Had the pleasure of driving a 5.0...

[B-Rex]

...a buddy of mine is busy for a while and asked me to drop his '11 5.0 off at his house. I didn't rag it out, but i compared it to my SS. We both have similar mods: CAI, Exhaust, Tune, M6. Granted I'm completely biased, but these are my thoughts.

Here's how I compare the two:

Throttle Response: Camaro > Mustang. I felt like I had to put the gas pedal halfway to the floor to get any kind of action. I'll chalk that up to not being as familiar with the 5.0 transmission as I am with the SS.

Acceleration: Camaro = Mustang. The mustang felt a bit smoother (maybe its the suspension, but more on that below) but not any faster or slower than mine.

Top end: Camaro > Mustang. I judged it from a downshift at about 65 mph. The mustang felt a little flat and seemed to "float" compared to the SS.

Suspension: Camaro >>> Mustang. It is like a night and day difference. It felt like I was sliding along on a stack of marshmellows or something, very squishy. There was a lot of play in weight transfer and it just seemed squirrely to me.

Interior: Looks: Camaro < Mustang. Function: Camaro > Mustang. The interior seems a little bit more polished, and the cup holders have the cool blue ambient lighting built in. One major problem though, my elbow kept getting gouged by the handle to open the center console. The guages were harder to read, but then again I've got a HUD

All in all, it wasn't a bad ride, but just solidified for me that the camaro is the better car.

As far as track performance goes, he and I were both running 14.3s, 14.2s etc pretty consistently untill he got a pair of slicks and dropped to a 13.1 (remember were up here in colorado, the elevation kills our performance.) Needless to say, I already have slicks planned, he just got his before mine lol. Point being, in a straight line we perform similarly untill the slicks get involved, so i think it comes down to a personal choice, but the Camaro seems to have so much more of that muscle car feel to me.

...Huge wall of text, I know, but im bored at work....

[Nightfall]

Originally Posted by B-Rex

...a buddy of mine is busy for a while and asked me to drop his '11 5.0 off at his house. I didn't rag it out, but i compared it to my SS. We both have similar mods: CAI, Exhaust, Tune, M6. Granted I'm completely biased, but these are my thoughts.

Here's how I compare the two:

Throttle Response: Camaro > Mustang. I felt like I had to put the gas pedal halfway to the floor to get any kind of action. I'll chalk that up to not being as familiar with the 5.0 transmission as I am with the SS.

Acceleration: Camaro = Mustang. The mustang felt a bit smoother (maybe its the suspension, but more on that below) but not any faster or slower than mine.

Top end: Camaro > Mustang. I judged it from a downshift at about 65 mph. The mustang felt a little flat and seemed to "float" compared to the SS.

Suspension: Camaro >>> Mustang. It is like a night and day difference. It felt like I was sliding along on a stack of marshmellows or something, very squishy. There was a lot of play in weight transfer and it just seemed squirrely to me.

Interior: Looks: Camaro < Mustang. Function: Camaro > Mustang. The interior seems a little bit more polished, and the cup holders have the cool blue ambient lighting built in. One major problem though, my elbow kept getting gouged by the handle to open the center console. The guages were harder to read, but then again I've got a HUD

All in all, it wasn't a bad ride, but just solidified for me that the camaro is the better car.

As far as track performance goes, he and I were both running 14.3s, 14.2s etc pretty consistently untill he got a pair of slicks and dropped to a 13.1 (remember were up here in colorado, the elevation kills our performance.) Needless to say, I already have slicks planned, he just got his before mine lol. Point being, in a straight line we perform similarly untill the slicks get involved, so i think it comes down to a personal choice, but the Camaro seems to have so much more of that muscle car feel to me.

...Huge wall of text, I know, but im bored at work....

The only thing i don't believe is that your friends with a mustang owner . JK JK JK in all seriousness that is a nice compare between the two i don't fine you too biased at all i would not mind trying a V6 mustang or charger (2011 model) to compare them to my camaro. Given the chance i would jump all over it just to see. Nice post

[B-Rex]

None of my buddies up here drive camaros; 2 mustangs and 1 challenger lol

[Nightfall]

Originally Posted by B-Rex

None of my buddies up here drive camaros; 2 mustangs and 1 challenger lol

that sucks on the bright side at least you have all three modern muscle cars going for a cruise. One of my goals i want to do one day

[builder11150]

Lol at the Camaro handling better than the Mustang.

[xXSilencerXx]

Originally Posted by builder11150

Lol at the Camaro handling better than the Mustang.

Live axle vs. IRS, the Camaro should handle better except that the weight will hurt it. It's not like that 3rd gen, or my 4th gen that couldn't make a turn at 20 mph stock.

[builder11150]

Originally Posted by xXSilencerXx

Live axle vs. IRS, the Camaro should handle better except that the weight will hurt it. It's not like that 3rd gen, or my 4th gen that couldn't make a turn at 20 mph stock.

IRS does nothing except on bumpy roads. Not only is it weaker, but it is also more expensive. The Mustang does handle better, and several car magazines back it up. IRS isn't as great as everyone thinks it is.

Also, I think your underestimating the handling of the thirdgens. I don't have a problem taking a turn at 50. The 3rd gens have better handling than the 4ths. 4th gens just have a more comfortable ride. I'd even go as far as to say mine would handle better than the current SS with some simple mods.

[RS_Man]

Originally Posted by builder11150

The Mustang does handle better, and several car magazines back it up.

I believe that answer is an OPINION to whomever is driving the car at that current moment. Track numbers are one thing, but numbers arent completely accurate, and tho's not to say those "car magazines" arent biased? Each person has their likes and dislikes when it comes to steering and handling and he was letting us know his opinion.

[B-Rex]

This was just from my experince. I learned when I was pretty young to take what car magazines (or any magazine) says with a grain of salt. Taking 90 degree turns from a dead stop, maneuvering through traffic, going from a red-light to go time...i'd choose the camaro over the mustang based off of how it feels.

[ffrcobra_65]

Originally Posted by builder11150

Lol at the Camaro handling better than the Mustang.

Well, the OP probably hasn't heard that the 2011 5.0 is close to the M3 in handling in a roadcourse and way ahead of a Camaro. Perhaps the OP has a different taste for handling. I agree though, for daily driving, the Camaro would be my pick. Weekend canyon carving and roadcourse, Camaro stays in the garage.

[zevo]

Originally Posted by builder11150

IRS does nothing except on bumpy roads. Not only is it weaker, but it is also more expensive. The Mustang does handle better, and several car magazines back it up. IRS isn't as great as everyone thinks it is.

Also, I think your underestimating the handling of the thirdgens. I don't have a problem taking a turn at 50. The 3rd gens have better handling than the 4ths. 4th gens just have a more comfortable ride. I'd even go as far as to say mine would handle better than the current SS with some simple mods.

Yes. Live axle is the pinnacle of automotive suspensions. That's why ferrari, lamborghini, porsche, bmw and mercedes and all racing series use it. I think I will go carve some corners in my Z71 since it is superior to my camaro.

[ducq]

That's why mustangs are switchingto irs

[8cd03gro]

The mustang is switching to IRS for comfort, which is what the OP is talking about I assume, unless he was sliding through turns at 75mph on the streets. It doesn't need to have IRS to compete with the camaro and challeneger in the handling department, it already does very, very well with the SRA.

[Mr CLuTcH]

The mustang is switching to IRS for comfort, which is what the OP is talking about I assume, unless he was sliding through turns at 75mph on the streets. It doesn't need to have IRS to compete with the camaro and challeneger in the handling department, it already does very, very well with the SRA.

Which would imply, in it's current condition, Ford knows it's "uncomfortable". I'll admit the 5.0 doesn't need IRS to compete with the Camaro or the Challenger especially, but it does need something to improve it's ride quality. To me, the Camaro and the Challenger both have great smooth rides with nothing really lacking in performance. All three of these cars are very close performance wise, neither one is in an entirely different league than the other, so I think we should all just agree whatever car we choose as the overall "better" is up to personal preference. +/-'s.....

Well, the OP probably hasn't heard that the 2011 5.0 is close to the M3 in handling in a roadcourse and way ahead of a Camaro. Perhaps the OP has a different taste for handling. I agree though, for daily driving, the Camaro would be my pick. Weekend canyon carving and road-course, Camaro stays in the garage.

Being close to the M3 in handling on a selective road-course doesn't take the Mustang out of the muscle car league and into high-price super-car range, sorry. Despite however it does against the M3 doesn't remove the fact that it and the Camaro are still in the same league performance wise. Stock vs Stock these cars are not light-years ahead of each other, but on the contrary, very close. So technically that wouldn't make it "waaay ahead" of the Camaro. You want "way ahead" of the Camaro? Buy a Grandsport.