The 1960s and early '70s are remembered by many car enthusiasts as the glory days of the American muscle car—those pavement-ripping, tire-shredding, rumbling V8-powered domestics that could blast screaming from stoplight to stoplight, as long as the road stayed straight. As you might guess, finesse really wasn't part of the formula.
Don't get me wrong: I've got nothing against muscle cars, and in fact I'm part of the generation that grew up with
Pontiac GTOs and Plymouth Road Runners on the brain. But a funny thing has happened in the 40-odd years since various hot Chevrolet Camaros, Dodge Challengers, and Ford Mustangs burbled their way to the drive-in on Saturday nights and to the drag strip Sunday mornings: technology, as it tends to do, has marched on.
We just tested a V6-powered
Chevrolet Camaro and
Ford Mustang for the
October issue of Consumer Reports magazine, and found, among other things, that both put out more horsepower than many V8s from the muscle-car era, all the while delivering faster acceleration, better cornering, and much better fuel economy.
Back in 1970, Consumer Reports tested a Mustang Boss 302 (shown above), a high-performance model inspired by racing Mustangs of the era. A comparison of the Boss' performance versus our new Mustang V6 is something of an eye opener. Keeping in mind that testing methods and engines have come a long way in the last 40 years, and that horsepower ratings are now more conservative than they used to be, here's a look at how the Mustangs stack up.
| | 1970 Mustang Boss 302 | 2011 Ford Mustang V6 |
| Drivetrain | 4.9-liter (302 cubic inch) V8, 4-speed manual transmission | 3.7-liter (226 cubic inch) V6, 6-speed manual transmission |
| Horsepower* | 290 (SAE gross) | 305 (SAE net) |
| Vehicle weight | 3,335 pounds | 3,540 pounds |
| Acceleration, 0-60 | 8.0 seconds | 6.2 seconds |
| 1/4 mile time | 16.0 seconds | 14.8 seconds |
| 1/4 mile speed | 93 mph | 98 mph |
| Overall fuel economy | 11 mpg | 24 mpg |
| Braking, 60-0 mph | 130 ft. | 134 ft. |
*Horsepower figures based on testing standards established by the Society of Automotive Engineers. Horsepower ratings were "SAE gross" back in the day, meaning that the rating was based on an engine unencumbered by things like an alternator, water pump, and other equipment that an engine needs to function in the real world. A more realistic approach took hold in the early 1970s, known as "SAE net" that better approximates that parasitic demands on the engine and reflects performance of an installed engine. (A more precise approach has been implemented in recent years, known as SAE Certified Power.) All this means the new V6 has significantly more horsepower than the old Boss 302 if measured to the same standard.
The fact that we measured a shorter stopping distance with the Boss 302 is more of a head scratcher, and it probably has something to do with the different testing methods and facility used at the time.
Still, the statistics make for an interesting comparison. I like old Mustangs, but new ones do tend to show them who's boss.
Got a passion for muscle cars? Check out our new Mustang vs Chevrolet Camaro video.
—Jim Travers
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