Next Redesign Year?
#12
#15
Ford could build a lightweight Mustang saddled with a 400 hp V8. Problem is......such a car would likely cost close to 40K, and that's before options. The reason cars like the new Camaro, Challenger, and Mustang are bigger/heavier is because the automakers are trying to go the cheapest route possible to put these cars together. Afterall, that's the hallmark of the muscle/pony car.......cheap performance. Now, when you start trying to make a brand new small platform with all the necessary lightweight and strong (but very expensive) materials....that's when you start making such a car alot more expensive. Cars like the Fox platform were able to be made lightweight because they didn't have to meet the stringent safety regs that modern day cars have to. So you either use cheap (but heavy) steel.......or lightweight (but expensive) stuff like aluminum or CF.
So it comes down to this: are you really ready to have to pay almost 40K for a smaller, lighter weight Mustang that used to cost you 28-29K?
So it comes down to this: are you really ready to have to pay almost 40K for a smaller, lighter weight Mustang that used to cost you 28-29K?
#17
Why can't they make a fiberglass mustang just once like corvettes do with every single car. Can you imagine that? Yes expensive but poopie wouldn't you like to see the stang out run the car just once?
#18
I was just reading the report on the development of the new 5.0 engine, and it's just amazing to me how products such as this are "massaged" into greater and greater efficiency. The manner in which ideas are constantly transformed into improvements....pretty cool to watch the advancements over the years.....
#19
So yea, producing a smaller car might be theoretically cheaper in terms of less materials used, but producing that same car to handle a powerful V8 tends to reverse all those advantages.
Besides all this, we have to consider that the Big 3 are currently using shared platforms to produce their new pony rides. It may be a while before we see any of them spend the dough and R+D to develop a new smaller platform just for their musclebound joy rides. But regardless, I don't expect either the Camaro, Mustang, or Challenger to get smaller and lighter anytime soon.
#20
smaller lighter version doubt it... it seems every car gets heavier and heavier each year... people just want more out of each car plus safety issues. The true question is how much longer will cars under 30mpg be able to live with the government cracking down on fuel economy...