I gave up on the R. On ebay, I saw one auction bid up to $115K and still didn't meet the reserve.

The next best thing is to buy the non-R with Track Package + $900 spoiler, set of track wheels and Cup 2s and remove the resonators and rear seats. I hope someone will figure out how to re-calibrate the magnetic damping setting to R from Non-R.

 

Let's not knock the Boss 302 Laguna Seca - anyone who has driven one on the track will know it's one of the most raw and entertaining track cars money can buy. Styling is subjective, I'd say the Boss 302 has a very bold look and I don't think a Shelby GT350 can really replace this experience - it has it's own unique character.

 

I'm actually surprised how much GT3 crowd likes the Ford and I dont understand. Doesnt this car weigh almost 3800 lbs (vs just a shy under 3200 for GT3)? And when you look at it from the side it looks almost 50% longer than GT3, way way way too long. I think by next year they will be everywhere. I already saw 3 of them in the not so distant past. Yet I have seen only 1 GT3 (excluding C&C meets) on the road ever since it was released 2 years ago and my neighborhood has 2 Ford GTs, F458, and a number of TTs. I just dont understand why people are even considering this car at sticker let alone 10-20k over.

I am not saying its a bad car at all. Just not worth all the hype and over sticker bidding wars.

 

It's the motor, the trans, its track cred, and what you pay for all of the above . And I happen to think it's the best looking Mustang since the original.

The reason you don't see many GT3's is because too many sit idle in garages.

 

I think it's just a new toy to have this year. GT3 was the toy to have in 2014, and GT350 is the toy to have in 2016. I really want a GT3 RS, but it doesn't look like it's going happen for me.

Also, I think it's the only high revving N/A V8 track capable car sold. Plus it's cheap even with markup. I paid $4K markup totaling $62K. Also, I bet the maintenance and repair costs will be significantly less than GT3s and GT4s. It's nice to have a car you can really abuse and not feel too bad about. With my GT3 and GT4, I'm always extra careful driving them. I can't push it to max at track days because I feel like they are too valuable.

 

Understood and these are all valid reasons and this is exactly what I was trying to say.

 

Personally I'm a lot more comfortable pushing a $50-60k car at track and enjoying it as DD than a $150k gt3.

The gt350 will be fun car for me that I can use every day. (Hopefully)
When the hype dies down and there are plenty around photographers and stalkers will disappear.

 

 

Agreed 100%. Looks are subjective. Hell, there were people who even liked the AMC Pacer.

Does the new Gt350 look better than a '65 GT350 or a '69/70 Boss?

Back in 2011 to 2013 the GT3 crowd and the BMW M3 crowd loved the Boss 302. They still do. The new generation of performance cars have pushed the performance envelope further in every make just about. 997 GT3 is eclipsed by the 991 GT3 etc..., past gen ACR eclipsed by the ACR Extreme, new Corvette Z06, M3 to M4. The edge of the envelope will be pushed further in years ahead also by every manufacturer producing track focused cars.

Doesn't mean the past generation performance cars are no good and not competitive (they still are especially in the right hands were the delta differential can still be made up with the difference in driver) its just that the bench mark for stock performance has been moved forward.

A GT350 track pack has the same drive train as the R. The MAJOR difference is in the CF wheels, wider wheels and the Magnaride suspension tuned to the CF wheels. The TP GT350 also has magnaride suspension its just not tuned to the CF wheels. I could argue that you may be better off with a TP GT350 since many won't want to track the R with the CF wheels due to concern over damage and once you change the wheels the specific tuning for the Maganaride is theoretically out the window. You could buy a set of wider weight wheels such Forgestar light weight wheels or Enkei light weights for the TP GT350 and don't have to worry about the "special tune" aspect of the R Magnaride.

The issue with tracking a GT3 is the cost of the car, cost of insurance and repair if chit goes wrong.

We stuffed our very highly track modded '07 Shelby GT into the tire wall coming out the boot at Watkins Glen a few years ago (car is 80% to being a totally dedicated track car). A friend stuffed his GT3 into the tire wall same weekend. Not a good weekend. Damage on both cars was equivalent component wise. The cost of replacing one of the GT3 CF rotors was enough to repair the Shelby. The Shelby is as fast too and has a way cool American muscle lope with the cams.

 

I really don't think you understand what is happening with the GT350. You really need to read up the specs and engineering that went into the car - it's a masterpiece - and the 57k price makes it a freak.

 

Get ready for similar practices with the new GT350. Shelby owners are mostly some of the biggest garage queen types i've met. They hardly drive them. I couldn't give away a pristine 700hp Shelby GT500 with Koni coilovers because it had over 10,000 miles (27,000 miles to be exact). Almost all buyers immediately passed for that - just as bad as the Ferrari crowd in that regard. Never understood it.

 

The first 350R with tech pack and that dark grey 10000 miles and track video's (to see he's not a hack) gets my purchase.

 

I wouldn't say it's a masterpiece. Maybe if it was 500 lbs lighter...

But still a bargain track car to play with. I'm so impressed that the engine has a real dry-sump oiling system and cars with track pack comes with oil, tranny and diff cooler. This is a GT3 stuff in a Ford. Also, time will tell, but the car feels bullet proof like the 997 GT3s.

 

If it were coming out of Germany this car would retail at $160,000 - it's a total masterpiece. Check your specs.

Agreed the chassis/engine/trans and all do feel bulletproof. If it's anything like the recent track cars to come from Ford than it will be just that.

 

AMC Pacer...LOL!!

If I am not mistaken, the tech, track, and R all have tuned suspensions due to magnaride as it is a dynamic system. They just have different programs/algorithms for the different components in each model trim. Now, the base model with static suspension (normal coil overs) probably does not because it is like any other Mustang as far as component makeup is concerned formthensuspension.

All of my Porsche's are ordered with steel brakes for a reason. They perform just as well on the track as the pccb and less expensive to maintain. I would think 95% of the garage queens have pccb's.

Interesting...if Porsche thought they were so good and a must have, then it would be standard on the RS. It is about $$$$$$.