If it’s straight-line speed you want, the 2013 Mustang delivers it - in spades. This car was designed to make sticking to the speed limit practically impossible. It’s also more user-friendly than an iPad. Just touch and go. Sheer simplicity, or immediacy, is its M.O.

I got a primer in this when I slithered into the low-slung seats, hit the gas and shot off like a crazed Red Rum at the Aintree Grand National, bucking all over the shop as it tore down the lane.

It’s not as sport-tuned as the Chevy Camaro - suspension and turning feel loose, with plenty of roll - but even the 3.7-liter, 305-horsepower V6 DOHC that I drove offers enough undiluted testosterone to compensate for the lack of refinement.

At 8 kilometers per liter (18.8 miles per gallon) in the city, and 11.6 on the highway, fuel economy is not just going to sting your budget and the environment. It’s downright shameful. But do you really care about Greenland’s receding ice shelves anyway?

Those who like their vodka Red Bulls with a double shot of the former can tune it up with another 50 horses for a cool million won ($895) or so. Medicine of this kind should push the 180 kilometers-an-hour (111 miles-per-hour) top speed into the more respectable 220-range.

Straight from the dealer, it’ll still get you from 0-100 kilometers per hour just shy of six seconds, while chucking in 280 Newton meters of torque for good measure. The model, launched here last summer, retails from 42.1 million won for the coupe to 48 million won for the convertible.

As it approaches its 50th anniversary, Ford’s mighty muscle car somehow manages to look slick while also lacking finesse - it seemed bulky and crude beside a yellow Corvette Grand Sport Coupe outside my office, the wing mirrors don’t retract, and the manual handle to recline the front seat was a bummer - but you don’t buy a Mustang if your hobbies include hitting the nail salon and watching Meg Ryan romantic comedies.

The brand has yet to win over Korean motorists, many of whom still see American cars as big and brutish - kind of like Americans themselves. But for guys who like to stack the weights at the gym, watch old Knight Rider re-runs and generally feel like Thor in a lightning storm, the Mustang ticks all the right boxes.

Winning design elements include its red LED taillights split into three distinctive bars, body-color side rocker bars, a semi-transparent roof panel ? which creates a unique driving experience, unlike a sunroof or cabriolet - and the classic tiger-leaping hood.

The engine growl is butch and manly, but I wanted more, and the engine sonics pale in comparison to the sniper-like reports, explosive punches and generally menacing sound of a Panamera, even though it’s just plain wrong to compare the two.

Sport mode adds oomph, but the difference isn’t huge because standard is already raring to go. Flicking to six-speed select shift kills some of the numbness that Ford still needs to iron out. Also, at 1,625 kilograms (3,582 pounds), it might be time for the Mustang, a rear-wheel drive, to Google the word “Atkins.”

In terms of appearance, my opinion changed depending on my vantage point. While the lopsided front-back proportions can look truly outstanding, the pronounced front grille, splitter and logos and script plastered over the vehicle may generate more mixed reviews. The pony emblem that projects from the wing mirror adds novelty.

Legroom for rear passengers gets very desperate very quickly if a six-footer is in the driving seat, and the rear side windows are smaller than the screen on your Galaxy Note 2.

However, the seats are amazingly comfortable, cargo space in the trunk is more than ample, Bluetooth and USB connectivity are both excellent, as is the navigation system and DMB, courtesy of a 4.2-inch LCD screen, a nice new touch from Ford. Track Apps is a nifty function that provides access to performance metrics. Much of this can be navigated by a five-way control button on the steering wheel.

But most importantly, even if the Mustang is not quite up to the standard of the new Dodge Viper, you can still take it on an epic chase flying over the hills of the Mission District of San Francisco a la Steve McQueen in “Bullitt” (1968). And if you’re super lucky, Jacqueline Bisset will be waiting for you when you get home.
 

 

한글 관련 기사

남성미 폭발 '2013년형 포드 머스탱'… "너 내꺼하자!"

● 2013년형 포드 머스탱 출시…'4210만~4800만원'
● 쿠페(4210만원), 컨버터블(4800만원)

포드코리아는 2013년형 머스탱을 출시한다고 8일 밝혔다. 가격은 쿠페형이 4210만원, 컨버터블은 4800만원에 결정됐다.

2013 뉴 머스탱은 HID로 교체된 헤드램프에 더해 차량 후면은 LED 테일램프와 고광택 검정색 패널을 배치했고, 도어 하단의 로커패널 또한 차체 색상과 같은 색을 채택했다.

또한 3개로 분할된 램프가 차례로 작동하는 머스탱만의 고유한 시퀀셜 회전 시그널램프와 잠금버튼 해제 시 머스탱 포니 엠블럼이 차량 주위로 투영되는 포니 프로젝션 퍼들램프 등 놓치기 쉬운 부분에도 섬세함이 더해졌다.

머스탱 최초로 탑재된 계기판 상의 4.2인치 LCD 스크린과 서브우퍼 2개와 8개 스피커로 이루어진 쉐이커 오디오시스템 등도 눈길을 끈다.

정재희 포드코리아 대표는 “많은 이들이 포드하면 머스탱을 떠올리고 있으며, 특히 2013년형 뉴 머스탱은 눈길을 사로잡는 강렬한 외관과 더욱 향상된 테크놀로지, 퍼포먼스로 나만의 개성을 잘 살려줄 스포츠카를 찾는 이들에게 더욱 매력적으로 다가갈 것으로 기대한다”고 밝혔다.