3.7 L v6 mustang Great engine!!

[Longwong]

So I had a minor cosmetic repair needed on my M so its in the shop for a few days and got a loaner which was pleasantly surprising to be a new 2012 V6 vert mustang. I had not known anything about the new v6 but heard good things. Sadly all the prior v6's were absolutely lame and it always made me wonder how they can make such a crappy v6 engine. I read some specs and info about this 3.7 V6 masterpiece and it has a lot more tech than our s65. It obviously has all the DOHC, 4 valves and variable intake/exhaust more than the s65 or bmw VANOS has. It has a ton of oil squirters and channels throughout all the components of the valvetrain and pistons etc for great cooling. It has no idler pulley and runs the A/C and alternator only during non full speed engine runs. Has electric power steering so no drain there. Variable oil pump that sounds really advanced beyond the s65.

And if anyone is interested check out a dyno graph, this thing has a flatter torque curve than the m3! obviously only revs to 7k but it is literally flat from 3-redline. Makes completely linear power and has a very similar delivery of power to an m model. Puts down 260 whp. I had the vert as well which is way heavier but still pulled strong.

BUT the killer is the gearing absolutely sucks. Way way too tall final drive and gears. It literally talks about the wide-ratio 6 speed auto and its savings on gas mileage which sucks. 1st takes you to 45 mph, 2nd takes you to nearly 75. So once you are in the last 2k rpms in the powerband, the engine is great, however you spend so much time out of the powerband that unless you are at certain speeds and RPM range, the engine is a slug until the powerband. But once in it, it is a masterpiece.

Really would have loved to see what bmw could have done with a high-revving 8400 rpm 3.8 litre V6. Obviously not in this era but when 420 hp was a lot, it would have made a cool engine. Not as cool as the s65.

For a stang the new coyote engine is obviously great and this engine is awesome. Its light too. 3400 pounds. Goes neck and neck with the 335i in stock form and has MUCH better power delivery rather than the low end punch and top end flop. If this engine was available in a bmw 328 or 335 options it would be such a winner with a close ratio 6 speed or 7 speed. Gearing on the stang really would do wonders.

Responds great to 91 and makes about 15 more hp so actually puts down about 275 with 91 which really is exactly what a 335 puts down just to give you a sense of how quick it is. Sounds great too.

Certainly no huge rush to get my m3 back, atleast for a few days!

[Cidle]

Originally Posted by Longwong

So I had a minor cosmetic repair needed on my M so its in the shop for a few days and got a loaner which was pleasantly surprising to be a new 2012 V6 vert mustang.

Certainly no huge rush to get my m3 back, atleast for a few days!

How is the fit n finish of the interior?
Engine sounds decent, what oil does it call for?

[Longwong]

Fit and finish suck as expected. The stang in general while is a performance competitor of the m3 in V8 trim, the inside is absolutely not nearly on par. I had a 5.0 last year for a week. It feels like you are in a tank and the wheel is crappy, steering is really light and gauges just look dated. Supposed to be retro I guess.

Oil is 0w20 in the v6 which is interesting and helps contribute to smoothness and power as well as mpg

Certainly a satisfying car to drive and that says a lot coming from an e9x m3 owner! To think a v6 mustang would be enjoyable a few years back to an m3 owner was a joke but not anymore. If they can get the interior on par, the future stangs will easily compete with the m3s

[Ezio]

Originally Posted by Longwong

Fit and finish suck as expected. The stang in general while is a performance competitor of the m3 in V8 trim, the inside is absolutely not nearly on par. I had a 5.0 last year for a week. It feels like you are in a tank and the wheel is crappy, steering is really light and gauges just look dated. Supposed to be retro I guess.

Oil is 0w20 in the v6 which is interesting and helps contribute to smoothness and power as well as mpg

Certainly a satisfying car to drive and that says a lot coming from an e9x m3 owner! To think a v6 mustang would be enjoyable a few years back to an m3 owner was a joke but not anymore. If they can get the interior on par, the future stangs will easily compete with the m3s

my good friend has a 5.0L, and its got a intake,full exhuast(long tube headers and cat back /dyno tune. it sounds great and really fast. but i actually hate driving it. the steering is WAY to light, and harder to see out of.

you buy a mustang you are trying to get the most bang for your buck. overall i do not like them! they lack in so many areas. but people are to ignorant to see past the 1/4 mile and HP numbers... thats why i didnt get the GT500, you get a cheap feeling inside of it. i want to feel good in a car, not be faster than everyone. lol

[ridin135]

The V6 is a good motor you just have to worry about the driveshaft exploding on you. I owned a modded 11 5.0 for 5 months 4 of which it was stored for winter. It's got a great motor and is a nice car, but it just feels like you are driving a boat.

[Longwong]

TP you are one miserable person aren't you! Must really suck to be you

0w20 is what they use. Its a pretty light weight oil which means less friction. If you don't know that much you are really not qualified to even be signed up for this board!

I didn't know the driveshafts go on the v6? I has hardly any torque in terms of snapping a driveshaft so that is surprising.

And completely agree with the steering. It is extremely sad that they could not make the driving experience better. Especially since its electrical, they could have made a few settings atleast.

I agree it feels like a huge boat, the driving experience is not fun but the engine itself is spectacular. In a smaller 3200 pound car with proper gearing it would be a monster

[The Automotive Enthusiast]

Originally Posted by Team Plutonium

What is it with you and the oils? What makes you qualified to make those "ridiculous" statements? Any credentials?

I've been wondering the same thing. This dude trolls other people's threads and seems to get off on the subject of oil.

[1MOREMOD]

i too had a 2013 vert v-6 mustang for a few days when my x5 was getting some body work done. only part i enjoyed was the push button drop as i have never had a vert. it was summerish so used it every day. tech is lacking, engine so so, not particularly comfortable and as noted tough to see out of. had some track funtions such as zero to 60 that i played with as well. did notice the extra power due to its fantastic oil choice.

[LucWerkz]

Originally Posted by Team Plutonium

What is it with you and the oils? What makes you qualified to make those "ridiculous" statements? Any credentials?

Look at his username

Originally Posted by Longwong

TP you are one miserable person aren't you! Must really suck to be you

0w20 is what they use. Its a pretty light weight oil which means less friction. If you don't know that much you are really not qualified to even be signed up for this board!

I didn't know the driveshafts go on the v6? I has hardly any torque in terms of snapping a driveshaft so that is surprising.

And completely agree with the steering. It is extremely sad that they could not make the driving experience better. Especially since its electrical, they could have made a few settings atleast.

I agree it feels like a huge boat, the driving experience is not fun but the engine itself is spectacular. In a smaller 3200 pound car with proper gearing it would be a monster

TP lives in Upstate NY and drives a C2S...I think he's doing pretty well..

[happos2]

Originally Posted by Team Plutonium

What is it with you and the oils? What makes you qualified to make those "ridiculous" statements? Any credentials?

Originally Posted by Longwong

TP you are one miserable person aren't you! Must really suck to be you

0w20 is what they use. Its a pretty light weight oil which means less friction. If you don't know that much you are really not qualified to even be signed up for this board!
I didn't know the driveshafts go on the v6? I has hardly any torque in terms of snapping a driveshaft so that is surprising.

And completely agree with the steering. It is extremely sad that they could not make the driving experience better. Especially since its electrical, they could have made a few settings atleast.

I agree it feels like a huge boat, the driving experience is not fun but the engine itself is spectacular. In a smaller 3200 pound car with proper gearing it would be a monster

0W-20 oil translates to the engine running smooth? And then you call someone else out on the board regarding an oil comment. What a cliche. This has got to be explained. I don't mind the rest of Longwongs posts in this thread, but this comment is complete garbage.

Using 0W-20 which some automakers are doing now (subaru, honda, etc) gives about a .5-1% better gas mileage. Not going to notice, but you are correct, anything above 0% is better, but these numbers are nothing to boast or probably don't need to be mentioned. Whatever on that though.

However, as for the engine running smoother...this is a flat out wrong. And what do you mean by smooth? Less Vibration? In the aircraft engine industry, we use heavier oils than 0W-20 and but I can guarantee you that our engines run "smoother" than a cars.

I also wouldn't straight up and say the V6 in the Mustang is much more techniclogically advanced than the S65 power plant. I don't get butt hurt when people dis the M3, every car has advantageous and disadvantages and I am not loyal the BMW, rather loyal to how a car drives which the M3 has everything I want. Compare a 2008 M3 S65 powerplant to other engines at that time, it was given the international engine of the year award. I don't see the V6 getting this award (rather eco-boost seems to be hogging Fords awards). Just because it has oil flowing through passages for cooling and such, doesn't make it all that great. The S65 doesn't overheat currently so there was no need to design and pay for the R&D and this type of technology has been around for a LONG time (just not implemented when a cheaper yet effective design solution exists)

I write all of this just to point out that blanket statements can be dangerous and distribute wrong information.

[Robertyu]

The 3.7 may look fine on paper, and dyno decently, but here is my take on it. I've been driving the V6 premiums as rental cars for the last couple of years, 2 weeks out of each month as I travel a lot.

I'm sorry to be negative, as I'm not happy about coming off this way. I hate this motor. It has decent output, but is buzzy and unpleasant sounding. it always feels like it is under great strain under full throttle, and that's with me feeding it premium as soon as the rental full tank is gone. The transmission is partially to blame, but I still do not like the way the engine feels, and the car does not pull like a 300hp car should IMO.

The 335 has a much more pleasant feel to the engine, far smoother, and in my experience, is a faster car, even stock for stock. I've owned a 335i, and I've compared them both in the same conditions.

The Mustang only seems like a willing performance car with the 5.0. People have asked me what I think of the Mustang Premium V6s I drive, and my best explanation is "It's the slowest feeling and nastiest feeling 300hp car I've personally driven. It feels and sounds so strained at WOT, it just gives me a lousy feeling driving it hard"

Boy am I going to get it for saying all of this, and I feel bad for saying it, but I feel compelled to say the truth about my experiences with this vehicle.