My GT350R will likely be my last Ford car.

[cosmo]

I'll say that the people who aren't complaining regarding the quality likely haven't had a higher quality car, and therefor don't know what it's like to actually drive a vehicle that has no rattles or squeaks except the ones from the engine/trans, and have never taken the time to detail their own vehicle which has nice panel gaps and fitment.


It's a situation of you don't know what you don't have. Which works fine... until you own a vehicle that makes you rethink that or begin to notice and appreciate it in other vehicles.

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[Minn19]

I wish it was just panel gaps etc that were the only quality issues. I brought my car to my detailer a few days after I bought it and they thought it was in an accident and repaired poorly. No joke they called me all serious and I just said nope, just :ford:.

It is still the most fun overall I've ever had driving a car day in day out, but as previous poster said it would be nice if the Walmart style race to the bottom businesses seem to be doing in both quality and CS would turn around someday.

 

[BmacIL]

I'll say that the people who aren't complaining regarding the quality likely haven't had a higher quality car, and therefor don't know what it's like to actually drive a vehicle that has no rattles or squeaks except the ones from the engine/trans, and have never taken the time to detail their own vehicle which has nice panel gaps and fitment.


It's a situation of you don't know what you don't have. Which works fine... until you own a vehicle that makes you rethink that or begin to notice and appreciate it in other vehicles.

Excellent judgment of other people without knowing anything about them, or in this case, what they've owned and the quality of those things. :tsk:

 

[IMDNS]

The drive is good.

The build quality is crap. This is my first American car and the interior quality is eye-opening bad. After 5000 kms, interior panels sound like they will fall off at 6000 rpm +.
No excuse for this level of quality.

"Hey you paid for the performance, you didn't pay us to tight things up and paint properly." -- Does this sound right to you? A $20K VW Golf feels better built than this.

I still have mine only because it drives good and... my wife doesn't want to sit in it.

 

[DrumReaper]

I wish it was just panel gaps etc that were the only quality issues. I brought my car to my detailer a few days after I bought it and they thought it was in an accident and repaired poorly. No joke they called me all serious and I just said nope, just :ford:.

It is still the most fun overall I've ever had driving a car day in day out, but as previous poster said it would be nice if the Walmart style race to the bottom businesses seem to be doing in both quality and CS would turn around someday.

This is sort of what I meant when I said Ford’s problems are more than skin deep.

Dealerships and service departments should know how to address their product... nope, not Ford. On the whole, the dealership/service experience is subpar, and that’s pathetic. To produce a product your service personnel can’t even address properly is terrible planning.

 

[Minn19]

This is sort of what I meant when I said Ford’s problems are more than skin deep.

Dealerships and service departments should know how to address their product... nope, not Ford. On the whole, the dealership/service experience is subpar, and that’s pathetic. To produce a product your service personnel can’t even address properly is terrible planning.

I'm very lucky to have a competent service department. But, I know many have serious issues with a lot of others ones. Also, if 2-3 people left my dealership I'd probably be in the same boat as many others here.

 

[cosmo]

Excellent judgment of other people without knowing anything about them, or in this case, what they've owned and the quality of those things. :tsk:

What are you talking about? I prefaced my statement with "likely", meaning that some might not be bothered by the quality, or have experienced a higher quality vehicle and can understand the cost difference is due to the quality hit when going to the Mustang.

But the mustang cannot be compared to something like a Porsche, or higher level Benz. You can drive a 10 year old Porsche and it will still be put together better than a lightly used Mustang. Let alone a 10 year old S197 chassis (with the classic dashboard flapping apart during wheel hop).

 

[300blackout]

Maybe potential new owners should look into lease options for 3 years, then decide whether or not to keep it after 3 years. Any problems (blown engines, AC issues) should be known by then.

 

[madlag]

I'll say that the people who aren't complaining regarding the quality likely haven't had a higher quality car, and therefor don't know what it's like to actually drive a vehicle that has no rattles or squeaks except the ones from the engine/trans, and have never taken the time to detail their own vehicle which has nice panel gaps and fitment.


It's a situation of you don't know what you don't have. Which works fine... until you own a vehicle that makes you rethink that or begin to notice and appreciate it in other vehicles.

Thats certainly not the case for me.

 

[Hack]

I have a different take on this. I'm 73 and leased my GT350 for 5 years. Its a last hurrah for me. I have always liked fast cars that stand out also looking fast. I don't race mine. I do feel when your paying out (60,000+ for a car, in my case will be close to 40,000+ and I will give it back in 5 years) that cosmetically it shouldn't easily show and have all the imperfections the GT350 and some other brand vehicles have now a days. Thats a heck of a lot of money to just sit back and say oh well thats how cars are made any more. I have a 2005 Buick Century for my beater car and the panel fitment is all but flawless. Our country needs to get back to quality merchandise being made and the consumer needs to except no less just like it used to be. Vehicles used to go through a quality control check at the end of assembly and if a flaw sent back. Now they just produce them as fast as they can and let the dealerships deal with the flaws under warranty. Thats wrong!

I don't think you remember what cars used to be like and how the panels used to fit on cars. Maybe I only owned the type of cars with crappier panel fit. I certainly never owned or wanted to own anything Buick has made for the last 30+ years. Other than the rear bumper on the GT350, the rest of the panels seem great to me.

I'll say that the people who aren't complaining regarding the quality likely haven't had a higher quality car, and therefor don't know what it's like to actually drive a vehicle that has no rattles or squeaks except the ones from the engine/trans, and have never taken the time to detail their own vehicle which has nice panel gaps and fitment.


It's a situation of you don't know what you don't have. Which works fine... until you own a vehicle that makes you rethink that or begin to notice and appreciate it in other vehicles.

That is probably true. I have never purchased a luxury vehicle and I probably never will. I have driven and looked at the higher quality stuff, though. What I have found is that - yes the panels fit a lot better on a Porsche, but the performance enjoyment isn't there for me.

I think Porsche people either have a ton of money to waste, or they care more about prestige than performance. I have to admit if I had a couple hundred thousand dollars burning a hole in my pocket I might consider a Porsche more seriously.

This is sort of what I meant when I said Ford’s problems are more than skin deep.

Dealerships and service departments should know how to address their product... nope, not Ford. On the whole, the dealership/service experience is subpar, and that’s pathetic. To produce a product your service personnel can’t even address properly is terrible planning.

I do 100% agree that the dealers are inadequate. I tend to have high standards and I haven't owned a variety of other cars to know how Ford dealerships compare to other brands, but I have been dissatisfied with my local Ford dealerships on several occasions.

But the mustang cannot be compared to something like a Porsche, or higher level Benz. You can drive a 10 year old Porsche and it will still be put together better than a lightly used Mustang. Let alone a 10 year old S197 chassis (with the classic dashboard flapping apart during wheel hop).

True, for a 10 year old Porsche that makes 250 hp and costs as much as a GT350 does new, you get better panel fitment. They also handle great. But the flat six doesn't sound very good compared to a V8 and the used 10 year old Porsche will be way too hooked up (not fun to drive).

So, I still think it's a matter of priorities. Is a fun to drive car more important to you or is it more important that the panel gaps are perfect?

 

[cosmo]

Thats certainly not the case for me.

And I still own mine, and will likely get a 2019 as the new 718 GTS doesn't have the soul/experience similar to the GT350. It's a trade-off, and it obviously affects others (like OP, and another few I've seen here) more than others.

But just because I own one and will likely be purchasing another doesn't mean I don't shake my head everytime it squeaks/creaks, or I have to push the glued fender fare back on, or use a toothbrush to get the wax out of the massive gap in the rear fender.

 

[Minn19]

Maybe potential new owners should look into lease options for 3 years, then decide whether or not to keep it after 3 years. Any problems (blown engines, AC issues) should be known by then.

Too expensive on this car, they don't lease well. You are far better off just buying/selling the traditional way.

 

[DrumReaper]

For the record, and especially for [MENTION=9260]stanglife[/MENTION] since he thinks he personally knows my time period of contentment, at this point I don’t plan to part with my R, I just don’t plan to purchase another Ford car unless they make consider quality changes, which is likely a pipe dream given Ford’s current vision. The P car will be my next high performance experience.

I would love to go in a partnership with anyone willing to open a Ford dealership and show America how a Ford dealership/service experience can be absolutely a good experience by not following the dogma of the current Ford dealership experience.

 

[300blackout]

Too expensive on this car, they don't lease well. You are far better off just buying/selling the traditional way.

Thank you.

 

[johnny1]

Depending on the lease time and if you intend to keep car or sell it. In my case it is perfect. I have a 5 year lease and don't intend to keep or sell car. Just give it back and move on. And my payment is considerably less than if were buying it. I got a good deal before it raised in price on a 36,000/5 yr. premium Ford warranty from Zeigler ($620.00) and I won't be any where near mileage of 36.000 by then so I'm pretty well covered till time to give car back.

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