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GT350 or GT ?

Wildcardfox

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Most on here do not track the car so that would not be a deal breaker. I drove a PP2 GT and loved it. Heated steering wheel, heated and cooled seats. Obviously compared to the 350 it felt much more toned down and civil (which isn’t completely true) but it was still a great test drive. Sitting in the interior doesn’t feel as special as the Shelby.

if you are going to be putting lots of miles on it, I’d say go GT. More creature comforts and less money up front.
The creature comforts are base on what’s included in the PP2. They can be optioned in many different ways. Mine is pretty much bare bones. No heated steering wheel, Recaros, not much more creature comforts than my 350R. Actually in some cases it has less amenities—doesn’t even have a garage door opener.
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Wildcardfox

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Here’s a further breakdown since I own both cars.

The PP2 is classified by Ford as an enthusiast car. It’s the hardest-core Mustang GT that you can get, but it is not meant to do an entire day of track driving, so it doesn’t have the Tremec nor the coolers to sustain constant lapping at a track. That said, it’s a phenomenal car. It has a very different character from the GT350. The PP2 has great low-end torque. It’s nimble, and with the Cup 2 tires that were borrowed from the GT350R’s front wheels, it has tremendous grip and is a very confidence inspiring car.

The biggest difference is the transmission. The Getrag MT-82 has evolved over the years, but it feels loose in comparison to the Tremec. It’s not as precise and you can feel that when you drive it. The redline of 7500 rpm is great compared to the coyote's old redline of 6500rpm, but it doesn’t feel as expansive as the 8200 rpm in the Voodoo engine.

You can daily drive this car without any worries of it hitting curbs or speed bumps. The 2019 PP2 has over 3 inches of additional ground clearance versus the GT350R. I don’t think that the tramlining is bad in the PP2. The suspension geometry is different in both cars and I find that the GT350R tramlines much more, but as long as you know this happens when the road gets rough, you have two hands on the wheel to catch it from wandering.

The biggest difference, in my opinion, is which car could you daily drive easier (if you can only afford one car)? For me, the answer would the PP2. Its low-end torque curve makes it feel like driving an automatic car in traffic—it just wants to move forward, whereas the high revving voodoo at rpm below 3,000 rpm has to be encouraged to move, so in traffic, you’re always dancing on the pedals. I don’t drive my GT350R every day. Both are amazing cars, and I purchased the PP2 a month before buying the 350R. If I could not have bought the GT350R, I would still own the PP2 and I would have been ecstatic with it as it is an amazing performance car that is a blast to drive.

To touch on the difference in character again, if you were to blindfold someone and put them in both cars, they would not be able to tell that the two are related. The changes in the 350 and 350R are so expansive that it literally has a completely different feel and experience. Oh, and in the PP2, I just drive it in Quiet mode. When I first got it, I would switch up the exhaust to Sport or Track mode, but after being in the 350R, those modes sound super quiet. The loudest exhaust mode in the PP2, Race, is about 10-20% louder than the GT350R in normal exhaust mode.

Both cars get looks. The stance of the PP2 aids to this, but the GT350R, gets looks and checked out by supercar owners. I was at The Thermal Club yesterday and all you get is attention, questions, and even pictures by owners of Porsche GT3RS, McLaren, BMW M4 GTS, and so on—it’s so rare and so revered and respected among the racing community that it’s always a hit. Some people don’t like the attention, I don’t mind it at all. It’s a cool car and people share the same admiration for the car that leads us to buy it. The PP2, for the most part, can disappear in the fray. But you can park the PP2 and leave it on the street and not worry about your carbon fiber wheels, etc.
 

thill444

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Wildcardfox, what an awesome write up. I’m guessing you may be one of the only people in the world who owns both a 350 and PP2!
 

Lorne34

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Here’s a further breakdown since I own both cars.

The PP2 is classified by Ford as an enthusiast car. It’s the hardest-core Mustang GT that you can get, but it is not meant to do an entire day of track driving, so it doesn’t have the Tremec nor the coolers to sustain constant lapping at a track. That said, it’s a phenomenal car. It has a very different character from the GT350. The PP2 has great low-end torque. It’s nimble, and with the Cup 2 tires that were borrowed from the GT350R’s front wheels, it has tremendous grip and is a very confidence inspiring car.

The biggest difference is the transmission. The Getrag MT-82 has evolved over the years, but it feels loose in comparison to the Tremec. It’s not as precise and you can feel that when you drive it. The redline of 7500 rpm is great compared to the coyote's old redline of 6500rpm, but it doesn’t feel as expansive as the 8200 rpm in the Voodoo engine.

You can daily drive this car without any worries of it hitting curbs or speed bumps. The 2019 PP2 has over 3 inches of additional ground clearance versus the GT350R. I don’t think that the tramlining is bad in the PP2. The suspension geometry is different in both cars and I find that the GT350R tramlines much more, but as long as you know this happens when the road gets rough, you have two hands on the wheel to catch it from wandering.

The biggest difference, in my opinion, is which car could you daily drive easier (if you can only afford one car)? For me, the answer would the PP2. Its low-end torque curve makes it feel like driving an automatic car in traffic—it just wants to move forward, whereas the high revving voodoo at rpm below 3,000 rpm has to be encouraged to move, so in traffic, you’re always dancing on the pedals. I don’t drive my GT350R every day. Both are amazing cars, and I purchased the PP2 a month before buying the 350R. If I could not have bought the GT350R, I would still own the PP2 and I would have been ecstatic with it as it is an amazing performance car that is a blast to drive.

To touch on the difference in character again, if you were to blindfold someone and put them in both cars, they would not be able to tell that the two are related. The changes in the 350 and 350R are so expansive that it literally has a completely different feel and experience. Oh, and in the PP2, I just drive it in Quiet mode. When I first got it, I would switch up the exhaust to Sport or Track mode, but after being in the 350R, those modes sound super quiet. The loudest exhaust mode in the PP2, Race, is about 10-20% louder than the GT350R in normal exhaust mode.

Both cars get looks. The stance of the PP2 aids to this, but the GT350R, gets looks and checked out by supercar owners. I was at The Thermal Club yesterday and all you get is attention, questions, and even pictures by owners of Porsche GT3RS, McLaren, BMW M4 GTS, and so on—it’s so rare and so revered and respected among the racing community that it’s always a hit. Some people don’t like the attention, I don’t mind it at all. It’s a cool car and people share the same admiration for the car that leads us to buy it. The PP2, for the most part, can disappear in the fray. But you can park the PP2 and leave it on the street and not worry about your carbon fiber wheels, etc.
These articles confirm your last paragraph...

https://www.motortrend.com/news/201...XleOYHAlSMVKFObtNh_7HMEuyuxsR_YlUbfANAaHYBpDY


https://www.caranddriver.com/review...d-mustang-shelby-gt350-vs-porsche-718-cayman/
 

Lorne34

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I just purchased a 2019 GT350 last week. I have only driven it a few hours and it is now in storage. :crying:... I can tell from the limited seat time in the car that it is special.
I have owned both a GT premium coupe and convertible which were really nice, but just didn't have the ride quality, nimble handling and special feel of this car. Even the visibility is better as I had the 16/17 models with the massive hood. This car just feels smaller, more compact, nimble and sports car like.
Given all that it has to fit your budget and lifestyle for what you are going to use the car for. It took me a long time to finally make this decision and be "ok" with it mentally from a financial and use perspective. I have been fortunate enough to have owned all three, which makes my decision more settled knowing I have experienced all of the options on my list.
 

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If you are still looking for opinions here's my 2 cents.

I had the debate last year about, should I get the GT or GTS350. I went GT350 for 2 reasons. 1 I track the car and knew it was a beast on the track. I love how it is on the track, but I of course didn't know this before hand. I would say my main reason for buying it is probably foolish and maybe egocentric but I see mustangs everywhere, I do not see GT350's everywhere. I did not want to own, "Just another Mustang". This was probably one of the big reasons I went with the GT350.
 
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hperea

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If you are still looking for opinions here's my 2 cents.

I had the debate last year about, should I get the GT or GTS350. I went GT350 for 2 reasons. 1 I track the car and knew it was a beast on the track. I love how it is on the track, but I of course didn't know this before hand. I would say my main reason for buying it is probably foolish and maybe egocentric but I see mustangs everywhere, I do not see GT350's everywhere. I did not want to own, "Just another Mustang". This was probably one of the big reasons I went with the GT350.
Thanks for your input. I agree with you 100%, a mustang is ...well a mustang; but a GT350 is another "thing" which you do not see often. I have seen them at the dealers here in Miami, but out on the streets..Not yet. I hope to see one soon.
 

Nfs1000f

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OP, if you haven’t yet done so, you should ask the same question on the GT forum.
 
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hperea

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Really good ar
Really good article. It is known that the GT with pp2 package is not really a " track car" but what I struggle with is the fact that I AM NOT PLANNING TO TRACK either the GT or the GT350, but at the same time I love that power and above all the presence of the GT350.
I may sound "philosophical" here, but there is something magical about the GT350 even if you do take it to the track.
 

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hperea

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I have both, a 2019 PP2 and a GT350R. The PP2 is a great car, but the 350R makes it look pedestrian, ordinary. If you can, get a 350. It’s an incredibly special car.
AADBC6FE-F05A-41A8-AE3D-BF0A7A950451.jpeg
That pic is a dream for a lot of people.....enjoy it!!
 

thill444

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Really good ar

Really good article. It is known that the GT with pp2 package is not really a " track car" but what I struggle with is the fact that I AM NOT PLANNING TO TRACK either the GT or the GT350, but at the same time I love that power and above all the presence of the GT350.
I may sound "philosophical" here, but there is something magical about the GT350 even if you do take it to the track.
100% yes. The magic is the 8200rpm free revving flat plane crank V8, and in the exhaust note. But even more-so you don’t need to just be on a track to enjoy the handling and feedback from the suspension. You can enjoy that on any fun backroad or road with some good corners. Same with the Tremec manual gearbox. You will enjoy it everytime you drive the car.

There’s obviously more, the looks, etc. Its a special car just as much on the street as it is on the track.
 

NC252

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OP what did you buy?
 
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hperea

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OP what did you buy?
I have not pull the trigger yet, but I made up my mind...GT350 !!! It is just an special car. Like Tom14ct14 mentioned " I see mustangs everywhere" but not a GT350.
 

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If you don't want a convertible, or you don't want an automatic/A10 ("want" includes the need for other, non-manual drivers to be able to operate the car), then I'd go with a GT350. Once you've committed to the experience of a manual, the additional driver engagement, owner experience, of a GT350 - I would suspect - is incomparable.

For me, the convertible experience supersedes everything else, so I'm driving a GT, it's spectacular setup with PP/MR, the A10, AE, it's fun, fast (tuned), has every creature comfort I could want - but my first inclination if I went "manual coupe" would be a GT350.
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