Ford Mustang GT Pony car turns into a workhorse
Pony car turns workhorse to gallop between interesting automotive businesses
Despite not racking up many miles in the Mustang, it has been running around all over the place during the past few weeks, performing a few workhorse duties.
I needed some material for a 1968 Mustang project I’m working on and dropped in on Riteweld Engineering in Banbury to see Jaguar F-type Coupé owner Doug Young and son Ben. They were both keen to check out the Mustang. Some people may want to take advantage of the Mustang’s fold-down rear seats for things like golf bags, but for nongolfers such as me, it’s perfect to cart lengths of steel around.
I made another trip, this time to Warwickshire, to sort out a trailer for the project car and found some great roads near Napton, rustic enough to make me glad of the car’s supple ride.
Then a trip to Brackley, to visit aerodynamics specialists Totalsim for an Autocar story on the Ariel Hipercar, took me over a satisfyingly mixed route, from rural B-roads to dual carriageways, which played to the Mustang’s strengths.
For such a big car, it’s surprisingly nimble over country roads. The weight and size are well controlled and it’s a lot of fun through the twisty bits. The V8 engine is an endless source of entertainment and is becoming sweeter as it loosens up.
After our work was done, Totalsim boss Rob Lewis wheeled out his choice of wheels, a Boardman C5 bike. Chalk and cheese they may be, but both deliver the same, no-nonsense level of fun in their own ways.
I was back along the same route a few days later for a slightly longer cruise up the A43 to Silverstone, for a chat with Nick Carpenter at Delta Motorsport about his company’s work on the Hipercar. Nick chose an Ariel Atom for his guilty pleasure because he loves its uncomplicated purity and it’s so involving to drive. Despite having a few more frills (and a roof), the Mustang appeals to me for similar reasons. It has a raw, edgy appeal that European manufacturers tend to polish out, and I love that.
The Mustang’s size is still something to consider, and although I use it to go to the supermarket, I try to avoid situations where it might pick up trolley dents. I’ll generally park on the far side of the car park, on the basis that adding 30sec to the walk inside is preferable to a damaged panel. It has worked so far.
The first service has just been done, leaving the coffers £249 lighter. What you get for the health check is a page and a bit of ticked boxes, including important things like ‘drain oil and renew filter’. Further down the page, I was relieved to see, ‘refill the engine with oil’. A lot of the points on the list seem trivial or unnecessary for a 3000-mile car but, on reflection, it is worth ensuring that everything’s working properly. Really, though, I couldn’t help feeling this amounted to a £250 oil change.
Tread depth on the Pirelli P Zeros stands at 7mm on the front and 6mm on the rears. Even though the mileage is low, I’m still comforted by that wear rate on the back because a pair of replacements will cost £300. That doesn’t mean I don’t like to give the Mustang a good gallop as often as possible, but doughnuts are off the agenda and the Line Lock feature remains unlocked, for now at least.