SPIED: The Upcoming, REFRESHED 2018 Model Year Ford Mustang MAY Get A 10-Speed Transmission

What's the point. Mustangs should come in manual only anyway.

The 10 speed will be a paddle shifter and paddle shift speeds are far faster than what a driver could do manually. Ferrari has resoundingly ditched manual transmissions because their semi-automatic paddle shifter is so much faster in its shifts.

For the 5% or less of these that actually go on the track, fine, if the shift is faster. For the rest who want to have fun at a stop light or in the twisties, the manual is my choice (and I should know, I have a GT manual). Unfortunately, this demand is coming from the drones out their looking for an image and better fuel mileage.

Ferrari "ditched" manuals because they can make more money per vehicle!

Kind of surprised as a DCT would have been better than developing the 10AT.

DCTs tend to be much more trouble prone than conventional automatics with longevity considerably less than what someone would expect.

Ford's time with dual-clutch technology has not been kind to them. Even with updates, the transmission still chatters and shifts are not smooth like an automatic.

If two people share driving the car, the transmission control module attempts to learn the driver (note singular) which can lead to some unnerving moments like trying to accelerate into the flow of traffic and having the car hesitate. Some have even gotten stuck in neutral when the TCM "freezes" and shutting the car off and restarting it is the most common remedy.

Ford has fixed the most egregiously bad behavior of the DCT, but it still is uncivilized.

Give me a convertible 4-cyl 10AT with paddle shifter as an ultimate retro ride. This would bring back the younger years of riding a bicycle.

As for DCT's adaptive shift and its tendency to hesitate/stall, I had those scary and unpleasant moments in a Cayenne PDK with precious cargo on board. The paddle shift did not help in those situation. The transmission had to be disengaged (D to N then back to D) to get it to respond - revving didn't help.

I would prefer a ZF 6AT or any 6MT.

I hope Ford does not have the same quality control problems with the 10 speed tranny that FCA has had with their 9 speed tranny. Further I would like to see an improvement in the Ecoboost 2.3 in the Mustang. Aside from the fact that it sounds terrible Motor Trend has reported that some of the cars are down on power from previous acceleration tests. The Mustang should at least have the power of the Focus RS for it's 2.3. Otherwise why not offer the 2.7 turbo from the Fusion Sport.

The FCA issue was largely a software issue, but not entirely. One reason the FCA transmission would not shift into 9th was because the transmission control module correctly read that shifting into 9th versus 8th would probably cause the transmission to hunt back and forth. FCA found that engine torque--precisely the lack thereof--was one reason why the transmission held on to 8th speed. These days, the FCA nine speed behaves fairly well. Granted the Cherokees that were sidelined because the transmission was not ready for prime time tarnished the transmission's perception.

More cogs aren't necessarily better.

The Mustang Ecoboost is indeed a disappointment. The V6 performs as well and sounds and feels more refined.

A mildly boosted V6 that splits the difference between the V6's 300 horsepower and the V8's 435 figure at the current Ecoboost's price point would sell more Mustangs. Call it the California Special.

We have had customers come in excited about the Mustang Ecoboost only to look a bit askance at the engine sound. They don't want to shell out for a 5.0 and they assume the V6 won't be any good. We suggest they try the V6 and often that is what they buy.

Similar things happen with the Camaro.

Here is what I don't understand. Ford now is bringing out the Ford Fusion Sport. It is AWD and comes with a 2.7 Ecoboost V6. I cannot believe that fuel economy is going to significantly suffer compared to the 2.3 Ecoboost. Second from an aural standpoint the V6 has got to sound significantly better than the 2.3. But even on the 2.3 it is capable of better noise as Focus RS video's confirm. You may have some inside info on this Darringer but the obvious engine upgrades need to take place if Mustang continues to take the fight to Camaro.

1)For the GT-a minimum of a 15 HP increase to 450 HP.
2)The Ecoboost four either is the improved version from the Focus RS
or Ford goes for the 2.7 from the Fusion Sport tuned to 350 HP.(my intuition is that it may be cheaper with the Ecoboost four)
3) The base car in V6 form is offered an optional suspension package.

Although sales of the Mustang are greatly improved I don't think Ford is prepared to lighten the Mustang just yet. This in spite of the fact that the current F150 uses a lot of aluminum technology to lighten it by over 700 LBS. A simple change would be to have an aluminum hood and retune the front and rear shocks. This would help offset the fact that Mustang engines are set right on top of the front axle where Camaro's engines are set in back of the front axle. However I am guessing that Ford will wait on this until the redesign.

The redesign of the Mustang will be the same vehicle with mild styling changes--dealers are hoping--to cure the Fusion face that has been panned right and left.

The reason the Mustang's engine is not behind the front "axle" is because the 2015 Mustang carried over A LOT of the 2005. The main differences are they they bolted in the IRS that was intended for the all-new 2004 Mustang and then someone got the bright idea to do a stick axle and the 2004 became a 2005 debut. Up front the suspension is greatly improved with the firewall/cowl getting revisions for crash safety, but the 05 and the 15 share a lot.

It is my understanding that the 2018 is not a big revamp, but rather a restyle to take out some of the "Camaro" touches and put back more Mustang touches.

Ford is going for fuel economy, with a beneficial side-effect of a "potential" increase in performance.