I am the proud owner of a 2005 Mustang with over 100,000 miles on it. Aside from the specialized graphics it is bone stock and has only basic routine maintenance. My wife has a 2006 BMW 325x which we have owned for about 15,000 miles of its 30,000 mile history. Now I have always been an American car guy owning all kinds of Ford LTD's, Fairlanes, T-bird, Falcon, Mustngs and even a turbo charged Fairmont not mention my Chevy Nova, Impala, Monza, Malibus, Chrysler Pacifica, Buick Regals, Pontiac Tempest, Olds Cutlass and others forgotten so when the chance to have "The Ultimate Driving Machine" popped up at great cost from a friend we jumped on it. I don't know if it's a fair comparison on any level other than they are cars but what the heck.
Certain things come to mind like the fancy interior of the BMW which has not survived a couple months of transporting the kids back and forth to baseball and school and such. 100,000 miles on the Mustang and the interior is still mint, trim and backseat perfect despite being my main car for 2 months of transporting people and supplies during Hurricane Sandy on Staten Island. The BMW console paint is wearing off(cant believe the center console is painted plastic) the run flat tires got a flat and had to be replaced instead repaired and the electronics just kept acting oddly such as the outside mirror over extending by itself when starting the car till it broke, the heat on half the car not working, the radio dash control lights fading out as they heat up brakes worn out needing all 4 rotors at 30,000 miles of school teacher driving. On the contrary the only trouble with the mustang has been brake light bulbs, turn signal bulbs, a cracked water neck under the radiator hose(at 98,000 miles) and the back seat release handles breaking off.
Enough mechanical trouble, onto driver experience. My wife complained that people are rude to her while trying to pull in and out of traffic in the BMW which was odd but then I felt it too a few times myself. The car handles well in the turns and on slippery roads with the even 50/50 weight distribution and on snow covered streets but the 6 cylinder is a dog until you get those RPMs up or at a high rate of speed on an open road. The Mustang on the other hand has gobs of torque from a dead stop with it's V6 and handles nicely in twists and turns on dry roads. We won't discuss handing on wet and snow covered roads since there is none. The instrument panel on the BMW is a rats nest compared to the simple, easy to read full instrumentation on the Mustang and you would think that "The Ultimate Driving Machine" would at least have oil pressure and temperature gauges but it does not, nor does it have an amps or voltage gauge. Go figure. Comfort, the Mustang power front bucket is more adjustable and more comfortable than the BMW although the lumbar support of the BMW has a bit more control. Steering wheels are similar leather wrapped with finger grips and both cars have 10 spoke aluminum alloys for sportiness although I prefer the center cap spinners on the Mustang personally. All in all the Ford wins hands down to this guy as you would expect from a company that has outproduced most auto makers combined in sales. The Mustang has also been around for over 1/2 a century and has been sensibly improved upon consistently with it's overly simple rear wheel drive configuration that is reliable and cost effective. For pure driving fun I always grab the Mustang keys but when I want to feel sophisticated and need the extra 2-doors it's the BMW. I hope to see you all out on the road one day during Routine Patrol for a cup of Joe.
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