SVTP Examines 2015 Mustang Quality Issueshttp://www.svtperformance.com/forum...-Early-2015-Mustang-Quality-Issues&p=14640136http://www.svtperformance.com/forum...-Early-2015-Mustang-Quality-Issues&p=14640136http://www.svtperformance.com/forum...-Early-2015-Mustang-Quality-Issues&p=14640136
The launch of the 2015 Mustang has not been the smoothest in FoMoCo history. Just ask anyone who has ordered a new and has yet to receive it due to several quality control delays. Still, Ford has pushed through the difficulties and cars are being delivered to dealers and customers. However, there are lingering quality issues you may not be aware of that afflict the very car you may be considering buying off the showroom floor today. Though quality has been improving as production has continued there are still a lot of cars out there with readily apparent defects. Here are a few of the issues we noticed on a few cars we inspected at a local Ford dealership:
Here is one of our test subjects, a base V6 auto.
This is the other car we will be looking at, a Premium GT.
This is the other car we will be looking at, a Premium GT.
Uneven Body Panel Gaps
Next time you see an S550 Mustang pay close attention to the panel gaps, especially on the hood and fenders. The gaps around the doors and decklid can be uneven as well. We've seen some wildly varying gaps on some of the earlier car, but things seemed to have gotten better as production rolled along. Still, as you can see in the pics below, 2015 Mustang purchasers should mind the gaps.
With my handy measuring device we can compare some panel gaps. This is the hood-to-fender gap on the driver's side close to the headlight. Pay close attention the center of the zero.
This is the same gap on the other side of the car. It is quite a bit wider.
This is the hood-to-fender gap by the windshield.
This is the opposite side. The hood isn't bolted on exactly square.
Let's take a look at how square the door is hung.
This is the top of the door.
This is the bottom, it doesn't sit flush.
One more comparison. Side one.
And side two. Note that the gap on this side is nearly twice as wide as the first.
Let's take a look at the hood to fender gap on another car. Side one.
Side two is massively wider.
Here is another example of a door not sitting flush.
This is the same gap on the other side of the car. It is quite a bit wider.
This is the hood-to-fender gap by the windshield.
This is the opposite side. The hood isn't bolted on exactly square.
Let's take a look at how square the door is hung.
This is the top of the door.
This is the bottom, it doesn't sit flush.
One more comparison. Side one.
And side two. Note that the gap on this side is nearly twice as wide as the first.
Let's take a look at the hood to fender gap on another car. Side one.
Side two is massively wider.
Here is another example of a door not sitting flush.
Orange Peeled Paint
Questionable paint quality has plagued Mustangs for years, especially the later New-Edge cars. While for has made great strides in the overall finish over the years, I still feel that there is a ways to go. The SVTP EcoBoost Mustang seems to have far worse orange peel than our 2012 GT project car. It could be that the Competition Orange paint simply shows the flaws more than Yellow Blaze, but nonetheless it is not attractive. Paint smoothness is certainly on place where Ford should strive for a little improvement.
Lighting is the key to getting a cleat pic of orange peel, and we didn't really hit it out of the park here. Still, you can still see that the paint is less than smooth on this rocker.
This is a little farther back view the same rocker. It gives a bit better view of the orange peeled paint on this section of the car.
This is a little farther back view the same rocker. It gives a bit better view of the orange peeled paint on this section of the car.
Cracked Paint
Speaking of less-than-desirable paint quality, you may want to check your recent 2015 Mustang purchase for cracks in the paint. We found this lovely little crack in the drip rail on the roof of the SVTP EcoBoost Mustang. A little touch-up paint will take care of it, but it's something new owners cognizant of. If this crack were left untreated it could lead to a flaking issue if exposed to water and a few freeze/thaw cycles. It's definitely something that you want to catch early.
This is a paint defect caused by an error in the application of seam sealer in the drip rail.
Adjusted Fenders (Touch-Up Paint on Fender Bolts)
I wouldn't call this as much of a quality issue as a sign of fixed quality issues. As mentioned above, 2015 Mustangs can have misaligned panels and uneven panel gaps. However, Ford has been working to address these issues at the factory by making adjustments to certain bits of sheet metal. One particular area that is easy to spot is the front fender bolts. You can tell because the factory line applied paint on the bolts has been broken and touch-up paint has been used to hide the work. I've seen pretty much every variation you can have of the bolts being tampered, from zero to all four upper ones, but nearly every 2015 Mustang I have seen has had at least one bolt loosened at some point. The quality of the touch-up paint application varies wildly too. Check it out next time you're under an S550's hood.
This is what a clean, untouched, fender bolt should look like.
This is what we have been finding. This fender has been adjusted and touch-up paint applied (sloppily) to the bolt.
This one looks to have been torqued, but not adjusted.
This fender bolt is pretty much as bad as it gets. Not only has it been busted loose and touched up once, the techs went back in a second time and then forgot to touch it up again.
It's a good idea to check the hood nuts too. These look fine, but your mileage may vary.
This is the SVTP EcoBoost Mustang. This one of the cleanest touch-up jobs I've seen. Due to the shade of paint the repair job is nearly invisible in most ligkt.
This is what we have been finding. This fender has been adjusted and touch-up paint applied (sloppily) to the bolt.
This one looks to have been torqued, but not adjusted.
This fender bolt is pretty much as bad as it gets. Not only has it been busted loose and touched up once, the techs went back in a second time and then forgot to touch it up again.
It's a good idea to check the hood nuts too. These look fine, but your mileage may vary.
This is the SVTP EcoBoost Mustang. This one of the cleanest touch-up jobs I've seen. Due to the shade of paint the repair job is nearly invisible in most ligkt.
Mismatched Interior Trim
We've seen several reports of cars shipping with interior trim features that do not match their equipment groups. We even heard of a manual transmission car arriving to a dealership with an automatic paddle-shifter equipped steering wheel. In fact, I suspect the SVTP EcoBoost Mustang may have the incorrect center console in it, but I have yet to confirm it. The stitching on the vinyl components of it does not match the stitching of the optional Recaro seats or door panels. I know that type of stitching is available on the console parts because I have a shift boot that matches the seats. I'm going to dig into this one more in the next few weeks and I'll post an update about my findings. In the meantime, be aware that these cars are produced on an assembly line and the possibility of getting mismatched components installed is very real. Be vigilant.
I suspect the SVTP EcoBoost Mustang came equipped with the wrong center console trim. You can see this extra shift boot we have happens to match the factory Recaros and door panel stitching than the boot that came in the car.
Here you can see that our borrowed boot matches the white/silver seat stitching far better than the factory equipped boot or center console with their black stitching.
The e-brake handle also has black stitching, which also doesn't match the Recaros or door panels. I said earlier that I suspect this trim is incorrect because I haven't been able to figure out what it takes to get this color stitching. No matter Ford's reasoning, I believe this particular car should have come equipped different console trim.
Here you can see that our borrowed boot matches the white/silver seat stitching far better than the factory equipped boot or center console with their black stitching.
The e-brake handle also has black stitching, which also doesn't match the Recaros or door panels. I said earlier that I suspect this trim is incorrect because I haven't been able to figure out what it takes to get this color stitching. No matter Ford's reasoning, I believe this particular car should have come equipped different console trim.
-SID297:beer:
