[Auto] Mustang Ford S800

[LosT贼]

 

This really is an 825bhp Mustang that’s available in the UK. Not through Ford itself, but specialist dealer Clive Sutton.
The po[CENSORED]rity of the Mustang in the UK means there’s a growing appetite for mods. At this point our US readership will be shaking their collective heads in disbelief, having enjoyed over 50 years of tuned Mustangs from a vast array of suppliers. But in the UK this is a relatively new phenomenon – at least on a decent scale.

This is not a one model offer. Instead Sutton has a wide range of options and it’s up to you how deeply you plunder them. You could just add a set of window tints to your Mustang, a quick engine upgrade or you could choose to completely deck your car out. Or you could buy brand new from Sutton.

There is too much lag in the engine, too much inertia, too little easy-access torque and response. But this car uses the new direct injection engine. Same power as before, a little more torque, but much enhanced usability. There’s more torque at everyday engine speeds, and less delay when you ask for it.
However, as with the car we drove last time, and compared to other cars with this level of power, the McLaren 720S, Ferrari F8 Tributo and so on, this doesn’t feel mad fast. It’s heavier of course, but performance is probably more in line with a quick GT such as the Bentley Conti GT.
It feels fast because it sounds fast. It makes an 825bhp noise alright. Sounds every bit the supercharged V8. Sounds like a thunderclap. Ferocious noise means it feels like you’re accelerating faster than you are – which is probably the best way to be. Although you will be attracting attention. From a long way off.

You can have the Whipple supercharger by itself and that gets you up from 443bhp of the standard car, to 725bhp. This one then features a Stage 2 conversion with larger throttle bodies and high-flow injectors to liberate the extra 100bhp. Let’s just say fuel economy is disastrous and leave it at that.

Messing around with engines is comparatively easy. Modifying suspension tends to have side effects. So this Mustang features the standard MagneRide adaptive dampers, but with optional shorter, stiffer springs. Unless you’re doing track days, I’d avoid them. There is an intermediate spring which might be the sweet spot, but this set-up doesn’t have the control on the steering in order to justify the harshness in the suspension. The steering fights and fidgets in your hands (the fat 285-width tyres on 20-inch rims play their part in that), and the wheel itself is mostly made up of lumps and curves. Think very hard before you spec that.
The steering isn’t sharp enough and doesn’t turn-in with enough aggression to match the suspension. The best component in the cabin is the £990 Coyote manual gearlever. I know, that sounds a ridiculous sum of money, but it lends not just the transmission, but the whole drivetrain, a heavy crispness and accuracy that makes the whole car feel taut. Much better that than the £936 steering wheel.