The new 2015 Mustang is dazzling...WHEN WILL MOPAR ANSWER?!?!?

Ford continues their successful refinement of the Mustang. IMHO, the new rear treatment betters the 2013 while the front is a mis-step backwards. If the IRS works as expected, Ford will have pushed the bar upward. I might become 1 Dart and a horse.

[2 Darts climbs on soapbox]

For all of Fiat Group Automobiles S.P.A 's (Can you imagine the public relations nightmare of them calling themselves Fiat Automobile Group S.P.A?) involvement in motorsports over the years, I don't think they understand the U.S.'s "Win on Sunday, Sell on Monday" mentality. There needs to be a close relationship between what's on the streets with what's on the tracks. Competitive Formula 1 is great to watch but the only relationship I can see between it and a street car is red paint and a yellow shield with a prancing black horse in it. (FWIW the shields were a $250.-- option on the F430).

This problem of Fiat's makes it difficult to resolve the cultural differences between Turin and Detroit. The fact that ultimate control($) for what is offered in the US market is in Turin and not Detroit complicates things and raises the degree of difficulty for true believers at Chrysler to get a more relevant product out to the public. Recall that Europe missed the pony car wars completely, while Japan responded with the Celica and the 240Z.

IMO, the pony car thing worked out well for all involved because they offered a product with youthful appeal at a price most people working for a living could afford. Any of the US cars could be equipped from mild to wild. The kicker to the entire deal was that if you couldn't find what you wanted in stock and could wait 6-8 weeks, you could build to order. While the number of exterior color choices has remained the same over the years, the same can not be said for interior colors. When was the last time you could get an inexpensive car with something other than black, grey, or tan/beige interior? When was the last time you could special order a car? Too long say I.

Can Mopar build a base rear drive car with excellent build quality, 300 hp, weigh < 3500 lbs, look good, fun to drive, handle well for < $20,000.00? IDK. How about a wild car with 450+ hp, weigh less than 3600 lbs, look good, be a blast to drive, generate 1.0G lateral acceleration, do the ¼ mile in less than 14 seconds for < $30,000.00? IDK. It was a botched opportunity for the new Dart. Do you think they would sell more of these than than the current Challenger? I think so.

If anyone at Mopar reads this and gives a damn, these are the kinds of cars that enthusiasts will buy and recommend to their friends. Don't believe it? Look at the fact that we're talking about a Ford on a Mopar board. Some have fessed up to owning said car because, in so many words, Mopar doesn't have anything comparable.

Also, don't stick a R/T or Road Runner label on anything that won't do 100 mph in the quarter in factory trim (a factory drag pack option is acceptable here) and you aren't prepared to build 5000 of them.

Will Mopar respond to the challenge of the 2015 Mustang? Probably not. They haven't built a fun, inexpensive car since the ACR Neon.

[2 Darts collapses on soapbox]