CALIFORNIA SPECIAL S550 Mustang Thread

[Bikeman315]

Hey y'all,

I have '17 GT/CS and y'all no doubt know that '15 & '17 did not come with them side scoops unlike '18 and up. Anyway, I been considering adding them for awhile now, but can't decide whether I should go for it or not. Ford sell them for $160 prepainted.

I really appreciate your opinion and thoughts as I can't make up my mind.

As a purist I love my 19’ because it has more 68’ elements than the 16/17’. One of those are the side scoops. I know they are fake but that doesn’t matter to me. IMHO, it’s not really a CS without them. But as Aaron said, it’s your call. Good luck.

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[Crew4991]

Hey y'all,

I have '17 GT/CS and y'all no doubt know that '15 & '17 did not come with them side scoops unlike '18 and up. Anyway, I been considering adding them for awhile now, but can't decide whether I should go for it or not. Ford sell them for $160 prepainted.

I really appreciate your opinion and thoughts as I can't make up my mind.

Go without in my opinion.
The vents look fine but are fake. They came on the 2019+ refreshed GT/CS models but 16 & 17 did not have them. Make the car the way you want your ride to look. I think the side looks much cleaner without the vents.

 

[Crew4991]

As a purist I love my 19’ because it has more 68’ elements than the 16/17’. One of those are the side scoops. I know they are fake but that doesn’t matter to me. IMHO, it’s not really a CS without them. But as Aaron said, it’s your call. Good luck.

Wait a sec @Bikeman315, we got hood turn signals on our 16 models which is a throwback to 67/68 so that should make up for not having a fake vent stuck to the side!!!
I agree 17 is slacking though...

 

[Jaymar]

Mine are just magnets for rock chips, does anybody else have that problem?

 

[dstanky]

Mine are just magnets for rock chips, does anybody else have that problem?

I did PPF on mine - for this exact reason

 

[CrazyHippie]

Hey y'all,

I have '17 GT/CS and y'all no doubt know that '15 & '17 did not come with them side scoops unlike '18 and up. Anyway, I been considering adding them for awhile now, but can't decide whether I should go for it or not. Ford sell them for $160 prepainted.

I really appreciate your opinion and thoughts as I can't make up my mind.

The OG CS had side scoops. They are a signature feature for the model. Your call - it's a great car either way.

 

[Bikeman315]

Wait a sec @Bikeman315, we got hood turn signals on our 16 models which is a throwback to 67/68 so that should make up for not having a fake vent stuck to the side!!!
I agree 17 is slacking though...

You are 100% correct. I would have loved to have had those. Also the spoiler and mirror caps in black. Not on the 68’ but I thought they were really cool.

 

[Pucklord]

I’d like to thank y'all for being helpful. Now I'm leaning toward having them just to have that unique OG CS style.

Saw a couple of pictures of the '23 CS and it has a similar look to the '16 and '17 like the lower stripe decals and the wheels plus the side scoops and it looks very nice.

Thanks for the heads up @dstanky, will definitely have them PPF

 

[Crew4991]

I’d like to thank y'all for being helpful. Now I'm leaning toward having them just to have that unique OG CS style.

Saw a couple of pictures of the '23 CS and it has a similar look to the '16 and '17 like the lower stripe decals and the wheels plus the side scoops and it looks very nice.

Thanks for the heads up @dstanky, will definitely have them PPF

You can't go wrong either way!
Glad you figured out what you want to do. These cars are fantastic vehicles.

 

[Bikeman315]

So not a Mustang but certainly a very, very California Special. This was on the floor at my wife's Volvo dealer today. It's a 2016 and can be had for a measly $115K

 

[MAGS1]

So not a Mustang but certainly a very, very California Special. This was on the floor at my wife's Volvo dealer today. It's a 2016 and can be had for a measly $115K

Actually not a terrible price to get into a prancing horse. You best not modify it though, that will get you the ban hammer from Ferrari real quick

 

[Crew4991]

So not a Mustang but certainly a very, very California Special. This was on the floor at my wife's Volvo dealer today. It's a 2016 and can be had for a measly $115K

Actually not a terrible price to get into a prancing horse. You best not modify it though, that will get you the ban hammer from Ferrari real quick

Certainly special and beautiful, but all yours @Bikeman315 Don’t need another overpriced temperamental Italian. Beware, you will be on a first name basis with your Ferrari mechanic with that. I like to drive my “California” with peace of mind that when I pull over to the side of the road, it is to snap a cool landscape photo and not check what broke in the engine bay.

 

[BEERCHAMP]

Here are some updated pics of my '19 GT/CS

 

[GilmourD]

New to the GT/CS club here! Just got my '16 in Ruby Red last Monday to replace my zero options 300a '15 GT that got totalled in February.

I'm in the process of straightening a few things out with it, like the fact that one of the previous owners put Eibach Sportline springs in but kept the stock shocks and struts. Ordered Koni STR.T's, but apparently American Muscle ships the "kit" separately and FedEx destroyed the not-meant-for-shipping boxes, so now I'm getting them replaced. some He also seems to have hired Stevie Wonder to weld some stuff in the exhaust that I was told was a Roush X-pipe and axelback but doesn't have anything embossed on it, no branding or part numbers anywhere from front to back. Roush via Temu? I did throw on a new shift knob, which was fortunately straight forward.

As you can see, this has been a "very straight forward" process... /sarcasm

Anywho, one thing a previous owner did was remove the badges. I'm not terribly bothered by the trunklid badge being gone but I'd really love to get the tribar pony properly back on the grille. I know you can get the pony itself as a replacement part but not the mounting bracket (I believe somebody called it a "plinthe" somewhere). Why are these things like hen's teeth?

I've already messaged @CMEGTCS (as a long shot since it seems he hasn't been on since December) hoping he might still have the one he removed in '16 (quoted below) and would be willing to sell it, but... Just in case, anybody else have theirs just kicking around?

Heck, if I REALLY find this to be impossible, I have a 3D printer... Might have to just make my own, but I'd need some help with getting proper dimensions.

Haven't had the opportunity to do a full-on photoshoot due to our lovely New Jersey weather right now, but I've got a couple snaps.

Front emblem removal

It is held on with 3 nuts that self thread onto the plastic studs. The nuts are 13mm. I used a 1/4 " ratchet. I does take some real wiggling and the arm marks take a while to go away. Both my wife and I had bruises afterward. I think it's well worth it !

 

[Cali Redbone]

Perfect

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