Learn me--are V6 mustangs any fun?

I'm a motorcycle guy, and know little of cars. But I do really enjoy driving my 95 miata with adjustable dampers, and I would like get another fun vehicle that is a little bit bigger and could carry luggage and/or more that one friend. Looking over the local c-list, it seems that unmolested v6 manual trans mustangs from the late 90s and early 2000s are plentiful and cheap. Is this a good choice (with some suspension upgrades)? Or do I need to look for a v8? Most v8 seem pretty rough (or highly modified) at the price point where I want to be. Thanks.

The V6 engine of that era (Late 90's) is the 3.8L that is a cut down 5.0L V8. The engine can be made to perform. The T-bird Supercoupe used a superchanged version. But that's the only "performance" version that I know of. The normal stuff like a different cam, or headers could be done but there's not much if any aftermarket performance parts out there like heads, intakes, etc. Swapping in a Ecoboost V6 from a F150 would be one way to way up the power!

haha, forums burning up with these stang v6 questions.

Coldsnap wrote: haha, forums burning up with these stang v6 questions.

Yes, but the Mustang V6s from the 90's and early 2000's were truly "secretary's cars". Pedestrian at best engines, soft suspension, most were automatic. I'd stay away from them personally. The '11+ is a whole 'nother matter.

Mustang rear seats are no place for normal size people.

The 99-up cars got 190hp from the factory. They had better head and intake castings I believe.

As far as power upgrades go, there are plenty of bolt ons available; headers, exhaust, throttle bodies, pulleys and induction parts. Vortech and ATI (pro charger) both made super charger kits. As far as suspension goes, it's a mustang, so there are an endless supply of parts available.

They don't get a lot of press, but they could be pretty impressive when modified.

Kenny Brown had a well built one that was pretty fast back in 1999-2000. http://www.pbase.com/onebad93lx/2001_mustang_csr_kermit

There was a guy local to me that had a supercharged one that made 390whp.

I would look for a 99 and up for the better engine. Before that i believe they could have head gasket problems.

You been-there,done-that with the Miata, time for a P71!

By the time you spend the money on building a V6, you could have bought a V8 and saved the hassle.

They suck and most of them are just as rough as the GT's of the same era.

The 3.8 Essex is not a particularly strong engine. People have built them to the 400 hp range, but consider its GM equivalent Buick-derived 3.8 that can make 400 hp no sweat and 1000 hp when built.

Also remember that those 3.8 SN95's come with crappy open diffs. That would have to be remedied if you wanted to go fast.

A co worker has a 99 with the v6 stick combo and i find it boring too drive. Coming from a guy whos wagon makes 88hp. There just too bloated for my liking.

A 4th gen 3.8 Fbody is way quicker and better handling than the 94-04 v6 Mustang. Honestly, those cars just suck overall. They don't ride well, don't handle well, aren't fast (the 94-98 are straight-up slow for the displacement), need mods to look even remotely good, etc. The 05-10 v6 mustang moves pretty good and the rest of the car is much better. I think those years are sort of underappreciated.

I don't know about 2005 and later Mustangs but any V6 Mustang before that is pointless. "The MPG's aren't that great but at least they're slow and you get to worry about head gasket failures! Thankfully Ford made sure the handling was worse than the V8 cars, they sound like garbage, and on the used market there's not enough price difference to make them worth thinking about." If that statement sounds like your kind of party, jump on it, otherwise move on.

I love my 2000 5 speed. The transmission is garbage but I got used to slow shifting and always having to use a clutch. Mileage is 25 to 29 on E0 in the summer. It handles well on the street but sucks in autocross so far. It is a lot of fun to drive in the snow, and it is my primary car for long distance in snow storms.

I am planning on retiring it in 4 years to start restoring it. It has taken a lot of abuse as it is a deer magnet. By then the motor might need work, right now at 190K it still sounds like brand new.

Ok, on balance it sounds like I should forget about the v6 stang for what I want.

Move to S197 with the 4.0 and a 5 speed and you've got a car. I love mine. 210hp is certainly adequate for everyday and it makes a nice growl you wouldn't expect from the entry level model. Suspension is a million times better than the SN95. Try to find one with the Pony Package which will get you bigger wheels and a rear sway bar.

Aside from the juvenile desire to fry the tires and just generally be a hooligan I don't miss the 4.6 which would have cost around 4 grand more on the used market.

You can read about my decision to go with the V6 on my blog: Motorosophy blog

I drove a 2005 V6 'vert and I almost couldn't wait to get back into my '95 F150. Man was that thing horrible. And if you've seen the things I've driven over the years, that's saying something.

In reply to ebonyandivory:

One of my best friends from college has an 05-ish auto trans V6 'vert. We call it the Barbie 'Stang. I think I've driven it around the block once or twice, but I couldn't really tell you much about it. Pretty forgettable experience.

The 4.6 is worth it for the noises alone. With the right exhaust, either the SN95 2V version or the S197 3V is a really great sounding motor, IMHO.

Unless your second friend is short, you should look at sport sedans like an E46 (99-04) BMW 3-series, 99-04 Mercedes C-Class, etc. Older Mustangs and Camaros/Firebirds shouldn't be a top consideration if you will have adults riding in the back.