NLPRacing Posted July 25, 2006 Share Posted July 25, 2006 Autoblog Very interesting... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted July 25, 2006 Share Posted July 25, 2006 Sounded good until they got to the "stripped interior" part. :fan: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
igor Posted July 25, 2006 Share Posted July 25, 2006 Sounded good until they got to the "stripped interior" part. :fan: isn't boss supposed to be race ready? Igor Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RancorKeeper Posted July 25, 2006 Share Posted July 25, 2006 If stripped interior means no radio and no power windows, I'm not interested. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Explorer4X4 Posted July 25, 2006 Share Posted July 25, 2006 I say great, the Mustang needs to get back in touch with it's old racing heritage. What it is now is a disgrace! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HerkyJerky Posted July 26, 2006 Share Posted July 26, 2006 Lighter than a V6 Mustang? They are smokin' some bad weed. Did I read that wrong? This thing will still be 3600-3700 pounds. Pure swags on my part, but here goes ....... Mustang GT500 3950 pounds less blower hardware 100 pounds ? stripped interior 100 pounds ? lighter tires and wheels 50 pounds ? ----------------------------------------------------------- 3,700 pounds Now maybe they throw an aluminum 5.4 at it. I have even less of a clue what that would do. 50-100 pounds savings? That puts the package at 3,600 maybe. A new base Mustang GT is about 3500, and thats with an aluminum 4.6. What am I missing here? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Sixcav Posted July 26, 2006 Share Posted July 26, 2006 I say great, the Mustang needs to get back in touch with it's old racing heritage. What it is now is a disgrace! Ok, first of all the Mustang was not designed or intended in it's orginal idea to be a serious race car. Hence this racing heritage thing is something that came along later. It was designed to be a spirited sporty coupe. A fun to drive car. A secretary car. That was its intended goal and it evolved from there. Second the current Mustang is certainly not a disgrace. The current generation Mustang is without a doubt the single most bad ass all around Mustang that has ever been brought to the market. Hell you can get a V6 Mustang now that will run circles around a Mustang GT from just 10 years ago. (stock v stock) The current Mustang GT is the fastest Mustang GT they have ever released and is far superior in handling aspects to any previous generation. While I understand that beauty is in the eye of the beholder and all that, to me it's also the best looking Mustang they have ever made. The GT500 is of course the big daddy of bad ass Mustangs. And while I agree that the dealerships are ripping people off for them it doesn't change the fact that performance wise, they kick serious ass. So no the Mustang is not a disgrace. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted July 26, 2006 Share Posted July 26, 2006 I say great, the Mustang needs to get back in touch with it's old racing heritage. What it is now is a disgrace! I suppose the Mustang FR500C that won the driver, team, and manufacturer championships in its first year in the Grand Am Cup isn't satisfactory "racing"? I do believe Ford is currently 2nd in points this year as well. Disgraceful I tell you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ford blue blood Posted July 26, 2006 Share Posted July 26, 2006 Comparing the original Boss 302 to the current Mustang is like comparing apples and oranges! The 69/70 Boss 302 was a nearly race ready automobile. The engine was bullet proof (steel crank, cross drilled and champhered, HD rods, light weight forged pistons and an honest 7000 RPM red line). It had a close ratio top loader, mine came with 3:90 T-lock (could have used 4:30s), the tires and wheels were the widest available on a production auto at that time. The car was tight, loud and rough riding. Couldn't get air in it and the stereo was poor at best. It did run 14 flat in stock trim in the quarter and on a road course the only competition was other Boss 302s. The engine was very peaky, like to be spun up above 2500 RPM to really run strong. I can speak of the 03 Cobras when talking about the differences. The Cobra will run circles around the Boss 302 in terms of creature comforts, quarter mile time and be a worthy competetor on a road course. The vast improvements in technology and rubber make a huge difference. Shocks that we have now are better then those available after market then (Koni was the best back then). In 1970 the best tire available was a BF Goodrich TA radial and it needed to be shaved to 3/32s to give good grip. There is no doubt in my simple military mind that the proposed Boss would run circles around a 69/70 Boss 302 even if it weighed in at 3900lbs vice the 3450 that the 69/70 Boss came in at. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ruteger Posted July 27, 2006 Share Posted July 27, 2006 There is no doubt in my simple military mind that the proposed Boss would run circles around a 69/70 Boss 302 even if it weighed in at 3900lbs vice the 3450 that the 69/70 Boss came in at. The 69/70 Boss 302, like the Boss 429 and 426 Hemi, is another example of a legendary engine where the legend is much greater than he reality. The problem is that the Boss 302 was an engine specifically designed for racing and was detuned for street use. Like the Boss 429 and Hemi, detuned race engines just didn't run very well in the lower/middle part of the rpm band (where most street engines lived). They were designed to make their greatest horsepower/torque in the upper part of the rpm band. So, unless you always had your foot in it, the Boss 302 wasn't all that great. Ford did a much better job integrating the free-breathing Boss cylinder heads with the Boss 351. It's too bad that engine was choked off by federal emission regulations. As to a 'stripper' modern Boss, I wonder what they're going to take out of the interior. The standard S197 Mustang interior isn't exactly a luxury vehicle, as it is. I guess they'll just do the same thing as the 2000 Cobra 'R', i.e., no radio or A/C. Personally, I'd rather see a new Mach 1 with the Classic Design Concepts shaker scoop and hood that has the 69/70 character peak in the middle (instead of the plain, flat hood that all the S197 cars now have). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
igor Posted July 27, 2006 Share Posted July 27, 2006 (edited) Lighter than a V6 Mustang? They are smokin' some bad weed. Did I read that wrong? This thing will still be 3600-3700 pounds. Pure swags on my part, but here goes ....... Mustang GT500 3950 pounds less blower hardware 100 pounds ? stripped interior 100 pounds ? lighter tires and wheels 50 pounds ? ----------------------------------------------------------- 3,700 pounds Now maybe they throw an aluminum 5.4 at it. I have even less of a clue what that would do. 50-100 pounds savings? That puts the package at 3,600 maybe. A new base Mustang GT is about 3500, and thats with an aluminum 4.6. What am I missing here? how about this .. take base GT manual: 3450 take the 4.6l and bore it out to 5.0 - +20 strip interior -100 put on lighter wheels and tires -50 and you are at what... 3320lb ... which is just a tad above the 3300lb weight of te V6 Manual Stang (my spec source = autos.msn.com) The "GT500" whardware means - the stiffer suspension and such - it does not need to add weight - if anything with that huge blown engine, I am sure they tried to save weight wherever in the chasis they could, and so many components might be lighter than the originals on the GT. Igor Edited July 27, 2006 by igor Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickF1011 Posted July 27, 2006 Share Posted July 27, 2006 how about this .. take base GT manual: 3450 take the 4.6l and bore it out to 5.0 - +20 strip interior -100 put on lighter wheels and tires -50 and you are at what... 3320lb ... which is just a tad above the 3300lb weight of te V6 Manual Stang (my spec source = autos.msn.com) The "GT500" whardware means - the stiffer suspension and such - it does not need to add weight - if anything with that huge blown engine, I am sure they tried to save weight wherever in the chasis they could, and so many components might be lighter than the originals on the GT. Igor I would sure hope they don't plan on slapping stock GT brakes on the Boss. Brakes are pretty heavy items. Those 14" clampers on the GT500 certainly add several dozen pounds to it at least. I also would doubt they'd cut the wheel/tire weight any either as people wanting a more upscale Mustang would likely also demand a more upscale wheel/tire combo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
igor Posted July 27, 2006 Share Posted July 27, 2006 I would sure hope they don't plan on slapping stock GT brakes on the Boss. Brakes are pretty heavy items. Those 14" clampers on the GT500 certainly add several dozen pounds to it at least. I also would doubt they'd cut the wheel/tire weight any either as people wanting a more upscale Mustang would likely also demand a more upscale wheel/tire combo. if weight was a real concern,. you can usually cut about 1/3 to 1/2 off usual stock rims without downsizing .... they are more expensive materials, but do not compromize looks or size... E.g. tha Meazda3 17" wheels weight 21lbs .. I can get Rota Subzeros 17" weighting 15lbs .. Ford could make it a point to install light wheels.. regardless - these are minor pieces ... the MUstang's biggest weight comes from the engine, especially the iron bloc in the GT 500 Igor Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CurtisH Posted July 27, 2006 Share Posted July 27, 2006 Lighter than a V6 Mustang? They are smokin' some bad weed. Did I read that wrong? This thing will still be 3600-3700 pounds. Pure swags on my part, but here goes ....... Mustang GT500 3950 pounds less blower hardware 100 pounds ? stripped interior 100 pounds ? lighter tires and wheels 50 pounds ? ----------------------------------------------------------- 3,700 pounds Now maybe they throw an aluminum 5.4 at it. I have even less of a clue what that would do. 50-100 pounds savings? That puts the package at 3,600 maybe. A new base Mustang GT is about 3500, and thats with an aluminum 4.6. What am I missing here? According to a Ford Racing Catalog, the iron 4.6 block weighs 155 pounds. The aluminum version is 85 pounds, which is about 55% of the iron block's weight. The iron 5.4 block is 200 pounds. Assuming the same 55%, an aluminum version would weigh about 110 pounds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wescoent Posted July 28, 2006 Share Posted July 28, 2006 Very interesting news. Just some of my thoughts on the matter... Ford has a chance here to make a big splash in the performance market, and if they get started on it soon enough, they might be able to steal enough of the Camaro and Challenger's thunder to blunt their market impact significantly. A stripped down, lightweight performance Mustang will truly be the anti-GT500, and provide a compelling case for RX-8 and 350Z owners. More importantly, development work for how to build a lightweight Mustang that handles great, is still reasonably stiff, and isolates the driver from noise will be done. Send all that information and maybe 2,000 Boss Mustang over to Shelby American, let them play with them for a few months, and then release a genuine, bonafide Shelby GT350, all stripped down and ready to race, or ready to put Porsches and Corvettes to shame on the street. The second part of this new Mustang equation will be the engine. The new 4.6L 3V is a gem of an engine and attached to a gem of a drivetrain. But, there is a lot more potential to be extracted from it, both through engineering and marketing. The 1980's 5.0 Mustang did absolute wonders for Ford's performance reputation in a dark time for enthusiasts, and was THE tuner's performance car of choice before the Southern Californians began doing their thing with Civics. At the moment, Ford is doing absolutely nothing to benefit from this huge brand equity just sitting around collecting dust. Bore out the 4.6 to a 5.0, and play around with it until you get 340hp from unleaded 87 octane gas. Put this engine into every vehicle the 4.6 is currently in. There's your next appearance package, a 5.0 GT package, with big chrome 5.0 badges on the side, a bodykit, and whatever else Ford sees fit. Then, for the Boss 302, tune the heck out of the 5.0 until its all the way up to 390hp, and there you go. Shelby can go even further with the GT350. Then, the 6.2L Boss engine can replace the 5.4L block, in both detuned (380hp), and tuned (425hp) applications. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moby Vic Posted August 2, 2006 Share Posted August 2, 2006 Ok, first of all the Mustang was not designed or intended in it's orginal idea to be a serious race car. Hence this racing heritage thing is something that came along later. It was designed to be a spirited sporty coupe. A fun to drive car. A secretary car. That was its intended goal and it evolved from there. The beauty of the Mustang has traditionally been that you could get several different versions tailored to your particular taste. Some of us prefer a stripped-down car that's performance oriented and luxury averse. I'd love to get a new Boss like this, except that I'm sure Ford (and the dealers) will tack on a premium price for the name. Of course, I had a '91 LX Sport hatchback and still have a '95 GTS, both with crank windows, so you can see where I'm coming from. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Alonso Posted August 7, 2006 Share Posted August 7, 2006 I say great, the Mustang needs to get back in touch with it's old racing heritage. What it is now is a disgrace! Why do you say that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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