Thursday 30th April 2015

Ford Mustang: Delivery Miles

Demand is running high over here for new Mustangs - but are imports worth £10K over list price?

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So now we have loads more info about the new Ford Mustang, the first pony to be marketed officially in the UK in right-hand drive.

I've been unconvinced that Ford's latest Mustang stands any chance of being the Next Big Thing in the UK's uber-refined performance car market. While the new 'Stang looks great, previous incarnations have been embarrassingly outpaced by Europe's best. So I was sure that the Ford would suffer the same paltry UK market share ignominy as the Vauxhall VXR8.

Big UK demand but they're not here til October

But I'm wrong: the pony is rampant, it seems. Brits have placed more than 1,200 orders for the new Mustang, making us the biggest market in the EU (where 3,400 orders have been received so far).

Maybe it's the bargain pricing that's attracting buyers. Just £29,000 buys you a new Mustang (with a 317hp, 2.3-litre four-cylinder EcoBoost engine). Add £4,005 and you get a pukka 5.0-litre V8 version and 418hp. Auto adds £1,500, and a Convertible costs £4,000 more than a Coupe.

Maybe also it's the fact you can buy a Mustang in right-hand drive form for the first time in decades. Except... you can't, not quite yet. You can certainly configure your carand place your order now, but the first cars don't actually arrive in UK dealerships until October. And the waiting list for RHD Mustangs is now over a year.

What all this means is exactly the right conditions for a niche 'bubble' market. And sure enough, several dealers are advertising the first US imports to land physically in the UK - but in left-hand drive form, obviously.

Allegedly the first 'Stang in the UK

Claimed to be the very first brand new and unregistered car in the UK is a black V8 auto coupe with black leather. Because the US spec isn't quite as generous as the official UK spec, this import wears 18-inch wheels (UK cars all have 19s) and does without the bigger brake package that UK cars will have. On the other hand, it does have climate front seats (a £495 option in the UK).

One big advantage of being an American import is that it's taxed at £230 per year, rather than the £1,100 first year and £505 annual rate that the 281g/km V8 auto will be stiffed in official RHD form. One other difference is the warranty: the dealer (Bill Shepherd Mustang) provides a two-year ticket - Ford will give you a three-year/60,000-mile warranty on an official car.

So here's the big question: how much? £43,950 is the asking price for this LHD import, which is nearly £10K more than the £34,505 list price of a V8 Auto coupe in RHD. Ouch.

The cheapest manual V8 Mustang in the UK is £42,995, taxes paid again pretty much £10K over UK list. The same dealer is offering builds to order from £39,995.

Very nice spec, but it is nearly £45K...

Another V8 Mustang, in race red with black leather, Recaro seats, GT performance pack, Brembo brakes, upgraded suspension and 19-inch black alloys is up for £44,500.

And temptingly, US imports can be ordered with 'Wild' upgrades, including stainless exhausts, lowered suspension and - most temptingly of all - a water-cooled supercharger upgrade to 605hp.

So is it worth spending so much on a left-hooker import that will inevitably depreciate much quicker than an RHD one? All depends on what value you place on being the first person on your block to smack that pony, I guess. But £10K over the odds? I'm out.

[Repent]

It's a well styled thing but I'm yet to see one that makes me think "Corrrrr" like a little kid, as the previous model did in certain specs. I'm sure I will though once the tuners get hold of them. I loved the masculinity of the previous models and this ones a bit to svelte in standard trim for me.

Look forward to seeing them on the road though and hugely glad they've made them such an impressive and financially approachable package.

Edited by Repent on Thursday 30th April 10:10