First Drive: 2011 Ford Mustang GT 5.0

At Ford H.Q, when the sheet was pulled off of the 2011 Mustang GT  that would sport the 5.0 V8, a fellow journalist leaned in to me and muttered a painful truth I was attempting to ignore:

“looks like you’re gonna have to upgrade.”

My heart sank. No one likes to hear that their automotive pride and joy is to be surpassed by a newer, faster model and here I was, at the very spawning ground of my ’08 GT/CS being told it was officially obsolete. I managed to fool myself regarding last year’s refresh as my ape-like, chest-thumping defense mechanism was triggered. This time, however, no matter how much pride and jealousy oozes through my seams, I cannot ignore the fact that the new Mustang GT is simply amazing.

Having some time to take the newest pony in the stable for a spin through some hilly country, we were pleased to see what has changed and what has stayed the same. There is little evidence in the outward appearance that this is anything other than the current GT apart from the 5.0 badge on the front fender. The current visual options all apply here, such as a hood scoop, side vents, and window louvers,  but new colors will be available such as Yellow Blaze Tri-Coat, Race Red and Ingot Silver. Our demo had little of the extra flash, but the slick lines and beefy hood of the basic design remained. Inside is familiar territory: hardly any change apart from the new 6-speed transmission that was only previously found in the Shelby GT500.

The Shelby is an excellent benchmark to compare the new Mustang GT to, beyond just the visuals. Laying down rubber in the Shelby had a palpable difference. Much like having a steak and then experiencing a slab of grass-fed gourmet kobe beef.  You’ve stepped into “Mustang Prime,” and every element was served with a complementary side of nuance. Now, however, the differences are much more subtle.

The centerpiece of the latest mustang hoopla, the new 5.0 liter V8, gives the new Mustang nearly 100 new horses to play with when it was hardly lacking before. Taking the current V8’s 315 hp and turning it up to an impressive 412 hp while maintaining the same approximate fuel consumption is another reason why this would be a hard choice to pass up if you were shopping for a new ride or upgrading from your current ‘stang.

Having the optional Brembo brake package installed was much appreciated for the mountain roads we were thrashing, and was another element that continued to blur the line between Mustang and Shelby. My strongest criticism of this car has always been the under par brake system, and I’m satisfied that they’re addressing this as they add more power. The Mustang has been fairly capable to meet most needs, and things have just improved with this incarnation. The suspension, though sporting a live rear axle, has been engineered well enough over multiple years so that it does a more than adequate job handling bends and corners.

Gear shifts are smooth and the feedback from the clutch is spot on: not too heavy, and not too light, so hitting the contact point is a breeze. Spending as much time in a Mustang as I do, it did take me a few moments to remember that there was an extra gear to utilize when we had the road open to us. As we charged back down a mountain road and bared onto a long straight, I opened up the taps to hear that V8 symphony the Mustang rocks. This is the car’s way of saying “thank you” when you step on it, and it’s well appreciated.

So now that I’ve had a taste, what would I tell my compatriot? Having re-built my car as closely as possible on Ford’s site, omitting SYNC and maintaining the “California Special-ness” of my prancing pony, I’d hardly be able to to afford it. The 2011 GT starts at roughly $29,000 and my configuration came out at about $36,500, almost 8k more than I spent for my ’08. So one can definitely get more horsepower for the same MPG, but not for the same price.  Still, looking at the black, 415 hp GT/CS of my own design in front of me, it may be a bullet well worth biting. Stay tuned for a detailed full review soon.

Words By – Alex Kalogiannis

Photos  By- Jon Rouzier