 gt. kept that another 15 months and then traded for the 2008 gt i have now. my grandfather couldnt believe i had another one when he saw me at christmas when he saw my 2007 on labor day weekend when i was in town to get my gf off the coast of lousiana and away from the hurricane. but i think i am done trading for a little while, or at least until they put 400 hp in a stock mustang. which hopefully will be soon. i have met a lot of other mustang drivers and we all have one thing in common our love for mustangs and can talk cars for hours. and because of people, like you guys on here, i will be a mustang person probably till the day i die. will always have one in the garage.
my obsession started when i was 11 and my uncle got a 1991 fox body gt. from the first time he took me for a ride i was hooked. talked about no other cars, just mustangs. read everything i could about the history and all knew what all the body styles looked like. since the 1991 my uncle has had every cobra svt has done. and i have gotten to ride/drive all of them. he played a huge part in my love for mustangs. and when i see him these days he always throws me the keys to his 525rwhp termie.
but now i have a one to that he likes to take out when we are at my grandparents and show me how to drive it. always wanted one but didnt get my first one till i was 19yrs (1999). my dad had bought the other two cars before then and helped my out by paying the insurance on the 1996 v6 i had just bought. kept that for about a yr and then the head gasket popped right before i was going off to a 4 yr college(had already done 2 yrs at a community college). so my dad bought me a 2001 ford escort zx2. fun little car but not a mustang. i kept that car for the next 3 yrs. then w/in 6-8 months of graduating i was 25 and my mom and dad always told me that when i start paying for my own cars i can buy whatever i want. insurance dropped in half when i turned 25 and i was looking for new cars. and what did i get? you know it.
a 2006 mustang v6, was one of the happiest days of my life. had my dream car again. kept that one for 15 months and got bored with the power so i decided to trade up. went out and found a torch red with black cloth interior 2007 gt. kept that another 15 months and then traded for the 2008 gt i have now. my grandfather couldnt believe i had another one when he saw me at christmas when he saw my 2007 on labor day weekend when i was in town to get my gf off the coast of lousiana and away from the hurricane. but i think i am done trading for a little while, or at least until they put 400 hp in a stock mustang. which hopefully will be soon. i have met a lot of other mustang drivers and we all have one thing in common our love for mustangs and can talk cars for hours. and because of people, like you guys on here, i will be a mustang person probably till the day i die. will always have one in the garage.
Last edited by shoeys08dkcandygt; 02-17-2009 at 08:57 AM.
02-17-2009, 09:15 AM
#10
5th Gear Member
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: MD
Posts: 2,083
Well, I guess I'm really the old man in group. I got the bug as a junior in high school in 1965 when my gym teacher bought a black on black fastback. I didn't get my first one until 1974 when I leased a red v6. Then as most, I had to give it up when I got married. My next one was and still is a 2003 dark shadow Grey v6. I loved to old body style. Some asked why a v6 instead of the GT. Well, call it intuition if you want. Something just told me to get it. Well, I'm glad I listened to that little voice. I bought the 06 GT and have been grinning ever since. Like many of you, I have personalized it and made it my own unique Mustang. Tonight, I have a date with a beautiful lady who approached me yesterday and told me she liked my car. Need any more reasons to own a Mustang?