Mach 1 Appreciation Thread

[Mikepol2]

In the spirit of @dethmaShine 's A10 appreciation thread, it feels like a general appreciation thread for the Mach might be nice. We have the ripoff thread, the order tracking threads, the orders cancelled threads, the threads of people wanting to try to convince themselves that GT350's are so much better, but really nowhere for folks to just check in and say I'm pretty lucky to be driving this car.

Took it out today to run a short errand. 31F outside but have the all-season winter tires on, heated seats and steering wheel running, exhaust in track mode. Banging through the Tremec is still a joy. What a fun, comfortable, badass machine. I probably wouldn't have taken out the 2018 GT today because of the ice cold, rock hard Recaro's and the notchy-when-cold gearbox. On the day after Thanksgiving, feeling pretty thankful to have this opportunity.

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[Thesauerchise]

Mines put away for the winter and I miss driving it everyday. I’m thankful I got the opportunity to get my dream car and can’t wAit until spring.

 

[Charlemagne]

I was just thinking we are missing a thread like this few days ago. Already wrote in the A10 thread how I love the car, it's dreams come true for me. It's perfect in every way, starting with looks, engine, exhaust, automatic transmission, great interiour. Only issue I have is with rattling in dashboard from passenger's side.

Since I got her in October, had to register it and wrap in PPF which tooks some time, I drove only 1900 km so far in a handful of rides (PPF trip was half of it), so she's just driven-in, under cover now, started snowing today, hope spring gets here soon HP wheels should be shipped in container next month so all will come together for next season

 

[Kermut]

Eh. The appreciation thread is driving the car with the sound of the V8, and the smooth action of the manual transmission. But I like the positive vibe you are going for

 

[dhborden]

Agreed! I've got nearly 11K miles on mine already. Took it out for errands yesterday, via the highway, after swapping the 4S's for the Sport A/S 3+ tires on 19x9 wheels for the colder weather. Yep, love it for the highway, errands, whenever! As @Mikepol2 said, with the creature comforts, it's a no-brainer to take it out.

 

[Atlas1]

Great thread idea Mike.
this is my favorite car I’ve had so far. I try to not form emotional attachments to cars but this one is tough. I knew from the day ford unveiled it I had to have one. I only got 1,500 miles on it before parking it for winter but it was a joy every time I pulled it out of the garage. The feel, the engagement it provides, the looks it gets……I’m very lucky to have this parked in my garage. I can’t wait for about 16 years from now handing it off to the next generation to raise hell and enjoy it as much as I do. This car is an amazing blend of tradition, performance, and style that is increasingly difficult to find in the ever increasing sea of appliance like vehicles.

 

[Mikepol2]

One more thing that I have been wanting to throw out there:

The amount of time and money I want to spend on mods for the Mach is TINY compared to when I had the GT. I was constantly scouring the 6G classifieds, Ebay, Black Friday sales, etc looking for stuff.... tons of experimenting with exhaust, all kinds of suspension upgrades, a few sets of wheels, leather seat covers, Sync 3 conversion from the little 4" screen, CAI... on and on. There is nothing I feel the need to upgrade with this car except replacing the handling package wheels with the black Ford Performance PP2 wheels which will be done in a couple days. Love everything else about it. It might have cost more than a GT but I would have spent a ton more modding a GT.

 

[Nardly]

The Mach 1 is the fastest most fun car I have ever owned. It looks and sounds bad ass, gives me that feeling my Harley did back in the day. When I first got it in April I was in awe. Couldn’t believe this was my car. It always puts a smile on my face, even when I walk around it in the garage. This is a special car I hope I have for years to come.

 

[sakman84]

I did some back road bombing and canyon carving this weekend. Even in Socal there are only a few days left in the year before it starts frosting up in these mountains for the season.

It was amazing, I beat the traffic, conditions were perfect about 50F degrees, no traffic to slow me down. I drove the car very hard, these are some of the same roads you see the magazines test in or reviewers on youtube use. I really put the hammer down, and the car took it the whole time, no problems, heck the cylinder head temps didn't even rise, and I was holding high revs and shifting 6.5K+ a lot. Same with the rear end, the temps hardly rose from normal operating.

This car should be high on the list of "Mustang all time greatest hits". I was amazed at how planted the rear end was, the magneride is magnificent, it inspires confidence. The other thing is that the car stays nice and level there isn't the ridiculous amount of nose dive under braking or floating in the springs, they got the spring rates right. The 4s provided plenty of grip, for me there is no point in upgrading them, they provide adequate rip in acceleration, turning, and braking for the back roads. It was the most fun I have ever had in a Mustang, this was even better than some track days I have had, probably because I was just in the canyons having fun not concentrating on each corner in the exacting way like on track. The brakes scrub off speed nicely and never felt stressed even when stopping on a high speed downhill corner. I think I need to build more confidence in these situations in particular, I bet I could brake later and harder, but a mistake up in these canyons can kill you, no exaggeration.

Revmatch makes driving crazy easy, it really is like cheating! But it allows me to drive harder into each corner, knowing a perfect downshift will be executed before I start the turn in. In my S197 even with the tuned suspension I could reach it's limits routinely on the same roads, not with the M1. The M1 has more capability than my courage allows for and that is a good thing!

Really capable car, I don't care what you call it, on its own, objectively, it is a great performance car, if you don't believe that go drive it hard on suitable roads, it offers vastly more performance and speed than the majority of even seasoned enthusiasts will ever need! No car is perfect, all are compromises, but this checks the box, really fast and fun when I want it, and down right civilized on the way home especially considering its class.

 

[ChitownStang]

I'll chime in on this well deserved thread.
I love this damn car! Had it all summer since March 10th, 6500 miles in and it still amazes me how composed this car is especially at high speeds, feels like a Merc or BMW at 100mph+.
I couldn't agree more with Mike regarding modding the Mach 1, not much needed here, just an H-pipe and you are good to go!
I also put All-Season Wheel/Tires on so I could enjoy it in the winter too, no way I'm losing out on one of the few things that brings me joy these days all gloomy winter long.
The ever growing rarity of this car is also a bonus as well.
And lastly a trip to Ford Performance Racing School was absolutely awesome!
So yeah, the Mach 1 has been the best car I've ever bought by far.
Enjoy everyone!

 

[Sindeki]

I loveeeee it.

people will hate on everything. It’s your money, your car, screw the rest.

mine is also tucked in for the winter, only got 400miles on it :(

 

[dhborden]

I loveeeee it.

people will hate on everything. It’s your money, your car, screw the rest.

mine is also tucked in for the winter, only got 400miles on it :(

Is that the Ford cover on it?

 

[Ctodd1]

I appreciate the A10 transmission, but I had to give it the manual look.

 

[Kermut]

I did some back road bombing and canyon carving this weekend. Even in Socal there are only a few days left in the year before it starts frosting up in these mountains for the season.

It was amazing, I beat the traffic, conditions were perfect about 50F degrees, no traffic to slow me down. I drove the car very hard, these are some of the same roads you see the magazines test in or reviewers on youtube use. I really put the hammer down, and the car took it the whole time, no problems, heck the cylinder head temps didn't even rise, and I was holding high revs and shifting 6.5K+ a lot. Same with the rear end, the temps hardly rose from normal operating.

This car should be high on the list of "Mustang all time greatest hits". I was amazed at how planted the rear end was, the magneride is magnificent, it inspires confidence. The other thing is that the car stays nice and level there isn't the ridiculous amount of nose dive under braking or floating in the springs, they got the spring rates right. The 4s provided plenty of grip, for me there is no point in upgrading them, they provide adequate rip in acceleration, turning, and braking for the back roads. It was the most fun I have ever had in a Mustang, this was even better than some track days I have had, probably because I was just in the canyons having fun not concentrating on each corner in the exacting way like on track. The brakes scrub off speed nicely and never felt stressed even when stopping on a high speed downhill corner. I think I need to build more confidence in these situations in particular, I bet I could brake later and harder, but a mistake up in these canyons can kill you, no exaggeration.

Revmatch makes driving crazy easy, it really is like cheating! But it allows me to drive harder into each corner, knowing a perfect downshift will be executed before I start the turn in. In my S197 even with the tuned suspension I could reach it's limits routinely on the same roads, not with the M1. The M1 has more capability than my courage allows for and that is a good thing!

Really capable car, I don't care what you call it, on its own, objectively, it is a great performance car, if you don't believe that go drive it hard on suitable roads, it offers vastly more performance and speed than the majority of even seasoned enthusiasts will ever need! No car is perfect, all are compromises, but this checks the box, really fast and fun when I want it, and down right civilized on the way home especially considering its class.

Thanks for posting, it's great to hear real life stories, especially from someone without the handling pack

 

[Sindeki]

Is that the Ford cover on it?

Yup!

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