Dark Horse collection 01/03/25
Discussion
After a wait of around 3 months my son picked up his new Dark Horse from Ford Marshall Cambridge earlier today. He had already sold his 718 Boxster back to Porsche Cambridge (He bought it from them in 2016) and was keen to tick the owning a V8 vehicle box on his list of cars to own. The whole process of buying and the collection of his new car went without a hitch and was a very enjoyable experience from start to finish. That was by no small measure down to Adrian Bevan, the sales executive, whose passion and enthusiasm for cars, his detailed knowledge of what he is selling and his excellent customer service skills ensured everything went according to plan. Loads of regular contact, pictures of the car arriving and a video with engine start-up the night before collection just added to the fun and enjoyment of buying a car from Adrian and Ford Marshall Cambridge. A shout-out too for Adrian's manager, Josh, whose vibes also added to the positivity of buying the car.
Now to the car itself. Early days, well less than a day actually, but it is a great piece of kit, looks great, sounds fantastic (You can't beat the burble of a Coyote engine, better I think than the burble of my V10) and certainly has prescence. The only "crazy" thing about the car is that despite the very long bonnet it does not have front parking sensors. Something, I understand, people have commented on over many years. Perhaps in the US drivers only reverse park?
A couple of pictures to add context to my narrative
Now to the car itself. Early days, well less than a day actually, but it is a great piece of kit, looks great, sounds fantastic (You can't beat the burble of a Coyote engine, better I think than the burble of my V10) and certainly has prescence. The only "crazy" thing about the car is that despite the very long bonnet it does not have front parking sensors. Something, I understand, people have commented on over many years. Perhaps in the US drivers only reverse park?
A couple of pictures to add context to my narrative
Edited by Hereandthere on Saturday 1st March 11:53
Nice!
I have a GT collected in December to replace a 2016 GT.
I agonised over a Datk Horse but decided I didn't want to pay the extra, or lose the heated seats. My wife won't travel in a car without them!
Good that you had such a good dealer experience. My 2016 experience was similar, Trust Ford in Epsom having at the time a real enthusiast as salesman.
Sadly, my 2024 experience, with a different dealer whom I won't name, was a lot less confidence inspiring. Considering it is a flagship vehicle, disappointing.
Still The cars are both great, and the old one did 55000 miles with no mechanical issues so I am hoping for similar with the new one.
I have a GT collected in December to replace a 2016 GT.
I agonised over a Datk Horse but decided I didn't want to pay the extra, or lose the heated seats. My wife won't travel in a car without them!
Good that you had such a good dealer experience. My 2016 experience was similar, Trust Ford in Epsom having at the time a real enthusiast as salesman.
Sadly, my 2024 experience, with a different dealer whom I won't name, was a lot less confidence inspiring. Considering it is a flagship vehicle, disappointing.
Still The cars are both great, and the old one did 55000 miles with no mechanical issues so I am hoping for similar with the new one.
Hereandthere said:
Thanks for your response.
It is certainly true to say that the dealer experience can make a big difference.
By the way, have you done anything about not having front parking sensors? Perhaps added aftermarket ones?
The lack of front parking sensors never really bothered me. In fact I didn't even specify rear ones on the 2016 one, perhaps I am odd!It is certainly true to say that the dealer experience can make a big difference.
By the way, have you done anything about not having front parking sensors? Perhaps added aftermarket ones?
Indeed. One mile over the speed limit warning, lane assist etc are driving aids that certainly put me off from buying a new 2024 or 2025 car. And I am not alone. Until manufacturers have a quiet word with the law makers and stop them forcing companies to put those systems in cars or, like the stop-start function, you just have one easy to push button to turn everything off, then I guess many people like me or you will no longer be in the market for buying a new car.
My son felt that the Dark Horse had more prescence than the regular GT and I think he is right. The darker coloured mouldings etc do make a difference and, of course, its 0-62 time is more respectable. It was touch and go at one stage whether delivery would be after 01/04 when the doubling of the tax to £5490 would kick in. In the scheme of things it would not have made the car unaffordable but it does mean that what he saved by not paying an additional £2745 will pay for the detailing and the fitting of PPF.
Hereandthere said:
My son felt that the Dark Horse had more prescence than the regular GT and I think he is right. The darker coloured mouldings etc do make a difference and, of course, its 0-62 time is more respectable. It was touch and go at one stage whether delivery would be after 01/04 when the doubling of the tax to £5490 would kick in. In the scheme of things it would not have made the car unaffordable but it does mean that what he saved by not paying an additional £2745 will pay for the detailing and the fitting of PPF.
0 - 62 is an interesting one. The old 2016 models were quoted as being slightly faster than the current GTs, in spite of the new one having more power.Now I have got used to my 2024 car, I understand why. The gearing is higher. Apparently this change occured around 2018, midway through production of the S550. It means that whereas the old car was well geared for best 0 -62 (62mph being close to the redline in second gear) the new one feels a bit slower, particularly if you don't make full use of 1st gear. But then at higher speeds it is noticeably faster. Trouble is, those are 'Good Afternoon, Officer' speeds!
Thanks for that and it does explain why despite the new model having more power the older is faster to 62 mph. Not that really makes any difference to my son as he is not a speed merchant and generally drives quite slow. The great thing about the Mustang is that even when driving slow the burble of the engine is so pleasurable.
Yes, like many fairly expensive cars new stock is being discounted. Probably by £2-£3K. Still, not as bad 911's where the latest 992.2 model can be had in certain spec for upwards of £10K off. And as for Taycans and the new electric Macan, there is some serious discounting going on there. Mind you, they were overpriced to begin with so the new figure is probably what they should have been in the first place. Interestingly though, based on my son's 718 Boxster that he bought new in 2016 for £56K (it had around £14K of options) that was just sold by an OPC for £36850 after a couple of weeks of him selling it back to them, the second hand market stills seems to be boyant. I was surprised that a near-9 year old car bought for £56K was still worth nearly £37K. Though my son, of course, got less than that when he sold it to the OPC.
The thing is, they’d already accelerated the price of a Mustang.
When the S550 was launched, it was a few thousand more expensive than an RS Focus, then Ford pushed and pushed the price.
To change from my 2 year and Mach 1, I’d have needed to put anther £25 towards it.
Then add in that the S550 is more traditional ‘Mustang’ (in my eyes, anyway).
If you could easily afford one, and it was on your shopping list, then why not, but it’s not what I’d spend £70k on.
And, after all, the sales speak louder than anything I can say.
When the S550 was launched, it was a few thousand more expensive than an RS Focus, then Ford pushed and pushed the price.
To change from my 2 year and Mach 1, I’d have needed to put anther £25 towards it.
Then add in that the S550 is more traditional ‘Mustang’ (in my eyes, anyway).
If you could easily afford one, and it was on your shopping list, then why not, but it’s not what I’d spend £70k on.
And, after all, the sales speak louder than anything I can say.
Indeed, my son who bought the car wanted a V8 and it is the cheapest you can buy new by quite a margin. He is not interested in how it handles around corners at 70 mph, he just wanted a good looking, to his eyes, car with a large engine. Both boxes ticked. I have a 5.2 litre V10 R8 and am impressed by the deep throated rumble of his car. To my ears it sounds better than mine, certainly at relatively low revs,
I certainly get it that the latest Mustang has polorised views and I understand that it is not selling all that well in the US either. And, exchanging your Mustang and having to pay another £25K on top for the pleasure is madness and is why cars are not selling. I was shocked to read that the latest Lotus Emira V6 is now approaching £106K, which is crazy when a 15 month old one can be had for around £62K. It may well be that we are returning to the days when it was a rare event to see Porches, Aston's etc and when only the really wealthy could buy them and lose a small fortune in doing so.
I certainly get it that the latest Mustang has polorised views and I understand that it is not selling all that well in the US either. And, exchanging your Mustang and having to pay another £25K on top for the pleasure is madness and is why cars are not selling. I was shocked to read that the latest Lotus Emira V6 is now approaching £106K, which is crazy when a 15 month old one can be had for around £62K. It may well be that we are returning to the days when it was a rare event to see Porches, Aston's etc and when only the really wealthy could buy them and lose a small fortune in doing so.
Edited by Hereandthere on Tuesday 8th April 20:00
It would be far from the end of the world to drive around in a DH 
Unlike a lot of people, I actually like the new dash, and the materials on the Recaro's is much nicer than the old leather ones.
And in reply to an earlier post, you can still get the DH with the heated and cooled seats, can’t you?
Unlike a lot of people, I actually like the new dash, and the materials on the Recaro's is much nicer than the old leather ones.
And in reply to an earlier post, you can still get the DH with the heated and cooled seats, can’t you?
I agree. The DH looks muscular,is imposing and sounds great. Although the quality of the interior is not as good as my R8 or as good as the Astons or Porches I have owned in the past, it is a nice place to be and the 2 screen set up not only looks modern is functional as well. And using the screen it is easy to turn off the speed and lane assist warnings. My son is still trying to work out whether he can turn off the warning that his hand(s) are not on the steering wheel i.e. they are not in the correct position. The recaro's are surprisingly supportive, certainly for my frame, and are very comfortable. Unfortunately, they cannot be heated or cooled, though the steering wheel can be warmed up.
Gassing Station | Mustangs | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff