Perceptions of Middle-age Men in Mustangs

[15wile]

Maybe it was just a figure of speech, but "not agreeing" and "loathing" aren't the same.

Who said they were? My wife loathes the car, thus it is implied that she doesn't agree with me when it comes to taste in cars.

Said agreement is also unnecessary.

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[stang-man]

I bought it cause I liked it, could careless what anybody else thinks
I'm middle aged, if I live to be 120.

 

[sicpuppy]

With so many Mustangs on the road why would any one think they were that special. A Shelby or Boss maybe but all the rest. Sure they are nice cars and I like my quite a bit. Never noticed anyone pay much attention. Especially women.

I bought my GT because I liked it. I had a '17 and it just didn't sound as much like a mustang as I would have liked. so I traded it for a 18. Much better sound. I liked the color/stripe on my 17 better but the 18 is OK. I needed a second car because my other car was a summer only, good weather car only and I needed something to drive when my other car was in storage for the winter.

 

[TicTocTach]

My wife likes the EBPP - it's my daily driver and has all the safety features that her Pilot has, and it doesn't matter now that both boys don't fit in the back seat. She doesn't care that the wheels and tires are larger than it started with, she doesn't even notice that stuff. To her, it's safe for me & the boys, it rides nice, is quiet, and has heated/cooled seats... As near as I can tell, every other woman - hell, every other person on the planet just sees a plain white Mustang with absolutely nothing going on. And I like it that way.

My toy car is also plain and white, a '69 Plymouth Valiant 100 post sedan. It's still rockin' the original paint on everything but the driver fender and hood, so plenty of patina. The 340 under the hood and 3" exhaust makes it sound like something other than basic transportation from the last century, but it's not loud. She doesn't understand why everyone stares at that car when we roll through a parking lot... And I like it that way.

The only thing I am a bit concerned with is that my EBPP is as fast - or faster - than the Valiant in a quarter mile, and probably around a road course, even though I built the Valiant to take corners well. One of these days, I'll get them both around a track to see how they do.

 

[StealthStang]

How is a similar weight car, with 68 fewer HP and 50 fewer torques, faster than a 2015-2017 GT? Is the Euro Mustang that wimpy?

The Polestar S60 Volvo is AWD, 8 speed, and it has a supercharger to help with torque before the turbo fully spools up. With the launch control it launches very very hard, 0-60 is 4.5s on it. The 2016 V8 is 4.6s i think but the reality is that on a normal road they cant really launch very hard due to traction limitations. Ive ran my s60 against a AWD A45 mercedes which is lighter has more power and is also AWD and if they dont use launch control the A45 utterly gets murdered due to turbo lag. I even tried against a pre facelift Nissan GTR and its pretty even over the first few meters.

Of course, on a good surface the 2016 GT should do a slightly faster quarter mile on paper but in reality I havent seen a stock one able to show any kind of advantage over the Polestar S60. In fact my Roush RS1 Ecoboost is only slightly slower than the same era GT, and my Ecoboost is basically a show car with like 35LBS+ of custom audio equipment in it.

We do have bad fuel here (95RON) and i try to run the turbo cars on octane boosters, im not sure how well the NA GTs respond on better fuel...id imagine they benefit less.
In any case the GTs poor real world performance here is why people don't really have much respect for them as performance cars, I also believe the euro spec cars tend to be heavier cause they are all fully loaded premium models and they may have more strict emissions targets in the ECU. I expect the face lift models with the 8spd to do a lot better though.

Anyway, as I said most people like to hate on both models here, they hate on the ecoboost because it doesnt sound like a V8, and they hate on the GT because the performance and handling is not much better than the Euro hyper hatches and performance compact sedans. The interior on these cars also is quite low rent compared to its rivals. So the Mustang is basically seen as a poser car, old men who want to hark back to the old days and pretend to be Steve McQueen, most kids havent even heard of him. The fact that they keep releasing Bullit Mustangs even further cements the old man image.

But...whatever, I still think mine is awesome, and many others do too.

 

[chain]

I have heard the mid life crisis comment before. I tell everyone the same thing. We would all have loved to have driven a nice Mustang, Camaro, Corvette, etc when we were young. We get them mid life because we are finally at a point where we can afford them! If I could've afforded a $600/mo payment or been able to save a big down payment when I was young, I would've had a new Trans Am WS6. Back then I was stupid with money and it just wasn't meant to be. My taste in cars hasn't changed much. A sexy car with a rumbling V8 still gives me a chub and it's what I want damn it!

 

[PJR202]

I considered myself fortunate to get mine at 36. My wife has always had the sensible ride for family stuff anyway, but I came into the relationship with an access cab Tacoma so once the kids were past about 7 it was a no go unless it was an unavoidable situation. Once it was paid off I still had to have a truck and a vehicle capable of getting down my hill in snow so I just kept it and got the GT. The GT is still my DD though as long as the terrain is acceptable. That plan is to get another truck in 3 years when the GT is paid for but I would keep the Tacoma forever if it held up.

 

[StealthStang]

A sexy car with a rumbling V8 still gives me a chub and it's what I want damn it!

But you do understand that is exactly why the car has that old man image right ? Theres not many people actually care about retro styling with big gas burning engines anymore, the people they do are almost always old men, you even see it when it comes to reviews the people that like them are usually always lamenting about the "good ole days!".
Considering almost all of us here would get smoked by a Tesla in insane mode with minor mods (tyres, weight reduction) that looks like an Uber...can you really honestly tell kids that its something special if they have no idea about it ? On the surface of it, the Mustang IS actually heavily influenced by an older demographic, especially the V8 cars.

I mean, I knew before I got the car I would get the mid life crisis old man wisecracks. I dont think this should be a surprise to anybody. Also I have to say, that people say the same thing about Porsches, that they are mid life crisis mobiles, for old balding men trying to get attention from girls half their age. Though the one difference is that Porsches line of cars is not so heavily focused on reliving experiences from the 60s, the new 911s are going to be hybrids FFS.

 

[Fatguy]

But you do understand that is exactly why the car has that old man image right ? Theres not many people actually care about retro styling with big gas burning engines anymore, the people they do are almost always old men, you even see it when it comes to reviews the people that like them are usually always lamenting about the "good ole days!".
Considering almost all of us here would get smoked by a Tesla in insane mode with minor mods (tyres, weight reduction) that looks like an Uber...can you really honestly tell kids that its something special if they have no idea about it ? On the surface of it, the Mustang IS actually heavily influenced by an older demographic, especially the V8 cars.

I mean, I knew before I got the car I would get the mid life crisis old man wisecracks. I dont think this should be a surprise to anybody. Also I have to say, that people say the same thing about Porsches, that they are mid life crisis mobiles, for old balding men trying to get attention from girls half their age. Though the one difference is that Porsches line of cars is not so heavily focused on reliving experiences from the 60s, the new 911s are going to be hybrids FFS.

Yup, if your are an old guy on the market looking for something younger, old fashioned V8s are not the answer. Don’t wear winter jackets with real fur trim and brag about it and the price. Don’t wear black jeans thinking it still looks cool. If we all posted our head shots instead of a car you would see one big old fart love in. Nothing wrong with that, but if you are looking for younger women then your self perception has to change.

Think sugar daddy but is not too embarrassing to be seen with the girl in the mall. Also helps to be into cool activities. When women in the early twenties call you cool without thinking about it first - well then that is as good as it gets and I drive a V6 Mustang! Only old guys care about that, no young woman ever mentioned it or cared. The younger ones are now focusing on electric instead of a V8 for some reason. Go figure...

 

[sw686blue]

I don't give a flying fuck as to what anyone else thinks. The ones that make the stupid comments are the ones that secretly wish they were driving it. At the end of the day, it puts a smile on my face and that's what counts.

 

[Fatguy]

I don't give a flying fuck as to what anyone else thinks. The ones that make the stupid comments are the ones that secretly wish they were driving it. At the end of the day, it puts a smile on my face and that's what counts.

I tend to agree with you but many here do secretly place their value system in others a jealousy if there is conflict and they can see a way to push back.

“My life = car”

That used to be my motto. But I have reformed my behaviour.

 

[HaleFire]

Doesn't matter what age you are, there will be negative perceptions regarding everything you do. Because cars like mustangs are really an extension of your personality and identity, I think the perceptions are magnified.

I'm 27, and have been told many times that I shouldn't have bought my car because it was stupid financially, should be planning for a family, etc. If you're middle aged you must be battling a mid-life crisis. And if you're older, you're just desperately trying to re-live the glory days. People have an innate desire to categorize you. To put you in a pre-determined box of how someone your age/gender/status "should" behave. Preaching to the choir here but you can't allow those people to live in your brainbox - what they think is meaningless.

 

[pike1346]

I was just chatting on Face Book (kinda slow at work right now) about how some women I know have rather snide attitudes about older guys with Mustangs.

"I love it when females I know toss out hints about how they perceive middle-aged men in Mustangs/Camaros/etc. Like we're all lecherous mid-life crisis victims cruising bars for women 1/2 our age, trying to re-live our youth.

The easiest way to deflect the non-sense is to mention that such cars attract other dudes virtually exclusively. It takes too long to explain the fun/hobby/relaxation/enjoyment, etc. to people that view cars as nothing more than a necessary evil."

I think that most car-guys experience such silly crap. Thoughts?

Read this:
https://jalopnik.com/i-am-a-mustang-woman-now-1830722923

 

[pike1346]

Doesn't matter what age you are, there will be negative perceptions regarding everything you do. Because cars like mustangs are really an extension of your personality and identity, I think the perceptions are magnified.

I'm 27, and have been told many times that I shouldn't have bought my car because it was stupid financially, should be planning for a family, etc. If you're middle aged you must be battling a mid-life crisis. And if you're older, you're just desperately trying to re-live the glory days. People have an innate desire to categorize you. To put you in a pre-determined box of how someone your age/gender/status "should" behave. Preaching to the choir here but you can't allow those people to live in your brainbox - what they think is meaningless.

The same people that say do not profile, profile the most. brodozer equals small package, etc. It does not bother me.

 

[thehunterooo]

How is a similar weight car, with 68 fewer HP and 50 fewer torques, faster than a 2015-2017 GT? Is the Euro Mustang that wimpy?

Its EB/V6 speak

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