The new Ford Mustang face with what will be one of its main rivals, the BMW 435i. We traveled to Beverly Hills to see who is the best.

The new Mustang will be sold in Europe as any other Ford, which had never happened before in the fifty years of life of this iconic American sports. And despite having a price that will be placed above it sold in the US, version 2.3 Ecoboost will still be below European competitors with the same power level as the BMW 435i. an authentic automotive shock cultures. On one side, a sport created to bring sportsmanship not only to the common level of the Americans, but now the rest of the world. Another, a German luxury product that bases its reputation on sophisticated engineering. Is there anything in common? They have a similar power with 314 hp for the Mustang 2.3 Ecoboost and 306 hp for the 435i; and an acceleration from 0 to 100 km / h in just over five seconds. On paper the benefits are similar, but in practice?

We go to Beverly Hills

This particular match was held in Los Angeles, where the Mustang was introduced to the world press, with pictures taken just at dawn in the famous neighborhood of Beverly Hills, one of the richest in the world. Alerted by the surveillance camera home, a local resident did not hesitate to go outside in shorts and slippers, just to see the new Mustang. He passed the BMW without turning his head, and grabbed the wheel of the Ford for getting a “selfie” saying: “I have to buy one of these. To my son I would love! “. Despite being a “cheap” car in the United States (25,170 dollars), the Mustang awakens many memories even among the richest.

Side By Side, Ford makes the BMW look small, and nostalgic design -Tendency the American model just started following ten years ago has a lot of details that keep their appearance. Much more than clean and aseptic style Series 4. We can say that BMW gave us the 435i at the door of Sunset Marquis, a discreet hotel in West Hollywood, but full of history. There have been received the biggest stars in the world of pop music. However, the 435i is, as you can see in the photos, a convertible. Perhaps the BMW was waiting for the Mustang convertible, which will be released at the same time as the closed version, but was not yet available for testing. But that was not a problem.

Seated at his controls

It is in the passenger compartment where the clash of cultures actually materializes. BMW has a flawless construction, reference materials, careful assembly and with great sophistication elements, such as i-Drive. In the Mustang, plastics are almost all medium quality, some up to a Fiesta. Console commands are unintuitive, despite being more basic. There is less space in the front seats and the rear seats are shorter and lower in the Mustang. The BMW Series 4 accommodates four adults with comfort.

The sound of the new engine 2.3 Ecoboost Ford lets us hear nothing; not as we had imagined it would sound the Mustang. True showing availability from low revs, without much response time of the turbo and Getrag manual gearbox six relations, despite firm demand, not an obstacle. The driving position is good, even better on the unit tested was equipped with Recaro seats, while the steering wheel has a generous size. The suspension has a good level of comfort on uneven floors, so commuting on the wide streets of Los Angeles or from one state to another is easy and … glamourous, because even in Los Angeles with passers accustomed to see in the area some of the best and most expensive cars in the world, had continued estusiastas looks to the Mustang.

Because there are so many BMW by this city, the 435i went unnoticed. But behind the wheel, the driver feels faster, something that is not given by its smaller size, but most steering precision and automatic bright box eight relations. The suspension appears stronger because it is better controlled and the driver can select various driving modes (Eco Pro, Comfort, Sport and Sport +) also alter damping. In the Mustang different driving modes (Normal, Sport, Track and Snow) altering accelerator, ESP and an address that can be individually adjusted in three levels can also be chosen. The truth is that in the BMW are more differences between the various modes in the Mustang, which are very similar.

engines

Leaving Los Angeles, mountains road, 2.3 Ecoboost quickly shows us that prefer the media to high, where he “can not breathe” schemes. It is not uncommon closer to the red line inadvertently and above 5,500 rpm no longer pays much more. Since the maximum torque of 44.3 mkg reaches 3,000 rpm, the operating band for sports is not very large. By contrast, the six-cylinder 435i shows an incredible will to climb regime beyond the beaten showing softness in the shallows. The feeling created is to have more power than the Mustang. But the key is weight: the Ford weighs 100 kilos more.

The truth is that it is not only the nostalgic style of the Mustang. Somehow its dynamic adjustment also refers to memories that buyers may have the older models. As for the Series 4, it is clearly better. But it is also more expensive and lacks a difficult aspect to define and that only the Mustang has: charisma.