An open letter to Ford
04-20-2011, 08:33 PM
#1
2nd Gear Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Washington
Posts: 192
An open letter to Ford
DISCLAIMER: I love my Mustang. …I really really love my Mustang.
Dear Ford,
As we all know, you did so many great things with the 2011+ Mustang, it’s hard to know where to start. You and your team did a remarkable job to not only revive the previously anemic v6, but breathe new life into the flagship V8. Job well done. But us enthusiasts are an odd bunch. We like to complain, even though we are the biggest fans of your product. So take these for what they are; suggestions from a proud Mustang owner who apparently had too much time on his hands. In your boardroom, just call it “Ford’s Continual Improvement Program” or something like that. Here are some things you might want to address, in no particular order
1. Capless gas tank. Put a bunch of engineering marvels together, and this is what you come up with? Open the door and smell. Yep, that’s gas. Not quite as air-tight as you think, huh. My lawn mower holds a better seal than that. I’m afraid this will (or should) be relegated to the pile of automotive fads, such as automatic seatbelts.
2. No locking door on gas tank door. Concerns? See point #1.
3. Unneeded oil-vapors back in through the intake. Proof? See the many pictures on the net of people who bought catch cans (adding me to the list). You might say, “all of our motors do that.” Well, fine, but that is more of an indictment than a reason. The brain-power it took to make that motor as fantastic as it is, and you chose not to throw a little catch to stop the oil going back in? Silly.
4. Speedo on the left instead of the right. Call me odd, but it is a little tough to see what your current speed is. …I think intuitively it should be on the right. I heard rumors it was on the right, way back in 2010. Hmm…
5. Steering wheel remote controls. I love the steering wheel, I really do. The grip is superb, and the leather is classy. But the buttons for radio, sync, and cruise control settings are not intuitive to say the least. I have to look at them almost every single time. Good luck using them in the dark. Ford, your half-brother Mazda has done this pretty well in the past. So has Jeep. Theirs felt like you could pilot a jet without ever looking down.
6. Factory mufflers. So close, yet so far away. I think the only people who love the factory mufflers are Borla, Magnaflow, Bassani, etc. who sell their aftermarket goods. I really love my Borla Touring axlebacks, and in hindsight, wouldn’t give ‘em back for anything, but you produced a quality product that deserved just a bit more sound. As one person put it when asked “how’s the exhaust note on the factory muffler’s?” The answer was “what note? …there is none.” Just think how many people test driving one would love to hear just a little bit more sound.
7. As a famous wheel designer once said, “stance is everything.” You didn’t do poorly on this, but be really careful. Position of wheels, size of wheels, tires, wheel-wells, are so very important. A guy can make a ’72 Plymouth Station Wagon kinda cool with the right set of Cragers, but conversely, you could make your most expensive Mustang look hideous if the wheel size and selection isn’t right. Remember to pay attention to that on your bread-n-butter V6’s.
8. Tranny. While I haven’t experienced the issues some of the others have, you might want to look into it. You’re on the right track. It just sounds like you need to refine a few things a bit.
9. Speaking of transmissions, if you want to make a gear hard to get into, make it reverse. Damn near scared me silly when I had a friend get in the driver’s seat, and we went south instead of north. More embarrassing is that I’ve managed to do it once myself. I’ve had other, much more Euro-snobbish vehicles with reverse in the same position, and I never managed to do that before.
10. Tail end. While, I do admit, that the often lauded rear end does eventually grow on you, and make the older tail end look antiquated, that doesn’t mean you can’t tidy it up a bit. If my skills at photoshop were worth a penny, I’d show you. But just take a profile picture of the car, and extra piece of scrap paper, and start covering it up/slicing off the end a bit, shaving it down more vertical. There is just too much overhang, and it slopes out the wrong direction.
Thank you for reading.
- Sketchy
Dear Ford,
As we all know, you did so many great things with the 2011+ Mustang, it’s hard to know where to start. You and your team did a remarkable job to not only revive the previously anemic v6, but breathe new life into the flagship V8. Job well done. But us enthusiasts are an odd bunch. We like to complain, even though we are the biggest fans of your product. So take these for what they are; suggestions from a proud Mustang owner who apparently had too much time on his hands. In your boardroom, just call it “Ford’s Continual Improvement Program” or something like that. Here are some things you might want to address, in no particular order
1. Capless gas tank. Put a bunch of engineering marvels together, and this is what you come up with? Open the door and smell. Yep, that’s gas. Not quite as air-tight as you think, huh. My lawn mower holds a better seal than that. I’m afraid this will (or should) be relegated to the pile of automotive fads, such as automatic seatbelts.
2. No locking door on gas tank door. Concerns? See point #1.
3. Unneeded oil-vapors back in through the intake. Proof? See the many pictures on the net of people who bought catch cans (adding me to the list). You might say, “all of our motors do that.” Well, fine, but that is more of an indictment than a reason. The brain-power it took to make that motor as fantastic as it is, and you chose not to throw a little catch to stop the oil going back in? Silly.
4. Speedo on the left instead of the right. Call me odd, but it is a little tough to see what your current speed is. …I think intuitively it should be on the right. I heard rumors it was on the right, way back in 2010. Hmm…
5. Steering wheel remote controls. I love the steering wheel, I really do. The grip is superb, and the leather is classy. But the buttons for radio, sync, and cruise control settings are not intuitive to say the least. I have to look at them almost every single time. Good luck using them in the dark. Ford, your half-brother Mazda has done this pretty well in the past. So has Jeep. Theirs felt like you could pilot a jet without ever looking down.
6. Factory mufflers. So close, yet so far away. I think the only people who love the factory mufflers are Borla, Magnaflow, Bassani, etc. who sell their aftermarket goods. I really love my Borla Touring axlebacks, and in hindsight, wouldn’t give ‘em back for anything, but you produced a quality product that deserved just a bit more sound. As one person put it when asked “how’s the exhaust note on the factory muffler’s?” The answer was “what note? …there is none.” Just think how many people test driving one would love to hear just a little bit more sound.
7. As a famous wheel designer once said, “stance is everything.” You didn’t do poorly on this, but be really careful. Position of wheels, size of wheels, tires, wheel-wells, are so very important. A guy can make a ’72 Plymouth Station Wagon kinda cool with the right set of Cragers, but conversely, you could make your most expensive Mustang look hideous if the wheel size and selection isn’t right. Remember to pay attention to that on your bread-n-butter V6’s.
8. Tranny. While I haven’t experienced the issues some of the others have, you might want to look into it. You’re on the right track. It just sounds like you need to refine a few things a bit.
9. Speaking of transmissions, if you want to make a gear hard to get into, make it reverse. Damn near scared me silly when I had a friend get in the driver’s seat, and we went south instead of north. More embarrassing is that I’ve managed to do it once myself. I’ve had other, much more Euro-snobbish vehicles with reverse in the same position, and I never managed to do that before.
10. Tail end. While, I do admit, that the often lauded rear end does eventually grow on you, and make the older tail end look antiquated, that doesn’t mean you can’t tidy it up a bit. If my skills at photoshop were worth a penny, I’d show you. But just take a profile picture of the car, and extra piece of scrap paper, and start covering it up/slicing off the end a bit, shaving it down more vertical. There is just too much overhang, and it slopes out the wrong direction.
Thank you for reading.
- Sketchy
04-21-2011, 01:27 AM
#2
2nd Gear Member
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: AL
Posts: 342
1. Capless gas tank. Put a bunch of engineering marvels together, and this is what you come up with? Open the door and smell. Yep, that’s gas. Not quite as air-tight as you think, huh. My lawn mower holds a better seal than that. I’m afraid this will (or should) be relegated to the pile of automotive fads, such as automatic seatbelts.
2. No locking door on gas tank door. Concerns? See point #1.
Rest easy, the filler neck is equipped with an anti-siphon feature that prevents people from stealing your gas. Did you think they hadn't thought of that?
4. Speedo on the left instead of the right. Call me odd, but it is a little tough to see what your current speed is. …I think intuitively it should be on the right. I heard rumors it was on the right, way back in 2010. Hmm…
5. Steering wheel remote controls. I love the steering wheel, I really do. The grip is superb, and the leather is classy. But the buttons for radio, sync, and cruise control settings are not intuitive to say the least. I have to look at them almost every single time. Good luck using them in the dark. Ford, your half-brother Mazda has done this pretty well in the past. So has Jeep. Theirs felt like you could pilot a jet without ever looking down.
6. Factory mufflers. So close, yet so far away. I think the only people who love the factory mufflers are Borla, Magnaflow, Bassani, etc. who sell their aftermarket goods. I really love my Borla Touring axlebacks, and in hindsight, wouldn’t give ‘em back for anything, but you produced a quality product that deserved just a bit more sound. As one person put it when asked “how’s the exhaust note on the factory muffler’s?” The answer was “what note? …there is none.” Just think how many people test driving one would love to hear just a little bit more sound.
7. As a famous wheel designer once said, “stance is everything.” You didn’t do poorly on this, but be really careful. Position of wheels, size of wheels, tires, wheel-wells, are so very important. A guy can make a ’72 Plymouth Station Wagon kinda cool with the right set of Cragers, but conversely, you could make your most expensive Mustang look hideous if the wheel size and selection isn’t right. Remember to pay attention to that on your bread-n-butter V6’s.
10. Tail end. While, I do admit, that the often lauded rear end does eventually grow on you, and make the older tail end look antiquated, that doesn’t mean you can’t tidy it up a bit. If my skills at photoshop were worth a penny, I’d show you. But just take a profile picture of the car, and extra piece of scrap paper, and start covering it up/slicing off the end a bit, shaving it down more vertical. There is just too much overhang, and it slopes out the wrong direction.
Last edited by Whitehorse10; 04-21-2011 at 04:20 AM.
04-21-2011, 04:26 AM
#3
2nd Gear Member
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: AL
Posts: 342
By the way, if you think it's a chore to check your speedometer now try one of these.
That is what my very first Mustang had.
We've practically got it made by comparison. But still, I never had a problem checking my speed. And, . . . I sure do miss my 65.
That is what my very first Mustang had.
We've practically got it made by comparison. But still, I never had a problem checking my speed. And, . . . I sure do miss my 65.
04-21-2011, 09:54 AM
#5
3rd Gear Member
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: VA
Posts: 720
I could somewhat agree with #7 and 10. For 7, I think it is just a way for them to keep the OTD price as low as possible. Part of the reason I wanted to go with a base premium package was I knew I would eventually replace wheels and tires so why pay for a package if the money would go to waste.
As for #10, not exactly sure why the car is up so high. I think Ford could have easily lowered and leveled the car an inch while still preserving the ride it has now.
As for #10, not exactly sure why the car is up so high. I think Ford could have easily lowered and leveled the car an inch while still preserving the ride it has now.
04-21-2011, 10:02 AM
#6
2nd Gear Member
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: Quebec
Posts: 207
I agree with that statement. But I also admit it is hard to read the speedo because it's on the left side. And being in km/h our speed markers on the speedo are a lot closer together which makes it that much harder to get an accurate reading.
Last edited by Upsh1ft; 04-21-2011 at 10:04 AM.
