Thinking about going from GT back to a slow car

Earlsays · Jun 15, 2018

BEEN THERE! Recently, actually...

2015 GT, MT82 bit the dust @ 66,000 miles....commuter car, no burnouts, nothing, dead.

Decided to go with a MAGNUM XL, Mcleod RXT, 4.30 gears, tune, etc.

Initially, this was going to be a new MT82...it snowballed into what it became. Every single thing that could go wrong went wrong, from shipping not happening, wrong parts arriving, car not being right over and over and over...all total turned into an $8,000+ dollar deal...not good. I wasn't happy, wife wasn't happy, and it was about to be 10 grand real quick to HOPEFULLY have things sorted....with the way it all had gone so far, I had NO faith in anything, and no desire to go any farther.

Additionally, all of this made the car pretty unfriendly in heavy traffic/as a DD, and it really needed either a SC/TURBO or something like 4.56+ gears....Even with 4.09, it was difficult to get it going from a stop...

The car absolutely SCREAMED once it was going...

My wife hated it, scared her, was upsetting, she didn't like the fact that it was a money pit...

So, instead of continuing to stress-test my marriage (and my own sanity, I wasn't happy with it either)

So after all of that bullshit, I traded the car in, three weeks ago, for a 2018 Ford Escape SEL with a 1.5 Ecoboost....to be fair I was compensated on trade for my recent spending....mostly.

I love the escape, my wife loves it, it's just great!!!! Keep in mind, I'm about as burned out as possible after two V6 Mustangs, Two GT Mustangs, THREE 4.6 Thunderbirds, and one heavily modded Coyote F150...I've had enough.

Aside the easy to live with factor of the escape, it's a really great vehicle...it's NOT fast at all...it's comfortable, surprisingly fun in it's way, nice to drive, easy on gas, just plain easy to live with...

that said, qualifies for "MEH CAR MONDAY"

But a nice break from the "car guy" world...

offcamber · Jun 15, 2018

The one big consideration of going to the Fiesta for me would be the interior. I enjoy having the space and creature comforts of the Mustang. I really like the S550 interior for the price.

Nomadic · Jun 15, 2018

ElAviator72 said:
Get an Ecoboost Mustang (yes you can still get into trouble with it, you just have to dig deeper!).

I can appreciate the EB but if got rid of the GT, would never get another Mustang. It would be a much smaller and cheaper manual 4 banger to drive while my Jetta isn't around.....a Fiesta SE or ST. I have a thing for small cheap minimalist manual cars (minus the Mirage).

Vegas5OH · Jun 15, 2018

just take off and sell the blower. I love my boosted GT but would not like it as a daily.

ATTFighter · Jun 15, 2018

Nomadic said:
I can appreciate the EB but if got rid of the GT, would never get another Mustang. It would be a much smaller and cheaper manual 4 banger to drive while my Jetta isn't around.....a Fiesta SE or ST. I have a thing for small cheap minimalist manual cars (minus the Mirage).

I get what your saying but if I was you I would just remove the supercharger. You can than sell the supercharger and make some money and have a slower car, best of both worlds. I had a Golf R before my 18 mustang and yes it had 300 hp but I still was able to drive the hell out of it everywhere, flooring it and taking turns so nimbly so I DO see what your saying, however; i would never get rid of the stang to drive that turd of a looking car (Fiesta SE) no offense lol. If i were to downgrade to something slower it would at least be something that looks halfway decent (Focus RS). I also agree with your GF that Fiesta SE if a legit DEATH TRAP. That's another one of the reasons i got rid of my Golf R. I did not feel safe in it especially here in south Florida with the way people drive around here.

matteos · Jun 15, 2018

It's pretty obvious to me reading this thread that you want to get the Fiesta SE.

Just get it. Keep the Mustang as a fun weekend car. Sell the blower - That's got to give you a couple of thousand at least.

Nomadic · Jun 15, 2018

Earlsays said:
BEEN THERE! Recently, actually...

2015 GT, MT82 bit the dust @ 66,000 miles....commuter car, no burnouts, nothing, dead.

Decided to go with a MAGNUM XL, Mcleod RXT, 4.30 gears, tune, etc.

Initially, this was going to be a new MT82...it snowballed into what it became. Every single thing that could go wrong went wrong, from shipping not happening, wrong parts arriving, car not being right over and over and over...all total turned into an $8,000+ dollar deal...not good. I wasn't happy, wife wasn't happy, and it was about to be 10 grand real quick to HOPEFULLY have things sorted....with the way it all had gone so far, I had NO faith in anything, and no desire to go any farther.

Additionally, all of this made the car pretty unfriendly in heavy traffic/as a DD, and it really needed either a SC/TURBO or something like 4.56+ gears....Even with 4.09, it was difficult to get it going from a stop...

The car absolutely SCREAMED once it was going...

My wife hated it, scared her, was upsetting, she didn't like the fact that it was a money pit...

So, instead of continuing to stress-test my marriage (and my own sanity, I wasn't happy with it either)

So after all of that bullshit, I traded the car in, three weeks ago, for a 2018 Ford Escape SEL with a 1.5 Ecoboost....to be fair I was compensated on trade for my recent spending....mostly.

I love the escape, my wife loves it, it's just great!!!! Keep in mind, I'm about as burned out as possible after two V6 Mustangs, Two GT Mustangs, THREE 4.6 Thunderbirds, and one heavily modded Coyote F150...I've had enough.

Aside the easy to live with factor of the escape, it's a really great vehicle...it's NOT fast at all...it's comfortable, surprisingly fun in it's way, nice to drive, easy on gas, just plain easy to live with...

that said, qualifies for "MEH CAR MONDAY"

But a nice break from the "car guy" world...

That's quite a story...........with one of the saddest endings ever.

Yeah I'd do the same if I were you. My GT isn't a money pit...yet. I am taking it to speed shop next week to have some small updated parts installed on the Whipple and see if they can fix the small belt chirp I have (only at cold startup).
I do have another car most of the time. But I can see where you're coming from. I think I would have gotten the Escape 2.0 myself but they are nice little SUVs. The 1.5 is better than the 2.5. Congrats on the new vehicle and less worries.

offcamber · Jun 15, 2018

Don't forget about these......

944 S2

Nomadic · Jun 15, 2018

ATTFighter said:
to drive that turd of a looking car (Fiesta SE) no offense lol.

Umm....maybe we should take this outside.........

ATTFighter · Jun 15, 2018

Nomadic said:
Umm....maybe we should take this outside.........

Haha just a personal opinion. I really like the focus body 100x more. I have heard others say they like the way the Fiesta ST handles better than the Focus ST.

Zinc03svt · Jun 15, 2018

Look into a VW GTI. Plain fun to drive. Mods are cheap an effective. Don’t need 700 whp to have fun.

ElAviator72 · Jun 15, 2018

Nomadic said:
I can appreciate the EB but if got rid of the GT, would never get another Mustang. It would be a much smaller and cheaper manual 4 banger to drive while my Jetta isn't around.....a Fiesta SE or ST. I have a thing for small cheap minimalist manual cars (minus the Mirage).

You can order it with the base interior and the performance package for under $30 grand...that's exactly what I did. It gets about the same mileage as my last minimalist 4 banger (1999 Pontiac Sunfire GT with a 5 speed). :thumbsup:

It is definitely an upgrade over the Sunfire. Unfortunately, between Mustangs (see my signature), I got to drive a truly dreadful minimalist car: When my first ('15) Mustang was totaled, I had to rent a Toyota Yaris long term. The Fiesta is the lap of luxury compared to the Yaris.

DarkHor$e · Jun 15, 2018

I agree with you, but think you may have a habit of over reaching, which is why you may be finding yourself in the current situation.

I have been saying this for years now, all you need in a ~3500lb car is 350hp to the rears. then you can mash it, blast it, spin it, and put it away wet. Approaching the 500+ hp mark , these cars become too dangerous to drive, and are no fun, you can't 'Use' the car.

My Rx for you? 2011 - 2014 GT with a PP. Run it. :amen:

azsnake · Jun 15, 2018

nastang87xx said:
Slow does not mean boring. In fact often times it can be exactly the opposite for reasons exactly as you said. You can actually get to 100%.

What about an NC Miata or an AP2 S2000? They're still engaging, approachable limits, and they're not that bad in terms of ride comfort. Not stellar, but absolutely livable.

A LONG time ago I had an 88 prelude SI. I had no illusion that the car was fast or special, but I don't think I had more fun in any other car (even my mustangs and cobras). The car drove like a go cart and I could take nearly any line into a corner like I wanted, and the car would just drive in that direction (even with it's 195/70/14 tires). Slow can be fun, fast can fun, too fast can take the joy out of the car, and your constantly doing mathematical calculations in your head making sure you don't put yourself in a ditch.

2015Etrac · Jun 15, 2018

I agree with a few of the other posters. As much as I would like to throw a Roush on the car, I would never really get to use it, especially since it's a daily driver and I live in an urban area. What I did was focus on suspension, it's really fun to hit some of the back-roads with these cars, especially with an upgraded suspension. That being said, I will probably do the basic bolt-on stuff when my warranty is up, like a tune, GT350 intake, and headers. 450RWHP or so with a nice track suspension setup sounds plenty fine to me.

Thinking about going from GT back to a slow car

Earlsays

Well-Known Member

offcamber

Well-Known Member

Nomadic

King of Europe

Vegas5OH

Well-Known Member

ATTFighter

Well-Known Member

matteos

Well-Known Member

Nomadic

King of Europe

offcamber

Well-Known Member

Nomadic

King of Europe

ATTFighter

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Zinc03svt

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ElAviator72

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DarkHor$e

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azsnake

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2015Etrac

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