DRIVEN: Ford Mustang EcoBoost

There are only two ways you can look at a Ford Mustang.

It’s either with your head, in which case the car will make no sense at all. Or you can look at it with your heart … and then it’s love at first sight.

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When your head’s in charge it will be, ironically, a no-brainer. Because for R728 500 – the recommended retail price for the entry-level model on offer in South Africa – you can get a lot more practicalities than this baby.

For starters, you and your passengers will be a lot safer in anything for the same price, as the Mustang’s Euro NCAP rating of three out of five is rather risky on our roads.

Then there is the issue of space which is, again quite ironically, huge.

An adult can barely get in and out of the silly excuse for back seats and there is hardly enough leg room for small children.

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When it gets to the boot, I didn’t even attempt fitting in a bag of clubs. When it gets to the actual driving, the 2.3-litre EcoBoost 233kW convertible model I drove averaged around 14l/100km over almost 300km and I shudder to think how much the other model, the 5.0 V8 306kW, must drink.

Turning the steering wheel and parking is also quite daunting on this rear-wheel drive, and don’t even start on the those trying-too-hard-to-look-retro chrome lever-like buttons on the centre console.

The list goes on.., But enough about the head, over to the heart.

Mustang’s Afrikaans translation means “wilde perd” and that is exactly what gets unleashed when the heart’s in charge.

The price tag suddenly seems like a bargain.

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You simply won’t get the same street cred, friendly responses from strangers – pedestrians and motorists alike – or the magnificent feeling you get when accelerating with the roof down if you’re driving anything else new on offer for this price.

In August, Ford celebrated rolling out its ten-millionth Mustang at the Flat Rock Assembly Plant in Michigan and they claim to be the best-selling sports car in the US over the last 50 years.

It’s not hard to see why.

From the moment you set eyes on the car, admiring the unique blend of retroness with modern design, to when you put your foot down to unleash the power under the enormously long bonnet, it’s pure bliss.

The issues of no golf clubs, uncomfy kids and exuberant fuel consumption simply don’t matter any more.

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Your soul is as free as the horse on the steering wheel and all you want to do is drive – whether that entails activating the tempting race track mode and smoking the oke in his hot hatch when the robot turns green or simply cruising to a Sunday afternoon lunch at Harties.

In all fairness, fuel is cheaper in the US than in Mzansi and it is a concern whether your car is a heavy drinker or not.

But that is exactly why the 2.3 EcoBoost is such a viable option, because it costs over R100 000 less than the 306kW five-litre on all three models and it will help save on your instalment to secure a bigger monthly petrol budget.

Speaking of budgets, across both the 2.3 and five-litre models, there are three models on offer: the manual fastback, the automatic fastback and the convertible automatic, with the price going up accordingly with the five-litre convertible topping the list at R955 800.

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Somewhere along the Comrades route a famous banner is on display during the race every year.

It says: “Dear legs, please shut up. Yours sincerely, the brain.” There is only one way I can describe the Mustang: “Dear brain, please shut up. Yours sincerely, the heart.”

What we like

• Feel-good factor.
• Street cred that comes with it.

What we do not like 

• Space limitations.
• Safety concerns.

Verdict

This car is a true icon which will still make you smile three decades from now.

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