truth about domestics

The 2010 Ford Mustang has taken both the Grand-Am Koni Challenge and the SPEED World Challenge titles!  I’m not exactly sure what goes on in either series, but congratulations to all who took place over the past year and here’s to hoping the Mustang will have similar success next year!  For more great shots and the full story, head on over to Autoblog.

(Image source: Autoblog)

Saleen has been around for years, tuning Mustangs and various other Ford products, and this year is no different.  At the SEMA show in November, Saleen will be unveiling the 2010 Saleen S281 Mustang.  Three teaser photos have been released, which you can see at Autoblog.

(Image source: Autoblog)

The videos are fairly self explanatory, but here goes nothing.  Joseph Cram and his father had dreamed of taking a road trip together in a Ford Mustang.  They had spent years restoring a ’68 Mustang coupe in the hopes of one day taking that drive, but had to sell the car due to tough economic times.  16 years later, the Cram’s dreams came true when they were selected as a winner of Ford Motor Company’s “The ’10 Unleashed” program.  For more head on over to M80.com.

The video above is of the 2010 Ford Mustang FR500CJ (Cobra Jet) drag racing package, undergoing some testing at the track.  As you can see, the car has plenty of power to get things moving, and enough traction to lift the front wheels well into the sky.  For more, head on over to Autoblog.

Steeda has just released some photos of their new 2010 Q Series Mustang, and it is one sharp looking car.  Like other tuners, it will receive a mild body kit in the form of a new front and most likely rear fascia, wheels, suspension upgrades, and probably a supercharger.  For more details, head on over to Autoblog and then keep your eyes and ears open for the full spec sheet as the SEMA show approaches.

(Image source: Steeda)

I’m not even sure where to start on the 2010 Mustang Shelby Super Snake.  How about I just lay down the facts?  The car starts life as a 2010 Mustang Shelby GT500, where it features a 5.4L supercharged V8 good for 540 hp.  An upgraded supercharger, tune, exhaust and heads and you end up with the 750 hp beast you see above!  Carbon fiber trim is added, along with a massive hood scoop to add visual differentiation between the Super Snake and the “regular” GT500.  For the full review, head on over to Autoblog!

So, for the third straight month, the newer of new kids on the block, the 2010 Chevrolet Camaro, has outsold the redesigned 2010 Ford Mustang.  I’m surprised probably more so than the writers of Autoblog that the Mustang sales dropped 23% year over year when the car continues to recieve high praise not only for its updated styling and posh interior, but the fact that it is less expensive than the Camaro or Challenger.  The sales race could be explained by the fact that the bread and butter V6 Camaro has 304 hp (94 more than the Mustang) and still manages to get 29 mpg, a number that none of its competitors can match!  Plus the Camaro did have some nice face time in the new Transformers 2 movie this summer.  Either way, lets hope people continue to purchase all three new muscle cars for the sake of the Domestic 3.

(Image source: MotorTrend)

Consumer Reports has given the 2010 Ford Mustang a “Very Good” rating and a score of 78, compared to the “Very Good” and 71 of the Camaro and the “Good” and 53 of the Challenger.  The news to me is that the Nissan 370Z, Hyundai Genesis Coupe and Subaru Impreza WRX all got “Very Good” ratings yet their scores have not been announced.

Knowing CR, the scores probably went like this: Hyundai Genesis Coupe – 81, Subaru WRX - 85, Nissan 370Z – 94.  Why?  Well the Genesis Coupe is slower than the Mustang, doesn’t look as nice, and doesn’t have as nice of an interior, but it’s built in Korea, so it has to get some extra points from the foreign loving CR staff.  The WRX gets extra points for being from Japan instead of just Korea like the Hyundai, while also getting points for its rally based marketing campaign…even though it is no longer raced in rallies.  The Nissan 370Z might be a more entertaining ride than the Mustang, but what really put it over the top for the CR staff is the fact that it has 14 cup holders.  That seems to be important criteria whenever I read about their other reviews.  Who cares if the car only seats 2, you need options people!

Stay tuned for the final scores, for now, head on over to Jalopnik.

(Image source: Ford Motor Company)

The following videos were sent to us by Eric over at m80im.com.  They are part of the latest installment in the 2010 Mustang Unleashed series from Ford Motor Company.

Derek Murrell of Lake Mary, Florida, decided he wanted to race his school shop teacher, Bill Rosenblum.  He submitted his idea to Ford Motor Company via the 2010 Mustang Unleashed contestand ended up being chosen by Ford, so the race was set to take place in two race prepped 2010 Ford Mustang GT’s.

The videos are pretty entertaining to watch, or feel free to read the story at m80im.

Car & Driver magazine went down to GingerMan Raceway in South Haven, Michigan and they just so happened to run into some Ford engineers there testing some pre-production 2011 Mustangs.  The car featured adjustable shocks, which C&D feels are probably just for development, but the car was also wearing Pirelli P Zero Corsa R-compounds, the same tires found on a stock Lamborghini LP560-4.

The writers also said the car was able to keep up on the 1.88 mile long track with a BMW M3 that had been brought along by the Ford engineers.  Autoblog’s only reasoning behind this is that the car had to feature around 400 hp and 400 lb-ft of torque, which they attribute to a new 5.0 L V8, 32 valve DOHC “Coyote” motor that has been rumored.  For all of the details, head over to Car & Driver.