We had the opportunity to unleash some eco-friendly pony’s in this review of the gorgeous and highly capable For Mustang 2,3 EcoBoost.
By SHAWN DONOVAN BRETT
The new 10-speed transmission, which we´ve experienced in the Ranger Raptor, makes the most of Ford´s 2,3-litre EcoBoost engine, which has seen a reduction in power output of 20kW but it gains 11Nm. Coupled with the clever auto box and an overboost function, Ford says there´s been no discernible harm to performance.
The facelifted mustang features sleek LED-equipped headlamps, a lower bonnet profile with venting and tri-bar tail lamps sitting above a revised bumper and diffuser-like insert. The 19-inch alloys are new, too. It´s is a head turner on the road, especially with the top dropped and your foot planted.
Elevating the cockpit is a new 12-inch LCD instrumentation display, which changes its look depending on the drive mode selected and can be set through seven colours. The facia houses an eight-inch touchscreen equipped with Ford´s excellent Sync3 system.
Ford has fiddled with the dampers to enhance stability through corners, plus stiffened the rear suspension and thickened the anti-roll bars. The ride feels nicely controlled without really intimidating your driving ability, afterall you are still holding the reigns of a stallion, all be it not so wild.
I was once again pleasantly surprised by how eagerly the 2,3-litre turbopetrol shifts the heavy convertible body, and it even sounds decent while doing so, even though thanks to speaker trickery. Thanks to the safety-system additions, plus that sophisticated new 10-speed automatic transmission keeping the engine on the boil, even in the V8-less guise the iconic Mustang is as appealing as ever.
