Anyone else struggled deciding between EcoBoost and GT for daily driver?

[horned-toad]

I have driven the EB on two separate occasions and took a quick drive in a GT albeit in less than ideal road conditions. The one thing I haven't done is drive the EB and GT back to back

I've owned both the EB and GT simultaneously. Switch back and forth every other day. The EB is 'carefree' is that it doesn't get out of shape, and you can drive it hard without a care. But to get any "oh wow" you have to push it into the boost regime. The GT sounds fabulous, no question. But you're more "muscling it around" than the EB and you have to keep the enthusiasm in check. If I want to romp on the throttle and be playful I take the EB out and spin it hard.

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[steveo1960]

I had a rental Ecoboost from Hertz a couple of years ago and drove it over 2000 miles during the 10 days I had it. It was a business trip. I believe it was a 2022 or 2023 and it was certainly a fun car to drive. Certainly far superior to the V6 and V4 Camaros I have rented which sucked IMHO. My only complaint is the exhaust tone doesn't have that V8 growl. Maybe aftermarket can remedy that. I don't know. Honestly aside from the lack of growl for someone just driving the car either locally or on a highway only a true enthusiast would realize it's an Ecoboost. Of course mashing the go pedal gives it away every time.
That being said, I went with a GT because if I got the Ecoboost my OCD would kick into high gear and I would always wonder what having those extra 4 cylinders would be like.

 

[Killshot58]

I had a rental Ecoboost from Hertz a couple of years ago and drove it over 2000 miles during the 10 days I had it. It was a business trip. I believe it was a 2022 or 2023 and it was certainly a fun car to drive. Certainly far superior to the V6 and V4 Camaros I have rented which sucked IMHO. My only complaint is the exhaust tone doesn't have that V8 growl. Maybe aftermarket can remedy that. I don't know. Honestly aside from the lack of growl for someone just driving the car either locally or on a highway only a true enthusiast would realize it's an Ecoboost. Of course mashing the go pedal gives it away every time.
That being said, I went with a GT because if I got the Ecoboost my OCD would kick into high gear and I would always wonder what having those extra 4 cylinders would be like.

Good choice!

 

[jeffnudi]

Yeah, both the two that I have currently as well as the couple that I’ve had earlier were just barely drivable. Barely.

Just wondering, how many have you had and what specifically made them uhh, ghastly?

I had a 2018 EcoBoost Premium and the automatic transmission always seemed to be hunting for a gear in non-highway driving. I now have a 2024 EcoBoost Premium and I can say that there is a world of difference between the 2018 and 2024 transmissions.

I sold the 2018 before the 2024 I had ordered arrived. The 2018 had 99,000 miles on it and I never once had an issue with the mechanicals. I did have an issue with the electronics, specifically the touchscreen, which cost nearly $1800 to fix.

 

[Arno_ecobeast]

If you want to race it, take it to cars and coffee regularly or keep it as a long term vehicle, get the GT.

If you just like something that can be driven daily and thrown in canyons (pretty damn hard) and return extremely good MPG then get the ecoboost.

The day to day sub 60mph driving, the ecoboost is more fun. Aside from the engine sound, the ecoboost has more torque on tap down low, is nearly 200lbs lighter over front axle giving more nimble front but also better weight distribution.
If you're not a petrol sniffing drag racing, 100mph + guy, then the eco will be all you need.
I had an eco for 5 years. loved it. tuned it, took it to track. it lit up the tyres throughgears 1-3... it had a mountain of torque.
Now im moving to a GT. I want to do the drags thing, i want to keep the car for longer and i ride motorcycle to work and back every day. So MPG doesnt bother me as much as it did in the past.

Both are awesome cars, but for different reasons. they really are two very different cars with similar name

 

[djdstang]

I’ve had 10 mustangs since I was 16, 8 v8s 1 v6 and now a eco boost. I’m happy with the eco boost. I’ll be buying the EV too someday.

 

[horned-toad]

I’ll be buying the EV too someday.

they have pills for that.

 

[Eurasianman]

If you are concerned about gas mileage, insurance, and overall maintenance costs, go with the Ecoboost. If none of the above matters, then get a GT. I came from a 3.5 Ecoboost F-150 and am used to the gas mileage. Furthermore, I would not have daily a truck if I were concerned about gas mileage.

Also, as some have mentioned already in this thread, whenever I drive mine, there's never a doubt in the back of my mind that I should have gotten an Ecoboost.

 

[BeefyTacoPudding]

I had a choice between an ecoboost premium, or a near base level GT. I mostly drive in the city, but do enjoy the highways too. After test driving both the ecoboost was the winner for me. Felt more peppy in the city, and on the highway it was still awesome. The GT was overkill for my driving habits. It sounded way way better, but still costs more with less features. It would also cost more for gas and insurance on top of the price tag.

I ended up ordering a dark matter gray ecoboost premium with the bronze package. Absolutely 100 percent no regrets at all.

 

[ListedGuru]

I had a choice between an ecoboost premium, or a near base level GT. I mostly drive in the city, but do enjoy the highways too. After test driving both the ecoboost was the winner for me. Felt more peppy in the city, and on the highway it was still awesome. The GT was overkill for my driving habits. It sounded way way better, but still costs more with less features. It would also cost more for gas and insurance on top of the price tag.

I ended up ordering a dark matter gray ecoboost premium with the bronze package. Absolutely 100 percent no regrets at all.

Thanks for the comment. That's pretty much where my head is at now too. I think the EB will be fine for me but that sound from the GT is pretty special. If the difference was 'only' 5K or so to jump to the GT from the EB I would probably do it, but at $10K (almost $11K with sales tax) that just doesn't seem like the greatest deal to me.

Unfortunately my test drive of a GT was pretty short due to not the greatest weather and road conditions so I really didn't get to let that Pony hit it's stride so to speak. I have driven two different EB's and I agree with your comments about it seeming more peppy in the city (torque from turbo I guess).

Like you mention too with the added cost of worse mpg's and insurance, etc the EB makes a lot of sense to me. I'm a pretty practical guy so at this point I'm 90% sure I'll stick with my EB order unless some killer deal comes along on a GT - never say never as they say

 

[Killshot58]

Be careful with your decision. You've already committed to spending a pretty good chunk of money. Now is not the time to settle. Give the GT a couple more test drives before you pull the trigger on the EB.

 

[BeefyTacoPudding]

If money on purchase and running it is not a big deal, then I'd go GT. For me, I'm just very practical. I felt like I was already spending a lot, so tacking on more for just performance that I'd never use felt like a waste. Plus, in my price range I'd have to drop the premium package to get the GT. Not worth it for me. Like I said before, mostly city driving and the premium package made it easy for me. Boy does this car surprise people.

 

[Killshot58]

If money on purchase and running it is not a big deal, then I'd go GT. For me, I'm just very practical. I felt like I was already spending a lot, so tacking on more for just performance that I'd never use felt like a waste. Plus, in my price range I'd have to drop the premium package to get the GT. Not worth it for me. Like I said before, mostly city driving and the premium package made it easy for me. Boy does this car surprise people.

Makes sense. I'm sure you'll love it.

 

[Ctang]

I was dead set on getting a 24 EB to use as a daily driver, so much so that I have one on order. The last few days a voice inside my head said I need to at least consider the GT. Wondering if anyone else here has gone through this same scenario and if so what was your decision along with some of the pros and cons you weighed?

Obviously the GT is more ($10K in my case) and I know the GT will cost more to insure, fuel and maintain. Those are all issues that are manageable but the big thing I'm fighting is the what if. I'm sure I would be happy with the EB but part of me is asking would a GT make things that much more enjoyable? I do plan to keep this car for 10+ years so I want it to be reliable but if something did come up in my life where I had to sell the car say 5 or 6 years down the road how would each fair for resale?

I see lots of talk online about the EB going EcoBoom but that seems to be more of an issue with owner's being careless with maintenance or doing other stupid things with mods, etc. TBH I haven't even driven an new GT yet and I hope to do so soon but the weather is crap here so I may have to wait a bit. Anyway any insight into their thought process on this very issue would be very beneficial to me so I appreciate any and all input.

To sum it up, I'm sure the EB would suit me just fine but I just hope a few years down down road I don't say to myself darn I should've got the GT, lol. But really do I need that much power that the GT provides (probably not) and is it worth the additional $10K price of admission? I'm a huge numbers guy so to me that's the million dollar question.

Feel free to chime in with anything that might be relevant to help me make this decison

I have the 2024 EB and I absolutely love it. But I debated the same thing as you, EB vs GT. For me, the things that tilted the scales to the EB were:
- This car would be my daily driver
- Much better gas mileage
- She has plenty of get up and go and plenty of power for the common driver.
- Insurance was lower
- In so many ways, it’s the same as the GT
- I like the cleaner look of the EB, I wanted a sporty but smooth looking car. My EB checked those boxes for me.

 

[ListedGuru]

If money on purchase and running it is not a big deal, then I'd go GT. For me, I'm just very practical. I felt like I was already spending a lot, so tacking on more for just performance that I'd never use felt like a waste. Plus, in my price range I'd have to drop the premium package to get the GT. Not worth it for me. Like I said before, mostly city driving and the premium package made it easy for me. Boy does this car surprise people.

I have the 2024 EB and I absolutely love it. But I debated the same thing as you, EB vs GT. For me, the things that tilted the scales to the EB were:
- This car would be my daily driver
- Much better gas mileage
- She has plenty of get up and go and plenty of power for the common driver.
- Insurance was lower
- In so many ways, it’s the same as the GT
- I like the cleaner look of the EB, I wanted a sporty but smooth looking car. My EB checked those boxes for me.

Thanks so much for the reply. You make some very good points and honestly those points are what keep bringing me back to the EB. Did you get a base EB or does it have one of the packages on it? What kind of driving do you do (city, highway, mixed) and what kind of mpg's are you seeing? Are you using regular or premium for gas? Looks like your in Cali - what kind of discounts are you seeing on Mustang's there?

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