Considering a new GT

[Martman GT]

I have owned 3 BMW's myself and am on my 8th Mustang. Not one of the BMW's worked properly from the factory (horrible electrical issues). I got rid of the first because they were never able to get the ABS light to stay off. Take it in...fix it....take it in again because the light came back on. After the 3rd time, I got rid of it. 2nd one was ABS motor cycling (with the car off and key out of ignition). That damn pump got so hot I pulled the car out of the garage so it wouldn't burn my house down. This one took 2 time to fix. Last was my M3. Start car...wipers start running (they weren't turned on) and would swipe back and forth a few times and then just stop. Sometimes right in the middle of the windshield so you couldn't see. Turn the wipers to on...nothing. I would have to turn the car off....restart....then hope the wipers stopped out of my field of view. Never bought another. Now for the Mustangs. I have never had a single issue that caused me to take the car in to the dealer. I drove the hell out of them and not 1 issue. I like that kind of reliability.

When I saw the gen 6 Camaro, I thought I might be switching camps. Then, I went to see one, and oh hell no. Interior...fugly and what's with the AC vents down at your nut sack... Is this where people get hot? Visibility was also crap. I've owned a number of Camaro's and 3 Corvette's, but I'll be staying in the Ford camp.

Hope this helps you out.

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[combustor]

Bought my 2000 model V6 mustang new 16 years ago. Still runs great 180,000 miles later, never a mechanical issue. So far my '16 GT350 is behaving.

 

[BmacIL]

The 5.0 will be one of the more reliable engines out there. It is overbuilt (for stockish power) but still lightweight. As others have said, the panel gaps and such are overblown and most cars are quite good. The performance is excellent, and a big thing I've found is that every drive feels special (I think that whole cockpit theme really worked).

 

[dreamingat30fps]

When I saw the gen 6 Camaro, I thought I might be switching camps. Then, I went to see one, and oh hell no. Interior...fugly and what's with the AC vents down at your nut sack... Is this where people get hot? Visibility was also crap. I've owned a number of Camaro's and 3 Corvette's, but I'll be staying in the Ford camp.

Hope this helps you out.

Lol! Yeah the vent position is odd, I do like how they integrated the controls into the bezel though.

The part I like the least about the camaro interior is the dome or whatever its called that houses the instrument cluster is sooooo freaaaking huge!!!. Other than that I think its pretty clean. Wasn't a fan of the retro GT interior until I saw it. But I'm definitely leaning towards the GT.

 

[CentralVA]

I was torn as well and I got the GT Performance Pack. The blind spot is huge in the SS but I like the 16's better then the 15's. It was a close call but in the end I saved a bunch of $$$ by going with the Mustang.

 

[volinbham]

I have more than 10 BMWs (dating back to an 87 all the way to 15), 4 Audi's and 2 Porsches. Never had reliability problems with them though when small things came up they were more expensive to fix primarily due to increased labor charges and time to access some of the electrical.

 

[dreamingat30fps]

I have more than 10 BMWs (dating back to an 87 all the way to 15), 4 Audi's and 2 Porsches. Never had reliability problems with them though when small things came up they were more expensive to fix primarily due to increased labor charges and time to access some of the electrical.

Nice. I have had very few issues with my 06 Z4M (knock on cyber wood). It finally left me stranded a couple weeks ago when the alternator went at 75k miles. Other than that I've had no major issues. Since its a roadster my soft top motor went bad when I first got it because the brilliant german engineers thought it would be a good idea to put the soft top motor right where the water for the top drains out. So if you don't clean the drain channels motor just sits in a puddle of water.

I also had a 335 now that thing was a disaster. Probably spent more time at dealer than at my house.

 

[hiccup]

Mustang=overhead cams..camaro=bent pushrods

 

[dreamingat30fps]

Went tonight after work to check another one they had at a local dealer. Found something I really disliked and it's pretty ridiculous, but I guess I have designer OCD.

I hate the color of the dash lights. The not quite white not quite blue color. I remembered seeing a video where you could change the color so I messed with that and I will say that is pretty cool, however it only changes the color of the gauges and the ambient lighting not of the actual dash controls which then throws shit off even more because I might have say red gauges with blue bluish buttons everywhere. :headbonk:

 

[volinbham]

Went tonight after work to check another one they had at a local dealer. Found something I really disliked and it's pretty ridiculous, but I guess I have designer OCD.

I hate the color of the dash lights. The not quite white not quite blue color. I remembered seeing a video where you could change the color so I messed with that and I will say that is pretty cool, however it only changes the color of the gauges and the ambient lighting not of the actual dash controls which then throws shit off even more because I might have say red gauges with blue bluish buttons everywhere. :headbonk:

Just went out to check - dash lights are the ice blue. I use the white gauge color and turn off the ambient light in the cup holder. I haven't found it to be a problem. I find that for my old eyes the blue gauge color has the sharpest (least blurred) visuals but the white is close and fits better with the dash. So far as I know the dash light colors are not adjustable). I honestly don't notice the difference and tend to keep my internal lights pretty dim in any car I drive

 

[dreamingat30fps]

So far as I know though you can't change the dash button color.

I know! It's horrible because to make it match I would have the keep the gauges and ambient as that light blue color and I hate that color. If I don't then they don't match and if they don't match bad things happen!

 

[Ecoboosted]

I have owned 3 BMW's myself and am on my 8th Mustang. Not one of the BMW's worked properly from the factory (horrible electrical issues). I got rid of the first because they were never able to get the ABS light to stay off. Take it in...fix it....take it in again because the light came back on. After the 3rd time, I got rid of it. 2nd one was ABS motor cycling (with the car off and key out of ignition). That damn pump got so hot I pulled the car out of the garage so it wouldn't burn my house down. This one took 2 time to fix. Last was my M3. Start car...wipers start running (they weren't turned on) and would swipe back and forth a few times and then just stop. Sometimes right in the middle of the windshield so you couldn't see. Turn the wipers to on...nothing. I would have to turn the car off....restart....then hope the wipers stopped out of my field of view. Never bought another. Now for the Mustangs. I have never had a single issue that caused me to take the car in to the dealer. I drove the hell out of them and not 1 issue. I like that kind of reliability.

When I saw the gen 6 Camaro, I thought I might be switching camps. Then, I went to see one, and oh hell no. Interior...fugly and what's with the AC vents down at your nut sack... Is this where people get hot? Visibility was also crap. I've owned a number of Camaro's and 3 Corvette's, but I'll be staying in the Ford camp.

Hope this helps you out.

:lol:

 

[racer24crm]

I've never owned a german car but have had plenty of friends who have owned or currently own BMWs, VWs, Audis, and Mercedes. My family owned and autobody shop for 65+ years and the one thing my father always told me was the electronics on German cars are shit and everything is way to expensive to fix.

I always tell my friends to expect this when they get them and they always shrug it off. The funny thing is I think just about everyone of them has had at least one electrical issue. Window motors burning out, headlights constantly burning out, etc. My ex gf's jetta constantly had her transmission lock up on her and my friend with a new GLI had his fuel pump go and a turbo seize, luckily his was a warranty fix. My favorite was when I told a friend he's gonna have electrical problems and he's an electrician. He thought I was blowing smoke at the time but now, 4 years later he's getting rid of it and told me that he should of listened to me.

Now on to the Camaro, ultimately it comes down to what you like more and we can only offer you opinions. I've always seen the new Camaro as a poser car. Its the car a lot of young guys who grew up watching those terrible Transformer movies want because its flashy. I think they look like cars that came out of a comic book that exaggerate the style of the originals. I also consider them poser cars because they only exist due to the Mustang. GM needed an answer to Ford in the 60s. When the Mustang went retro in 2005 it sold like crazy GM decided to cash in on its own retro car. Don't get me wrong, there are plenty of serious Camaro guys that actually know their cars and know what they're doing but I think that population is larger in the Mustang camp. Ford and the Mustang just have a better history and more enthusiast owners than the Camaro.

I always question those reliability and quality surveys because they tend to group any issue as being equal problems. For example, fit and finish should not be the same as mechanical failures. I think American cars do tend to suffer from poor fit and finish when compared to their Japanese and German competitors but this does not make them mechanically unsound, which at the end of the day is the most important thing to be concerned with. Fortunately, the fit and finish on my car is almost perfect.

None of my family has had any problems with their Fords. My only mechanical problem from my last Mustang came a few months before I picked up my 2015. The radiator fan and thermostat went but at that point to car was 10 years old and had been out in the weather for most of its life.

I think you would be hard pressed to find another car on the road that offers as much performance, styling, and daily use drivability at the price of the new Mustang. Is it the best at everything, no, but it does everything it does well and in good balance hitting all the right marks.

Sorry for the long post but I had a lot of thoughts on this matter.

 

[bahasad]

I have had 4 BMWs - an E36, 2 E90s (still own the 328), and an F30. The E36 was a complete pile largely due to my negligence, but was fun to drive. My E90 328 is indestructible with 110k miles and spark plugs, ignition coils being the only major repairs. My F30 is only 1.5 years old with 18k miles, so reliability is still to be judged.

The Mustang is definitely a step down in terms of build quality and interior, but the difference is not equivalent to the 20k difference between them. Honestly, I would never give up my BMW, it is the perfect daily.

In your case, the Z4M is a rare car, especially if its the Z4M Coupe. These cars should hold there value much better than a run of the mill Mustang GT. In terms of fun to drive, I would bet the Z4M is more fun too. Lighter by like 600 lbs, smaller wheelbase, and good power. The S54 motor can be problematic though. Are you trading it in or selling it?

If this was a regular 3-series or 5-series, I would say the Mustang is obviously a better choice.

 

[volinbham]

I have had 4 BMWs - an E36, 2 E90s (still own the 328), and an F30. The E36 was a complete pile largely due to my negligence, but was fun to drive. My E90 328 is indestructible with 110k miles and spark plugs, ignition coils being the only major repairs. My F30 is only 1.5 years old with 18k miles, so reliability is still to be judged.

The Mustang is definitely a step down in terms of build quality and interior, but the difference is not equivalent to the 20k difference between them. Honestly, I would never give up my BMW, it is the perfect daily.

In your case, the Z4M is a rare car, especially if its the Z4M Coupe. These cars should hold there value much better than a run of the mill Mustang GT. In terms of fun to drive, I would bet the Z4M is more fun too. Lighter by like 600 lbs, smaller wheelbase, and good power. The S54 motor can be problematic though. Are you trading it in or selling it?

If this was a regular 3-series or 5-series, I would say the Mustang is obviously a better choice.

Similar impressions for me. I've had an Audi or BMW as a daily driver for the last 15 years or so and nothing beats it.

I always tell people that buying a German car is a mistake because it shows you what can be. Sure there are issues but no more than most countries of origin (more expensive to fix) but the ability to take quality of materials and design up while maintaining a uniquely intuitive driving feel is hard to replicate.

Regular Japanese brands are aces at fit/finish/reliability/utility but no one is honestly getting real driving pleasure out of them (some exceptions of course)

Premium Japanese brands up the ante but still are more luxury than sport (or if sport they sacrifice elsewhere). I had a Lexus and it was like driving a marshmallow. Sure it was comfortable, capable and luxurious but it was BORING!

If you want a sports sedan - get a German car. Just recognize that you may have locked yourself into a lifetime choice.

For me the Mustang fits a different category - a car for thrills. It works.

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