Quote:
GT500:
-Much of that driver-friendliness comes from the beautifully executed cockpit, which St. Antoine describes as "gorgeous, with appealing shapes, cool wheel, racy seat trim, and the excellent Sync system." Compared with archrival Camaro, the Shelby offers far and away the better-looking cabin.
-"Steering is accurate and precise, and the seats are soft for fore-and-aft travel, yet supportive side to side.
- ...lap time of 1min 44.3 seconds, or 1.4 ticks quicker than the Camaro...
-"The Mustang is balanced, despite its size; as a driver, I really enjoy that. I could create a little understeer, I could create a little oversteer; it was predictable in that way. It has big power--enough to leave black stripes out of the corners.
-"...that's good handling because I could place the car right where I wanted it, even though I was in a power-oversteer drift. These are wonderful things."
-All this from a live-axle musclecar? Seems too good to be true.
Camaro SS
-We were expecting more from the Bow-Tie bunch's all-new hot rod, what with it dimissing the Ford Mustang GT and the Dodge Challenger R/T in a June comparison, not to mention being on hiatus the last eaight years (surely that's enough time for Chevrolet to develop a great driver's car.)
-Well for starters, it's big and heavy--as in 3888 pounds big and heavy.While not as cumbersome as the 3903-pound GT500 the Camaro manages to convey every one of those poundsShelby does not.
-"It often returns large, doughy sensations on the tight autocross,"
-"The overall impression is that it's a heavy car that needs to be manhandled. It has none of the finesse or point-and-shoot abillity of the group's top players."
-Against some of the truly great driver's car here the Camaro feels so big, bulky, dark, and... did I say 'big?'"
-"It's a beautiful car to look at but to drive it? Understeer-frustrating understeer," declares Pobst. "It's almost like before stabillity control when they'd make cars understeer a lot just so they'd be safe...."
-"It's also the only car where I found myself really moving around in the driver's seat. I could tell immediately the bolsters were really soft;they didn't hold me in place at all."
-"Claustrophobic cockpit and tight footwell conspire against driver confidence,"
-"Shifter is large and awkward, though the transmission is not bad, and pedal placement is not meant for heel-and-toe maneuvers."
-"The steering wheel is huge--and ugly. The guages and shapes seem overwrought, as if Chevy had to prove it could deliver a 'designer' cabin...."
I wish the mustang would stay around 3400lbs in the top of the line model.
