GT350 Owner: Have you driven the Mach 1? Please provide your comparison to GT350

[JAJ]

would this also explain why the GT350/R recommended track setup incorporates negative toe for the front, while the Mach 1 utilizes positive toe in front?

Well, it depends on which GT350 year you look at - some have toe in and some have toe out for the track settings. I, and many others, treat the settings in the manual as recommended starting points. We tune from there with tire temps and handling characteristics to get settings that work for us, our cars and the tracks we run. I expect the same is true for the Mach 1. Start with the settings in the book and refine from there.

The point that the C&D article drives home is that there's no way to know what Ford did under the covers in the design - some parts are clearly straight out of the GT350 and others look like GT350 parts but they've been tweaked to meet Ford's goals. Nowhere in the car is this more likely to be true than in the ABS/AdvanceTrac, VDM and EPAS tuning.

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[VIPR01]

I thought the 2018+ (GTs) were making closer to 500 hp....unless you were talking about at the wheels.

At the wheel, The Mach 1 is just a dressed up 5.0. Nothing special but the price.

 

[VIPR01]

What SHOULD be compared to the GT350 in your opinion?

And (should we assume you are a GT350 owner), have you driven a Mach 1 like the thread title asks?

Definitely not the Mach 1, I could care less what you assume-Yes & Yes! Actually, almost purchased one - but realized real quick it’s just a 5.0. Nothin Special

 

[Mikepol2]

OK so we’re 5 pages deep into this thread and looks like there really hasn’t been anyone with experience driving both a M1 HP and a GT350…. Unfollowing.

 

[Mikepol2]

Definitely not the Mach 1, I could care less what you assume-Yes & Yes! Actually, almost purchased one - but realized real quick it’s just a 5.0. Nothin Special

What a surprise. Although you would have had to drive a Mach HP to be comparable to a GT350 with more similar tires and tire sizes. OK so you were just going for a chuckle then with your post I guess if you’re evading answering my question.

 

[svttim]

OK, so I know one of the drivers who drives for Ford at events and who has driven both, Disclaimer here, I did not drive and he is also a 350 owner. His experience was a road course and was a TP M1. He said both cars were comparable with the M1 having more low end but, the GT350 was still faster. He liked both cars. Pretty much as most of us expected

 

[348SStb]

OK, so I know one of the drivers who drives for Ford at events and who has driven both, Disclaimer here, I did not drive and he is also a 350 owner. His experience was a road course and was a TP M1. He said both cars were comparable with the M1 having more low end but, the GT350 was still faster. He liked both cars. Pretty much as most of us expected

What is a TP Mach 1? Sorry, I am not well trained in acronyms.

 

[5.2 liters of democracy]

What is a TP Mach 1? Sorry, I am not well trained in acronyms.

Pretty sure he meant HP or Handling Package. TP is (I assume) Track Package which means the same thing, it's just the term for an option on the earlier GT350s.

 

[348SStb]

Pretty sure he meant HP or Handling Package. TP is (I assume) Track Package which means the same thing, it's just the term for an option on the earlier GT350s.

Would be easier just to spell things out but I know on the Internet it’s cool to use abbreviations

 

[VIPR01]

What a surprise. Although you would have had to drive a Mach HP to be comparable to a GT350 with more similar tires and tire sizes. OK so you were just going for a chuckle then with your post I guess if you’re evading answering my question.

The concept the Mach 1 is anything other than a hyped up 5.0 with a great transmission absolutely makes me laugh for 60k. To answer your question on what a 350 should be compared to depends on how deep your pockets are right? Do you get a Fighter Pilot jacket with the purchase of a Mach 1 & some sweet patches…. Perfect for the Top Gun premiere Mav

 

[svttim]

Would be easier just to spell things out but I know on the Internet it’s cool to use abbreviations

Sorry, was trying to be the cool kid. ;) (not really) Meant Track package or handling package as they now call them.

 

[Tribefan]

While I get that the Mach 1 borrows a number of parts from the GT350 and some from the GT500, I don't understand why people are trying to directly compare the Mach 1 to the 350. The Mach 1 should be looked at as an evolution of the Bullitt/PP2 in that it's currently the best possible version of a GT-based Mustang, I would say. It wasn't designed to replace the 350. I would argue that the GT500 is the GT350's replacement as the top Mustang in the lineup. I get that it's not a direct comparison due to the Predator vs the Voodoo and manual vs DCT transmission, but it IS a direct replacement in terms of being the new Mustang halo car.

For those that do want to compare the Mach 1 vs the GT350, I would say the only really fair way to compare the two is to compare a 2019-2020 GT350 vs the Mach 1 manual transmission with the handling package. That way they're both equipped with the same transmission and same Cup 2 tires, which would make the differences in the two cars more apparent by eliminating as many differences as possible. With the same type and size tires on the cars, it would level out some of the handling, steering and responsiveness concerns.

I say all of the above as someone who is VERY interested in a Mach 1...

 

[Wildcardfox]

While I get that the Mach 1 borrows a number of parts from the GT350 and some from the GT500, I don't understand why people are trying to directly compare the Mach 1 to the 350. The Mach 1 should be looked at as an evolution of the Bullitt/PP2 in that it's currently the best possible version of a GT-based Mustang, I would say. It wasn't designed to replace the 350. I would argue that the GT500 is the GT350's replacement as the top Mustang in the lineup. I get that it's not a direct comparison due to the Predator vs the Voodoo and manual vs DCT transmission, but it IS a direct replacement in terms of being the new Mustang halo car.

For those that do want to compare the Mach 1 vs the GT350, I would say the only really fair way to compare the two is to compare a 2019-2020 GT350 vs the Mach 1 manual transmission with the handling package. That way they're both equipped with the same transmission and same Cup 2 tires, which would make the differences in the two cars more apparent by eliminating as many differences as possible. With the same type and size tires on the cars, it would level out some of the handling, steering and responsiveness concerns.

I say all of the above as someone who is VERY interested in a Mach 1...

good analysis.

Only thing I would add is that both cars originate from two different and separate parts of Ford Motor Company: GT350 is a Ford Performance (FP) Product (Red window sticker); Mach 1 and the discontinued PP2 and Bullitt are from Team Mustang or the overall Mustang design team that make the standard Mustang variants (green window sticker). After FP does their halo variant, Mustang tram gets to make a spicer model that inherits some parts and is aimed at the enthusiast market rather than an outright track focused market (however the Mach 1 with the Cup 2’s deviates as it is aimed at a person who wants to go to the track).

The latter, Mustang team, doesn’t get the freedom or as much freedom as making complete new versions and that’s why they get to grab parts from other cars—Voodoo intake, Cup 2 tires from the GT350R (PP2/Mach 1 with Track/Handling Package), and other associating bits.

 

[stanglife]

Again, it's just purchase confirmation, IMO. Some future M1 owners want to think they got a great deal and that their car is as good or better than this or that. Trolling and arguing the point is useless and IMO, unwarranted. Since most of us are bench racing here - I think the M1 will be a pretty good value. Remember, ALL cars are getting more expensive...not just due to covid but in general...so I'm not going to call it overpriced. The Coyote is a pretty solid motor and when you put the tremec behind it along with all the coolers are presumably specific springs and suspension programming...it's going to make for a fun to drive car and something that should be reliable on the track. I prefer the 350 for the Voodoo oddities and the overall exoticness of the car but I can see someone enjoying the slightly less exotic and concerning M1. It's going to be a great car but slightly different than the 350...not sure why we cant just let this roll without all the fuss.

 

[348SStb]

Again, it's just purchase confirmation, IMO. Some future M1 owners want to think they got a great deal and that their car is as good or better than this or that. Trolling and arguing the point is useless and IMO, unwarranted. Since most of us are bench racing here - I think the M1 will be a pretty good value. Remember, ALL cars are getting more expensive...not just due to covid but in general...so I'm not going to call it overpriced. The Coyote is a pretty solid motor and when you put the tremec behind it along with all the coolers are presumably specific springs and suspension programming...it's going to make for a fun to drive car and something that should be reliable on the track. I prefer the 350 for the Voodoo oddities and the overall exoticness of the car but I can see someone enjoying the slightly less exotic and concerning M1. It's going to be a great car but slightly different than the 350...not sure why we cant just let this roll without all the fuss.

Agree.

I just asked for a comparison against the benchmark, which is the 350. I didn’t get into philosophy or bashing. It’s like saying how does The Godfather 3 compare to The Godfather 1-2? Or how does Casino compare to Goodfellas? We are just comparing something. The “how dare you compare” stuff is a waste of everyone’s time and bandwidth on this site. God never made a law that decided (a) what apples to apples is in this case, and (b) that every comparison needs to be apples to apples.

Those who talk the most about the Mach 1 have tended to be the ones who have driven it the least

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