Ford Says the 2024 Mustang GT Is 'All-New', But Did They Do Enough to Really Improve It?

Hey, everybody, I've got a great video for you today because we are talking Mustang, specifically the 2024 Ford Mustang S650. Now, Ford is calling this an all new generation of Mustang. And in this video, we're going to find out, did they do enough compared to the previous generation to earn your hard earned money? When Ford debuted the 2024 Mustang back in September of last year, they called it an all new model, the seventh generation of the iconic Mustang. But I think a lot of the consensus online is that Ford didn't do enough in this seventh generation Mustang. A lot of folks online were calling this a facelift on the outgoing S550 generation. Well, I'm out here in Pasadena at the global first drive of this Mustang, and I've had a chance to talk to engineers, integration engineers, folks that represent Mustang as a brand, marketing folks, and everyone I've talked to tells me that this is, in fact, an all new generation. All the sheet metal is new. The engines have been heavily revised. The suspension's new. The brakes are new. And in this video, I hope to clear some of this confusion out. And we're going to find out, is this different enough than the outgoing S550? Now, from a design standpoint, it certainly is more evolution rather than revolution. It's much more square to off. Now, one of the reasons I think that a lot of folks thought that this is just a facelift is because the wheelbase hasn't changed really at all. So it's still riding on the same 107 inch wheelbase. Now, if we look at the front end design here, everything is much more crisp. So the headlight is in a pretty similar position compared to the outgoing car. But you'll notice there's hardly any curves. It's very angular. A lot of really obtuse angles. And you've got this bar which extends across the length of the front to help accentuate the width of this vehicle. Now, within the grille here, we see a couple of interesting accents. So these nostrils, these squared off pieces are unique to the five liter GT trim. The EcoBoost has a flat fascia there on the grille and also unique to the GT is going to be this air intake here on the driver's side is functional to help with cooling, where on the EcoBoost, that is a flat blank panel. But what's a little bit annoying is here on the passenger side, even this GT trim still has a blank there. So it's not entirely functional. Now, the lower front trim on the GT here is this flat black plastic, which is a great choice because this often gets ran into curbs. This is going to be easy to replace. And it means that you don't have to end up painting anything if you get a little clumsy with your parking. Another thing a lot of folks were talking about online when Ford debuted this car is if you're going to launch a new generation of Mustang, you need new powertrains. Well, the S650 still uses the same engines in terms of displacement. So the base engine is the 2.3 liter EcoBoost. And then, of course, you can opt for the five liter naturally aspirated Coyote V8. But Ford has said they put a lot of work into these engines and have heavily revised them. So on the EcoBoost standpoint, you've got a new fuel injection system. You've got a new dual scroll turbo. You've got a new EGR system, lots of work on that engine. And Ford claims that this Coyote is also heavily revised, a new fourth generation of Coyote. Now, from talking to the engineer, it seems like the main difference between this engine and the outgoing model are going to be the intake. So we've got these two intake boxes. You can see here on either side of the engine. And it also has a revised oil pan. And I'm told that they've worked on the internals of the engine to make it more durable as well. But the same 5.0 displacement as a previous generation car, but more power. So this GT trim has between 480 and 486 horsepower, depending on whether or not you get the performance exhaust with the active valving. This one does have the performance exhaust. We're looking at 486 horsepower out of a naturally aspirated five liter V8. That is a lot of punch for a relatively small displacement. So I think probably the smallest evolution from a design standpoint between the 550 and the 650 is going to be the side profile. So I mentioned the same wheelbase. Now, the lines have gotten a little bit more crisp, and I'm told that all of the sheet metal is new. None of this is interchangeable with the old car. Of course, you can get it in the coupe and convertible spec. And the convertible still has a great piece of functionality where the top lives between the trunk and the rear seat. So you don't lose any trunk space by putting the top down. Of course, it's a full soft top convertible. Now, some other things worth noting. All Mustangs, be it EcoBoost or GT, can be spec'd with the high performance package. It's about $3,500, but it really transforms this car from a quick straight line cruiser into something that can be taken on the track. So you see these unique wheels here wrapped in the 225-40 R19 Pirelli tires and an enormous Brembo brake. So if you get the performance package here, you get six piston Brembos in the front, four piston in the rear. Of course, these cars do have a limited slip rear differential, and I believe the performance pack cars get 355 gears in the rear axle. Now, visually, I think the easiest way to tell the 23 for the 24 model year is going to be the rear end design. So you still have the tri bar taillights still sequential, but they have given a nice nod back to the 1967 fastback cars with these concave taillights. And you can see here, they're very angular. So you get this really crisp line, which accentuates the shadow, which is extended by the decklid here. And it kind of makes the rear end look a little bit more sinister. And I think it makes it look more modern as well. Also accentuates the width of the vehicle. This is kind of an interesting styling design, this panel, which extends not quite flush with the rear bumper. You see this gap that is actually intentional. The trunk is not open. That's not a panel fitment issue. That is a functional piece of design there. And then as we extend below the bumper, you'll notice black fascia with those enormous quad exhaust. And of course, this car does have the active exhaust. Now, popping the trunk, you can do it on the key. There's also a little button here underneath the bumper. You get 11 cubic feet or 13 cubic feet, depending on whether or not you're getting the coupe or the convertible trim. Very functional trunk space. And I like this little Easter egg. You get the outline of the seventh generation there in the taillight. As we check out the interior of the 5.0 Mustang. So you get this really cool steering wheel, flat bottom, round curvaceous top portion here and then slight perforated finish here on the inside. And then lots of functionality on the steering wheel. So you do have mode selection here as well as cruise control selection and then lane keep assist there. And then on the right side of the steering wheel, you have the buttons to adjust the volume. You got some tune there. It's a very good looking steering wheel. And I like the flat bottom, which typically has been reserved for the very high spec Mustangs. Now, as we look at the screen layout here, two screens, no more analog gauges available in the Mustang. Instead, you get a digital instrument cluster and of course, a new generation of sync system, which is very, very nice. So they've put a ton of work into the sync system to make it more intuitive and make it easier and make it higher quality as well. So here you'll find all of your climate controls fixed at the bottom. And then above that, you've got your navigation screen here and then you've got your audio panel here with phone connectivity. And this car does have Apple CarPlay, Android Auto as well, which you can activate all there in the screen. It's a really good layout. It uses some video game technology as well in the graphics. There you can see that you can actually move the car around, reposition it, which is very, very nice. Now, this in the Mustang pages is where things get really cool. So the active exhaust, we have four exhaust modes. We also have various auxiliary gauges, which you can see in this panel layout here. And then track apps, which are really cool. So you have acceleration timers, but you also have lap timers, launch settings. So you can set your launch control there and shift indicators so you can change all the settings there. My favorite part about this car is actually going to be the cluster theme. So if you look here or here, it actually gives us different cluster options. The track will prioritize the tachometer. And then my favorite one is the Fox body, which is reminiscent of the 87 through 93 generation of Mustang, and it turns green at night. And this Mustang is equipped with the six speed manual transmission. GT cars still get the option of getting the six speed. Beyond that, this whole center binnacle is very similar to the outgoing generation of Mustang. Two cup holders there. You've got your wireless charger up front. And I do have some hard controls here for the Mustang modes. Traction control off, a favorites button, and an old school volume knob with engine start stop. Very well integrated. This car also has the optional drift brake. So you pull up on this when the drift brake setting is engaged. That'll lock up the rear wheels and help initiate those cool slides. When you're not in the drift brake setting, it operates as an electronic parking brake. So pull up to activate, foot on the foot brake, push down to deactivate. That's how that works. So we've been focusing on the convertible in this video, but I do have a chance to show you the coupe really quick. And this offers some features, which, of course, the convertible lacks. Now, obviously, the top doesn't go down in the coupe. Instead, you've got this beautiful fastback design, which is very accentuated on this 2024 by this character line making its way toward the trunk. And then this coupe also has this large wing, which I think looks really cool. It's not too overbearing. There's a couple of different styles of wing get on this Mustang, but this one is certainly my favorite. I think the coupe, especially the rear three quarters, is a better looking car. Now, this car specs a little bit differently than our red convertible. And one thing I want to show you is the Recaro seat package in this car. Now we have the comfort seats. This coupe does have the black leather Recaros. Now, if I'm tracking a car, I like to have that extra bolstering. But honestly, for everyday driving, especially if you are a larger individual, I'd much prefer the comfort seats. They just don't squeeze you and poke you in as many places. And of course, you get the adjustable headrest in the comfort seats that you don't get in the Recaros. And one more word about seating and seats, if you do ever and I really mean ever need to transport anyone other than kids in the backseat of a Mustang, you want the convertible because not only are the seats very upright in the coupe like they are in the convertible, but the headroom is just unusable. Really, really bad headroom in the backseat of the coupe. And unfortunately, we've had plenty of time to experience that on this first drive because we've been teamed up the whole time with Sofian and his videographer and get the convertible if you ever need to transport people in the rear, even with a top up. So the new S650 Ford Mustang, did they do enough to convince you to take your hard earned money and put it toward the new generation of car? Well, here's the thing, right? If you value interior technology and build quality, I think Ford has nailed it. So the overall fit and finish, the quality materials and of course, those new screens feel very, very good. If you value value for money, this car has gotten quite expensive, so it still starts at about thirty one thousand dollars. But this car as spec'd, keep in mind, this is not a dark horse or a Shelby. We're looking at sixty six grand for this GT premium with the performance pack and some other options like that is a lot of money for a Ford Mustang. And it still has a coyote under the hood, albeit a revised one, albeit with 486 horsepower. But look, if I was in the market for a Mustang and I hadn't bought a 23, definitely wait. This car offers some really cool options that make it better than the 550. If I have a 550, I'm thinking about upgrading. I might wait a little bit, maybe for a Shelby model and maybe for that dark horse, because I think that is a model that differentiates itself from the previous GT 550 equipped car. As it is, I think this car really offers a lot of nice technology, but it's not quite different enough. If I was a current Mustang owner to upgrade. Let me know what you guys think in the comments section below. Huge thank you to Ian behind the camera. We'll see you in the next video.