Car Reviews
Quick Drive: 2012 Ford Mustang Boss 302 and Laguna Seca
There is no messing around here; these are two of the best Mustangs I’ve ever driven, and I’ve driven many of them. The Mustang has been known as a good straight-line car with lots of power and easily upgradeable. It’s never been about the stock GT Mustang, but what Ford or the owner himself could do to improve the car. More and more, Ford has been moving the Mustang toward being a real sports car rather than just a straight-line drag car. We reviewed the 2010 Mustang and really felt that it was about as good as it could get. We’ll soon have our hands on the new 5.0 that is even better and more advanced than the old 4.6 GT and can’t wait!
2011 Ford Mustang Boss 302
There is no messing around here; these are two of the best Mustangs I’ve ever driven, and I’ve driven many of them. The Mustang has been known as a good straight-line car with lots of power and easily upgradeable. It’s never been about the stock GT Mustang, but what Ford or the owner himself could do to improve the car. More and more, Ford has been moving the Mustang toward being a real sports car rather than just a straight-line drag car. We reviewed the 2010 Mustang and really felt that it was about as good as it could get. We’ll soon have our hands on the new 5.0 that is even better and more advanced than the old 4.6 GT and can’t wait!
What Ford decided to do with the Boss 302 was make a track inspired car, and the Laguna Seca an actual track ready car. The Boss 302 takes a standard 5.0 GT and upgrades the intake system and components inside the engine pushing the horsepower up to 444 and 380 ft-lbs of torque. Ford basically takes what they have learned from racing the Mustang on the track, and put it into a road going muscle car. On the Laguna Seca edition however, engineers were given free reign. Taking it even further, the LS has no rear seats, only cross-braces adding 10% rigidity. Also thrown in are standard Torsen limited-slip differential, revised suspension tuning, a racing front splitter, and racing brake ducts. The LS rides on 19×9-inch front and 19×10 inch rear, light-weight alloy wheels with R-compound high-performance tires that work great on a dry track; not so much on a wet one.
Even though the conditions were not ideal for these cars, we could still fill the power that awaited. Everything inside the car was just as we’d want it: great racing seats, great feel on the clutch and shifter, and plenty of feedback from the suspension and steering wheel. It wasn’t just us either, as the Boss 302 won 2011 High Performance Car of Texas. Ford has really stepped it up with these two cars; I can’t wait to see what they come up with next.
Thanks to our friends at Non-Stock Photography for the photos.
Car was driven and reviewed by Adam Moore at the Texas Auto Roundup in conjunction with the .
