Track Key for the 2014 GT's

[unrealford]

I agree the new Mustangs are going to be great performers. Lighter more power, IRS suspension.

 

[ufnavy06]

I suppose the real question is whether or not having the original trackey tune will have an effect on the value of the car down the road. It's one of the reasons I've been thinking about keeping my car mainly stock, with trackey, as a light track car. But now, I feel like I can do my exhaust and not really worry about 'value.'

 

[cosm3os]

I suppose the real question is whether or not having the original trackey tune will have an effect on the value of the car down the road. It's one of the reasons I've been thinking about keeping my car mainly stock, with trackey, as a light track car. But now, I feel like I can do my exhaust and not really worry about 'value.'

Just keep the old stuff so you can put it back.

 

[Brandon302]

I suppose the real question is whether or not having the original trackey tune will have an effect on the value of the car down the road. It's one of the reasons I've been thinking about keeping my car mainly stock, with trackey, as a light track car. But now, I feel like I can do my exhaust and not really worry about 'value.'

I don't think in 20 years these cars will be anything special, they don't have the same granduer that the originals had. It's not like the 12-13 Bosses were a turning point in development or anything. They also don't have a very collector inspiring story.

 

[cosm3os]

I wonder if a GT with TK would be rarer than a Boss?

 

[Grant 302]

I am surprised at how many don't care or care so little about this. I've owned a handful of Mustangs, so I am *very* aware that Ford makes lots of updates and improvements as a body style gets long in the tooth. From little conveniences in the interior to base models getting former 'premium' and performance options...I'm all for it, if it's going to sell more cars. Sure, I wish my Brembo GT had all the current Track Pack/Boss offerings...but I didn't have any issue or get upset as most of those were really parts bin upgrades that anyone could just bolt on anyway. Heck, I have lots of Boss/take off parts on my GT...Recaro, shocks, struts, exhaust, diff cover, cooling ducts, tranny cooler, oil cooler, etc...so obviously I don't care about copy-cat/clone/tribute cars.

I also don't think TracKey is all *that* great for the added cost, and it should have come stock with the Boss for what we paid. Works well for the track, and I like the added throttle response for heel-toe and engine braking. And the GTs could already get that from the ProCal tune. I have it loaded on my GT for the same reasons.

I just don't like the misrepresentation that this exclusive, Boss specific feature would show up within the same generation/body style. Also while there are still a few new '13 Bosses out there. It just feels wrong to me. I don't plan on selling my Boss, so I don't care about my resale value...but I think as a group Boss owners a getting a little screwed.

I don't think in 20 years these cars will be anything special, they don't have the same granduer that the originals had. It's not like the 12-13 Bosses were a turning point in development or anything. They also don't have a very collector inspiring story.

I think you're right on most of that, except that some will say it was a 'game changer' and inspired a wave of factory track performers. And with this TracKey release, it will be so easy to clone a '13 Boss.

I wonder if a GT with TK would be rarer than a Boss?

Possibly. But I think it will be available to more than 10,000 units. But a TP GT with TK...might be the ticket. Are you going to do it? I would.

 

[TymeSlayer]

I wonder if a GT with TK would be rarer than a Boss?

Go buy a GT and find out. ???

 

[TymeSlayer]

I am surprised at how many don't care or care so little about this. I've owned a handful of Mustangs, so I am *very* aware that Ford makes lots of updates and improvements as a body style gets long in the tooth. From little conveniences in the interior to base models getting former 'premium' and performance options...I'm all for it, if it's going to sell more cars. Sure, I wish my Brembo GT had all the current Track Pack/Boss offerings...but I didn't have any issue or get upset as most of those were really parts bin upgrades that anyone could just bolt on anyway. Heck, I have lots of Boss/take off parts on my GT...Recaro, shocks, struts, exhaust, diff cover, cooling ducts, tranny cooler, oil cooler, etc...so obviously I don't care about copy-cat/clone/tribute cars.

I also don't think TracKey is all *that* great for the added cost, and it should have come stock with the Boss for what we paid. Works well for the track, and I like the added throttle response for heel-toe and engine braking. And the GTs could already get that from the ProCal tune. I have it loaded on my GT for the same reasons.

I just don't like the misrepresentation that this exclusive, Boss specific feature would show up within the same generation/body style. Also while there are still a few new '13 Bosses out there. It just feels wrong to me. I don't plan on selling my Boss, so I don't care about my resale value...but I think as a group Boss owners a getting a little screwed.

I think you're right on most of that, except that some will say it was a 'game changer' and inspired a wave of factory track performers. And with this TracKey release, it will be so easy to clone a '13 Boss. Possibly. But I think it will be available to more than 10,000 units. But a TP GT with TK...might be the ticket. Are you going to do it? I would.

Lipstick on a runway model is one thing. Take that same lipstick and put it on a pig and you get...

 

[Jimmy Pribble]

Isn't the Black Key just a valet key?

Seriously, the idea of this technology being new or unique or exclusive is only true in the very finest of details. Valet keys that operate the car with diminished power have been around for years. Nobody would call that a "tune" but it is. The Veyron has a Top Speed Key that adjusts performance parameters of that car, which was also around for years before the Boss. As somebody else pointed-out, TracKey is just a version of MyKey. The idea of a car having multiple tunes reside in its ECU is also not new. Using a key to access discrete tunes...similar to valet keys, but...maybe unique. It's cool, no doubt. Just maybe not as super special as we would like to think.

When so much of the Boss can be ordered out of the Ford Racing catalog, I just can't make myself care about this feature being extended to the final model year of the S197. The last cars always get the best stuff from the bin. And the TracKey is just a bin item. Sorry.

What makes the Boss special is found in its gestalt. It is more than the sum of its easily-ordered-from-a-catalog parts.

 

[Grant 302]

And the TracKey is just a bin item. Sorry.

Okay, but it's one of the bin parts that from a practical standpoint can only come from Ford. :

Sure, there are already Boss PCMs floating around from DOA Bosses, but they were rare. Now the Dual Path PCMs will be fairly widely available.

Lipstick on a runway model is one thing. Take that same lipstick and put it on a pig and you get...

Sarah Palin? ;D

Go buy a GT and find out. ???

Read his sig. He already has the TP GT.

 

[Brandon302]

Okay, but it's one of the bin parts that from a practical standpoint can only come from Ford. :

Sure, there are already Boss PCMs floating around from DOA Bosses, but they were rare. Now the Dual Path PCMs will be fairly widely available.
Sarah Palin? ;D
Read his sig. He already has the TP GT.

I think your arguments are a valid, but why does exclusivity matter so much to some of you. I would hope none of you are 4 and get mad when someone else has the same toy. Also not to down play the car, but it's a Mustang. If you want exclusivity buy a Pagani or Konigsegg, or something rare like a Lucra.

 

[cosm3os]

I can see it now! The year is 2054. Fade in to a picture of the tents in West World and Bob Varsha Jr's voice comes over a starry Saturday night in January. They cut to the main tent, and the velvet-roped section of the featured cars that have been waiting all week for their turn in the spotlight. And there it is, my Black GT/TP/TK/Recaro/Premium delete car (put back to original cause I kept all the parts)--now 1 of xxx and "so much rarer than the Boss 302 of the era." Varsha Jr. says, "in 2014 you had a choice of buying a standard GT, or a Boss 302 at twice the price; but only a few smart enthusiasts checked the boxes for TP and Recaro to get the best of both worlds." Then he pauses ever so briefly and points to the ignition, "and this one is the uber-rare late 2014 with the TK!" "Whoever ordered this car got the best value in track day cars available in the day!"

 

[Jimmy Pribble]

I can see it now! The year is 2054. Fade in to a picture of the tents in West World and Bob Varsha Jr's voice comes over a starry Saturday night in January. They cut to the main tent, and the velvet-roped section of the featured cars that have been waiting all week for their turn in the spotlight. And there it is, my Black GT/TP/TK/Recaro/Premium delete car (put back to original cause I kept all the parts)--now 1 of xxx and "so much rarer than the Boss 302 of the era." Varsha Jr. says, "in 2014 you had a choice of buying a standard GT, or a Boss 302 at twice the price; but only a few smart enthusiasts checked the boxes for TP and Recaro to get the best of both worlds." Then he pauses ever so briefly and points to the ignition, "and this one is the uber-rare late 2014 with the TK!" "Whoever ordered this car got the best value in track day cars available in the day!"

 

[Brandon302]

God damn Loch Ness monsta!

 

[Boss1601]

It'll be a GT with a nice extra feature. A BOSS is still a BOSS. What will annoy quite a few is if the TK for the GT costs LESS than $302.

 

[max5ive0]

Some people have mentioned buying all the Boss parts for the GT and then getting the TK. But wouldn't the TK be written differently for the GT vs the Boss? So if a GT has all Boss parts the TK tune available for it will have the wrong calibrations. Unless, the Boss TK programming will be compatible and with the GT's ECU and made available to GT owners, which I highly doubt.

 

[further]

The Boss 302 is the engine
Nothing more, nothng less
It's one thing, the only thing.

 

[unrealford]

The Boss 302 is the engine
Nothing more, nothng less
It's one thing, the only thing.

Disagree, motor is definitely the heart, but it came with suspension. Of course anyone could do that with a GT. But watch any video review and they even say, it the best Mustang made, engine with the suspension is a perfectly matched combination

 

[Grant 302]

I think your arguments are a valid, but why does exclusivity matter so much to some of you. I would hope none of you are 4 and get mad when someone else has the same toy. Also not to down play the car, but it's a Mustang. If you want exclusivity buy a Pagani or Konigsegg, or something rare like a Lucra.

Personally, I don't care to be exclusive. I mean, I hang out on a board with about 2,000 (?) other Boss owners. If it were more of an issue for me, I'd have a 302S already. What I don't like that Ford was selling the exclusivity aspect, but now is taking it away.

It'll be a GT with a nice extra feature. A BOSS is still a BOSS. What will annoy quite a few is if the TK for the GT costs LESS than $302.

If it's less, I'm going to go ballistic. Psycho. Steam will shoot from my ears like Yosemite Sam. ;D

The Boss 302 is the engine
Nothing more, nothng less
It's one thing, the only thing.

I believe it is the most important thing...but I gotta disagree. Well, unless you'd pay me $43,575 for a new Boss engine Then, I'd agree.

 

[Fat Boss]

It was exclusive. When they said that, it was. How many years was Ford supposed to go before they made another car with the technology? I bet all the performance MFGr's are coming out with something like that and it'd be foolish for F not to work every angle.