BoostRabbitGT test drives Mustangs and other cars in this thread.

[BoostRabbitGT]

What's a Mach 4?
$50 says you end up with a Prius.

Assuming you're not being sarcastic...

https://www.mustang7g.com/forums/th...d-at-ford-dealers-meeting.162290/post-3294838

At the moment I might be waiting longer than planned for a change in vehicle. Until then I'll be sticking with the good ol' 'Boost.

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[Rocket Man]

wasn't being sarcastic, but forgot about that. Don't believe it will happen, but if it does I really can't see it selling well at all. Look at the Dodge Hornet, can't give them away.
And as far as keeping your car, that's the best idea you've had in a while. Do you really want to go into more debt for a 50k+ car in the forseeable future? Wait for a while and see how the election and the economy turns out. I think things are either going to slowly get better, or go to hell in a hurry by early next year.

 

[BoostRabbitGT]

wasn't being sarcastic, but forgot about that. Don't believe it will happen, but if it does I really can't see it selling well at all. Look at the Dodge Hornet, can't give them away.
And as far as keeping your car, that's the best idea you've had in a while. Do you really want to go into more debt for a 50k+ car in the forseeable future? Wait for a while and see how the election and the economy turns out. I think things are either going to slowly get better, or go to hell in a hurry by early next year.

The Hornet is a rebadged uglier Alfa Romeo Tonale.

Fair point on debt. I'm not in a rush right now to get a new car. If anything it means more opportunities for me to test drive more cars of interest (outside of exotics for obvious reasons).

 

[Radiant]

Look at the Dodge Hornet, can't give them away.

The Hornet is a budget crossover with a tiny engine, fake boost button, and terrible handling. A 4-door Mustang is still a Coyote-powered sedan, even if not a "true Mustang".

 

[Airtrade]

I think a four door Mustang could be great. Kinda how the Infiniti G35 was a four door 350z. Might not be a sports car but it was a great sporty sedan!

 

[BoostRabbitGT]

Yesterday I test drove a 2020 Dodge Charger R/T Scat Pack. I walked away from it very impressed. Not enough to buy that specific example, but it definitely got me thinking about considering buying a new one. The handling in Sport Mode felt accurate, a little lighter than the Camaro/CT5 and a little tighter than the S650 GT. The sound from the car was beautiful, as to be expected from a naturally aspirated V8, although I did notice the torque doesn't really kick in until around 3000 RPM. My only real complaint against the Scat Pack was that the throttle mapping in Street Mode (one step above Eco Mode, which I should've tried out during the test drive) was more sensitive than I would've liked, making transitioning from idle to motion jerky at times. But other than that it's a very nice vehicle, roomy yet confidence inspiring. Overall visibility is definitely better than in the Challenger in my opinion.

I think if the 4-door Mustang does become a reality, it should be a little smaller than this outgoing Charger, but a little larger than the Cadillac CT5 interior-wise. A proper mid/large sedan if you will.

On a closing note, I still need to work on my confidence/assertiveness with more "I want to win your trust/sales"-type of salespeople. I tend to stammer easily, and thinking of how to reply on the fly when I perceive someone is trying to get a sale from me when I'm not ready to buy anything has been a consistent struggle for me. I can stand my ground, but I want/need to come across as more committed/certain in my decision to not make an impulse buy.

 

[Farmer Fran]

The Hornet is a budget crossover with a tiny engine, fake boost button, and terrible handling. A 4-door Mustang is still a Coyote-powered sedan, even if not a "true Mustang".

Have you ever driven one?

 

[BoostRabbitGT]

I test drove an F-150 STX the other day. It was different from what I thought it would be. For starters I enjoyed the simplicity of having manual controls, right down to turning the key to start the car. The Coyote engine is always a joy to listen to, even if here it's not nearly as audible as in the Mustang. But what surprised me most was how quiet the truck was in motion. On the highway there was a hint of wind noise, but nothing else from what I can remember. It felt like a luxury car at times, how soundproof I perceived it to be. Performance was satisfactory, steering felt light yet accurate for the most part, the suspension was well damped (maybe a little floaty), and I just felt tranquil for the duration of the test drive. It may not have been enough to sway me over to getting a truck over a car, but I think I can understand a little better why people are drawn to trucks beyond utility purposes. (That said, if I ever did get a full size truck I'd be tempted to make it more of a budget Shelby F-150 Super Snake, albeit with a slightly higher ride height.)

I plan on test driving a variety of vehicles over the next two weeks. Stay tuned if you'd like, otherwise please "Ignore" this thread at your leisure . Thank you and have a nice day and upcoming weekend.

 

[BoostRabbitGT]

A quick post for now, I just finished test driving a Bullitt. I didn't go very far but I definitely appreciated having the Auto Rev feature on. Maybe it's cheating out, but considering last time I test drove a Bullitt I couldn't even go from idle to motion without stalling, I think for even a brief moment of time I was able to conquer my apprehensions about driving a stick shift.

In the end though I'll be sticking with automatics. Not for the fear of stalling (even though I did twice during this test drive even with Auto Rev on), but because of driver ergonomics. I'm 5'5" and basically need to have my seat fully forward to press the clutch pedal down all the way. Or in other words, I couldn't find a comfortable seating position at all. I can see the appeal of rowing your own gears and feeling more connected to the road, but honestly I can't see myself doing that long-term. Guess that makes me less than an "actual car enthusiast", but I can live with that. All said and done, I'm glad to have had the experience trying out manuals again over the past few years.

 

[BoostRabbitGT]

As the new title of the thread implies...well, no need to repeat myself. Barring a few exceptions (Audi A4/A5, Toyota GR Corolla, whatever Ford calls their potential 4-door "Mustang" if they actually produce and sell it to the general public), I think I've got an idea of what I'm looking for in a future vehicle.

Here's what I'm considering if plans fall through for a GT/Mach-4...

Cadillac CT5 Premium Luxury AWD (V6)
Hyundai Tucson Hybrid N Line AWD
Lexus RC300 F-Sport AWD
Mercedes Benz C300 4MATIC

And that'll be all for this post. I'm still debating if I even want to keep this thread up at this point, but I think I'll sleep on making that decision for now. Thank you and have a good night.

 

[Rocket Man]

I think you should enjoy what you have now, save some more money and buy something nicer in a few years.
Obviously you will (and need to) do what makes you happy.

 

[BoostRabbitGT]

I think you should enjoy what you have now, save some more money and buy something nicer in a few years. Obviously you will (and need to) do what makes you happy.

That's my plan now (enjoy the 'Boost for another year or two while saving save more money). As nice as the vehicles I test drove were, none of them are quite at the level of "gotta strike while the iron is hot!". The RC300/350 might get discontinued in 2025/2026, but I imagine the rest will be around for a while longer (and perhaps the Mustang gets refreshed in 2026 as a 2027 model year car?).

Thank you for the critical advice.

 

[BoostRabbitGT]

Today I got the opportunity to test drive a Bronco Sport and two Broncos. I'm not sure if I'll add the general impressions to the first post just yet, but anyways...

--

'24 Ford Bronco Sport "Free-Wheeling": This crossover's pretty zippy in Sport Mode! While it won't thrill anyone getting up to highway speeds, I felt like I had plenty of power to pass other vehicles. Handling felt fun for a crossover, but not sports car levels of engaging. If anything was bad or concerning, it would be how the vehicle seems to vibrate at idle, something I particularly felt through the steering wheel. Aside from that though, I think I may have found my next vehicle if plans for the GT fall through. For real this time, I was that impressed by it.

'24 Ford Bronco Badlands (2.7L V6 EcoBoost): This powertrain felt much more lively than in the Ranger. Other than that though, it was enjoyable enough if not particularly memorable...except for the piped in V8 sound they put in when under mid/heavy acceleration. (It's more forgiving here since it seems they do this even with the F150 Platinum equipped with the 3.5L V6 Power boost.)

'24 Ford Bronco Outer Banks (2.3L I-4 EcoBoost): Same overall experience as the V6 model, aside from feeling easier to drive and a bit more connected to the road. However, they pulled the V8 sound trick in here too, which for some reason I feel is a lot more egregious here than in the V6 models. Imagine an EcoBoost Mustang sounding like a Coyote---oh, THAT'S why a lot of people don't like piping in fake sound for vehicles.

--

Now, with those experiences in my pocket, I have now test driven every Ford vehicle except the Explorer, Expedition, and Super Duty (which I don't plan on test driving since I'm not particularly interested in those models). If I were to rank Ford's trucks/SUVs/crossovers on driving experience, it'd go something like this:

1. Ford Bronco Sport
2. Ford F-150
3. Ford Bronco
4. Ford Ranger
5. Ford Escape

And that wraps things up until the next time. Later!

UPDATE 4/8/25: Test drove a few more Fords for self-reference. The following is an updated take on the above list.
1. Ford Ranger (V6)
2. Ford F-150 (V8)
3. Ford Bronco Sport (I3)
4. Ford Explorer ST
5. Ford Bronco (I4/V6TT)
6. Ford Maverick Lobo (I4T)
7. Ford F-150 Lightning Flash
8. Ford Escape (I4)

 

[BoostRabbitGT]

A quick update today. I test drove a '25 EcoBoost convertible and GT coupe...

The Eco felt very familiar, right down to the steering weight/engagement, to my '19. The main differences I noticed were the drone (even in quiet mode) and the somewhat different (but still I-4 through and through) sound inside and out.

The '25 GT still feels the same as the '24, lighter steering weight/engagement and all. Kinda disappointed since I was hoping that engagement from the EcoBoost would carry over to the GT.

All said and done, I'll continue forward sticking with my EcoBoost until further notice, saving up for the potential "Mach-4" or some other venture in the meantime.

 

[Praehotec]

With all the cars you have driven, have you considered trying out a MkV Supra?

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