DFB's Garage

[DFB]

I still have a few things left to do, but below is the result of countless hours work. Other than cropping, there is no editing on those images, straight off the Nikon.

 

[Klasse Act]

I still have a few things left to do, but below is the result of countless hours work. Other than cropping, there is no editing on those images, straight off the Nikon.

Looks great Deyon️

The rims look great and certainly DO show off those massive clampers up front, WOW

I have a question and we're both "particular" about things...the 5.0 badge, are you happy with Fords placement of it

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[DFB]

Looks great Deyon️

The rims look great and certainly DO show off those massive clampers up front, WOW

I have a question and we're both "particular" about things...the 5.0 badge, are you happy with Fords placement of it

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I'm thinking you would put them about an inch or so lower?

 

[Klasse Act]

I'm thinking you would put them about an inch or so lower?

I never measure it but more centered for sure. I'm sure the designers have a reason for it's placement but it's something I've always noticed

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[Klasse Act]

I added AUTO setting to these pics I saved

Btw, are those the OEM tires that came with the car on those wheels

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[DFB]

I added AUTO setting to these pics I saved

Btw, are those the OEM tires that came with the car on those wheels

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S650's come with Pirelli P-Zero's. The wheels that went on today have Michelin PS4S fitted.

 

[Klasse Act]

S650's come with Pirelli P-Zero's. The wheels that went on today have Michelin PS4S fitted.

Not sure how you feel about Pirelli's but you did a DOUBLE upgrade there

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[DFB]

Not sure how you feel about Pirelli's but you did a DOUBLE upgrade there

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On my S550, the original factory fit tires where an earlier version of the Pirelli P-Zero, they were diabolically bad and completely under qualified for the car. On a cold morning, I could have the rears spinning just letting the clutch out. No doubt Ford got a good deal on them.

I'm told the latest P-Zero that Ford is currently using is better, but I'd much rather they stuck with the PS4S that the 2018+ Mustang's had. Again, cost would be the deciding factor for Ford.

 

[Klasse Act]

On my S550, the original factory fit tires where an earlier version of the Pirelli P-Zero, they were diabolically bad and completely under qualified for the car. On a cold morning, I could have the rears spinning just letting the clutch out. No doubt Ford got a good deal on them.

I'm told the latest P-Zero that Ford is currently using is better, but I'd much rather they stuck with the PS4S that the 2018+ Mustang's had. Again, cost would be the deciding factor for Ford.

Obviously cost is key on everything but on my old 2013 Abarth that had Pirelli P-Zeros they were hot garbage, 5500 miles and they were seeing premature wear, a buddy had an Abarth also and had the same issue

I love my Michelin Pilot Sport 4s but since I'm not a track guy I'll never "need" a tire that good on my car, well, except once a year and the Continental DWS06 NEVER EVER let me down on the Dragon and will be my choice of replacement when the time comes, plus if a late, freak snow comes after I take off my snows I'm good to go, being practical is what I believe in...get what you NEED over what you WANT

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[DFB]

Confession, I hadn't driven the Mustang in a week. After being washed last Saturday, the car sat on Sunday and Monday while I attended to some of my private jobs, I then jumped into polishing on Tuesday. It then sat in the garage all week as I continued working on the car. I wanted to do all that before driving the car too much, get it polished and protected from new. So, after work, I got in the car with no other reason to just DRIVE!

So, after yesterday I was pretty deflated by the TPMS thing. But..................I climbed into be late last night and had a brainwave. I got out of bed and went and found the folder I kept on the S550. I know this will come as a surprise to many, , but I keep invoices and records for all my cars. Flipping through the folder, I found the invoice for the TPMS sensors I ordered back in 2021 from my local dealer.





So, I had the correct parts all along. It would seem all Australian Mustang's come with the 433 MHz frequency. So, today's little drive was also about verifying this discovery. And to my sheer delight, no TPMS Fault Light, and the sensors automatically sync'd to the vehicle. Yes, they are a little high, they were pressured for storage, but that obviously changed.



I can also confirm the Bang & Olufsen sound system rocks! It's got the balls to out thump all the cars in my fleet, second place going to the XR6 and third to the Meridian system in Jaguar..................which is sort of not what you would expect, the Jag lacking a sub to bring some thump to the party. Last place? The XR8, even my single cab ranger with 4 speakers will out volume that, and that's despite it being the "Premium" system with a sub-woofer, its just super muddy with no bass or clarity. The B&O has plenty of volume and bass headroom, my usual song for stereo testing sounded amazing! So, I have two sound systems to listen to in this car, both active in the images above and below.............if you catch my drift.



And it has to be that version for the transcendent guitar riff at the end by Danielle Haim. Imagine having that sort of talent, killer vocals, killer guitar skills, killer drummer. I slipped that song into the music track list at work, every time it would come on it would make me smile and made a wonderful difference to all the stodgy tracks that pepper that playlist.

Or this compilation of nothing but the final sequence to that song live.................

I'm so bummed I missed their last visit to Australia. I discovered them only a month before they were here, I then looked to see what their current tour listing was and discovered I missed the show by a day. I would have gone to that 100%. It makes a difference to my usual preference of syrupy pop music by certain female singers.

 

[DFB]

Magneride, Ride Comfort and General Refinement!

One of the first things I noticed driving the S650 Mustang was the improved cabin refinement. First and foremost, I highly doubt those shopping for a Mustang place much importance on hushed road noise or a pillowy ride. Still, these are grand tourers, improvements in this space will be welcomed by those who enjoy longer journeys. There are two main areas that contribute to this improved refinement.

Firstly, Ford seem to have used more sound deadening material, most obvious by the now fully carpeted wheel arch liners. On the S550, only the rear wheel arches had the carpet liners, but for S650, the fronts arches now have it too. This is clearly noticeable in the lower road and tyre noise. Yes, having wide tyres means more noise, but S650 has improved noticeably in this area.





Researching this post, I came across what Ford calls Active Pothole Mitigation. “Active Pothole Mitigation continuously monitors steering and brake input, the vehicle body, and suspension, then adjusts the suspension to respond to the changes.” I could not find reference to this feature applying to cars with Magneride, only that it was standard on vehicles with the Performance Pack.

https://media.ford.com/content/fordmedia/fna/us/en/news/2022/09/14/2024-ford-mustang-reveal.html

Backtracking for a second, my early build S550 had quite a bit of jounce at low speeds, but then turned a little soft at speed. Typically, those two elements don’t go hand in hand, so it’s remarkable Ford managed to deliver a hard ride and a lack of body control. Go figure. I wasn’t the only one to noticed this, so Ford made significant ride and handling advances with the updated 2018+ S550 update, be that with or without Magneride.

While I haven’t driven a S650 without it, the Magneride adaptive dampers contribute to the improved ride comfort when comparing old and new. I realise this is an expensive option, $2950 and bundled with red painted Brembo calipers, but I feel it's something you should be including on your order. At the very least, I think you want Magneride for its ability to calm the ride at lower speeds, ideal for long distance touring or around town driving. When the mode takes you there, you can then ramp things up to suit.

With Magneride, you have the option of the following settings -

Normal – Default factory setting.
Sport – Slightly stiffer suspension with emphasis on handling and control.
Track – Maximum emphasis on handling and control.
Drag – Maximizes shock performance for drag strip environments.







These damper settings are linked with the base drive modes (Slippery, Normal, Sport, Track, Drag). You can then create and store a custom mode by using a base drive mode, which will give you a preset damper setting, engine response, transmission calibration and steering effort. From here, you can then change the steering and exhaust modes, cluster theme, even code-out the auto-stop-start. Up to 6 custom modes can be created, activated via the main screen, with the last custom mode selected also available via the toggle buttons on the steering wheel. You could also program the favorite button next to the volume dial to quickly select you custom driving mode without delving into the menus, although I have that set to activate the Track exhaust.







What you can't do is separate the various presets built into the base drive mode. For example, you can't have Sport dampers with Race throttle and transmission response. To be fair, it's confusing enough as it is without making those choices as well.

At the moment, I’m running with the normal base mode, Track exhaust, auto-stop-start deactivated, and the Comfort steering. On the roads I like to explore the envelope, the road surfaces are in fair condition, so Sport or Track dampers would be the choice, most likely with the comfort steering. Why comfort steering? Because I don’t care for heavy steering, and that’s in any car and not necessarily Mustang’s. Comfort seems to make the car feel more agile. More on this in a later post.

Overall, the S650 is a quieter and more refined vehicle, Magneride taking it to a new level.

 

[DFB]

While I'm most likely leaving the HP wheels on the car, I still wanted to tidy up the PP wheels I removed last week. These presented well, but once removed, the barrels were jacked up pretty bad. This is pretty remarkable considering the wheels have done less that 120km's.

The first job was to get them clean. After soaking with Gyeon Iron, and a surprising amount of iron reaction, they were rinsed and washed using undiluted Brake Buster. Tyre side walls front and back hit with Carpro ReTyre.



Now, I say "jacked up" because of how the rear wheels were covered in that pointless black paint Ford thinks is a great idea to be spraying on brand new cars. If these were going back on the car, I would be very annoyed and disappointed. Yes, you don't ordinarily see the barrels, but that's not the point. I have also seen cars where this paint ended up misted across the black side skirts and painted lower sills and doors. To be brutally honest, this is completely unacceptable. Why should you be needing to remove this stuff from visible parts of the car of a brand-new car, let alone having it caked all over the underside.







This paint doesn't seem to be very durable and appears to dissolve with the aid of a solvent. On the exhaust tips, I used KCx Eulex, but on these matte wheels I used Eulex M, which was designed to be safe on matte surfaces. I found wiping the barrel with the EUM, then allowed to dwell before coming back with more EUM and working the surface until the paint lifted into the towel. I didn't bother removing it from the rear sidewall ledge, it was smothered in the stuff. And the tyre sidewall.



Two completely ruined towels!



Afterwards, I then re-washed these two wheels with Brake Buster to remove the Eulex residue. They came up well, 98% removal. I plan to coat the wheels tomorrow, if nothing more than extra practice, then into storage.

And for those wondering, this video shows how cars are "prepared" for export, zone in on the 4.55 min mark. The two workers look like they were being careful for the cameras -

Just a warning when using Eulex -

This stuff is a potent solvent, so it's important to use it in well-ventilated spaces. This is especially important with the base Eulex, the M version is less volatile, but still packs a punch. Wear gloves and expect to bin the towel you use it with. Rinse or neutralize the treated surfaces after use. Also, the base Eulex has a very high evaporation rate, so put the cap back on between applications.

Having said that, I believe both are worth having, they were designed for heavy duty tar and adhesive removal above and beyond what TEA, Orange Power and Fleckenwasser can achieve.

 

[DFB]

Steering!

For S650, Ford made several changes to the steering system to improve responsiveness, teamed it with a new flat bottom wheel.

To start, Ford added a cross-car beam to improve chassis/body rigidity, less flex in this department helps deliver a more stable platform for the steering to work with. The steering shaft was redesigned and works with a faster 15.5:1 ratio. These major changes also meant recalibration for each model in the lineup. The quicker ratio and reduced compliance from the steering wheel to the tire means faster and more direct response. Like S550, drivers have the choice of three steering effort modes.

The very first thing you notice with S650 is the new flat-bottom steering wheel. For EcoBoost and GT, this new wheel is leather wrapped, with the outer ring finished in solid leather, the inner rim with perforated leather. For Darkhorse, there is solid leather on outer rim, the inner features “Performance Suede” inserts, capped off by Indigo Blue stitching instead of black. While it was briefly available on S550, Ford have reintroduced a heating function on S650 steering wheels, no doubt handy in winter. The wheel is overloaded with buttons, but that’s modern cars for you. For vehicles with the 10R80 automatic, you also get small plastic paddle shifters in a satin aluminum finish. In the future, I may look at adding extensions to improve reachability while cornering.





Those are the specs, but what impresses most is the quality feel of this new steering wheel. Compared to my early-build S550, the leather used here is softer and less glossy, making it a pleasure to hold. I also like the smaller diameter and thicker padding. While there was some theatre twirling that huge, thin S550 wheel, it made the car less modern and more retro. This S650 steering wheel is the best I have used since those lovely Momo wheels used on the AU Falcon, with honorable mention to the FPV-style wheel.





We now arrive at probably the most controversial aspect of the S650, how the steering “feels”. Upon release, most media outlets heavily criticized the new steering. Most complained about it being too light, almost all about how it lacked feel. With a Mustang, neither S550 nor S650 have much feel through the steering wheel. To mask this to some degree, Ford offers three steering “effort” modes, Comfort, Normal and Sport.

Normal – Developed to complement vehicle response during daily driving.
Sport – Slightly less assist and damping for improved steering feel during spirited driving.
Comfort – Slightly more assist for driver preference and daily driving ease.

The steering effort selection is dependent on the current drive mode, but the default steering mode can be altered and stored within the Custom mode presets. For example, you can select Normal base mode, then change the steering to Comfort. To access steering mode selection, you can do it by a button on the steering wheel, or via the My Mustang button and then Custom Modes.





All these modes do is increase/decrease the steering weight, not actual feedback filtering through to the drivers' hands. For me, on both S550 and S650, I prefer the Comfort setting for how it makes the car appear more agile and responsive. Sport and Normal modes in comparison make the car feel lazy. So, long story short, Comfort makes the car more responsive, Track makes the car feel heavy and uninterested in turning.

DFB RANT TIME -

I’m not sure who decided “sporty” steering should equate to a heavy feel, but I don’t agree with that. Heavy steering reminds me of the truly horrible steering Holden used on VT – VZ Commodores. With Holden pushing its race-car image, they gave the cars heavy steering to give the impression of a sportier car. All this did was mask the ancient suspension design or highlighted it depending on who you ask. The equivalent Falcon’s in comparison had much lighter steering, which most non-car people thought was a weak point. If there is one area where Ford held an advantage during those years, it was steering. Ford’s steering was much lighter than the Holden, but it delivered more consistency and superior feedback through the wheel. In press-on driving, you would much rather a car conveys what the front wheels are doing, not a simulated notion of sportiness. Those Holden’s were all kinds of nasty, I hated that springy off-center heaviness, it was also inconsistently weighted lock to lock, giving it a lumpy feel overall. I have to say, those Holden’s would have to be the worst steering I have ever encountered, the equivalent Falcon would be one of the best.



So where does that leave us? Well, I don’t necessarily agree with the press reviews regarding the S650 steering. I have driven very few modern cars with electric steering that have had any feel transferring from the road to steering wheel, including Mustang’s. The best electric steering I have personally sampled would be the modern Jaguars, I love that light and pointy nature they deliver. So, what are the journalists comparing the Mustang’s steering to, what is their steering benchmark? I can almost guarantee they are benchmarking a Porche 911, Boxster or Cayman. While I have doubt those cars steer with greater precision and feel, they are considerably more expensive and come from a company that has spent decades perfecting the steering of their cars. A Mustang, well Ford know who their target customers are and what they want, so expecting a Mustang to deliver Porche steering feel and response is silly.

From what I have sampled, yes, in the heaviest Sport mode, the new S650 steering is slightly lighter than before. But to me, that is not the problem the press would have you believe. In Comfort and Normal modes, its about the same as before. And despite it still lacking real feel, it’s more direct and responsive than before. Combined with that lovely steering wheel, it’s certainly an improvement over the previous model.

 

[DFB]

I haven't been feeling well the last few days, I seem to have picked up some sort of infection that's causing a lot of pain and a lack of sleep, and anti-biotics have always disagreed with me. But with the help of a cocktail of pain killers, I press on.

A little break from Mustang content, the XR8 has also been getting driven lately, because surfing the torque wave produced by that engine is so hard to resist. After also driving the Mustang a lot, the ride quality of the R-Spec suspension in the XR8 is, as my uncle would say, rough as guts. I can kinda see why FPV made the GT suspension so soft in the earlier FG's, the cars were targeted towards a more mature audience that would appreciate the cushier ride. I guess as I get older, I can appreciate that.

Then, as the media moaned on about the body control wilting at racetrack pace, FPV responded with the R-Spec package. While a version of this appeared first on the BF series in 2007, on FG, it was the 2011 GT R-Spec that first got this considerably firmer setup. It was then rolled out for the final fling GT-F in early 2014, and then transferred over to the FG-X XR8 from late 2014 till early 2016. As was usual for Ford in the media, the journalists then complained about the stiff ride. I have to say, this was one of the hardest parts about being a Ford man, dealing with so much blatant bias against the brand in favor of what Holden were doing. And while I can and do see the point being made about the suspension, without expensive adaptive dampers, you can't really have both ride comfort and firm body control. Interestingly, for the very last special edition Sprint series in 2016, Ford actually softened the suspension to create a S-Spec setup. This version combined with the new Pirelli tyres actually helped improve traction and compliance to deliver a superior balance. Still, R-Spec is part of the FG-X XR8's story and its cool to say that the car has GT suspension, engine and brakes..................and boy does that ruffle the GT guys.

And so, today was the XR8's turn, and now that it's starting to warm up, I washed partially in the garage. These wheels are my favorite to wash, the simple spoke design and relatively small 355mm/330mm rotors mean there is plenty of room for the softer microfiber brush.



Today, I washed everything with Reset, which has become my default maintenance soap. I've tried so many over the last couple of years, but very few approach the all-round excellence of Reset. Yes, I enjoy using other soaps, but I keep returning to Reset. Drying Aid was ADS Amplify on two Platinum Pluffle towels, with Amplify also used on the door jambs, exhaust tips and wheels. For the glass, I decided to keep trialing Bilt Hamber Trace-less.

The finishing touch, ADS Tire+ on the aged Dunlop Sport Maxx. Those tyres are toast, they have plenty of tread but struggle traction wise. Considering how nervous I am with people working on this car, I'm delaying the inevitable in replacing these tyres, probably with Michelin PS5.

 

[DFB]

Headlights!

## Full disclosure, I rarely if ever drive at night and therefore never use the headlights. So, the following post is geared towards the aesthetic side of headlights rather than their functional performance. ##

Stylistically, headlights are the “eyes” of a car’s “face”, they can therefore make or break the front-end design. Just ask the AU Falcon. Often, its said the human eye is a window into a person’s character, well, the same applies to car headlights and how they define its intent. For example, headlights with a lot of chrome often signify luxury, whereas black headlights define anger and performance. And it’s the later I have often gravitated towards.

I remember way back in late 2006, Ford released the BF MK II Falcon, a last roll of the dice to bridge the gap to the new generation and to compete with the then all-new VE Commodore. While this update was relatively minor, the hood, front bumper and headlights gave a clue to the FG Falcon that would arrive in early 2008. I also remember instantly loving what they did with the headlights, in particular the base model XT sedan, XL and XLS Ute, and the Fairmont Ghia.





Despite these looking like a completely new headlight, Ford achieve that look by keeping the back half of the headlight assembly, then capping it with a new front lens and bezel treatment. Futura and Fairmont used the chrome bezels, which I thought gave the front end a dopey look. No, it was the blacked-out bezel treatment that I loved. I remember one journalist at the time calling them “broody”, well, that and the word sinister come to mind every time I see one of these cars on the road or in pictures.





Chrome for comparison –



Thinking back further, I have always liked blacked out headlights. On the AU III Fairmont I had as my first car, I fitted a set of those dot-matrix headlight covers to give the car a tougher look. I tried to find an image of those, but I don’t think they are made now, from memory I got them from Autobarn.

When the FGX Sprint series was unveiled, I instantly wanted a set of those blacked out headlights for my own XR8. Again, they gave the car an angry look, which I guess was appropriate seeing as the Falcon was mere months away from being euthanized.





So, after all of that waffle, we arrive at the Mustang’s headlights. Before Ford launched the configurator for S650, I landed on a website that allowed you to pick and mix various styling elements. At the time, it wasn’t clear what the local cars would get, while using that website was not an accurate guide, but it did give the opportunity to see what the car looked like in different configurations. The following images were what I was playing around with.







It became clear that those blacked out headlights were what I wanted. I knew they were intended for the Darkhorse, what I didn’t know was they would also appear on the Night Pony Package (Black Pack here). Once Ford Australia started to drip feed details of the car, I knew that I would be ordering the Black Pack………………..for those headlights alone! You will also note I was toying with a different colour, I loved Atlas Blue and how it would give the car a different look. But with the Black Pack, Race Red took on a different persona when comparing to the car I already had. The following images are what I fixated on for nearly two years.





Now, having said all of that, I don't necessarily dislike the standard headlights, I really like those three chromed J-hooks and how they link up with the tri-bar DRL's. They give the car a classier look, whereas I was aiming for that sinister attitude.





When I spotted that first image sent to me by my salesman, those tri-bars beaming back from those blacked out eyes, I knew I made the right choice. Then when I arrived to see my new baby in person, then seeing both headlight versions side by side, I was hooked.













So yeah, nearly 700 words to say that I like black bezel headlights. In defense, I place a big importance on how a product looks, and I then find myself fixated on certain design elements. In terms of cars, for S550, it was those two raised hood bulges, crisp body side lines and those big angular hips. And on S650, its those mean looking, angry, sinister headlights that are imprinted on my brain.

 

[Big DaveBig Dave is verified member.]

You made the right choice Deyon, headlights with the full chrome look don't do it for me either. The only silver part inside a headlight assembly should be the reflector.

When I bought the FJ it had the plastic headlight protectors, they looked rubbish, and they made it difficult to wash the lights and indicators. They also had a silver painted ring on them, and it would have looked rubbish when I painted the grill surround a darker colour, so they were the first thing I removed.

 

[Klasse Act]

You made the right choice Deyon, headlights with the full chrome look don't do it for me either. The only silver part inside a headlight assembly should be the reflector.

When I bought the FJ it had the plastic headlight protectors, they looked rubbish, and they made it difficult to wash the lights and indicators. They also had a silver painted ring on them, and it would have looked rubbish when I painted the grill surround a darker colour, so they were the first thing I removed.
View attachment 137172

DAAAAAVE

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[DFB]

You made the right choice Deyon, headlights with the full chrome look don't do it for me either. The only silver part inside a headlight assembly should be the reflector.

When I bought the FJ it had the plastic headlight protectors, they looked rubbish, and they made it difficult to wash the lights and indicators. They also had a silver painted ring on them, and it would have looked rubbish when I painted the grill surround a darker colour, so they were the first thing I removed.
View attachment 137172

Good to have you back!

 

[DFB]

So, there will be a pause in content for a while. That infection has landed me in hospital. If there is one benefit to having type one diabetes, you tend to get fast tracked through the emergency department. Still, it’s all about waiting, waiting, waiting.

 

[Klasse Act]

So, there will be a pause in content for a while. That infection has landed me in hospital. If there is one benefit to having type one diabetes, you tend to get fast tracked through the emergency department. Still, it’s all about waiting, waiting, waiting.

Damn Deyon, this sucks to hear and I hope you get well soon

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