Turo Review: 2018 Ford Mustang GT Manual (Day Post)

"i86hotdogs" (i86hotdogs) 12/05/2019 at 20:50 • Filed to: None

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I don’t gamble much. I will play blackjack or poker with the friends sparingly. If I bet on a game, the wager is usually non-monetary. Slots do nothing for me, and I only know how to bet the field, and 6&8 on craps. I also don’t like spending double digit dollars for a can of beer. I hate busy bars where I have to jockey for position to get the bartender’s attention. So, what the heck does a guy like me do in a major city where all of this exists in vibrant form? That’s easy: rent my childhood dream car.

(Full Disclosure: I wanted to drive a Ford Mustang so bad, I found one on Turo, and rented it when on vacation in Las Vegas. All photos are from the Turo page)

What is it?

This is the first year of the latest iteration of the legendary pony car. The huge refresher back in 2015 brought independent rear suspension to the mix. For 2018, some tweaks to the engine brings the power from 435 to 460, and torque is up to 420 from 400. Higher compression ratio, direct and port injection, and a spray in cylinder liner vs. a steel liner are the reasons for the bump.

This pony was equipped with the GT Performance package 1. This package comes with larger Brembo six piston front brakes, Micheline Pilot Sport 4S, a Torsen 3.73 limited slip differential, and a handful of other goodies. It also ticked off the active valve exhausts and Magneride Suspension. I’ll get into the exhaust later. The MagneRide was a game changer. Being able to switch it between comfort and sport depending on the drive appealed to everyone involved.

Turo

I need to put a section here for Turo. Turo is becoming my favorite company of all time. What you see is what you get. There’s no “premium car or similar”, you can search for the exact make and model you are looing for. The booking process is seamless. No meeting with rental agencies and re-entering your information after already reserving online. Prices are reasonable for the most part. Since the owners of the vehicle set the prices, you can come across absurd rates like an individual offering his Dodge Durango SXT for $225 a day. But you can also stumble across a Challenger Hellcat for $150 a day. I may never rent from another company ever again.

Exterior

The Mustang continues its tradition of copping retro cues and bringing them into the 21 st century. The three bar tail lights are there; and yes, they are sequential. Personally, this isn’t my favorite looking design of the retro era (2005-present), but it works. I am a sucker for the S197 style from 2005-2009. I had magazine clippings and posters of that Mustang all over my bed room. The front end has a dangerously low splitter that made me very nervous over entrances as well as parking curbs. Luckily, no splitters were harmed during the trip.

The rear end is what ties me in. From the quad exhaust tips to the wide and low butt with those iconic tail lights, this is unmistakably a mustang. I was a fan of the raised decklid spoiler you get when you opt for the performance pack. It was the right medium between obnoxious wing, and useless looking bump. The black roof, and fender stripes are a nice touch that aren’t too tacky. Whatever angle you look at it, it looks fast.

Interior

The interior mixes contemporary and retro looks very well. I loved the toggle switches at the bottom that controlled traction control, drive modes, and other functions. The gauge cluster can be changed for user’s preference. It came with the RPM tach as a linear bar and digital RPM and speed gauges. You can change it to the traditional two round gauges, but I left it as is. The big screen was easy to read, and easy to use. I kept it on the radio screen and used phones for GPS. Cooled seats are a luxury, and no matter how much I say I don’t need them, I want them.

The sound system was the standard 9 speaker system. There is an optional premium system that was not optioned for this vehicle. The owner did hook up a JL audio subwoofer and amplifier in the trunk. It was properly installed in the trunk rather than put into a sub box and taking up trunk space. With the settings tuned to max, it bumped. But it wasn’t overbearing and teeth rattling. I am a stickler for a decent sound system and was impressed with my experience listening to the radio. I did have trouble connecting to the Bluetooth system. I was not sure if it was on my end or theirs, but we could not get the Bluetooth to hook up. For a rental, I don’t condemn the vehicle for a small setback; having satellite radio made up for it.

I did have some uncertainty about the seating comfort. These did not come with the optional Recaro seats, which may have been in my favor. My wide hips and love handles don’t sit well in tight hugging seats. These seats did a great job keeping me in without squeezing the Thanksgiving meal out of me. The back is manually adjusted and is power adjustable fore/aft and up/down. My stature is short legged and long torso. I found a generous amount of headroom when sitting in the vehicle. For a few trips, I managed to pack four adults into this vehicle. When sitting normally, the front seats touch the rear seats. I had to scooch the seats forward a bit. This car is not made for long trips, but getting four adults to the Vegas Strip is doable.

Driving

This thing is rowdy. I come from driving a 4 cylinder van, and a 49cc scooter. This car has over 2.5 times the power that my van has. When I first got to the car on a chilly Friday morning, my first thought was, “Please don’t stall in front of my father in law.” But that first start up was exhilarating. I felt it though my soul. Getting the car moving is relatively easy. The clutch was light enough for me to find the engagement point. It’s been over a year since I’ve driven a stick; and that was a Jeep Renegade. The transmission shifted well. Light throws that felt engaged when you’re in a gear. This was my first powerful manual car I’ve ever driven. I was so excited. I was so scared.

For the first few blocks, I kept the car in the default mode. Even in “Comfort” mode, there is so much potential power on tap. I pulled onto a major road and performed a standard “Michigan turn”. Meaning turning right and making an immediate U-turn to head leftward. As I was exiting the U-turn gingerly applying the gas, I chirped the tires. This was in “comfort” mode and traction control all the way on.

I pulled aside to check out the apps and features. I discovered line lock. Unfortunately, I did not use line lock. The rear tires were already showing wear, and didn’t want to risk the $250 charge if caught. Although I never got to experience smoky American burnouts, it didn’t take much to break the rear loose. I tweaked the settings to my liking. Sport+ mode, which is the last setting before the lawless track mode, and track mode in the exhaust. This gave me some freedom with a little security. The only modification on this car was a fancy Borla Atak exhaust system. A quick search online shows that this is a $2,700 system that works with the active valves. Oh boy it works well. I kept the exhaust in track mode all trip. It’s one of the best sounding cars I have heard in person.

This car pulls hard. It plants you into your seat. I wish I had a lawless place to use all of it. I would find myself merging onto highways with a gleaming smile on my face. The brief moment from 35-70 to get up to traffic speed is erotic. I can feel it getting loose in the first three gears under load, hence why I kept the traction control on. Driving in tunnels and parking garages is intoxicating.

Daily driving is attainable in the Mustang. Whether it’s bumper to bumper traffic, or heading outside of town for some sightseeing, the car is easy to operate. Visibility is acceptable. I had the most trouble looking out the rear window than anything. I relied on my mirrors mostly to see behind me. I had to be really careful on some entrances and speed bumps. For a city full of exotics and fancy vehicles, there are a plethora of opportunities to do some damage. I’ve never driven something so low to the ground, and I succeeded with no issue.

This car came with all the current safety goodies: blind spot detection, adaptive cruise, rear camera, rear collision warning, etc. The blind spot detection was a game changer, and helped with the smallish rear visibility. Navigating the mustang through tight areas was a challenge, mostly due to the uncertainty of the front end. I really was conscious about the long hood and even longer splitter. I spared no risk, and took 3 even 5 point turns to get around.

Cost

This Mustang could be had for $65 per day on Turo. For something with so much power and amenities, I find this to be a bargain. The total cost for a Friday-Sunday Rental was $308 (a fresh tank of premium gas was calculated in the cost). In real life, this car can be bought for upwards towards $50,000. A lot of that cost comes from the track package, active exhaust, and MagneRide suspension.

Summation

I had so much fun in this thing. The combination of power and sound is intoxicating. I would run out of money immediately if I owned this. It’s hard to hate this fun machine. So there you have it. When you don’t like gambling, hate overly expensive drinks, dislike crowded bars, rent a sweet car and rev it to the sky.

slipperysallylikespenguins > i86hotdogs 12/05/2019 at 22:02

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I still haven’t tried Turo. I really wanted to in LA this year but any remotely sporty car had absurdly low mileage limits and gps trackers. Quite a few had very big fees if you took them anywhere near a canyon/mountain road. It was so much easier just to rent from a regular agency with unlimited mileage and nobody caring about the car.

Did you pick up at airport or meet the owner somewhere?

Discerning > i86hotdogs 12/05/2019 at 22:14

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L ast time I was in Vegas, everything on Turo was overpriced. But maybe I just had bad luck.

i86hotdogs > slipperysallylikespenguins 12/05/2019 at 22:17

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Wow, I never had to experience the GPS tracker and forbidding you from driving through certain roads. I picked this up at his house. LA has a ton of options when I looked, but the more premium ones come with a huge security deposit.

i86hotdogs > Discerning 12/05/2019 at 22:18

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All depends on what exactly you’re looking for. Miata’s were $55-$75, Mustangs were $45-$90, Corvettes were all relatively pricey. I was looking hard for a Hellcat, but the cheapest one was $225.

atfsgeoff > i86hotdogs 12/05/2019 at 22:51

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$65/day for that??? I need to start using Turo.

M.T. Blake > i86hotdogs 12/05/2019 at 23:02

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You’re giving me good ideas about my upcoming Vegas Vacation.

Might pull up in a Lamborghini to look at a Raptor at the Ford dealer. Lol. 

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > i86hotdogs 12/06/2019 at 02:15

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You are still in the honeymoon phase with Turo lol. I've rented at least a dozen cars on the service now. At least half of them have been major ordeals. When it works though, it's amazing and even when it doesn't work quite right, I've still been way happier than even the best "normal" rental. The issues I've had have just been canceled rentals literally hours before pickup (booked months in advance). Usually it's turos fault and not the owner. All of the owners have been great but the customer service is trash. I still give it praise and recommend it to everyone though because it's the only affordable way to rent a manual. One of my favorites has been a Manual Chevy spark I rented in SLC for $20 a day. It was so cheap and such a shitty car but it did the job and was kinda fun. It was definitely slower than the CVT spark but at least it didn't feel like a lawnmower. Just finding cool stuff like that is so fun on there. Sure I've rented way cooler stuff but that spark made my day somehow. 

i86hotdogs > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 12/06/2019 at 02:22

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I’m on vehicle number 6 so far, and the only issue I’ve had was a cancellation t he night before due to a storm damaging the vehicle. Wasn’t the owner’s fault, or Turo’s. Are there bad owners/vehicles out there? Oh yeah. But picking them out is rather easy. It’s similar to vehicle shopping on Craigslist/Marketplace. If there is one or two out of focus images, or the description is vague or non existent, chances are those owners/vehicles are not well taken care of. Like you said, it’s light years ahead of the rental agencies.

I would love to rent that S park. Small cars with a stick are a riot to drive.

DipodomysDeserti > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 12/06/2019 at 08:03

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Meanwhile in Europe you can rent a manual anything for $6 a day...

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > i86hotdogs 12/06/2019 at 10:07

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My issues have twice now been turo changed their policies and then canceled my trip because of it and were of no help at all in finding a new ride. Leaving me stranded at the airport at 10pm. First one was the car had a salvage title but somehow they didn’t know months or even a day in advance. Second one was a recall for a back seat or some bullshit, same thing cancel no warning no help. Thankfully both times the owners just let me pay cash and rent anyways but man was that sketchy. Another time the car leaked 1qt of oil every 500 miles. And another two times I went through cancellation roulette but thankfully Turo helped those times since it canceled more than a couple hours in advance and was the fault of the owners. I still love Turo but almost 50% massive failure is pretty bad haha. 

i86hotdogs > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 12/06/2019 at 15:08

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Man that’s some rough luck. I’ve been pretty good so far *knocks of everything made of wood in reaching distance*

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > i86hotdogs 12/06/2019 at 15:22

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Only a matter of time haha. I only ever book cars with good photos and ideally users with multiple cars and good reviews for all of them. But I also try to get the cheapest one and sometimes you get what you pay for. Either way where else would I rent all of these in manual for under $100 a day? : c7, cayman, 370z, s2000, FRS, Mini Cooper S, and GTI. All of those were great rentals but the s2k, mcs, and gti were all problem children.

When renting a big 7 passenger suv for a recent trip, Turo actually redeemed themselves a bit. I had the first one, a lincoln navigator, cancel on me but Turo paid the difference in price when I booked another chevy suburban instead. Then that one canceled and Turo again paid even more money for that difference. Finally I ended up with a Yukon XL that was at least double my original price but the only extra I paid were the difference in fees. So I was pretty happy with that and found a vehicle owner who NEVER cancels on his renters since he has a fleet of other stuff as backup. Ive since also rented a Tesla from him and will gladly go to that guy in particular in the future for his other stuff. 

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > atfsgeoff 12/06/2019 at 15:30

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Theres quite a few fees on top of that but even so its still a great deal. 

i86hotdogs > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 12/06/2019 at 15:46

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I’m surprised there isn’t a company or fleet that caters directly towards Turo. Maybe there is, and I’m not aware of it. Good business move I think. Buy a bunch of cars just to take care of them and rent them to Turo.

Snuze: Needs another Swede > DipodomysDeserti 12/06/2019 at 15:48

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Where was that $6/day when I rented a Peugeot 206 CC?

TheTurbochargedSquirrel > i86hotdogs 12/06/2019 at 15:56

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I’m really interested to try a 2015+ Mustangs. We have a pair of 2011-2014s at the drift school and they are frankly scary until you figure out how to drive them . They make a great challenge compared to the 350Zs and e36 compacts we also use.  The 2015+ sound like they have a chassis that can actually keep up with more than 10% of what the engine is capable of.

DipodomysDeserti > Snuze: Needs another Swede 12/06/2019 at 16:19

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I shouldn’t say any car, but any small car. Got a manual Up! and Corolla for $6/day from Hertz and Sixt.

TheSixSpeed > i86hotdogs 12/06/2019 at 16:20

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Fantastic write up. I’m considering using Turo myself, and this post cements it for me.

ZHP Sparky, the 5th > i86hotdogs 12/06/2019 at 16:23

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I’ve been tempted to try Turo because of the “not a rental shop” and “way more interesting and affordable selection of cars” aspects - but have always decided against it because of insurance. What did you look in to and figure out on that end of things? My credit card straight up says they don’t cover it. Not sure what my auto insurance would do. Also know they do offer some kind of insurance option but have heard mixed things about that. At the end of the day I don’t want to put myself in a financial mess over a rental car - especially one that an actual owner presumably cares a lot about, as opposed to an appliance nobody at a company will ever miss or feel badly for. 

Snuze: Needs another Swede > DipodomysDeserti 12/06/2019 at 16:26

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I’m genuinely curious what country you were in.  When I went to France back around 2011, we rented the above mentioned Peugeot for 4 days and it was about $400.  With fuel, tolls, and parking I was in it for almost $600.  Granted the 206 CC is a more premium car.  But I think the cheapest/smallest thing I could get was like a VW Polo, and it was still going to be $35/day or thereabouts.  And this was through Hertz with my credit union “discount”.  

BarryDanger > i86hotdogs 12/06/2019 at 16:38

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It’s nice to hear that you were so respectful with your rental. I would be so worried about lending out a manual car to complete strangers. That’s the main reason I haven’t listed anything on there.

i86hotdogs > ZHP Sparky, the 5th 12/06/2019 at 16:50

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There are four types of coverage you can opt for through Turo: Premier, Standard, Minimum, and Decline. The basic info is this: If your credit card or your insurance offers rental insurance, you can decline the coverage. The minimum puts you reliable for up to $3,000 of damages, Standard is $500, and Premier is $0 (all according to their information on their site). I knew I was going to be pretty cautious with the vehicle, especially with the missus and her in laws in the car, so I went for the minimum coverage. If I remember correctly, it was about $15/day for that coverage.

i86hotdogs > TheTurbochargedSquirrel 12/06/2019 at 16:51

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I have driven a live axle and IRS Mustang separately. Too long ago to compare the two, but the combination of the sticky tires, MagneRide, and the well tuned chassis made this fun around curves.

i86hotdogs > BarryDanger 12/06/2019 at 16:52

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I’m all about the noise and the acceleration. Drifting, burnouts, and going excessively fast are cool, but also not worth the dangers and risks. Put me in a nice sounding car that I can safely go 20-60 in merging on t he highway, and I will be a happy camper.

TheTurbochargedSquirrel > i86hotdogs 12/06/2019 at 17:59

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I find the live axle mustangs very entertaining to drift because they are so different. Stupid amounts of power and very porky. It’s the only car I have ever drifted that doesn’t lose angle when you lift.

i86hotdogs > TheTurbochargedSquirrel 12/06/2019 at 18:03

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The last gen live axle Mustangs are my favorite when it comes to appearance. I’d love a Boss 302 from ‘12

DipodomysDeserti > Snuze: Needs another Swede 12/06/2019 at 20:33

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Ireland. The $6 per day was just for the car. Obviously it comes out to more than that when you add in the insurance, taxes, fuel etc... And it was actually €6, so closer to $8.

I always rent through Expedia which generally has better deals than any discount can offer.

I’ll add that Ireland is a lot cheaper than France. I’ve always taken the trains when visiting France.

ZHP Sparky, the 5th > i86hotdogs 12/09/2019 at 16:42

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Thanks for the info, good to know. The problem I believe with “declining” if your CC/insurance covers rentals is that they may take issue with renting from a “peer to peer” service vs. a traditional rental company. I honestly don’t see what difference it makes to them (perhaps CC companies have corporate agreements with traditional rental companies on those coverages) but my card for example specifically states they don’t cover peer to peer services. So some folks could end up declining thinking they’re covered, but in reality be taking on a lot of risk themselves unknowingly.

Next time we’re renting I’ll have to check out Turo again and look in to pricing on the coverage tiers. 

i86hotdogs > ZHP Sparky, the 5th 12/09/2019 at 17:50

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In the end, the consumer needs to be up on their insurance information. I know I have no rental insurance through either my CC or my insurance, so I will opt for their insurance every time.