Boss owners buying 2015's? The silence is deafening.

[Grant 302]

And that means you have gained the necessary wisdom for tackling this problem.

Just gotta convince my wife of that. She's also okay with a 'dedicated race/track car' addition, but 'necessary wisdom' is *not* how she's describe my love affair with cars.

Nice. Excellent, in fact. It's a bit of a shame that you had to modify the cooling any. I'm hoping I don't have to. I was at Thunderhill recently and didn't have a problem with engine cooling, but it wasn't as hot as I thought it was going to be (it was mid-90s) and because the track was new (5 mile course, no less!), I wasn't really pushing it as hard as I would at a track I'm intimately familiar with.

The 'cooling' is just the standard bolt-on brake ducts, removal of the rear dust shields, 302S grille and tranny scoop. No heat issues so far, but I'm not going to run the Boss in the heat like the GT.

Same here, although I love my car enough that I do try to park it someplace where someone isn't going to bash their door into it...

Yeah, I'm not careless with the GT. I will leave it in a parking lot unattended, but I'm still selective about parking spaces. The Boss is never parked unattended.

Well, here's the thing: there's a difference between how a car responds and how it performs. The McStrut front suspension limits how the car will perform, but doesn't necessarily limit how the car responds. That's likely to be much more related to things like the choice of bushings than the specific geometry.

But it depends. The quadribind suspension of my 92 GT, and the geometry of its suspension in general, made the rear end feel horrible. The difference between that and my 2014 GT is night and day.

Quadrabind...exactly! The two '00 GTs barely had good enough suspensions for drag racing. Sadly, the balance of the 'vert was better for any turning.

So it's really going to come down to a question of how much of a difference in response there is between the Boss and the GT350. I expect the GT350 to perform better, but I don't know that it's going to respond significantly better. And the latter is what influences the driving experience. The former is what gets you lap times. If you're not chasing lap times, you're probably after responsiveness and feel more than anything else.

Well, it would be nice to have a car that does what the Boss does performance *and* response wise, but doesn't have issues with front tire wear patterns and 'V' gutters or track curbing. Would be nice to always have a better connection and feel even on a beat up track like Streets of Willow. Would be nice to have a car that doesn't have to solve tire wear with excess static camber.

Seats are such an individual thing, though, that I certainly can't fault you for your preference...

It probably has a lot to do with the lack of lumbar support too. I remember the Cobra seats feeling better on a long drive. The Recaros were definitely not great on the two trips to Laguna Seca.

Were you still using stock dampers on the Cobra? I have to wonder if coilovers plus an appropriate sway bar package would have closed the gap between your Cobra and your Boss.

It was stock. I'm sure it would take more than just dampers and sways to completely close that gap. I've been on track in the GT with other suspension modified Cobras, and they were easy to leave behind even in tight sections.

In any case, technological improvements make a huge difference here. The Boss suspension is simply better engineered than that of any previous Mustang. But I'm quite skeptical that the engineering of the GT350's suspension will be so much better that it'll be a major difference.

I guess I'm a lot more confident in the changes and engineering ability of the current staff. All of the incremental changes should add up to something good *if* they do it right, and I think they will. Even if we have to thank GM a little for raising the bar enough to ensure a good response from Ford. Looking at the figure 8 numbers above, I suspect they're on the right track.

It'll be most interesting to see what your impressions are of it once you get a chance to drive it.

I hope I'll have that opportunity! Sometimes dealers are stingy about the special model test drives around here.

 

[Boss949]

I've traded away too many great cars in my life (since 1968). The Boss is a keeper. I decided that when it was purchased and have invested enough cash to make it uniquely mine. Hardly see any Bosses on the road. There's always something newer, faster, etc. I'm over it.

 

[dabossinnne]

I've traded away too many great cars in my life (since 1968). The Boss is a keeper. I decided that when it was purchased and have invested enough cash to make it uniquely mine. Hardly see any Bosses on the road. There's always something newer, faster, etc. I'm over it.

+1!

 

[coboss]

Motor Trend just tested a production 2015 Mustang GT Performance Pack. Their verdict? The Boss is still the best Mustang ever.

http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/coupes/1409_2015_ford_mustang_gt_first_test/

 

[VoodooBoss]

Motor Trend just tested a production 2015 Mustang GT Performance Pack. Their verdict? The Boss is still the best Mustang ever.

http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/coupes/1409_2015_ford_mustang_gt_first_test/

But not for long...

http://gt350mustangs.com/index.php?topic=76.25

 

[four-walling]

But not for long...

http://gt350mustangs.com/index.php?topic=76.25

Mr. NFSBOSS, this sounds like a Scotland vs. England thing?



Which way are you going, Boss or GT350? Your electorate wants to know!

 

[VoodooBoss]

Mr. NFSBOSS, this sounds like a Scotland vs. England thing?



Which way are you going, Boss or GT350? Your electorate wants to know!

LOL I'm still undecided. : While I think a GT350 is in my future it won't be anytime soon. I've got my car setup for street and track duty and I'm not sure I want to do that again with a new car. That said I'll remain undecided until the car is announced in a couple of weeks and I see it in person on November 21st at the L.A. Auto Show.

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

Not gonna be buying one new, that's for sure.

Blew my wad on the purchase/racecarification/racing trips for the B302.

Would love to pick up a 15 on the used market in a couple years after depreciation sets in.

 

[Grant 302]

LOL I'm still undecided. : While I think a GT350 is in my future it won't be anytime soon. I've got my car setup for street and track duty and I'm not sure I want to do that again with a new car. That said I'll remain undecided until the car is announced in a couple of weeks and I see it in person on November 21st at the L.A. Auto Show.

That's on the list of reasons why I didn't want to extensively modify my Boss. If for some good reason I could afford to just add a GT350, I'd have a hard time justifying another near stock garage queen...and yes, I'd still have to take the GT350 to the track.

I really hope it does first show in LA! 8)

 

[VoodooBoss]

Not gonna be buying one new, that's for sure.

Blew my wad on the purchase/racecarification/racing trips for the B302.

Would love to pick up a 15 on the used market in a couple years after depreciation sets in.

That's my thinking as well. After ordering my BOSS on the first day the order banks opened then waiting eight months I'll sit on the sideline this time around. Like BOSS owners I'm sure there will be GT350 owners that buy them and let them sit in the garage so there should be plenty of low mile cars available at a discount. I'll skip the R with the CC brakes and CF wheels too.

 

[coboss]

LMAO. I looked at the spy shots of the camouflaged cars at the gas station, and with those covers, the front end is IDENTICAL to my old 1985 Mercury Capri RS!

I'm sure they will be great cars. The problem is that the bar they need to clear has been set so high by the Z/28 that a GT350 will be $75K+. Hell, the 2015 GT that Motor Trend tested was $46K! Granted, it had all of the unnecessary Foo Foo stuff, but still...

I also am not sold on the flat plane crank idea. Time will tell.

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

FPC sounds great to me...GIMME THOSE REVs!!!

 

[WinterSucks]

Do we know what transmission will be in the 2015? I am just thinking of an engine swap IF I got a GT with a bad engine for cheap I still like the existing platform better.

 

[Grant 302]

FPC sounds great to me...GIMME THOSE REVs!!!

+1 and a little extra displacement to boot. What's not to like?

 

[VoodooBoss]

+1 and a little extra displacement to boot. What's not to like?

Let's see:

Flat Plane Crank, faster revving engine
5.2L, more torque
8,000 to 8,500 rev limit
550 HP
Voodoo intake
Voodoo heads

I can't think of anything to like here.

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

Yeah...*yawn*

 

[Grant 302]

I'm glad somebody gets it.

Once in a while I get somebody who still mentions that the Boss makes less torque than the GT... :

 

[coboss]

Let's see:

Flat Plane Crank, faster revving engine
5.2L, more torque
8,000 to 8,500 rev limit
550 HP
Voodoo intake
Voodoo heads

I can't think of anything to like here.

It honestly sounds like one of those things that will take a few years to nail down. It will be the largest FPC engine ever. Rumor is that they are simply putting an enormous harmonic balancer on the end of the crankshaft, and special motor mounts, to counteract the vibration issues. Maybe they'll pull it off, maybe not, but I wouldn't want to be the $75,000 guinea pig.

 

[kcbrown]

Just gotta convince my wife of that. She's also okay with a 'dedicated race/track car' addition, but 'necessary wisdom' is *not* how she's describe my love affair with cars.

I just had to LOL at this.

The 'cooling' is just the standard bolt-on brake ducts, removal of the rear dust shields, 302S grille and tranny scoop. No heat issues so far, but I'm not going to run the Boss in the heat like the GT.

Oh. I've got brake ducts on mine as well, but none of the rest. I thought you were talking solely about engine cooling.

I suspect you won't have any cooling issues if you keep the Boss out of the heat.

Yeah, I'm not careless with the GT. I will leave it in a parking lot unattended, but I'm still selective about parking spaces. The Boss is never parked unattended.

I guess if I had both a Boss and a GT, I'd treat the Boss like that. But I'd also be more reluctant to take it onto the track. I don't know whether it's riskier to leave a car like that unattended in the parking lot or to take it onto the track, but I suspect the insurance rates (a couple of hundred per event to insure a car like the Mustang at an HPDE, versus a few hundred per year for comprehensive street coverage) give insight into the risks.

Well, it would be nice to have a car that does what the Boss does performance *and* response wise, but doesn't have issues with front tire wear patterns and 'V' gutters or track curbing.

Oh, well, yeah, there is that. But the front tire wear is primarily a result of the camber curves, and the new GT350 might not be substantially better in that regard.

Strangely, I've not had a problem with track curbing upsetting the car, but it may be that I'm not pushing it quite hard enough for that (and note that I'm on relatively hard street tires -- Bridgestone S-04 Pole Position tires, to be precise, and the stock springs and dampers).

Would be nice to always have a better connection and feel even on a beat up track like Streets of Willow. Would be nice to have a car that doesn't have to solve tire wear with excess static camber.

I'm skeptical the new car will solve the camber issue, frankly. It's still a McStrut design.

It was stock. I'm sure it would take more than just dampers and sways to completely close that gap. I've been on track in the GT with other suspension modified Cobras, and they were easy to leave behind even in tight sections.

Wow. That is interesting, and has me wondering how the S197 is so much better that it's able to do that.

I guess I'm a lot more confident in the changes and engineering ability of the current staff. All of the incremental changes should add up to something good *if* they do it right, and I think they will. Even if we have to thank GM a little for raising the bar enough to ensure a good response from Ford. Looking at the figure 8 numbers above, I suspect they're on the right track.

I'm not skeptical of their engineering ability. Not in the slightest. I'm skeptical that there is so much improvement left to be had in the first place. The S197 seems to be very, very good already.

I hope I'll have that opportunity! Sometimes dealers are stingy about the special model test drives around here.

The problem is that I doubt you'll be able to really feel the difference in handling on the street without driving the car well beyond what is "safe". I suspect you'll only really be able to tell the difference on the track. I don't know of any dealers that would allow you to take the car onto the track for test drives, but if you do, then I think all of us here will want to know about it!

 

[askjeffro]

I bought my Boss knowing there would be faster, better handling and braking Mustangs in the future but this is the one I want in my garage for the next 25 years; not as an investment but just because I absolutely love it.

Ditto