jasonstang
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Quality is hit and miss. Some get bad ones and some get perfect ones.
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Glenn G
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I agree with you,Ford did amazing things with the SRA, The Boss was the absolute pinnacle of the live axle. But that pretty much means it had been developed as far as it could go-It was sort of like the Mustang's namesake the P-51. It was competitive against the German ME-262 but just barely.
The boss is an amazing car, but it would have been even more so if it had a properly engineered IRS.
I have driven a new-edge ('02 iirc) with a Cobra IRS swap a few years ago and IMHO it was not much better in normal driving than the '12 GT I drove in comparison. But if the road got rough, the older IRS was miles better and that's where I would call it unrefined. IMHO Both my 93 Skyline and Supra were better handlers than the 12, My Eco is better than the Supra and (gasp) close to if not better than the skyline was.
It's a pity I never got to drive a boss, but the march of technology waits for no one.
Mustang1260
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Good analogy but one....the Mustang car has nothing what so ever to do with the P51 Mustang name. Zip, nada, nothing. It wasn't named after the plane.
krt22
Well-Known Member
I went from a 2012 base brembo GT (steeda springs, GT500 ABs, resonator deletes, panhard bar, 19x10 square setup with 275s all around, however never touched the motor) to the GT350. I ended up keeping the GT for almost 6 weeks after recieving the GT350 for fear of missing the rawness and character of the rear axle dancing around. After logging ~500 miles in the GT350 and then driving it back to back with my 2012, I put the 2012 up for sale the next day and sold it to the first person who replied.Here are my thoughts
Paint Quality-S197-The reviews are correct, the paint is pretty crappy. The S197 was still pretty thin, but no boogers and paint drips around the end. I had 4-5 on the hood and fender on my GT350. The paint is the single biggest fault of the car.
Panel Alignment-Tie-Either way, both were neither perfect or terrible. I chalk it up as its still a 25k car body
Interior Quality-GT350-The S197 100% felt like a 10 year old rental on the inside. The GT350 isnt light years ahead, but its a big improvement. I really like the updated cluster, the steering wheel, matte finish on the faux metals, and alcantara seats. The recaros are amazing, tighest fitting factory seat ive sat in, seemingly more snug the the recaro pole position I used to DD in, but I was also a few pounds lighter back then. Biggest qualms are the stereo and overly busy center section with a million buttons. It reminds me like an older german car in that respect.
Now the important stuff
Engine-GT350-Obvious winner, the free revving nature and 100+extra ponies make the coyote almost feel doggish, and I say that as a 100% coyote fanboi. How quickly the revs build and drop with the voodoo is simply amazing. A quick 3/2 heel toe blip feels like driving a giant pissed off F20c. I don't quite agree with the lack of torque comments some have reported, at least with respect to the coyote. Although I have yet to break the rear end loose with it, which was very easy with the coyote. However I would say its more due to total grip and suspension than it is low end power (or lack of it)
Engine Noise-GT350This one gets its own category for a reason, its one of the huge selling points of the car. With the same resonator delete and exhaust valves open its just about the loudest stock car I've ever heard, louder than some with aftermarket exhausts im sure. Its hellacious, one of a kind, and I absolutely love it. Its really hard to capture everything it entails until you drive one, video just cant fully convey this aspect of the car
Transmission/Shifter/Clutch-GT350-Much better than the MT82 and no high rev lockouts that I grew to hate. I did not want to drop the $1000 on a McLoed twin so over time I stopped doing as many WOT 1/2/3 runs. The actual shift throw may be the same or slightly longer, but very positive engagement for each gear with no extra effort needed to shift into certain gears. Only gripe with the GT350 is the light non-linear clutch pedal feel. The steeda spring resolved the non-linear aspect of it, but its still lighter than the MT82 but im guessing this is mainly due to the twin disk. Yes the gears are quite long, but match the power band perfectly. A quick 3rd gear pull does land you in go to jail territory, but I find short shifting still provides a lot of fun while keeping the speeds more sane. No more silly 4th gear skip-shift as well since we are already paying the gas guzzler tax.
Chassis/suspension-GT350-Minus the engine, this 2nd biggest area of improvement. Yes ford did a great job making the S197 SRA perform the way it did, but it wasnt without faults. Anyone how threw it into anything but a perfectly smooth/flat corner will know how vague and bouncy the rear end would get. Add some throttle to that and you could feel the entire rear end shift on you. Some could deal with it fine, but to me that feeling never inspired confidence. The other gripe was over all chassis stiffness and stability, it was much much bouncier in the cabin and big bumps would twist the chassis enough to make the door sensor think it was open and crack the window. Obviously none of these issues with the GT350, its 10x more poised with all aspects of driving. I suppose this might be a demerrit for some who like that loose feeling, but not for me. Despite being a 3800lb beast, it can make quick work of the local bumpy backgrounds, once you get over the fact its likely just as wide as those narrow lanes. Overall cabin noise is also much less, unless of course you open the exhaust valves.
When I bought the 2012 I really thought I was going to hang onto it for quite awhile, for the price it was a fantastic performer with a ton of character (albeit no real refinement). But the GT350 takes the cake, sold the 2012 with no regrets.
Paint Quality-S197-The reviews are correct, the paint is pretty crappy. The S197 was still pretty thin, but no boogers and paint drips around the end. I had 4-5 on the hood and fender on my GT350. The paint is the single biggest fault of the car.
Panel Alignment-Tie-Either way, both were neither perfect or terrible. I chalk it up as its still a 25k car body
Interior Quality-GT350-The S197 100% felt like a 10 year old rental on the inside. The GT350 isnt light years ahead, but its a big improvement. I really like the updated cluster, the steering wheel, matte finish on the faux metals, and alcantara seats. The recaros are amazing, tighest fitting factory seat ive sat in, seemingly more snug the the recaro pole position I used to DD in, but I was also a few pounds lighter back then. Biggest qualms are the stereo and overly busy center section with a million buttons. It reminds me like an older german car in that respect.
Now the important stuff
Engine-GT350-Obvious winner, the free revving nature and 100+extra ponies make the coyote almost feel doggish, and I say that as a 100% coyote fanboi. How quickly the revs build and drop with the voodoo is simply amazing. A quick 3/2 heel toe blip feels like driving a giant pissed off F20c. I don't quite agree with the lack of torque comments some have reported, at least with respect to the coyote. Although I have yet to break the rear end loose with it, which was very easy with the coyote. However I would say its more due to total grip and suspension than it is low end power (or lack of it)
Engine Noise-GT350This one gets its own category for a reason, its one of the huge selling points of the car. With the same resonator delete and exhaust valves open its just about the loudest stock car I've ever heard, louder than some with aftermarket exhausts im sure. Its hellacious, one of a kind, and I absolutely love it. Its really hard to capture everything it entails until you drive one, video just cant fully convey this aspect of the car
Transmission/Shifter/Clutch-GT350-Much better than the MT82 and no high rev lockouts that I grew to hate. I did not want to drop the $1000 on a McLoed twin so over time I stopped doing as many WOT 1/2/3 runs. The actual shift throw may be the same or slightly longer, but very positive engagement for each gear with no extra effort needed to shift into certain gears. Only gripe with the GT350 is the light non-linear clutch pedal feel. The steeda spring resolved the non-linear aspect of it, but its still lighter than the MT82 but im guessing this is mainly due to the twin disk. Yes the gears are quite long, but match the power band perfectly. A quick 3rd gear pull does land you in go to jail territory, but I find short shifting still provides a lot of fun while keeping the speeds more sane. No more silly 4th gear skip-shift as well since we are already paying the gas guzzler tax.
Chassis/suspension-GT350-Minus the engine, this 2nd biggest area of improvement. Yes ford did a great job making the S197 SRA perform the way it did, but it wasnt without faults. Anyone how threw it into anything but a perfectly smooth/flat corner will know how vague and bouncy the rear end would get. Add some throttle to that and you could feel the entire rear end shift on you. Some could deal with it fine, but to me that feeling never inspired confidence. The other gripe was over all chassis stiffness and stability, it was much much bouncier in the cabin and big bumps would twist the chassis enough to make the door sensor think it was open and crack the window. Obviously none of these issues with the GT350, its 10x more poised with all aspects of driving. I suppose this might be a demerrit for some who like that loose feeling, but not for me. Despite being a 3800lb beast, it can make quick work of the local bumpy backgrounds, once you get over the fact its likely just as wide as those narrow lanes. Overall cabin noise is also much less, unless of course you open the exhaust valves.
When I bought the 2012 I really thought I was going to hang onto it for quite awhile, for the price it was a fantastic performer with a ton of character (albeit no real refinement). But the GT350 takes the cake, sold the 2012 with no regrets.
Spa2k
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This is pretty much true. Driving it is great, but seeing the quality lapses on the way to and from the car is not so great.
Not everything is over exaggerated.
My expectations are not beyond what other manufacturers provide. Perfection is not the goal, but any Mustang should at least be "pretty good." I have yet to see a GT 350 in person that passes this test, although oddly most "regular" Mustangs do.
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DC15
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Thank you all for the comments! Based on this thread and others, I was a little concerned and finally was able to see the GT350 for myself... I was able to walk around, sit in, start 
, but not drive :( a 16 GT350 Track Package.
I have to say I was impressed with the quality. I didn't see any of the disturbing paint drips, misfitting panels, etc. Of course on the road and after thousands of miles, things can change.
I will do a proper write up, but overall the 2016 GT350 is definitely a step or two up from 2012 GT Premium both on the outside and inside and a step or two behind a Porsche. They did fix that door clunk when shutting the door (thank you ford), however they still have that cheap plastic inside (including the upper door panels, my pet peeve) instead of real aluminum,leather, etc but it is better scratch resistant plastic and better looking than the previous stuff. Again, overall an improvement inside and out. I am still jazzed to get one as soon I can!
, but not drive :( a 16 GT350 Track Package.I have to say I was impressed with the quality. I didn't see any of the disturbing paint drips, misfitting panels, etc. Of course on the road and after thousands of miles, things can change.
I will do a proper write up, but overall the 2016 GT350 is definitely a step or two up from 2012 GT Premium both on the outside and inside and a step or two behind a Porsche. They did fix that door clunk when shutting the door (thank you ford), however they still have that cheap plastic inside (including the upper door panels, my pet peeve) instead of real aluminum,leather, etc but it is better scratch resistant plastic and better looking than the previous stuff. Again, overall an improvement inside and out. I am still jazzed to get one as soon I can!
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mattlqx
Driver
Maybe you want to wait until we find out what "soft door rollover" really is on the '17s. It may fix your pet peeve.