2014 Ford Fiesta Titanium

The Biggest Little Luxury Car You Can Buy

Vital Stats

Engine:

1.6L I4

Power:

120 HP / 112 LB-FT

Transmission:

5-Speed Manual

Drivetrain:

Front-Wheel Drive

Curb Weight:

2,537 LBS

Seating:

2+3

Cargo:

14.9 CU-FT

MPG:

27 City / 38 HWY

Base Price:

$18,800

As-Tested Price:

$20,390

You might not be interested in owning a subcompact (B-segment) hatchback for $20,000. Let's be clear from the get go here: there are any number of reasonable arguments for staying away from the highest-content versions of these small cars. Ford's player in the B-segment arena is the newly updated 2014 Fiesta, and the Titanium trim represents the most luxurious instantiation of the model. We recently were loaned a Fiesta Titanium for a week, whose final sticker price hit $20,390, with navigation being the only standalone option added to the bottom line. By way of comparison, the most basic version of the all new, one-segment-up Mazda3 hatchback costs $19,740 with delivery and destination accounted for, and no options added on.

Hold on to that thought for a moment, we'll get back to it.

Ford has done some seriously good work to update the Fiesta for 2014, though a lot of the effort has gone into making an already good-to-drive car look a lot better sitting still. The most immediately recognizable change to the car has been wrought on the front fascia, where Ford's newest corporate face means the Fiesta sports an expansive new grille. The hexagonal kisser lends the same sort of Aston Martinesque vibe to the Fiesta as it did to the new Fusion, and the Titanium's standard multi-spoke, 16-inch aluminum wheels help to complete the idiom.

The '14 Fiesta would have made a convincing case as an alternate-reality Aston Martin Cygnet.

In fact, when we started lining up the front-facing photographs of our Storm Gray tester we were struck that the '14 Fiesta would have made a convincing case as an alternate-reality Aston Martin Cygnet, had Toyota not secured that gig for its Scion iQ. We're not sure that counts as a missed opportunity for Ford, but the point remains that this '14 Titanium trim is worn quite well.

Open the driver's door and you'll see that some small-car-premiumness carries on inside the Fiesta cabin. The standard leather seating and steering wheel wrap are touches that felt like a huge win for the segment back when Fiesta launched, and they still help to set the Titanium apart in 2014. Crosstown rival Chevy Sonic can be had with leatherette seating, but not the real cowhide, and the Hyundai Accent will wrap your steering wheel in leather if you opt for the SE trim, but not your seats. The Ford chairs are the sort of flat-bottomed variety, with not much in the way of thigh support, that you'd expect in a car worked to maximize space for drivers of all sizes. Your author found the head and neck support to be impressive (I'm super tall, too), but the lateral hold to be below average.


In addition to looking spendy, the new-school integration of a MyFord Touch-enabled, 6.5-inch touch screen does a lot to clean up the tiny-button-strewn mess of the out-going Fiesta's control center. Our car offered SYNC as well as the optional ($795) navigation system, and we found all to be reasonably easy to use, honestly. The display screen proved bright and simple to read, and the touch controls slightly faster to react than we'd expected given previous disappointments with MFT.

The biggest 'premium' differentiation for the car ... is the quiet, controlled ride.

As a whole, the soft-touch plastics, brushed metal and gloss black accents, and big bright gauges all worked in harmony to make the Fiesta Titanium seem pretty upscale while in use. But the biggest 'premium' differentiation for the car when compared with its competition is the quiet, controlled ride. Ford has gone to a lot of effort to make the Fiesta feel a lot like a bigger car, including modulating the ride quality to filter out bad road surfaces, and deaden tire and wind noise to the point of class leadership. While our personal preference is to have more steering feedback from our small cars, we'll admit that the Fiesta's slightly light, filtered feel through the tiller is well matched to its overall package.

For a small, short-wheelbase car, the hatchback feels more at home cruising than it does nipping from one corner to the next. Sure, the structure of the car is plenty rigid, and should you feel the urge it'll do just fine being lobbed around a groovy piece of tarmac. But the low levels of tactility and the hushed confines of the Fiesta really put the driver in more of a mind to meander than to attack corners.



The combination of the 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine and the five-speed manual transmission are part and parcel to this laid-back nature. The manual gearbox is better suited to harnessing every bit of the 120 horsepower and 112 pound-feet of torque, should you need to cover ground in a hurry, but its light action and long throws won't be confused for a sports-oriented piece of equipment, either. Still, clutch and gearbox are so simple and painless to operate, that we can't imagine opting into the six-speed "PowerShift" automatic unless we were dead set on getting mildly better fuel economy. (The manual car is rated at 29 city and 38 highway miles per gallon, while the auto will do 30 and 40 mpg, respectively.)

It's worth noting that the best may be yet to come in terms of powertrains here.

It's worth noting that the best may be yet to come in terms of powertrains here. We got a brief turn in a Fiesta equipped with the EcoBoost three-cylinder engine and a five-speed manual last year, and still think that a fully loaded car with that 123-hp, 148-lb-ft powertrain might be the ultimate sweetheart of the lineup. For now, Ford's only making that engine available as an option on the SE model, and with a manual transmission only.

To sum up, for around 20 grand ($19,595 with destination and no options) Ford will sell you a Fiesta Titanium that does well just about everything a car needs to do, while also being feature rich and very comfortable. Back at the top of the hour we pointed out that you can also get what seems to be a very nice, completely redesigned and one-segment larger Mazda3 hatch for about the same amount of money, but at the "base" end of the trim spectrum. (If you don't like the Mazda you could put Focus, or possibly Golf, in here, too, though fewer and fewer C-segment cars offer hatchback configurations).

If you're interested in the "bigger car" thing that Ford is putting forth with Fiesta, why not just opt into a bigger car?

Here's why we think this is a credible exercise in comparison: the thing that separates the Fiesta from its B-segment hatchback contemporaries the most is the aforementioned ability to drive like a larger car. Sonic and Accent are both extremely good cross-shops for Fiesta in terms of price, size and equipment. In fact, with more power and very close fuel economy ratings, we'd argue that the Chevy and the Hyundai might be better values than the Ford overall. But both of those cars drive a lot like traditional subcompacts, with more feedback and noise, slightly less stability at speed, etc. The same case is writ large for the even more athletic Mazda2 and Honda Fit, both of which are great fun to pilot, but far more elemental than the mature Fiesta. (The Honda and Mazda are also being generationally updated as we speak, and might well come out as more fully baked competitors when that happens.)

So, if you're interested in the "bigger car" thing that Ford is putting forth with Fiesta, why not just opt into a bigger car? Well, in the Mazda3 example, you're not actually giving up that much in an area that you'd expect to be dominated by the larger C-segment offering: interior space. Well, sort of. The Mazda does have about 10 cubic-feet more of total interior volume, but a lot of that is allocated behind the front seats. Up front, the Fiesta offers more headroom and the same amount of legroom as does the Mazda, albeit in a much narrower package (Ford gives up 4.5 inches of shoulder room). If you're someone that doesn't regularly make use of your backseats, that's a surprisingly competitive amount of cabin to work with, considering the Mazda3 is 16-inches longer overall than the Fiesta.

There's not a perfect trim-level comparison to draw, but getting roughly the same equipment in the Mazda3 that we tested in our Titanium will mean opting for Mazda's Grand Touring trim. That leads to a Mazda3 that costs just about $24,000, with larger wheels and no leather, when all is said and done.

All the content of a C-segment car (give or take) with the same sort of on-road experience, but in a smaller package.

Everyone loves having a lot of options, and our point here is that the Fiesta Titanium seems to give us an important one that hasn't really existed in the market before. All the content of a C-segment car (give or take), with the same sort of on-road experience, but in a smaller package. To some folks, that doesn't feel like much of a deal at all; they see a smaller car in the driveway as less impressive than a larger one, period. Or they want more performance from a larger engine, or they'll make use of the backseat more frequently. But the Ford is intriguing for buyers that are perhaps single, live in urban areas or otherwise value a car with a small footprint, and yet still want as many bells and whistles as can practically be expected. Give up some elbow room, gain a bit of the posh. The choice is (now) yours.

There are a lot of people out there that will take one look at the $20k sticker price, chuckle, and move on to the next Autoblog review. But as the case of the small car continues to advance in the US, we think there's a real opportunity for half-pints like the Fiesta Titanium. The proposition is a bold one for the traditionally size-obsessed American car buyer: value is not measured in wheelbase inches. The small car has become an option, rather than a last resort.

 

Source: autoblog.com

2014 Ford Fiesta ST

Vital Stats

Engine:

Turbo 1.6L I4

Power:

197 HP / 202 LB-FT

Transmission:

6-Speed Manual

0-60 Time:

6.7 Sec (est.)

Drivetrain:

Front-Wheel Drive

Curb Weight:

2,742 LBS

Seating:

2+3

Cargo:

10.1 CU-FT

MPG:

26 City / 35 HWY

Base Price:

$21,400

As-Tested Price:

$24,485

I'm not overly inclined to professional jealousy, as a rule. Sure, I go a bit green around the eyes when Ramsey draws the 911 GT3 trip to Weissach, Harley is tapped-in to drive a completely stunning Porsche 911 by Singer, or, you know, Drew Phillips gets to shoot a Lamborghini Veneno in the middle of a desert like some sort of sheik. I hate you guys...

Honestly though, one of the new car events that dug me the most, was when our Steven J. Ewing got to fling the Ford Fiesta ST around some hot corner of Europe. What goes around comes around, I suppose, as Mr. Ewing himself espoused an envious nature of the Focus ST trip that came before.

The good news in all this covetous intra-office behavior? All the cars mentioned, and specifically the Fiesta ST, are just wonderful to drive. I can say that with more confidence than ever now, having joined Ford for a good bit of Fiesta-flinging myself. In my case, the locale was slightly more pedestrian (Michigan not France), and the car in question was the five-door version of the Fiesta ST that we get here in The States, as opposed to the three-door number they get across the pond.

Driving Notes

• Weeeee! Listen, I don't want to come off like an eight-year old on his first roller coaster ride, or that super annoying pig from the insurance commercial, but I'll be damned if this isn't a joyful little beast of a car. Hot hatchbacks have gotten pretty serious in the last years; the Mazdaspeed3 is fast but brutal in terms of power delivery, the Volkswagen GTI continues to get more mature and further from its cheap-and-chuckable roots, and even big brother Focus ST now feels like more like a junior trackday car than a spunky runabout. Fiesta ST is point-squeeze-go fun that reminds me of an era of small, fast, affordable cars I'd thought dead.
• Two hundred and two pound-feet of torque are available at 4,200 rpm from this stout 1.6-liter EcoBoost engine, so I highly recommend keeping the tach pinned at 4,500 for the most maniacal results. The 197-horsepower peak doesn't come up until 6,000 rpm, either, but honestly, this doesn't feel like a laggy engine at all. The quick-spinning four-cylinder makes a goodly portion of its power and torque under those optimum figures, so it doesn't even take a fully mashed throttle pedal to get the Fiesta ST moving forward with authority.
• And if you're like me, you'll be laying into that throttle just to hear the engine spool up and do its thing, too. There are competitor cars that sound better – the Fiat 500 Abarth comes instantly to mind – but the Fiesta ST song is worth the cost of the gas burned and then some.
• Having recently gotten out of the more sedate standard Fiesta, I can say that Ford has waved a magic wand over all of the controls, to the betterment of enthusiast drivers. The hot hatch's six-speed hand-shaker might not be the best manual transmission in the segment right now, but it's far removed from the flaccid action of the five-speed stick shift of the standard car. Meanwhile the brake pedal feel is sharper and steering effort is heftier than in the basic subcompact. After an afternoon being hugged by the Recaro seats, I've learned to love them in spite of the fact they look like ex Power Rangers props. Maybe I can fit some kind of covers...
• Ford tells me that the ST weighs in at just over 2,700 pounds with fluids topped up, or a couple of hundred pounds more than the three-door, European car we tested this past March. The car handles so nimbly, however, that I almost can't believe the Fiesta is much over a ton – it drives like a featherweight thing. Turn-in and rotation happen with speed reminiscent of your favorite Mini Cooper S, stiffness mid-hard-corner is phenomenal and the chassis feels like a dancer when executing corners in quick succession.
• Already the base for imposing rally cars around the world, I have a feeling that this Fiesta ST is going to make some noise in grassroots motorsport, too. The autocross feels like a natural habitat for the ST, right out of the box.
• I think the exterior modifications of the ST package infuse just the right amounts of fun and attitude into an already-attractive Fiesta hatch. I'd have no problem arguing that the Fiesta ST is a much neater looking shape than the slightly goofy one of the Focus ST, too. It's a good thing then that Ford provides for a decent range of paint options for the cheeky Fiesta, ranging from the almost intolerable Green Envy you see here (perhaps the worst $595 you can spend on the car), to far more sedate white, black and silver tones. (I'd opt for Ford's Performance Blue, and call it a day.)
• The Fiesta ST starts at $21,400, and the $24,485 out-the-door cost of our tester includes the rather pricey sport seats ($1,995) and the navigation-enabled MyFord Touch system. On a per-content-piece price alone, it's clear that Ford is aggressively going after the likes of the Mini Cooper S and the Honda Civic SI. If you're looking for a hot hatch bargain, not quite as quick but every bit as fun as it's excellent big brother Focus, put the Fiesta ST on your shopping list today.

Source: autoblog.com

Classic Recreations Shelby GT350CR

Vital Stats

Engine:

7.0L V8

Power:

545 HP / 530 LB-FT

Transmission:

5-Speed Manual

0-60 Time:

3.7 Seconds

Drivetrain:

Rear-Wheel Drive

Curb Weight:

3,420 LBS

Seating:

2

Base Price:

$119,000

If you've got an itch for a classic Mustang Fastback, you may want to give Classic Recreations a call. The Oklahoma-based company, which has made a name for itself building award-winning muscle cars licensed by Shelby, recently handed me the keys to its latest creation – a prototype 1966 Shelby GT350CR (serial number SCR350-00P) with a nitrous-injected 427-cubic-inch small-block Ford Racing engine sending power to its rear wheels through a Tremec five-speed manual gearbox. Yeah, it's the sort of machinery that whets my appetite.

As you might suspect by looking at the company's name, the team starts with a standard stock 1966 Mustang Fastback and then tears it down to the chassis in preparation for a full rebuild into what they call a Shelby GT350CR. This particular restoration includes the fitment of the aforementioned 7.0-liter V8 with BBK Long Tube ceramic-coated headers, Magnaflow mufflers, coil-over suspension and rack-and-pinion power steering. Stopping power is provided by Wilwood brakes, in the form of four-piston calipers over ventilated and cross-drilled iron rotors, and the mechanical upgrades are finished off with four brightly polished 18-inch aluminum wheels wrapped in BF Goodrich g-Force T/A tires (245/45ZR18 front and 275/35ZR18 rear).

Inside the passenger compartment, occupants are treated to Carroll Shelby Scat Rally Series 1000 seats, five-point Camlock belts, three-spoke aluminum woodgrain steering wheel with tilt column, a full complement of gauges and full carpeting. An Old Air Products air conditioning system blows ice-cold breezes, and a powerful audio system with external amp and subwoofer ensure a sweet background track to the V8's wild bellow.

Classic Recreations met us with its beauty in Southern California, so we turned its striped nose toward Los Angeles' classic Mulholland Highway for an evening run.

Driving Notes:

• A brief walk-around of the Mustang before the drive reveals an attention to detail that will leave countless onlookers waving and asking questions. The metallic blue paintwork is excellent and the craftsmanship inside the engine bay, passenger cabin and trunk are show-worthy. In particular, I really like the epoxy-coated sheetmetal and satin-polished aluminum components under the hood, the functional and easy-to-read Shelby gauge cluster and the lightweight HRE wheels, which provided a nice compromise between classic and modern design.
• It's hard not to be intimidated by the Shelby GT350CR. Its purpose-built seats, polished metal shifter and competition harnesses have me looking around for my helmet moments after buckling in (in truth, the harness really needs a pass-through in the lower cushion to fit properly). The mechanical feel of the manual lever and clutch mechanism drives the racing message home. That said, the cockpit is comfortable and spacious. Thin A-pillars provide excellent forward visibility, and the view out back is clear, but sightlines over the shoulders into the rear quarters are challenged by the blocked windows.
• The controls are 1960s-era simple, primarily consisting of a few polished knobs that require a simple push-pull to operate and the windows manually crank. The optional NOS system, fitted to the test car, automatically engages if enabled by its red dash-mounted switch (the tank is full, but sadly I will never have an open opportunity to use it).
• The 427-cubic-inch V8 drives and sounds every bit as good as it looks. It idles with an angry demeanor and then backs up its bark with a ferocious bite. There is plenty of power in each of the lower gears to initiate immediate wheelspin, leaving rear tire life completely up to the operator (the company quotes a 0-60 sprint of 3.7 seconds, but based on available grip, I feel that number is a bit optimistic). Kudos to Classic Recreations for putting an open side pipe on both the passenger and driver side of the car, as the two provide stereophonic rumbles and backfires reverberating throughout the cabin. While the climate control works perfectly, I would never roll up the windows for fear of suppressing the exhaust noise - it's addictive.
• Despite the upgraded and modernized coil-over suspension with oversized sway bars and race-tuned ride on sticky BF Goodrich rubber, this Mustang is still more of a cruiser than a carver. Initial turn-in is on the slow side and the coupe drives with a large demeanor that requires plenty of anticipation in the corners. When compared to other ungainly muscle cars of its era, its handling would certainly be considered impressive, but today's multi-talented sports cars would run circles around this Pony in the canyons.
• Classic Recreations is making only 10 of the legacy cars each year, and buyers are offered a grocery list of options to customize each to their specifications. While it wouldn't be my first choice in a canyon or race track, bring this muscle car to a drag strip, crowded boulevard, summer beach or car show and it will simply shine – we had to pull impressed gawkers away in order to leave a Mulholland overlook.

Source: autoblog.com

2013 Shelby Raptor

Vital Stats

Engine:

Supercharged 6.2L V8

Power:

575 HP

Transmission:

6-Speed Auto

0-60 Time:

5.5 Seconds (est.)

Drivetrain:

Four-Wheel Drive

Curb Weight:

6,200 LBS (est.)

Seating:

2+3

MPG:

11 City / 18 HWY

As-Tested Price:

$89,088

We're big fans of the Ford F-150 SVT Raptor, a full-size pickup impressively configured from the factory for serious desert running. While its stock, naturally aspirated 6.2-liter V8 provides 411 horsepower, some consider it lacking. Others still want more aggressive underpinnings for even more serious duty. Stop worrying, as Shelby American appears to have the answer with its new Shelby Raptor.

While the Las Vegas-based company offers nearly all of its upgrades on its à la carte menu (good for those on a budget), the test truck seen here arrived loaded with just about everything.

To begin the transformation, a 2.9-liter Whipple supercharger and intercooler are bolted to the V8, followed by a Shelby Stinger exhaust system to improve the engine's breathing. The upgrades bump output by 164 horsepower, meaning the truck goes from 'impressive' to 'seriously quick' on the acceleration scale. But the company doesn't stop there, as the suspension has been upgraded with Shelby 3-inch shocks, new upper and lower control arms and a new frame kit with bump stops. In addition to a new skid plate package for protection, the stock wheels have been replaced with 18x9 Shelby Method alloys wearing aggressive 35-inch BFG Mud-Terrain T/A tires (35x12.50R18LT) for go-anywhere capabilities.

Cosmetically speaking, the interior is upgraded with a custom Shelby leather package and additional gauges have been added to allow the driver to keep a closer eye on things. The exterior doesn't escape the treatment, either, as it receives new bumpers, a full chase rack and plenty of graphics. And, of course, there is the obligatory unique Shelby serial number plate on the blown engine and one for everyone to see prominently on the dashboard.

We recently spent an afternoon criss-crossing the LA Basin with this massive truck, putting in a few soft-roading miles for our photoshoot. To really do the Shelby justice and properly explore its capabilities, however, we really need to spend more time doing what it genuinely wants to do. That is, launching it off tall berms, crossing deep streams and bashing over rocks. Unfortunately, the opportunity didn't present itself. Next time.

Driving Notes:

• One glance at our loaded silver and blue test truck reveals a ridiculous amount of 'Shelby' branding. Laughable levels, actually. Shelby's name is plastered on the seats, dash, quarter panels, doors and tailgate. It appears four times on the rear bumper alone! Enough already – it's overkill to a nauseating level (the company reportedly offers packages that are much more discreet). And don't get us started on the overuse of LED light bars.
• Nearly all of the upgrades are actually functional for desert running and rock-crawling, with the exception of one; the silly placement of aftermarket gauges in the middle of the dashboard vents. The analog boost and fuel pressure dials are not only ergonomically incorrect (nobody looks to the HVAC vents for information), their 'plug' design blocks critical airflow from the vents themselves. We prefer to see them mounted on the A-pillar, like everyone else does, to make them easy to read and keep them out of the way. Speaking of visibility, if you opt for the bed-mounted spare, don't bother looking in the rearview mirror, as the backside of the tire completely fills the glass.
• Stepping on the accelerator pedal sets a chain of events in motion. Within a fraction of a second, the supercharger begins to wail from under the hood, a noise that's followed by an immediate burst of power that rips the tires' tread blocks from the pavement. The process is neighborhood-waking loud, and the modified Ford takes off at a rate that is completely unexpected considering its obscene curb weight - most estimates say the 6,200-pound pickup will hit 60 mph in the mid-five second range. Fuel economy is predictably miserable, and owners should consider themselves fortunate if they make it into the double-digits (if by some circumstance they do, they aren't driving the Shelby properly).
• Our test truck appears to have been tuned purely for off-road enjoyment, meaning its on-pavement driving characteristics are crude, at best. The generous suspension travel, low steering rate, high center of gravity, curb weight and huge tire tread blocks means the Shelby squirms and rolls around corners with an annoying delay to steering inputs. Yet if we had the ability to take this Raptor into the dirt, mud, rocks or snow, all of these qualities would have helped to make it one capable beast of a machine.
• If driving a monster truck on public roads is what you are seeking, Shelby has your answer with its tuned Raptor. However, unless you plan on tackling serious trails, we'd lay off the suspension and wheel upgrades, as they destroy the on-road manners of the factory Raptor – qualities most drivers will grow to appreciate.

Source: autoblog.com

2014 Roush Stage 3 Mustang

Vital Stats

Engine:

SC 5.0L V8

Power:

575 HP / 505 LB-FT

Transmission:

6-Speed Manual

0-60 Time:

4.0 Seconds (est.)

Drivetrain:

Rear-Wheel Drive

Seating:

2

Base Price:

$55,040

As-Tested Price:

$67,000 (est.)

Up until now, it's been some years since I managed to get behind the wheel of the hot Mustangs tuned by the folks at Roush Performance. My memories of those vehicles are fond, as the Roush up-fits usually make for better-driving examples of the iconic Ford pony, with better-tuned suspensions, excellent short-shift kits and, of course, huge additions of power. The wake-your-neighbors aural characteristics of these cars have been nothing short of outstanding, too.

But in the years since my last experience with the Roush formula, Ford's own development team has churned out some pretty potent 'Stangs. We currently live in a world where the Blue Oval will sell you a Mustang with 662 horsepower from the factory, and the recently departed Boss 302 remains one of the best Mustangs – and best sports coupes – the Autoblog crew has ever driven.

So with great-driving and hugely powerful Mustangs coming straight off the line at Ford's Flat Rock Assembly Plant, does the Roush package still offer that extra special something to make it stand out? I spent a week with a Stage 3 coupe to find out.

Driving Notes

• Within the Stage 3 model range, there are three different "phases" of engine tune that can be had. Our test car, in Phase 1 spec, adds a supercharger to the Mustang GT's 5.0-liter V8, the end result being 575 horsepower and 505 pound-feet of torque. Plenty powerful, for sure, but if that's not enough to get your motor running (pun totally intended), the Phase 2 kit will net you 625 horsepower and the Phase 3 option packs 675 horsepower. Take that, GT500.
• One of the most notable characteristics of any Roush package is the exhaust treatment, and as you'd expect, it's loud. Sorry – loud. Like, tough-to-hold-a-conversation-with-your-copilot loud. There's a huge roar on startup, and the harder you mash the throttle in every gear, the more robust the noise. We love a tough-sounding Mustang, and in terms of getting noticed and letting folks know that this isn't your ordinary factory Ford, the Roush treatment is a hilarious thrill. The sound does have a tendency to drone at highway speeds, but it's a sweet note. Besides, the Mustang's stock Shaker stereo is pretty horrible at higher volumes, anyway.
• The big disappointment with the Roush package is the interior, where it feels like a few steps were missed in the customization process. The optional leather Roush-specific seats are nice and decently comfortable, but seriously lack lateral bolstering. Considering you can now get Recaro chairs on every engine configuration of the stock Mustang, these are a must-have for the more hardcore Roush tune. Our car featured the optional rear seat delete, replaced by a functional cross-brace, but that aside, it's base Mustang GT spec in here. No upgraded stereo and no fussy MyFord Touch, though both can be had for an additional cost. We just miss any big feeling of exclusivity from the cabin.
• Outside, it's a different story. The Roush looks fantastic. We dig the visual enhancements like the hood scoop and vents, as well as the revised lower front fascia with pronounced foglamp housings. The added trim along the rocker panels is a nice touch, and while the side window louvers wreck visibility, they look nifty. The upgraded 20-inch wheels look good, too, wrapped in sticky Cooper RS3 275/35R20 tires.
• With 575 hp and 505 lb-ft of twist on hand, there's no denying that this Stage 3 Mustang is quick. Roush estimates that hitting 60 miles per hour will take just four seconds, and from behind the wheel, it feels every bit of that. However, even with supercharged thrust, power delivery is very linear, and the Roush is pretty easy to drive at slower speeds around town.
• Roush has given the Stage 3 a full suite of suspension tuning, and the end result is something that's far better able to put down all that power than, say, a GT500. But here, too, the car feels many steps away from being an all-out monster. The steering is still sort of vague, and the action of the six-speed manual shifter is rough when trying to quickly row between the gears. The cue ball shifter is cool, yes, but having a proper short-shift kit here would help things tremendously.
• Larger StopTech brakes with red-painted calipers provide plenty of stopping power, and again, the upgraded suspension is welcome with the added thrust from the 5.0-liter V8, but in a sort of old-school fast-Mustang way – the on-road action still has all the precision of trying to cut tissue paper with a chainsaw. It's vicious and fun, but it's not even close to matching what the Boss can throw down.
• And really, that's how the Stage 3 Mustang left me feeling after my week behind the wheel: not as good as the Boss 302. The latter remains one of Ford's best performance creations, and it will indeed be missed. But that's not all bad for the Roush. Fact is, it's better to drive than a GT500, even with a reduction of nearly 100 horsepower. (When do you actually need 662 hp, let alone 575, anyway?)
• As-tested, however, the Stage 3 sits just above the $65,000 mark, which is over $10,000 more than the aforementioned GT500. (That's $17,000 for the Roush package, over $10,000 in optional extras, and the $38,000 Mustang GT Premium donor car.) If you aren't just power-hungry, the added cost can be justified by the added exclusivity of the Roush treatment, with a more ferocious exhaust note and unique styling, and the better suspension geometry that results in a more composed on-road demeanor, as well. Of course, there's the added value of Roush being a full-on OEM, not just an aftermarket tuner bolting accessories onto Mustangs – everything found on this car was specifically designed for it. Really, the Stage 3 kit is just as awesome as it ever was. But these days, it's just tough to beat what's coming out of Ford's own factory.

Source: autoblog.com