{"id":1186,"date":"2014-10-17T15:09:39","date_gmt":"2014-10-17T15:09:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.leithcars.com\/?p=1186"},"modified":"2014-10-17T15:09:39","modified_gmt":"2014-10-17T15:09:39","slug":"best-class-2015-ford-mustang","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blog.leithcars.com\/?p=1186","title":{"rendered":"Best in Class: 2015 Ford Mustang"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Since transitioning our approach to the Leith Cars blog, there&#8217;s a much greater appreciation for the quality of blogs posted for all of our dealerships. In many ways, you, our reader (love you guys and gals!), get to benefit the most: our best posts will often be the popular test-drive reviews. This week is the 2015 Ford Mustang. Enjoy &#8230;<\/p>\n<p>When you\u2019re sitting behind the wheel of a Ford Mustang, it\u2019s impossible to feel anything less than cool. With the windows down, sunglasses on, and foot on the floor, it feels like flying. We felt the wind rushing through our hair and had the volume turned all the way up, singing along with John Fogerty. \u201cOh, put me in coach, I\u2019m ready to play today,\u201d says John.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPut me in coach, I\u2019m ready to play today,\u201d we say, us and the Mustang. \u201cLook at me, I can be center-field.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Let\u2019s back up.<\/p>\n<p>We had been in touch with <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/1slTe5j\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Jonny Wisenbaker<\/a> about the 2015 Mustang because we knew it would be hitting the streets soon. Production began several weeks ago, which means they\u2019ve been rolling off the line in Flat Rock ever since. It was only a matter of time before they got here. We even prematurely posted a teaser pic on Instagram, not knowing the exact day when we would receive the first car.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" style=\"background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 658px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);\" data-instgrm-captioned=\"\" data-instgrm-version=\"2\">\n<div style=\"padding: 8px;\">\n<div style=\"background: #F8F8F8; line-height: 0; margin-top: 40px; padding-bottom: 55%; padding-top: 45%; text-align: center; width: 100%;\">\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div style=\"-webkit-animation: dkaXkpbBxI 1s ease-out infinite; animation: dkaXkpbBxI 1s ease-out infinite; background: url(data:image\/png; base64,ivborw0kggoaaaansuheugaaacwaaaascamaaaapwqozaaaagfbmveuiiii9pt0ehh4gib4hibkchbwchbwchbydr+jqaaaachrstlmaba4yhyqsm5jtamwaaadfsurbvdjl7zvbegmhcaqbaf\/\/42xcnbpaqakcm0ftumfaaibe81iqbjds3ls6zs3bipb9wed3yyxfpmhrft8sgyrcp1x8ueuxlmznwelfoycv6mhwwwmzdpekhlhlw7nwjqkhc4uizphavdza2jpzudsbzzinae2s6owh8xpmx8g7zzgkeopuoyhvgz1tbcxmkd3kwnvbu0gkhkx+izilf77iofhry1nyfnb\/lqpb79drwoyjva\/davg9b\/rlb4cc+nqgdz\/tvbbbnr6gbreqn\/nrmdgaqeej7whonozjf+y2i\/fzou\/qaaaaaelftksuqmcc); display: block; height: 44px; margin: 0 auto -44px; position: relative; top: -44px; width: 44px;\"><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-weight: bold; position: relative; top: 15px;\">Loading<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin: 8px 0 0 0; padding: 0 4px; word-wrap: break-word;\">Not long now. @ford #Mustang #YearOfTheHorse<\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height: 32px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; padding: 0; text-align: center;\"> View on Instagram<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script src=\"\/\/platform.instagram.com\/en_US\/embeds.js\" async=\"\" defer=\"defer\"><\/script>It turns out we got it the very next day; the first <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/1rfmNSL\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">new Mustang<\/a> in all of Raleigh. <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" style=\"background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 658px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);\" data-instgrm-captioned=\"\" data-instgrm-version=\"2\">\n<div style=\"padding: 8px;\">\n<div style=\"background: #F8F8F8; line-height: 0; margin-top: 40px; padding-bottom: 55%; padding-top: 45%; text-align: center; width: 100%;\">\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div style=\"-webkit-animation: dkaXkpbBxI 1s ease-out infinite; animation: dkaXkpbBxI 1s ease-out infinite; background: url(data:image\/png; base64,ivborw0kggoaaaansuheugaaacwaaaascamaaaapwqozaaaagfbmveuiiii9pt0ehh4gib4hibkchbwchbwchbydr+jqaaaachrstlmaba4yhyqsm5jtamwaaadfsurbvdjl7zvbegmhcaqbaf\/\/42xcnbpaqakcm0ftumfaaibe81iqbjds3ls6zs3bipb9wed3yyxfpmhrft8sgyrcp1x8ueuxlmznwelfoycv6mhwwwmzdpekhlhlw7nwjqkhc4uizphavdza2jpzudsbzzinae2s6owh8xpmx8g7zzgkeopuoyhvgz1tbcxmkd3kwnvbu0gkhkx+izilf77iofhry1nyfnb\/lqpb79drwoyjva\/davg9b\/rlb4cc+nqgdz\/tvbbbnr6gbreqn\/nrmdgaqeej7whonozjf+y2i\/fzou\/qaaaaaelftksuqmcc); display: block; height: 44px; margin: 0 auto -44px; position: relative; top: -44px; width: 44px;\"><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-weight: bold; position: relative; top: 15px;\">Loading<\/span>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Told you it wouldn&#8217;t be long. We got the first one in Raleigh. @ford #Mustang #YearOfTheHorse #EcoBoost  View on Instagram\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script src=\"\/\/platform.instagram.com\/en_US\/embeds.js\" async=\"\" defer=\"defer\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>When we pulled up, Jonny was just climbing out of the driver\u2019s seat, having taken it for a spin himself. Any photos you may have seen don\u2019t do it justice, especially that red metallic paint. When the sun hits, the car shines like a ruby on fire. It\u2019s low slung, and the body lines accentuate its length, wheel wells, and the slim but solid shoulders at the back. This one had black-painted aluminum wheels that cement it as a wicked-looking ride.<\/p>\n<p>We stood outside talking to Jonny for a bit, and after a while the sales manager, <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/1slTe5j\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Tony Enderle<\/a>, came out and told us that he had driven it around a good portion of the county. Then he handed us the key and told us to make sure we put it in Sport mode. Just like that, we had free reign of the first Mustang in the area.<\/p>\n<p>This horse was equipped with Ford\u2019s new 2.3-liter EcoBoost turbo-four, and we don\u2019t want to bog down this review with a bunch of numbers, but we do want to allay the concerns of anyone who is worried about driving a Mustang with a four-banger. We\u2019ll tell you that it makes 310 horsepower (with premium fuel) and 320 pound-feet of torque. It weighs 146 pounds less than the GT, which brings it closer to fifty-fifty weight distribution. All that and it gets an estimated 21 miles to the gallon in the city, 32 on the highway, and 25 combined as tested by the EPA. If you still aren\u2019t satisfied, we\u2019ll be doing a review of the GT and its V8 whenever it gets here. Until then, let us tell you how this EcoBoost Mustang drives.<\/p>\n<p>It drives great, particularly when you have nothing but time and anywhere to go. That\u2019s not to say we went crazy. After all, this is <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/1cWYJRz\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Wendell, North Carolina<\/a>, so while the roads might not be bumper to bumper, there was enough traffic around to keep us from really cutting loose. We had to make due with having a lot of fun instead of a whole heck of a lot of fun. There\u2019s no such thing as a bad time in a Mustang.<\/p>\n<p>We go back to the start: You can\u2019t help but feel cool driving one of these. One of our favorite parts of the new one is the sharp creases running down the hood. They curve inward toward the nose of the car, pointing us in the direction we\u2019re going almost like a targeting reticle for the bright red cruise missile we\u2019re guiding.<\/p>\n<p>Our drive took us on an improvised circuit of the Wendell test-drive route. If we saw a road we hadn\u2019t been down before, we flipped the turn signal in that direction and took off to find out where it went. When we saw a speed limit sign for 35 or lower, we pulled up and made a U-turn as quickly as possible. Decision making is simple in a car like this.<\/p>\n<p>Even selecting what mode to drive in was a breeze. We didn\u2019t spend an extended length of time on the highway, so we didn\u2019t need to leave it in Normal mode. There wasn\u2019t any inclement weather to speak of \u2013 it was the most perfect autumn day we\u2019ve had so far \u2013 so we didn\u2019t need to put it into Snow\/Wet mode. We weren\u2019t taking it to the track (not that day anyway), so we could leave Track mode alone. The only mode that mattered to us was Sport mode.<\/p>\n<p>As a result, the Mustang lunged forward with additional vim. The EcoBoost is an eager engine to begin with, but the Sport setting brings forward its best effort, optimizing shifts for speed and power.<\/p>\n<p>We also had three steering settings to pick from. Comfort provides the easiest control, Sport adds weight to the wheel for drivers who want to feel the road, and Standard meets the other two in the middle. We played with the steering a little bit more, flipping through every so often and gauging how the car did on a turn, but eventually we decided that both Sport modes were meant for each other.<\/p>\n<p>Driving and steering modes are selected by toggling through with flipper switches located at the base of the center stack. These are easy to reach and satisfying to manipulate, and they add to the airplane mystique that Ford has infused the Mustang cockpit with. They go nicely with the gauges between the air vents, the layout of the instrument panel, and the speedometer that is labeled \u201cGround Speed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/1rfmNSL\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Infotainment is handled by Ford\u2019s now-established Sync system, available with MyFord Touch. No major updates are present, so if you know your way around the four quadrants of the touchscreen display, you\u2019ll be right at home in this Mustang. We kept the \u201cEntertainment\u201d panel zoomed in while we jumped between radio stations, and with the Shaker\u2122 Pro Audio speaker system, we can tell you that \u201cPinball Wizard\u201d sounds great in this car, especially at high speed.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/1rfmNSL\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Overall, the interior is a very nice place to be. There\u2019s a commemorative badge for the Mustang\u2019s fiftieth anniversary over the glove box, and the door sills bear the car\u2019s name. The seats are power adjustable and duly comfortable with plenty of side bolster. If you have kids, they\u2019ll enjoy riding in the back; although it\u2019s technically a plus two, this is a car that made us feel like we were driving it from the rear. Perhaps it\u2019s the deceptively long hood playing tricks on us, or maybe it\u2019s just the ease with which this car is handled while leaning back into the seat, but when you\u2019re on the road in a Mustang it\u2019s like no one else exists.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/1rfmNSL\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Then you see the people staring, and you come back to reality long enough to smile and nod your head.<\/p>\n<p>We passed one guy in a white last-gen Mustang who gave our ride a long look while stroking his chin as if to say \u201cI\u2019m gonna have to get me one of those.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Ford logo only appears once on this car, hidden within the tint at the top of the windshield. People will know what you\u2019re driving when you pass them on the road. America\u2019s most recognizable muscle car looks and drives better than ever.<\/p>\n<p>In the end, we found the EcoBoost Mustang to be more than worthy of the badge it wears. If the idea of a lighter, more powerful, more fuel-efficient Mustang still doesn\u2019t sit well with you, you\u2019re welcome to wait for our review of the 2015 Mustang GT when it arrives. Until then, the 2015 Mustang with the EcoBoost engine is waiting to be driven at <a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/IERbam\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Leith Ford<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Since transitioning our approach to the Leith Cars blog, there&#8217;s a much greater appreciation for the quality of blogs posted for all of our dealerships. In many ways, you, our reader (love you guys and gals!), get to benefit the most: our best posts will often be the popular test-drive reviews. This week is the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24],"tags":[148,391],"class_list":["post-1186","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews","tag-coupes","tag-reviews"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.leithcars.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1186","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.leithcars.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.leithcars.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.leithcars.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.leithcars.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1186"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/blog.leithcars.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1186\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.leithcars.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1186"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.leithcars.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1186"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.leithcars.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1186"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}