Introduction

As soon as I got a call from Ford, giving me an invitation to drive the Mustang on routes I had never imagined of, I jumped off my office seat with excitement. We had several options like Vijaywada to Vishakhapatnam or Bhubaneshwar to Kolkata or Kolkata to Bodhgaya etc etc. But one sector really caught my attention and as I wanted to make my first drive on road in the legendary Mustang to be an unforgettable experience, I chose Varanasi to Lucknow. Now you might think I must be nuts to choose this sector to drive a low slung sports car but my whole logic behind the decision was different. Make no mistake, I would have enjoyed this pony car to the fullest, on a wide placid road but I would have never got the memories which are now imprinted in my brain of driving among craziest people, on some of the most demanding roads in a muscle car.

Muscle now a lot more chiselled

Let’s get to heart of the matter, the Ford Mustang. As soon as we got to our hotel in Lucknow the Mustang was parked right outside the lobby all covered up. Even with the cover on, it was easy to tell that there something special lurking under the soft fabric. With enthusiasm I took the cover-off and the Mustang stood right in front of me in a menacing blood red colour. Although this Ford coupe still keeps its predecessor’s hefty proportions, it now carries a lot of design cues from the modern Ford line-up like the slim headlamps. But its design language is unmistakably Mustang-esque -- the upright grille, muscular wheel arches, strong crease running across the side and the striking rectangular tail lamps made us look like celebrities everywhere we stopped.

But it’s from the rear that this car just looks menacing. The boot section is fat, the three slat tail lamps look rustic and the twin tail pipes point at what’s lurking in its heart. Unlike the old car’s boxy proportions the new Mustang looks more rounded but Ford has done a fabulous job of retaining the essence of what this pony car stands for.

Post drooling over the exterior, I opened the big wide door and stepped into the low slung driver’s seat. The first impression of the Mustang’s dashboard is that of a modern take on the original pony car. The twin-pod instrument cluster, three circular centre vents, toggle switches for different driving modes and the badge which says ‘Since 1964’ lets you know you are driving something with a rich history. You also get a touchscreen interface which is very similar to the one found on the new Endeavour. But like in the SUV it’s not the most intuitive, and sometimes you have tap rather than touch for it to work. Thanks to the absence of B-pillar and large windows, visibility even from the low driver seat is fantastic and the thick rimmed steering wheel is unusually big and it is loaded with as many as 18 buttons for music system, Bluetooth, cruise control and voice command system. Sure the interior quality leaves a lot to desire but this is the best cabin of any Mustang to date. The biggest surprise of the Mustang is the boot, which is quite big and took two people’s luggage and a full size spare with ease.

Muscle power

When I first drove the Mustang on track I was a bit disappointed by the fact that it came with a detuned engine which made a massive 30 bhp less. But out in Uttar Pradesh, with some fuel stations as big as mountaineering tents and as filthy as sulabh sauchalay, we didn’t have to care about the quality of fuel. The Mustang just gulped gasoline happily and put down all of the horses without any hiccups or a dreaded warning light.

It was a freezing morning as I got into the car and the first 100 metres were enough to jolt me awake! As I exited our hotel and ‘gently’ dabbed on the throttle, I was greeted by a nasty oversteer. Nasty because I wasn’t expecting it, but once use to it, it became like a healthy shot of adrenalin exiting speed breakers or tight corners. We started early from Varanasi to avoid traffic, but Google maps had some other plans for us as it took us straight into an army base and if not for the Mustang we would have definitely got beaten up or shot at. Instead we were greeted with a smile and got waved on by the startled Jawans. Not wanting any more screw ups, we decided to use the vintage Indian technique of asking locals for directions which turned out to be an even bigger mistake than the maps. Our research had told us that we were to find and join a well paved four-lane highway somewhere on our way to Lucknow, which never came. Instead we ended up on roads that were more pimpled than a teenagers face and encountered the finest rural traffic that UP had to throw at us.

However, not once did I feel frustrated or dejected, thanks to the large 5.0-litre V8 lump under the long hood. Now 400bhp might sound less for such a big bore engine but it’s on the go that this motor really impresses. As soon as you press the starter button this big-bore motor comes to life with a deep gurgle and settles down to a vibe-free idle. For starters there is ample torque as soon as you step on the throttle (as experienced exiting the hotel) and despite it being quite an old engine it is smooth and free-revving too. With only two lanes and loads of traffic we had to constantly accelerate and brake with no chance to cruise whatsoever and this is where the flexible nature of the engine really helped me. Overtaking was very easy as I could get away with being in a higher gear with the transmission not having to do much work. This is a good thing as it made up for the six-speed automatic gearbox which was slow to respond and mostly had a mind of its own. We did get the odd smooth open stretch, where I was able to really flex my right foot as I got catapulted forward in a long linear burst. The Mustang felt surprisingly calm and composed while doing so.

But the biggest surprise of all was not the way the Mustang felt around corners (there were none to be clear) but the way it handled the terrible sections of the road. I was expecting the suspension to be stiff and crashy but it turned out it was nowhere close to being one. Ok it is not a Rolls Royce but being a sports car that is not expected to be driven on such roads, it did feel like one. The suspension managed to deal with the worst of roads silently with well controlled body movement and despite some underlying firmness it never felt uncomfortable. Not once did I hear a loud thunk from the suspension and this is really astonishing for car that is shod with 19 inch rims and low profile tyres.

Then there is its ground clearance, which turned out to be enough even over the biggest of speed breakers. Now don’t get me wrong, you do have to go a bit cross going but even then it never touched or scraped its expensive belly. What I found to be the biggest nuisance was the cars XXL American dimensions. This voluptuous girth was evident on the narrow roads, of villages where you had to be really careful not to hit bikers who were using their phones to make videos (of us probably) or of other vehicles who drove as if they were the only ones on the road.

Everyday sports car

The word everyday sports car is a bit overused but in the case of the Mustang it is absolutely true. It takes to our bad roads with aplomb, has enough clearance to go over mountains or what we call speed breakers, is comfortable for two (rear seat is better used as extra luggage area), has that astounding 5.0-litre V8, can run on normal fuel and as I found out, it was quite efficient too (6.5kmpl is not too shabby for such a car.). So the Mustang is a sports car with none of the flaws of one. Sure it is not perfect, but priced at Rs 65 lakh (ex-Delhi), you get a lot of American muscle for your money. The Mustang has a rich heritage, is an icon and more importantly is an accomplished car too.

Photography by: Ameya Dandekar

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