jesse1125

I was wondering what the pros and cons are from those who have the performance package?

I plan to order my car next year and am debating on whether I should add the performance package to the base model. This car will just be my DD and will not see a track. I like the bigger wheels, better rear end gear, better sway bars, springs and brakes.

So I want to see what others like and don't like about their performance package to see if it's worth getting. Thanks

jeremy813

I'm not an expert, but...

1. I don't like the bigger wheels/tires. They are a little too tall at 27.2", so you lose some of the gearing advantage. They are going to be replaced with 18's and 275/35/18's sometime in the future.
2. Not happy with the stock springs and shocks, they are getting replaced immediately.
3. Not happy with the stock brakes, the pads and fluid will be replaced soon. It feels really spongy also, so I guess I need to do the lines also?

So I guess the only thing I am keeping is the rear end, sway bars, and special traction control setting (probably will never use it). And I guess having the nicer wheels on standby is a good thing too.

I would say if you are leaving the car stock it's good, if you plan on modifying it might be better to just get the rear end and buy everything else aftermarket.

jeremy813

Also, the only regret I have is not getting the Recaros. I couldn't find a car with Recaros that I liked and didn't want to order a car.

It's only a $1600 (?) option, but if you try to buy the seats later, they are about $3000 and I am not sure if that includes rails or not.

The stock seat backs aren't terrible, but the bottoms are pretty flat and wide.

HoosierDaddy

If you plan to seriously track the car, you'd end up throwing most of it away. But you aren't so that doesn't rule it out.

The appearance changes (wheels, painted mirror covers) are a personal thing.

For the street, the brake changes are almost imperceptible. I guess if you drive up and down steep mountain roads with lots of braking, they may be an advantage.

The suspension changes are hard to quantify since the tires are wider, stiffer and have a lot more grip. Combined they make a HUGE difference in handling. Everyone has different wants and needs, but for me I really disliked the stock GT and V6 handling. So much that I was about to scratch Mustang off my list but the Performance Package or Brembo package transform the car. But many drivers don't corner hard enough to get any enjoyment from it

The downsides to the Brembo or Performance Package are that the extra stiffness definitely could be too harsh on bad roads and the lower profile tires could put the wheels at risk to pot holes. Roads are very good where I live so the Performance package was a no brainer for me. But I've visited and lived in places I would not want to drive a Performance package or Brembo car which would have meant not driving a Mustang at all since I didn't like the non-Brembo, non-Performance Package handling.

SkyWitit23

I have the performance package and i love it, when i wanna hook that **** it turns and really no body roll..From what i read and was told, it has GT suspension, brakes and i think the front and rear sway bar off the GT500.. I had a 2010 V6 4.0 base, when i bought this car i 100% wanted the performance package, night and day difference between this setup vs my old setup!

Siber Express

To me it was worth it, and on a Base model it would be even better if you didn't want to go out and buy new tires and wheels to get rid of the 17" tires and wheels.
And for the tires being 27.25 high, the stock tires on the GT, Pony Package and Mustang Club of America are 27.25, the performance package tires are 27.03, little smaller so better pick up.
My 2013 Performance Package stock does everything my 2010 that was lowered and was running 255/45 18s. It might have a little more nose dive but I will change out the struts and shocks to SRT.T Koni's later on but the rest will probable stay stock.
Plus it is a good looking Package

jeremy813

I have the exact same car, except for I had the dealer remove the tape stripe. Going to lower it this weekend with k springs and Koni STR. I will post pics when I am done.

Siber Express

I had the Koni SRT.T's on my 2010 along with Vogtland Springs, it was a .8/1.2 drop on it and was about perfect for me.

I am going to see how this does this weekend in the twisties, if I leave it stock it is easier to auto cross with it.

freyes

Sounds like you've already made up your mind. Let me tell you my experience with a 2011 V6. I decided to order the base suspension. Primarily because of finance cost. I wanted a car with a moderate monthly payment for three years. At first, I decided to upgrade the suspension with the FRPP handling pack. That was a big mistake. The front struts are very poor, springs are too stiff. The rear springs are too soft, the rear end of the car hopped whenever I made a sharp turn. I ended replacing the struts, shocks and springs for Koni yellows and Steeda sports, the linear version that only Sam Strano sells. The difference is like night and day. I have the Am Muscle Anthracite bullitts with Sumitomo tires. These are next to go, along with a big brake kit.

mjd77

I'm debating if I should go with the performance package myself. I'm thinking I might just get the V-6 premium and get bigger wheels. Here is a question maybe someone can answer...Is it just me or did Ford just jack up the price of the V-6 premium by around 1,500? A month or 2 ago when I was building them on the website, the V-6 premium that I had configured came out to 27,400 after everything. Now...looking at it today...the base price is now more than that!