Muscle Car: the 2014 Ford Mustang
Judy Antell
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A muscle car usually refers to a high performance two door car with a V-8 engine, not the bulging biceps of young teen drivers who like to rev those loud motors and drive fast.
But on the new Ford Mustang, you might develop strong arm muscles parking the car. The tight gear shift on the manual transmission model requires you to slam the stick into reverse with all your might.
Maybe I’m just a weakling.
The cool ambient lighting
But the Mustang GT coupe also slammed my cool quotient into overdrive; every time I tooled around in the car, people commented on it. Mostly men, of course, looking out from motorcycles or street corners, or driving their cars next to me, appreciating the car’s sensuous curves and sleek lines.
And it wasn’t even a convertible.
The roomy Mustang trunk
I was going to take the Mustang to East Hampton, but I got sick and New York had a tropical storm, so we put the trip on hold. But the testosterone-fueled car proved to be a cool city car and conversation piece, looking equally at home on the West Side Highway and FDR.
And I think my teen daughters appreciated the short jaunts around the city more than they would have a five-hour roundtrip in the tiny back seat. The Mustang is considered a four passenger car, but it is really a date car; perfect for two passengers, but not ideal for adults in the back seat.
Cramped but happy in the Mustang’s back seat
My girls have frequently ridden in the back seat of a BMW 325ci, so they know about tight spaces. They found the Mustang’s ride to be smoother (I worked that like a pro in gears one through five; we never used six within city limits) and the legroom comparable.
The car did come with a navigation system, which we didn’t use – I konw my way around the city. And if you are driving this car, you don’t want an electronic voice ordering you around. The radio came with big speakers that let you fill the car with music.
Although most Mustang drivers are probably not using the car for weekly grocery shopping, I did find the roomy trunk perfect for holding lots of bags. And driving over Red Hook’s cobblestones in a stick shift was fun. If you find yourself picking up power tools at The Home Depot, the rear seat splits and folds down.
If cars could be embarrassed, the Mustang was likely humiliated by my non-macho trip to Costco, and the jumbo sized toilet paper and tampons it had to transport home, but I have three daughters and the estrogen rages in our household.
- What We Loved
I mean, c’mom, it’s a Mustang!
The too cool for school ambient lighting
Comfortable leather seats
MyKey Ford safety feature: you can keep a lid on speed and radio volume when your teen or youth-obsessed husband has the car
What You Need to Know
Bumper to Bumper: 3 years / 36,000 miles
To keep the car looking hot, corrosion warranty is 5 years / unlimited miles
The thirsty, powerful manual engine gets only 15mpg in the city, 26 on the highway
Base price is $34,750: the GT sport package and premium leather seats in the car I drove brought the price up to $40,330
Note: Ford provided me with the Mustang to test drive. Opinions and swagger are all my own.