That Flat Plane Crank V8 DOE! (GT350 Review)

"TheDutchTexan" (TheDutchTexan)
04/26/2020 at 12:27 • Filed to: TheDutchTexan, Shelby, GT350, Flat Plane Crank

You can have any car you want, just as long as the engine is an exciting one. And that is definitely the case with the GT350’s V8. There just is something about revving a V8 to VTEC levels without having to worry too much (footnote; some of the GT350’s consume oil, didn’t mention it in the review because it is a well-known issue, and the owner hasn’t had any issues with his at all).

When I got the chance to review this car I took it with both hands. It was one of the ones on the short list.

After driving it I am a believer. I have driven many mustangs now, but this was by far the most solid handling one. It lives up to the hype. And the sound? Oh yeah!

What does everyone else think about the GT350?

DISCUSSION (29)

SBA Thanks You For All The Fish > TheDutchTexan
04/26/2020 at 12:38

I think it would look better in my garage...

jimz > TheDutchTexan
04/26/2020 at 12:46

low tension piston rings will do that to ya.

TheDutchTexan > SBA Thanks You For All The Fish
04/26/2020 at 12:55

It wouldn’t look bad in mine either and I am sure the 2005 Mustang GT wouldn’t mind either!

Poor_Sh > TheDutchTexan
04/26/2020 at 13:37

When I was looking at these, even coming from my 2014 mustang gt it just felt too big. I didn’t want a boat anymore even with all the great aspects. Ended up with the Cayman, and now a miata to. Very opposite.

But that engine!!!!

TheDutchTexan > Poor_Sh
04/26/2020 at 13:52

It handles better than the ‘14 I drove, hands down. I still think the ‘13 - ‘14's are one of the best looking mustangs ever created , and still beat the current ones in terms of looks. But that is partially because I am all about the retro looks. Old iron > New iron. If I had to buy a new(er) mustang today it would have to be the GT350. The experience is great, and it has manners to boot. You can drive it normal, it has enough grunt everywhere. But if you want to play you can and you will have a lot of fun. Fastest? No, absolutely not. But man, it makes me wish I had a mountain road I could have some fun on!

Also, Miata Is Always The Answer. Someday I will actually review one. Last time I drove one was an NA in the N etherlands. Been a hot minute!

Chan - Mid-engine with cabin fever > TheDutchTexan
04/26/2020 at 16:05

Nice review!

TheDutchTexan > Chan - Mid-engine with cabin fever
04/26/2020 at 18:10

Thank you! I consider myself very lucky to have been given the chance to drive and review it. Definitely one of my favorites now!

QCGoose > TheDutchTexan
04/26/2020 at 22:33

Nice review! I’m a big fan of these as well: I have a ‘20 in Velocity Blue (no stripes) on order.

Unfortunately, thanks to the pandemic, it’s about a month and a half behind schedule for production for now. It was supposed to go into production the week of April 6, but now that has turned into the end of May (pending any additional shutdown extensions) , which if I’m lucky, I might see delivery by mid-July.

It sucks, and I feel like I’ve watched and read every single review, road test, and just general video of the car possible at this point. I’m beyond ready to get behind the wheel.

Nick Has an Exocet > TheDutchTexan
04/26/2020 at 22:44

I kind of want one. It would probably be my most practical car. The size of it is a bit of a turn off but I should probably get over that. Even the GT350 is probably a pretty practical car in terms of luggage/people space.

TheDutchTexan > QCGoose
04/27/2020 at 00:33

B elieve me, I am over this Pandemic already! “Outbreak” this is not (great flick by the way, watched it a few days ago after not seeing it for 2 decades, it still holds up. But I digress ). This thing stopped my YouTube filming cold. I do car shows and car reviews. The only reason I had something is because I ended up with a backlog. Saving grace I suppose, but if it keeps up I’ll run out of content in July/ August. But enough of the negativity of a “starving” YouTuber (thank god it’s a side gig, and I have a regular job that hasn’t been impacted other than working out of the house).

You are in for a treat. But I suspect you drove someone’s / test drove one to find that out for yourself already? I hope you get it soon, so you can enjoy the emptier roads!

TheDutchTexan > Nick Has an Exocet
04/27/2020 at 00:35

For 2 people? Sure. But even kids won’t like that back seat very much if there are taller people in front! Trunk is surprisingly Ok, it will hold groceries for a family of 4 no problem!

BoxerFanatic, troublesome iconoclast. > TheDutchTexan
04/27/2020 at 10:40

Love the blue stripes on White.

I kinda want the junior version of this car... EcoBoost HPP + Handling Pack with MagneRide. The engine is no Voodoo, but it is lighter, and much less expensive.

I kind of wish they had gone more RS or SVO successor with it, to really get it to stand out... extractor hood and non-widened Shelby-style vented front fenders, but the standard headlights and front fascia... floating aluminum hat brakes along with forged lightweight wheels.

Maybe a single racing stripe over the top, and some RS side stripes on the door sills, along with the blue stitched interior

I watched all the first drive stuff when it was announced in the SF Bay area, but would love to hear a more thorough and candid review of the EBB HPP +HP.

Can I please just call it the Mustang RS?

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > QCGoose
04/27/2020 at 11:23

So... how long do you think you’ll keep it? =)

Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom > TheDutchTexan
04/27/2020 at 11:27

Kinja'd!!!

I had one for a week in 2018 to review, and got to drive on my friend’s track. I’m a noob, but this car was a hoot. Made all the right sounds, too.

Nick Has an Exocet > TheDutchTexan
04/27/2020 at 12:24

My mom is like 5ft 1in. So she does okay stuffed into the back of a mustang as long as she's behind me instead of my dad. My other 3 cars only have 2 seats each and about 3 cubic feet of trunk space. There's a reason the Mustangs make for great rental cars.

QCGoose > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
04/27/2020 at 13:05

As long as gas-powered cars are legal to operate . I’m 35, so hopefully I’ll have at least a handful of years with it lol.

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > QCGoose
04/27/2020 at 13:11

Haha! Sounds good. I was going to request first right of refusal if you were going to sell it in a few years. =)

Great spec.

Chan - Mid-engine with cabin fever > QCGoose
04/27/2020 at 13:40

Lucky guy! Hope you get it soon.

TheDutchTexan > BoxerFanatic, troublesome iconoclast.
04/27/2020 at 22:09

I wanted Ford to bring back the SVO nameplate from the moment they stuck the 4 back under the hood. I to this day think it is a missed opportunity. Perhaps they will bring it back sometime in the future. I reviewed an auto ecoboost. It was quicker than my ‘ 05 GT by a fair margin. It didn’t stand a chance. But the one thing I just can’t live with is the exhaust note. The soundtrack is definitely missing.

And Mustang RS? I’d vote no, but solely based on the fact there already is a Camaro RS. I am honestly salty about that too. The RS was a great package on one of my all-time favorite cars, the GEN II Camaro. Now it stands for V6 Camaro... Way to water down the brand there GM!

BoxerFanatic, troublesome iconoclast. > TheDutchTexan
04/28/2020 at 00:29

I get that it could be confused with GM’s Rallye Sport...

But Ford does have an RS tradition, as well, while SVO and SVT are seemingly gone, in favor of what is now called Ford Performance.

Kinja'd!!!

Seems like a Mustang, powered by a Spanish-built RS turbo I4, and the first generation of global-market platform with the S550, it kind of belongs in this list.

It doesn’t sound as good as a V8, that is true, but the valved exhaust of the HPP reportedly sounds better than pre-2020 EB cars.

It is 200lbs lighter on the front end than the GT, probably even wider margin than Shelby GT350, and FAR less than GT500, and makes more torque at lower RPM than the GT, even though the GT far surpasses it at higher RPM... and hpp reportedly doesn’t fall on it’s face the way previous EB oe-tune cars are known for.

Again... all things that I really would hope to hear from an objective and in-depth review, rather than press materials on a first-drive Ford-subsidized press junket.

BoxerFanatic, troublesome iconoclast. > TheDutchTexan
04/28/2020 at 01:00

BTW, I thought the new Camaro offered RS as an option package for appearance and lighting and such... that regardless of engine, a camaro could be optioned with the RS package, including the SS, marking the return of RS-SS as a possibility.... but I don’t track Camaro that closely, I guess.

TBH, though, If I had any interest in Camaro, the DOHC V6 6-speed RS option package car, and likely a convertible for the sake of visibility with the top down, would probably be the one I would go with.

I get the appeal of the V8 muscle cars... but it seems like it is mechanical overkill and a wallet killer, in terms of fuel, insurance , speeding tickets, and keeping a driver’s license in there. The noise is cool... but I’d rather have lighter weight, better balance, and more real-world useable performance, rather than such high limits that nearly never get tested.

Mustang outsells Camaro so handily, it seems like Mustang can leverage Ford’s history regardless of what GM does or doesn’t do with theirs at this point.

It doesn’t seem like Camaro will be much of a factor in the future, which is a much larger black mark on GM.

QCGoose > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
04/28/2020 at 10:40

Hopefully nothing forces that situation, but I'll keep that in mind lol.

QCGoose > Chan - Mid-engine with cabin fever
04/28/2020 at 10:41

Thanks! I just saw a post about the plants possibly restarting on May 18, so there's some hope that I could be driving the car by mid-summer.

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > QCGoose
04/28/2020 at 11:32

Love the character of this engine - very similar to the one in my E90 M3. Mine will rev to 8600 with my tune.

I always joke that the motor in my car is basically two S2000 engines. =)

TheDutchTexan > BoxerFanatic, troublesome iconoclast.
04/28/2020 at 13:02

I know about the ford RS and it makes sense in the Focus RS. Still to this day one of the most fun hot hatches I have been able to drive and review too. (shameless plug :)

I would love to drive a manual HPP ecoboost mustang (or any manual ecoboost mustang for that matter) just to see how that feels compared to the 6 speed automatic which needs to stay in sport mode to get rid of that horrible shift timing. Now they have the 10 speed, but I doubt it is as good as it is in the ZL1. I would rock an ecoboost as a daily, no problems here. Well, other than the fact that I have a family and need 4 doors + auto (so no Focus RS/Civic Type R unfortunately). Ended up with a Passat GT. The wife loved driving it when her ‘12 Focus was out of commission . I told her: You want it? Take it. I’ll get something else! She didn’t bite. She has her heart set on being feul efficient because I am not. So you can guess what kind of car she wants next...

QCGoose > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
04/28/2020 at 15:30

Damn, any videos on Youtube or anything? I'd love to hear that thing.

Chan - Mid-engine with cabin fever > QCGoose
04/28/2020 at 15:53

Sorry to hear about the delays...the wait must be agonising

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > QCGoose
04/28/2020 at 16:59

Here’s one from a few years back:

3rd gear can carry me the whole way around my local track (but I do need to get better and use 2nd and 4th a little more).

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > QCGoose
04/28/2020 at 17:10