“Makes a great boat anchor.” That’s how our editor-in-chief, Angus MacKenzie, neatly summarizes the V-6 engine in the 2010 Ford Mustang. The so-called “Cologne” six, produced by Ford of Germany in varying displacements for more than FOUR DECADES (currently it’s a single-cam, 4.0-liter), is rough, noisy, and underpowered (210 horses) and probably cheats on its taxes. Single-handedly, it knocked the Mustang out of contention for our 2010 Car of the Year award (the V-8-powered Mustang GT and GT500, in contrast, earned raves). We admire this motor like we admire Balloon Boy Dad.

But now — and none too soon — it’s gone. For the 2011 model year, starting this spring, the Mustang jettisons the stinky Cologne in favor of a sophisticated new DOHC 3.7-liter V-6 that banishes the taint of its predecessor like a rainbow after a hurricane. Ford graciously provided MT with an exclusive, preproduction ride (no wheel time yet, though) at the maker’s Arizona Proving Grounds.

We brought along the Mustang’s two primary V-6 rivals to glean a few general impressions.
Everything the 4.0-liter six wasn’t — refined, highly efficient, smooth, powerful — the new 24-valve, 3.7-liter unit is. A version of the Duratec six that also powers the Lincoln MKS and the Mazda CX-9, among others, the Mustang 3.7 boasts such advances as twin-independent variable cam timing (TiCVT, which provides up to 60 degrees of control on the intake side and up to 50 degrees on exhaust), a forged-steel crank, piston-cooling jets, and a die-cast aluminum deep sump that allows 10,000-mile oil-change intervals. Horsepower jumps into a different league entirely, from a wimpy 210 in the 2010 car to a romping 305 horses in the 2011 (note that the new six tops the Camaro V-6′s 304 horsepower — and nearly matches the output of the V-8 in the 2010 Mustang GT). Torque swells as well, from 240 pound-feet to 280.

Mustang fans will thrill to a redline that now hovers at a screaming 7000 rpm (up from 6250 rpm in the 4.0) — and to know that burned gases are now routed through genuine twin exhausts. Standard. The 3.7 also features such welcome extras as one-touch starting (i.e., a single turn of the key initiates automatic cranking, not to be confused with a pushbutton starter) and efficiency-enhancing fuel shutoff during aggressive deceleration.

Ford wasn’t content simply to upgrade the Mustang’s base mill. Also new are six-speed manual and automatic transmissions. Combined with the 3.7′s 95-horsepower boost in output, the six-speeds, Ford says, help drop 0 to 60 mph times by around 1.5 seconds. An optional 3.31 rear axle (a 2.73 is standard) should improve acceleration even more. Also up: fuel economy. Ford expects the manual to deliver 18/29 city/highway mpg (up from 18/26 in 2010) and the automatic to yield 19 mpg city and “at least” 30 mpg highway (a huge bump over the 2010 auto’s 16/24 mpg).

Article Source:   Motortrend.com