As a power car, yes. As a handling car... who knows at this point.

The next model GT500 is going to start using either a turbocharged or a supercharged 5.0 L. There were some spyshots of a GT500 mule with a boost gauge and 8,000 RPM redline floating around... so I guess we'll find out in time.

Here you go:
PROGRAMS - MUSTANG-BOSS-302 - The Motor Sports Authority - Auto Racing, Formula 1, Moto Racing, NASCAR, News, Photos, Videos, Blogs, & more...

If Ford is to be belived when they say it will lap a normal road-course about 2 seconds faster than the regular GT, that means it will do VIR in about 3:06. 2 seconds behind the GT500, and a good 4-6 seconds behind a base model C6 'vette.

Fast for a mustang, and an extremely killer bargain, but it's not going to start emberrassing GT-R's or anything unless the driver is to blame.

It not suppose to compete with the GTRs.

**** you ford.

I want that so badly

Yeah, not sure why people are trying to compare this against cars that cost double or more. They went after the M3, and beat it, it's first lap out at LS, as a prototype.

:rofl2::iagree:

I actually think its going to be a lot quicker than that at VIR. Should approach the 3 minute mark there. The VIR lightning lap course is a lot longer than a "normal" road course. It definitely should be a lot quicker than 3:06. Its going to destroy the M3 and that's about what the M ran in the lightning lap.

Is the Grand Am televised?

Grand Am series is carried on SPEED channel.

I'll check my local listings. I don't like NASCAR because the cars don't have anything in common with their namesakes. While in japan inwent to some JGTC races those were great. I actually recognized the car they were racing. I assume it's kinda the same for Grand Am.

Yeah, the GT style cars start out as street cars. NASCAR is just a ground-up race car unlike the old days.

Grand Am is owned by NASCAR, though. :p

But grand am uses street style cars right?

In the GT class, yes.

That's what I want to see.

I doubt it. The base 'vette with Z51 suspension ran around 3:01 or so, depending on the year, and that's about 400# lighter with very similar power and wider tires, IRS, and better aero.

I think the Boss will see a 3:04 at best. Of course, SVT will somehow manage to drive it to a never-to-be-duplicated 2:59 or something like they did the GT500.

I think it's going to make a lot of Corvette owners very angry. :)

What?
Every 1/4 mile, lap time, etc. Ford has published has been done by the general public and many beaten. Ford posting a 12.8 1/4 mile for the new 5.0 got beat by a bone stock 12.6 run already, Ford has been one of the more 'accurate' companies when it comes to posting times.

There were a few Boss 302R's in the Daytona Grand-Am 200 last week. One of them came in 2nd, and was very close to winning, but some late cautions killed it for them. It was beat by an M3, but I believe it had a V8 in it.

seriously why the **** cant they just have the option of getting a mustang on special order. :shakes head:

That doesn't hold true for their 2:58.XX lap around VIR. In fact, the 2011 LL saw nearly a 6-second slower pace from the GT500 SVTPP car.

SVT are the ONLY ones who ever got a GT500 (stock) around VIR anywhere near the 3 minute mark, much less under.
All current production M3's have V8's in them.

With the same power, and 400# more weight and a higher center of gravity, I don't see how. No way to know for sure though until some independant testing is done, though!

Ah, okay, I didn't realize that. For some reason I thought they had TT'ed V6's in them. I believe one of the M3's had the fastest track time at Daytona, not sure what the Boss' were running.

Well, numbers are out. I am truly and completely impressed with the Boss 302 being faster than the GT-R and Z06 out at Leguna Seca.

I am still curious how the car will do on a faster track, like VIR, in comparison.

IN RED: Me too, Ford really did something amazing this time...and I'm not even close to being a ford guy.. but this just rocks

Totally. I still am happier with my Z06 than a mustang, but complete :tiphat: to Ford. For $43K, I don't think you can beat the BOSS if you plan on buying new, staying stock.

and I love my Nissan.. hell, all three of them, but you said it exactly how I feel... Ford really out did themselves this time...

I'm just happy to see Ford building performance vehicles. Except for the Cobra, and Cobra R, and FGT, Ford has built crown vics with fancy sheet-metal and tiny back seats and called them mustangs for years.

In 2005 when I was working as a sales rep at a Ford dealer, I was ASTOUNDED that the new GT had 235/55/17 rubber all around. A whopping 300bhp. It was a complete pile of junk regarding performance. Build-quality was a huge step up, but in essence, it was a dog turd when it came to performing.

I think for 2011, all that has changed. The "regular" 5.0 is a pretty mean car, and the Boss takes it to another level.

I am hugely impressed with Ford's new direction. They haven't been competative since 1992 , excluding the more limited models (Cobra, FGT, etc.)

Maybe GM, Dodge, and Nissan will get scared and do a little better.

To be fair though, LS is a tight track, with a 300 meter straight being the longest. If you put the Boss up against the GT-R or the Z06 on a longer track, I think it would take the loss.

Either way, it's going to be a dead ringer for (or beat?) the base C6, and the 370Z isn't even in the running. The Challenger/Charger have mad power, but handling?Oink Oink. Same for the Camaro SS. It's no faster than the 1998 Camaro SS, for that matter.

If all you care about is owning a pretty nice car (I think the new mustangs, vette's, 370's are all nice. Not European nice, but nice.) that puts down the best performance in the near 40K range, Noone has a damn thing for Ford.

you have to wonder, what crawled up their butt, and made them decided to actually do work? could it be all the Ford jokes over the years? or tired of just plain sucking... even the GT had a ton of issues when it 1st came out..

as for dodge.. the Challenger, is by far the best looking of the big retro cars.. but wtf is all that power for if your car weighs 8000 pounds.

If i get a chance I will be driving one of the new 5.0s and def will give the boss a run.

Ford got lucky with the down turn in the economy. They had just sold off brands for a lot of money that they wouldn't had been able too just a few months later. They took advantage and bought parts for less and were already deloping new engines with better MPG. If they didn't have to worry about the union I bet they would have cut pay and made massive lay offs too.

When GM and Crysler are trying to get back into the game ford took their advantage and kick the others while they were down.

It was Alan Mulally in 2006. He saw the direction the market was headed and decided every car Ford built had to be a class-leader. There is a hugely different corporate culture over at Ford compared to the GM and Chryslers of the world these days.

I knew the Boss was going to be pretty badass. I knew a lot of people here doubted it but the proof is in the pudding, as they say. Tastey, delicious pudding. :yum:

They didn't get lucky at all with the downturn. They just refinanced all their debt in 2006 before the market turned south. That's what saved them. If they had waited any longer they would have been in the same boat as GM and Chrysler, requiring a bailout. Their restructuring started well before the economic downturn.

IMO, it all really started with the Fusion. When that car started winning quality and reliability awards the market started to take notice... Ford was up to something unusual.

flashburn, I see you there. :stirthepot:

Will... not... buy! Must... Resist!

I'm not so much wondering that, as when Ford will get back in the game near the 6-figure point.

We need an updated FGT.

Viper is coming back in a year I belive, and the Z06/ZR1 are still strong as hell.

Ford needs something that can play with the big boys, and I am very curious what it will be!

:stirthepot:

I will buy for my DD. :p

Exactly my point. Ford got luckily with their timing. And since they had extra cash when everyone else's investments were going down the drain. Ford was able to reinvest in themselves at a lower cost. Luck and timing.

I wouldn't call deciding to get fiscally sound and push quality asap as getting "lucky". I'm sure they took quite a bit of short term quarterly profit hit to get there.

It was a lot of smart decision making. Honestly, it never would have happened without Alan Mulally. After turning Boeing around he came in and started making wholesale changes.

He's got an engineering background which really helps with the end products, too. He knows what Ford needs to be making and focusing it's attention on to succeed. One of the more notable things he's done lately is issue notice to all Ford engineers that, if any new model after 2012 is not, at a minimum, 250 to 750 lbs lighter than the model it's replacing it will not be approved... no exceptions.

That's pretty cool because then you figure the 50th Anniversary Mustang (MY2014) will be around 3,350 lbs at maximum with likely ~450 hp in V8 form. :drool:

AND we're likely to see the 3.7L V6 replaced with an EcoBoost 4 banger.

Ok, I admit it, I just got sprung.
:D


Edit: Great article on what m4a1 said: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-0...-explorer.html