Didn't know that...thanks for the information.
'Vettes have been doing just fine in terms of 60 foot times, 0 - 30 MPH, 0 - 60 MPH, and ET for quite some time with an IRS. So have many other cars.Even if the IRS is lighter, it still has more pieces and soaks up more energy(power/torque) and Ford has blatantly told us about this suspension, noting the lack of squat, that it will be much stiffer and that generally doesn't mean better 0 - XXXmph acceleration.
I'm new here... I would rather not argue over things we're truly guessing about so far and with that, I hope it generates enough traction while lacking wheel hop to compete with SLA on the drag strip. I mean that too, because in 2015, I intend to purchase a 2016 model.
We're rather off course here, no pun intended. I have read plenty about the possibility of a bolt in SLA and would be great with that as an upgrade for drag racing(at a reasonable cost).
I've defended the abilities of solid axle cars before. I owned and drove a '99 LS1 1LE Camaro for 6 years.
I, for one, certainly intend to drive one sooner rather than later, so I can tell myself there are great differences for the better. That said, having steered many Corvettes down the streets, I haven't yet found the smooth ride version... just sayin'...
The problem with the Camaro rear, though, is that it wouldn't hold up to even straight line abuses, no matter how modified. I still have friends who claim 10's with the stock 10 bolt, but realistically, that's just about as common as lunar landings. That said, the set up isn't conducive to anything but road racing, insofar as strength. Mustang hasn't suffered the same problems since 1979 and better still, 1986, when it got it's final update in terms of notable changes.
That's all good and I have no qualms there... still, you're one of the 1 in 50,000 and most are 1 of the 5,000 and those used to be deemed important, as they're the ones who allowed Mustang to still be in existence and the 1 of 50,000 played essentially no legitimate role in the same. Ultimately, IRS is fine and I like it, but I also think it's so utterly misunderstood by most, they tend to think it's going to somehow make the entire vehicle transform into a monorail for the road. It doesn't and never will.
Sorry I'm calling the Bull Shit flag on the 1 in 50,000 and 1 in 5,000 numbers because it ignores a few simple things. First, you ignore autocross which is a sport defined by the handling capabilities of a car in which Mustangs are an extremely popular choice (representing something like 25% of the cars at Nationals last year). Second you ignore the people who enjoy twisting back roads as their hobby. Some of us do it all.
Welcome to the S197's Pan Hard Bar configuration and sloppy bushings. You can remove 90% of that "rear axle hop" over mid corner bumps by eliminating the lateral movement of the 300-350lb pendulum under the car. Watts linkages are getting cheaper and cheaper and are vastly superior to the PHB, even one with rod ends.
Irony at it's best. Find a car to compare to the Panther platform that isn't as heavy (or heavier) or has softer shocks... that's because there isn't one. The Panther Platform is all of that and more in terms of "stupid Caddy ride" nonsense BECAUSE of those things. It is the most under damped, under sprung and ridiculously heavy platform I've ever seen for a family sedan.
Welcome to GM and Chrysler pony cars. They are based on family sedan chassis (Zeta Platform which underpinned a number of Holden sedans, and the LC Platform which is a shortened LX platform that underpins the Chrysler 300 Sedan, the Dodge Magnum, and the Dodge Charger) and their IRS geometry reflects that. It wasn't until GM pulled their collective head out of their ass and removed the massive amount of bind in the Zeta IRS that the new Camaros really began to shine where they needed to shine. The ZL1 started the new IRS tweaks, which then went to the 1LE and now the Z/28.
It wouldn't surprise me at all if the 2015 Mustang GT launched harder than the SLA Boss 302 did. For one, the Boss 302 is a car aimed at track day enthusiasts. People who buy one to drag race piss me off. It's like pissing on the heritage of the original car. It gave up a lot of low end torque for more overall HP and a lot of revs. Not exactly ideal for drag racing. But lets talk about the geometry improvements given to us by the IRS. How about the DOUBLE rear %Anti-Squat that Ford keeps talking about. The 2009 Mustang GT has about %35 Anti-Squat in factory form. The 2014's have a little bit more. If the tires will take the added %AS (which they couldn't on the live axle) then this car should launch flatter and hit the tires just a little harder. Hard enough to launch better. What is the adage about 60ft times? (You tell me, you drag race, I don't). Something about a tenth in 60ft is worth double in ET?
All I really hear is "I'm a drag racer and I hate IRS because I don't want to put forth the effort to make it work for what I want to do". I'd be willing to bet that of your drag racers, 95% of them will never exceed the capabilities of the IRS for drag racing and your remaining 5% are about 1 in 50,000 Mustang owners.That's all good and I have no qualms there... still, you're one of the 1 in 50,000 and most are 1 of the 5,000 and those used to be deemed important, as they're the ones who allowed Mustang to still be in existence and the 1 of 50,000 played essentially no legitimate role in the same. Ultimately, IRS is fine and I like it, but I also think it's so utterly misunderstood by most, they tend to think it's going to somehow make the entire vehicle transform into a monorail for the road. It doesn't and never will.
Those figures were representative... It isn't like I asked every Mustang owner. The point was, about 10 times more people drag race their Mustang than road race.
The 1st sanctioned race in America for Mustang, was as the pace car for the Indy 500... The 1st actual racing for Mustang in America, was DRAG RACING in 1964(using the 427 Cammer). Look it up. The 1st to my mind, however, was Trans Am. That stuff really doesn't matter. What matters is the reality that more Mustangs have been drag raced than any other type of racing... but a massive margin. You could put together every other form and combined, they are but a drop in the bucket to drag racing.
You've missed the present... I've said all the while, I'm fine with IRS. I've had it in my last 2 vehicles and I can tell you w/o question(because I tested it many times), if I took someone for a ride and they didn't already know it had IRS, they were NOT going to tell the difference in regular driving.They're just not. I used a crude test method... my IRS Explorer vs my brothers, w/o. Then I asked questions about the ride... 100% of the time I got the same kind of response... "Felt the same to me."
The problem you REALLY have then, is the thoughts in your mind, because I've never said that and SEVERAL times now, I've said the almost the exact opposite. After all, you're answering me, but you'll NEVER find where I said that because it simply didn't happen here... ever.
Doing a burnout with a LINE LOCK is nothing like launching at the drag strip... the burnout causes the weakest link to become the tires and they give and when launching, you want the weakest link to be the concrete.
SCCA's TireRack National Championship in Lincoln Nebraska is the largest motorsport event in the world. The average is around 1200 competing drivers over 4 days and some 800 cars. Winning at Nationals is a gateway to full fledged road course racing and can lead to some really strong ties to sponsors. Most don't do it for the money but for the bragging rights, but those that win get more than just the trophy and a jacket though. Contingency money, tires, oil, what have you. It isn't just a bunch of freaks running around cones in a parking lot.
I think people have lost site of the heritage that is Mustang. It's a great all around car but it gained fame on a road course in the 60's, not at the drag strip. I never hear about the "great exploits" of drag racing teams and it isn't because I'm focused solely on corner carving, it's because the folks who were there at the time heard about Trans Am and it's success there. That was part of Ford's marketing.
I haven't missed it at all. The tone of your posts has been condescending towards having an IRS since you've joined this forum even if what you are actually saying is otherwise. You'd make the case that Ford should go back to a live axle because it "felt the same" as an IRS equipped car and because "most Mustang owners drag race".
Really this is a product of the Fox Mustang being a light chassis with a shitty suspension, even for it's time. Follow that up with the basically unchanged underpinnings of the SN95 and that trend continues. Never mind that drag racing is cheap and there are drag strips everywhere where track days require road courses and autocross requires some form of active SCCA chapter. I struggle to find autocross events in South Dakota because the SCCA region is basically nonexistent and the NASA events are extremely small. I'm sure I could find 4 or more drag strips.
I don't have a bad attitude at all. I'm just pointing out that your tone of your post and what you are typing are not in agreement. You'll have to forgive me if I find it extremely shady and don't believe you when you say an IRS is fine. The tone of your posts indicates to me that you are disappointed by having an IRS under the new Mustang because it isn't "ideal" for drag racing. That's fine if you are, but don't hide it, be proud of it. I respect an outward disagreement more than one that is concealed.
