Kitted out hatchbacks and small cars are great, but it's muscle cars that sing loudest when smothered with aftermarket love. It's nice to see that Ford will be using the official aftermarket auto show, SEMA, to highlight a few new Mustangs.
Ford promises dozens of vehicles for the 2012 SEMA show next week, but the Mustangs are sure to get a lion's share of attention. Each Mustang gets some attention from a different aftermarket company or set of companies.
M-2 Motoring Mustang
M2-Motoring gives the 2013 Mustang a full carbon fiber makeover. That includes a custom carbon fiber roof with striped graphic, a carbon fiber hood, and carbon front splitter and side effects. The carbon plays off the bright custom Valencia Orange color scheme to create a car that looks fast even when standing still. Helping to ensure that those looks don't ring hollow, M2 adds a race-inspired rear spoiler and forced induction. The car rides on custom 20-inch wheels and halts with Wilwood brakes.
DSO Eyewear Mustang GT
Sunglasses manufacturer DSO Eyewear transforms the already potent Mustang GT 5.0 into an even more powerful animal. A Whipple twin-screw supercharger with intercooler spikes output to 750 hp – from a comparatively measly 420 hp in the stock GT. Brembo brakes, Eibach suspension and a 3dCarbon body kit prevent that extra power from going to waste. DSO also does some interior work, including adding a Rockford audio system.
Ringbrothers Mustang GT
A different take on the Mustang GT, Ringbrothers adds a carbon fiber body kit and custom waterborne paint to give the muscle car "street machine style." Performance upgrades include a supercharger, Baer brakes, and big wheels and tires.
Stitchcraft Mustang Convertible
The lone open-top Mustang tune previewed by Ford, this upgraded 'Stang more than compensates for any performance lag when compared to its hard-headed sibling. Stitchcraft adds nitrous injection, a Flowmaster exhaust, Hotchkiss coil-over suspension and Wilwood brakes. It dresses up the exterior with a 3dCarbon body kit and custom paint job and customizes the interior.
3dCarbon Mustang "Boy Racer"
Everyone else is using its kits, why wouldn't 3dCarbon get in on the fun? This loud red-and-yellow vessel was inspired by the racing strip with a touch of the bright lights of the Vegas Strip. The car is outfitted in the all-new 3rd generation Boy Racer body kit. The interior and its leather-trimmed, striped Recaro sport seats is every bit as vocal as the body.
Mothers, Autosport Dynamics and RTR Mustang GT
Already a favorite of this year's tuners, the Mustang GT gets three times the love in this rendition. Mothers juices the car to 650 hp, adds track-ready suspension and increases the size of the wheels and tires. An RTR carbon fiber body kit keeps the car slick and light, while a custom interior keeps the driver comfy.
Take a look at the gallery for a few more details on these Mustangs and several other Ford SEMA vehicles.
Source: Ford
Now take the VW Beetle not much better - an old golf in funky retro skin is not enough to keep that car at the top.
Take the FIAT 500 - nice car, gorgeous styling and packaging but still a little off the beat because mechanically it is unexceptional.
Conversely take the Mazda MX5 great selling car and lasted in the market for years - kept Mazda going. Why is that? Because the car mechanically is as good as it looks; it is a fundamentally dated concept but that was its job: rear wheel drive and front engine to replicate a classic British sports car. And it is engineered and drives as well as or better than any modern car.
Now consider the BMW MINI - good car, why? Because it is not only sexy but it is a really good car to drive, worth purchasing just because of the way the car drives.
The Mustang should have never been built with the dated mechanical and utter lack of ergonomic development it was given. It is testament to the concept that it has sold as well as it has. It could have done so much better. The vehicle needs proper design investment and then it will be the real epoch-making winner the original was.
The everyday Fords sold in Europe are good cars; well made, well designed, technically robust but still advanced. How the new Mustang could have got build by the same company beggars belief. My car did not even have a blue Ford badge to be seen anywhere on the car; how weird is that? Are even Ford themselves ashamed of their own history and brand?
For rentals & sales alone & have Manumatic option too.