Thoughts from the Curb

Sep 18, 2008 - 2010 Ford Mustang : Interior No Longer Crap?

I've never been a Mustang fan. Let me rephrase that, a modern Mustang fan. I used to have two classic Mustang posters hanging in my room when I was a kid, spurned on by the fact that both my mother and grandmother used to own them. But modern 'Stangs? I think they're crap.

No amount of retro body work can hide a driving experience that feels positively jurassic. Give me a slick-handling Mini Cooper over a Mustang GT any day. But the worst for me has always been the interior. Sure, the dual cowl design was interesting but the materials are just awful, hard and/or cheap. The parking brake is covered in rubber and operates like it belongs on a grain harvester. The same ugly generic switchgear found in most Ford products (when the current model was designed) looked particularly out of place in a car that seemed to put an emphasis on unique design. It all amounted to one of the worst interiors on the market.

But that seems like it's about to change. As the above photo shows, it looks like the interior is being dramatically improved for 2010. The center console looks to be of higher quality and the parking brake looks less industrial. It's hard to tell, but the materials do look better. The switchgear has clearly been replaced by Ford's latest stereo, HVAC and Sync controls on display in the Focus, Escape and Flex. While this may be generic to the Ford brand, it's at least a very functional design and looks modern. It's no Camaro on the inside, but I feel we're going to be hearing that a lot in regards to Mustang and Camaro in the coming months.

-James Riswick

7:42 am | Categories: car news commentary Permalink | Alert Administrator

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