Test drive Ford Mustang 1998 - 2004 compartment
Ford Mustang
It is much easier for a real man to stop the horse at a gallop than to go into a burning hut. Even if the horse is a rare Ford Mustang. The starting point of the history of this cult car was April 16, 1964, when the first compact, by American standards, was represented by the public. Since then, several generations of Mustang have changed. In Russia, now most often you can find representatives of the penultimate, third generation, whose production release coincided with the beginning of 1994.
Mustangs were equipped with V-shaped 6- and 8-cylinder engines volume of 3.8 and 5.0 liters, respectively. The latter did not last long, only two years, and by 1996 he was replaced with a new motor with a volume of 4.6 liters. In our secondary market, Mustang with a six 3.8 liter is most common. There are 4.6-liter and even 5-liter GT, but much less often. But the charged Cobra, which was collected in her homeland exclusively by preliminary orders, will have to look, like special versions of Cobra-R or SVT, Shelby GT350, Bulitt GT.
Third -generation Mustang was produced in two body variants: coupe and convertible, and was also unique that the automatic transmission was installed only on order. Even in the USA it was not the most popular option.
A rare breed. In Russia, Mustang was not officially sold and was not particularly popular. The car is for an amateur. Those cars that are live in Russia for at least 4 years and came here far from new ones. The owners of such cars did not operate them in winter, and they were not subjected to attacks by Russian salty mud. On the other hand, such a machine was bought to tear myself away and grab, the natural consequence of which very often became body repairs.
In the case of a used Mustang, the first most correct solution would be a visit to specialists for full -scale diagnostics. The pleasure is not cheap, since the examination at the sta Ford will cost about $ 400. Moreover, the only check of the geometry of the body costs $ 120. So that this amount does not turn out to be a fee for the Council to look for another car, we advise you to pay attention to several key points.
You can always find traces of even high -quality body repair. It should be examined by the spaces for folds and pay attention to whether the gaps between the elements of the body are uniform. Many cars have broken front spoilers broken along the lower edge. Here and without diagnostics, everything is clear - the owner did not want to spend $ 1000 on the restoration of the part after the blow.
If you look under this very spoiler, then the shape of the beam-ashters will say a lot-after the accident they are usually not very thorough. All this means that spending money on checking the geometry of the body does not make sense.
Blunted saddle. A rather tasteless combination of plastic and skin in the cabin is characteristic of many Americans. And Mustang is no exception. But due to the condition of the skin on the seats and on the rim of the steering wheel, we can indirectly determine how great the mileage of the car is. The skin is rude, but quite strong, so that noticeable scuffs and cracks will mean that in this saddle the former horsemen spent most of the time allotted for a life of this mustang. Therefore, try to agree with the seller and make a short trip. Well, at least 50 kilometers.
The engine at idle can shake a little. Two options are possible here: if the tachometer arrow remains motionless, then there is nothing threatening in this shaking. Oddly enough, small twitching is a phenomenon quite characteristic of Mustang engines. And if the arrow twitching, it is better to spend $ 75 on diagnostics before making a final decision.
Putting your foot on the clutch pedal, you can feel tangible vibration. The paradox, but the adhesion of mugs to dynamic driving is not very adapted. Vibration means that at any time, especially with a sharp start, the clutch basket can send you an invoice for replacement - about $ 550. The work is slightly smaller, but also noticeable - about $ 300. If you came across a car with a machine gun, do not fool yourself, but go straight to diagnostics. The same $ 75 in this case is not comparable with the price of repair (about $ 1500), not to mention the price of a new automatic transmission.
Mustang is a car for even and good roads. In Russia, as you know, there are not very many of them. Hearing tapping-scraping in the suspension, just keep in mind that to grind the entire suspension will get up at $ 1000-1500. And diagnostics and, accordingly, accurate calculation will require only $ 50 ...
Beating on the steering wheel when braking means the need to replace or brake discs. The last pleasure is not cheap - from $ 100 per disc. By the way, the state of the pads themselves also deserves close attention: the price of more than $ 150 per set of the original speaks for itself.
Lost horseshoe. A road test should be carried out fully, as is appropriate to a car with ambitions. Upon its completion, arm yourself with a flashlight and look under the hood. Light will be required in order to carefully study all the joints available between the heads and the cylinder block. The slightest traces of the oil at these joints, which appeared after your test drive, will be a hint that the work to replace the laying of the cylinder group will result in $ 400. And let me give another good advice: check the engine from the specialists - whether there was no overheating. Elimination of its consequences will cost $ 1000--2000
Some of the 8-cylinder engines had a plastic intake manifold, and a crack in the area of \u200b\u200battachment of the thermostat became a kind of birth injury. The collectors were subject to replacement within the framework of the recall program, but not the fact that you have a car that has passed this procedure. Here, a flashlight will help you again - moisture and/or traces of antifreeze fluxes will tell in this place whether this car spoke or not.
Then you need an ordinary needle. Try not to pay attention to the seller’s protests and puncture the steering of steering with this needle. The fact is that the flow outside can be absolutely invisible, and with the help of the needle, without causing special damage to the anthers, you will release it. Such penetration is necessary because the price of a new rail is more than $ 1000. And the replacement takes about 5 norms at a dealer price of $ 50 hours.
And finally, rubber can say a lot about the driving style of the former owner. Strongly worn tires indicate that the car was driven both in the tail and in the mane. And buying a good rubber with a dimension of 225/45 R16 or 245/45 R17 for sale is economically impractical. However, all of the above troubles are unlikely to stop the one who decided to buy Mustang. It is difficult to find and hard to sell.
Text Andrey Timofeev, photo Alexey Ilyin, drawing Alexander Krasnov
Ford Mustang 3.8 V6 GT 5.0/4.6 V8 Cobra 4.6
Working volume (cubic meter) 3797 4987/4601 4601
Power (L.S.) 147 215/214 305
Maximum speed (km/h) 180 215/215 240
Acceleration to 100 km/h (sec.) N/d n/d 5.8
Fuel consumption (l/100 km):
city \u200b\u200b11.8 14.3/13.8 13.1
highway 7.9 9.8/9.1 9
Prices for a/m in Moscow
(for June 2002)
Year of release cost
1994 $ 9.5-11 thousand.
1995 $ 9.1-12 thousand
1996 $ 11.5-13.4 thousand.
1997 $ 11.8-15.5 thousand.
Consumables prices
And some spare parts (dealerships)
Oil filter $ 8.5
Air filter $ 30
Fuel filter $ 23
Spark plugs (pcs.) $ 6.1
Brake pads, per./Ass. (K-T) $ 170/150
Brake discs, per./Ass. (pcs.) $ 200/160
Steering tip $ 50
Hydracks (pcs.) $ 32
Shock absorbers, per./Ass. $ 150/120
A source: "Autopilot"
