So Bill Ford finally got what he wanted. And if a "red convertible Mustang with a throaty V8" is good enough for Bill, it ought to be good enough for us - especially when the 2005 Ford Mustang convertible is virtually identical to the smash hit 2005 coupe.
Identical twins, perhaps, except for the roof, which is where Ford put most of its attention when building the 2005 Mustang convertible. Introduced at the 2005 Los Angeles International Auto Show, the Ford Mustang convertible has three things going for it: a good-to-great top, a smash hit design, and a price that will make it a popular convertible choice.
Unlike the concept, which had a unique design personality to the coupe, the real deal looks the same. Even with a soft top, the profile of the vehicle remains similar - and with the top down, the 2005 Mustang's striking design feels natural, as if it were always intended to be a convertible. Ford maintains that the coupe was, indeed, designed with the convertible in mind, and it shows. According to Phil Martens, group vice president for product creation, the convertible version adds only 120 lbs to the weight of the Mustang - a manageable weight difference made possible by the already sturdy nature and stiffness of the coupe. Indeed, the 2005 Mustang convertible shares its suspension geometry and almost all its suspension tuning with the coupe. The result is a convertible that is quiet on the road and suffers little by way of acceleration and performance. It feels like a lot of car on the road, to be sure, but suffers little negative impact thanks to a wide glass rear window, skinny C-pillars and three-quarter back windows. In order to keep the rattles and wind whine as silent as possible, Ford used a hard shell on the front portion of the top. With the top down, however, there is a bit too much wind swirling into the passenger compartment, though not enough to halt conversations between front passengers. With the top up, the ride is surprisingly quiet. Priced at $24,495 for the V-6 model or $29,995 for the V-8 GT, there is also a premium model available, starting at $25,320 for the V-6, which adds 16-inch machined aluminum wheels, Shaker 500 audio system with six-disc CD changer, MP3 capability and six-way power adjustable driver seat. The Mustang GT Convertible Premium model, which adds a Shaker 500 audio system with six-disc CD player and MP3 capability and Aberdeen leather-trimmed embossed sport bucket seats, begins at $31,175.
At those prices, the 2005 Ford Mustang convertible is one horse that's likely to move pretty quickly when it makes its way to US dealerships.
--By Brian Chee
