I’ve also had a very easy time getting comfy with the Mustang’s tranny. I thought it might take some time to get used to the location of the reverse gear and to get used to shifting to 6th when at highway speeds, but the transition from my old Tercel’s manual to the 'Stang’s has been effortless.
Sorry to hear about you getting a lemon, Cherry2000. I guess the good news for DoctorJ is that the car has undergone significant changes since '06, so hopefully some of those issues have been addressed and corrected.
Rent a Chevy Cruze for a day. It has the option to shift yourself (bonus: No Clutch!) or let the auto take over. It has a little too much pick-up for me, I literally had to trade for a different car because my neck hurt. But one of my work colleagues bought one recently and loves it.
There was a recall on the trans, but the new ones are coming out already fixed.
Ironic that I posted to this thread yesterday…this morning, my car doesn’t start
Yep, my Mustang is truly a piece of crap.
ETA: Forgot in yesterday’s post…also had to replace one of the front tie rods. And lest anyone think I am Mario Andretti, I am not. I mostly just drive locally, around town, with the occasional trip to see a client about an hour away.
I’m going to be in your situation next year. I’ve posted before about my Camry From Heck… with the V6 and an able driver, it’s a lot faster than it really should be, especially in automanual mode. But… it’s big. It’s no Lincoln Town Car, but it’s big for a city vehicle. And it wallowed before I swapped the struts out.
I’m looking at the WRX right now. Something tighter, decent mileage, and not RWD.
I looked up the Mustang V6 on CR. Huh. For '06 and '07 they have black marks for electrical system and drive system. looks like they got their shit together on that car AM (After Mullaly.)
I’m not sure where you get that it weighs twice as much. The spec sheet for the Veloster puts the base model with manual transmission at 53 lbs less than the CRZ with the manual transmission.
Given it’s going to be $2k cheaper, have a 10 year 100,000 mile warranty and has quite a bit of electronic goodies, I can see it being very popular with kids. If you’re looking for more of a driver’s car, I’d shoot for the Genesis Coupe.
I drove Jimbo’s Mustang for the second time last night, and I managed to stall it again. I’m wondering if this is a personal preference thing - I have a very easy time driving my manual Corolla, and a hard time adjusting to Jim’s Mustang. I think my Corolla would be a great car to learn to drive stick on, and the Mustang a hard car to learn on.
Depends on what you’re good/bad at. The Corolla has a short, precise throw, but lacks torque. The Mustang has a horrible, clunky throw (at least, the 2007 rental I drove a while back did) but has enough torque to keep the engine running when you dump the clutch too early.
So you can shift more easily in a Corolla, but you’re more likely to stall.
Update: definitely going for the Mustang. I want the V6 Premium Coupe in Kona Blue. I’ve got the dealer looking for a stick shift, but I’m still wavering on that. (Like I said, it seems like a shame to have such a car without a stick shift, but I haven’t driven a stick in years, and never more than occasionally.)
It bothers me that I seem to know quite a bit more about the options packages available than my local dealer. Their business seems to mostly be trucks, and they said that the new Mustangs they sell are almost all of the “least money I can spend and still say I drive a Mustang” sort.
One thing the Edmunds review mentioned that I hadn’t noticed until I started looking–there are a lot of Mustangs on the road, especially here in EKY. I don’t consider this a bad thing; it just means that when I go to get it worked on a few years from now the mechanics won’t treat it like a Martian spaceship (like they have the VW), and I’ll be able to find tires for it (an issue with both the VW and the Fit).
Kona blue - like this? The Mustang really is a head-turningly beautiful car, and that is a VERY nice blue.
Don’t let me scare you off the stick - I just need more practice getting used to my husband’s car. It really isn’t hard to shift or anything - it’s just different from the Corolla.
I believe the V-8 and 6 cyl transmissions are now all 6-speeds and the linkage has been improved along with the engine updates though still not Honda S2000ish for the shifting feel.
Great choice, the 6 has plenty of pop though the V-8 has the tuned rumble from the exhaust for cruise night. The unoptioned models are for the secretaries (management assistants) just getting their first real car.
Lots of Mustangs, Hawaii must have imported 20,000 of the older model just before the changeover for all the Rent-A-Car agencies. All convertibles. I might wait until I move back and pick up a used rental in couple of years. Top down all year there except for the occasional monsoon.
Oh, it’s not you; it’s us. He hasn’t driven a manual of any type in a decade, and he didn’t drive one more than once in a while then. So he’s not what you’d really call in practice. And trading cars for any reason would be right out, since I’ve driven a manual exactly once, about a quarter mile on the day I got my learner’s permit, and was thereafter permanently banned from my father’s truck. Given the situation, it would be really foolish not to be a little cautious about the manual.
Not that I would drive the thing anyway–the only reason I drive my car is because I can’t get a teleport device.
And in 2006 they called it Vista Blue… and my Dad’s 1970 was called Acapulco Blue. No matter what you call it this is the absolute best color for a Mustang (IMHO).
As far as Manual v. Auto. I bought mine used and knew what I wanted. I looked for quite some time before I found one that had exactly what I wanted… low mileage, GT Premium Convertible, Vista Blue, perfect shape, and a great price (about half what a new one that looked exactly the same cost). The only thing I also wanted was the stick… but this one was auto. It was so perfect in every other way I decided to go for it. I really don’t regret it since it is still so much fun to drive. Also, my wife and daughter can drive it if they need. So, in my opinion, if they can’t find you a stick use it to negotiate a better price and it really won’t be the end of the world.
The Mustang really is a head-turningly beautiful car, and that is a VERY nice blue.
