2010 Ford Mustang GT

At 50 feet, it's the scowl that grabs you first. A steeply raked grille and partially shrouded foglights provide a menacing squint not seen in a generation of ponycars. Get closer and the 2010 Mustang GT appears shorter, wider, and lower than the previous generation, a visual trick achieved by adding blackout rocker panels and carefully elevating a few body lines. It sounds contradictory, but the flared-up haunches and stepped hood seem to lower the car and trim its overall length. Those sculpted hips and the slight forward tilt of the rear end also add character and visually (not actually) shorten what was a long and featureless rump.

Hop inside, twist the key, and the new GT roars to life with a familiar lean and throaty rumble. Tap the throttle, and a low menacing thunder rolls forth from about a yard ahead of your crotch. Hold down the pedal, and this resonance immediately expands to fill the cabin. Dump the clutch, reposition your foot gently on the brake, and a perfectly good set of Pirellis quickly sublimate into billowing clouds of white smoke.

Would Detective Lieutenant Frank Bullitt approve? Probably not. After all, that's his legacy you're messing with. Beneath the fancy new skin of the 2010 Mustang GT is a chassis and V-8 powertrain pulled directly from the 2008 Bullitt. Frank, you see, was a driven man, one who would rather use the GT's 315 horsepower and 325 pound-feet of torque for chasing hooligans, not showing off like one.

Good thing the 2010 Mustang GT is quick. It hits 60 mph in 5.2 seconds, a tenth quicker than the previous-generation GT. The quarter mile arrives in 13.7 seconds at 103.7 mph, two tenths quicker and 2 mph faster than the 2008 GT we tested in December 2007. (Editor's Note: These figures are preliminary estimates in a pre-production Mustang GT and not final performance numbers, stay tuned for a complete, fully-instrumented test in the near future)

Frank might sneer at those numbers, for the 2008 Bullitt hit 60 mph in five seconds flat and blew through the quarter in the same 13.7 seconds as our new GT (though 1 mph slower). It's worth noting that the Bullitt had a 3.73 final drive and 18-inch wheels, while our GT has optional 19-inch tires and the standard 3.31 axle ratio, which Ford expects will help add a point to both the city and highway fuel economy numbers.