Ford Quality: from Nightmare to Dream Come True

[ZXMustang]

Ford quality on my brand new 26 Smurf GT.

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[tastetickles]

I have rattles from rear view mirror panel that housed the camera, behind A pillar, behind LCD dash and somewhere from driver side rear.

exterior wise, front bumper wasn’t properly secured on one side and plastic panel behind door is 3mm off the body.

Going thru buyer’s remorse at the moment but that happens every time I buy a new car.

 

[Illini4]

26 GT Convertible delivered March 26: Exhaust tips uneven, deck lid misaligned, quarter window weatherstrip inverted, dealer installed license plate bracket 1 inch off center.

 

[Motoguy]

I have owned numerous new cars over the years and I am on my 4th Mustang in 50 years (yeah I’m that old) My 2026 was built in late February and aside from a wiper arm clocking issue (wiper was a few splines off and was about 2 inches up the windshield), I am very happy with the build and paint quality, panel gaps, and interior. All the electronics appear to be gremlin free also. I realize that the gremlin free electronics can change but overall I feel this is a well built car.

I'd be interesting to hear how the electronics and screens do over time especially in the heat there in Havasu.

 

[MAT1955]

@Army GT.....interesting. The paint on my 2014 is still in excellent shape (sold it to a friend). There were two drips at the trunk edges of my 2024 GT Prem Vert - which I used the wife's finger nail file to gently reduce before re-painting nmyself, but the rest was very good. There was one fault with the paint at a trunk edge of my 2026 GT Prem Vert where some body caulking got pushed-up a bit before painting but I fixed that too. The guy who did the paint correction and ceramic coating to the 2026 said the paint was almost flawless and as good or better than any of the exoitcs he does. I guess he wasn't kidding as he posted three pictures and a video of my 2026 GT on his website as testimonials to his work.

 

[agreywolfe]

I'd be interesting to hear how the electronics and screens do over time especially in the heat there in Havasu.

going on the third summer in Oklahoma with summer highs routinely hitting 100-105, no notable impact on the screens over that time, im moving this year so wont know what longer term would do.

 

[tankcj]

I'd be interesting to hear how the electronics and screens do over time especially in the heat there in Havasu.

yeah, I’ve seen the posts about issues with the electronics so I’m somewhat prepared but our heat can be brutal. We typically leave for the summer and the car is in the garage so hopefully that will help.

 

[Will2]

Ford quality on my brand new 26 Smurf GT.

Dang... but yeah that's exactly what I was talking about in my earlier post in this thread about seeing late '25s and '26s with bumper corner paint issues.

I've checked out a lot of Mustangs on random dealer lots from California to Virginia and noticed this type of thing on many of the '26s.

Ford will fix some issues one year, but then new ones appear. It's like playing Whack a Mole

 

[Ninjak]

Well, I will say both of my 24's are doing great. I have zero issues with my Braptor and my Darkhorse. I must be getting the "Monday" vehicles.

Also, my 21 Badlands was rock solid until the day I sold it. No complaints from me.

 

[ZXMustang]

Lots of the issues I’ve seen were from transport and at the dealer. My DH was riddled with dings and scratches from sitting in the showroom for months. Dealer messed up fixing a few of the issues on that blue ember paint and I walked away from the deal after the fact.

 

[AZ_Ryan]

Agreed, and even the Corvette is not perfect in the showrooms. In particular, I've noticed how one headlight is installed perfectly, the other is always slightly off. (Still very nice overall though, and I would argue GM achieves tighter tolerances in general when compared to Ford.)

In my case, the build quality on my 2026 is actually quite good. Only two minor issues:

1. The passenger side tailpipe sticks out a little further than driver's side. It's minor, but noticable if you look directly.
2. The other issue is the same as reported in this thread just a few days ago: https://www.mustang7g.com/forums/threads/front-hood-alignment.177200/#post-3525963

Nothing I can do about the tailpipes, but I was able to fix the hood on my own.

Hood before fix:

Hood after fix:

Not perfect, but a huge improvement and now I'm very happy with the fit and finish overall.

Did you adjust the latch or the hood stops?

 

[AZ_Ryan]

I'd be interesting to hear how the electronics and screens do over time especially in the heat there in Havasu.

Mine have had zero issues.

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