2024 Mustang Ecoboost Coupe
Price: $48,875 CAD
Colour: Vapour Blue Metallic
For those of us who existed before the internet we have memories of a 4-cylinder Mustang long before the current EcoBoost offering. In response to the oil crisis Ford started offering various 4-cylinder engines (with and without turbochargers) in the Mustang at various times throughout the 1980’s. These engines were either desperately underpowered or horribly unreliable (or both) and left the Mustang with a black eye that lasted generations. It also cemented in the minds of consumers that it wasn’t a real Mustang unless it had a V8 under the hood. Throughout the 90’s and early 2000’s Ford only offered 2 power plants – a horrid V6 for the ladies in their convertibles and the requisite, throaty V8 for the real Mustang. It wouldn’t be until the debut of the 6th generation of the Mustang in 2013 that a 4-cylinder option would rear its thrifty head again under the hood of Ford’s legendary pony badge. The debate has raged ever since over whether the Ecoboost Mustang is a “real” Mustang. While advocates on either side have been going back and forth on the matter it occurred to me they may have missed the entire point. While the Ecoboost Mustang doesn’t give you the rumbly V8 vibes and thus misses the mark as a muscle car, it’s still a really solid sports car… and maybe that’s the whole point.
Growing up in the 90’s I was a firm believer in smaller displacement Japanese sports cars. I loved their design, and the performance Japanese automakers were able to squeeze out of tiny engines with hissing turbochargers. The only bit of mouth breathing American muscle I had any interest in was the V8 Mustang. I liked how it rumbled and vibrated up and down my spine when you put your foot down. It was my secret love. You’d think then that when Ford opted to combine turbo charged 4-cylinder engines and the Mustang that I’d be all in. You would be wrong. For over a decade I’ve been fighting this abomination and firmly resided in the camp of “V8 or nothing at all”. I finally decided it was time to put my assumptions to the test and see just how bad (or good) the Ecoboost really is. More importantly… is the Ecoboost Coupe a real Mustang.
The 2.3L Ecoboost engine on offer in the Mustang delivers 310 hp and 350 lb/ft of torque. Those are, objectively, decent numbers. The first time I put the Ecoboost in sport mode and put my foot down I was pleasantly surprised by how it grunted and thrust itself forward with a peppy enthusiasm I wasn’t expecting. I proceeded to throw it through a series of corners, up hills, down hills and a mix of city and highway driving. The Ecoboost handled it all with grace and dignity. I was stumped. I didn’t hate this stain on the legacy of a great brand… go figure. After three or four days of really hammering the Ecoboost I started to wrap my head around what the car really is and what it’s built for. It’s not a muscle car. If you want that you’ll have to opt for the V8 and enjoy that lazy torque curve. The Ecoboost is more of a sports car, and a pretty good one at that. If you can get past the badge snobbery you’ll find yourself in a good looking sports coupe that handles well and delivers what matters most when it matters the most to you.
For 2024 one of the big changes to the Mustang Ecoboost lineup is the removal of a manual transmission option. As much as I’m wrapping my head around what the Ecoboost Coupe is, I’m not going to budge on the idea that a good manual transmission would have made this a truly great sports car. Ford will produce any number of stats that justify why they needed to remove the manual for the Ecoboost and that’s fine, that’s what carmakers do. What Ford doesn’t seem to get is that if you have the confidence to add a 4-cylinder sports car option to the Mustang, you have to maintain the manual option or the whole thing rings a touch hollow. It’s such a shame that accountants have once again ruined what should have been a wonderful car that defies expectations and was capable of changing a grumpy old man’s opinion.
