Dreaming of spring

It’s January, when a motoring enthusiast’s fantasies turn to convertibles cruising through the crisp, spring air.

When snow is on the ground and no imminent decision is required it might be the best time to plan a purchase. You can kick tires, virtually and literally, safe in the knowledge you can shut down a persistent salesperson with, “Look, it’s not like I’m ever putting winter tires on it, so I’m in no rush.”

It’s with that tempered expectation I look back at my time with the 2026 Mustang GT Convertible, my steed for travelling from Toronto to Hockey Valley Resort for the 2026 Canadian Car and Utility Vehicle of the Year awards TestFest event.

Several times, particularly when leaning into the V-8 connected accelerator and hearing one of the world’s perfect exhaust sounds, the words of Will Smith in Independence Day came rushing to the fore: “I have GOT to get me one of these!”

It’s a guilty pleasure, I must admit. At a time when the federal government is still clinging, unrealistically, to a 2035 timetable for 100 per cent sales of zero-emission vehicles, when some people fervently demand that nobody, ever, needs more than four cylinders — if any at all — it’s easy to feel like a pariah.

Still, as someone who both grew up in the era of Dodge Challengers, Pontiac Firebirds and early Mustangs, as well as understands the need to moderate emissions, I recognize Ford’s V-8 of today is vastly cleaner than V-8s of the past.

Back when emissions weren’t even a concern, when emissions control was largely limited to crankcase ventilation, when 1969 Dodge Challenger V-8s delivered fuel consumption in the high 30s in litres per 100km, it’s not hard to extrapolate emissions were far, far worse than today, even if no statistics were kept at the time.

The stated average for the 2026 Mustang GT is 13.4 l/100 km. Still high by today’s standards but light years ahead of those muscle cars of yore. The V-8 of today actually has better fuel economy than those 1970s fuel crisis models, such as the underpowered, underwhelming Mustang Mach II.

Enough guilt-tripping. If it’s really eating you, take a look at the Mustang EcoBoost: still with 315 horsepower and 350 lb-ft. of torque, it records a miserly average of 9.1 l/100 km.

What the Mustang has is style, power and handling, enough to make it the best-selling sports coupe in Canada, according to Ford numbers. The Mustang sold 3,695 models in 2025. Ford touts the GTD model as being assembled in Canada, but that’s only partially correct: it starts life as a Mustang in Flat Rock, Mich., before being shipped to Multimatic in Markham, Ont., for transformation into a race-ready street car.

The GT has a Canadian-made 5.0-l V-8 delivering 480 horsepower and 486 lb-ft. of torque. Mine was mated to a six-speed manual, but a 10-speed automatic is also available.

I’ve long been a critic of putting too much into touchscreens: they require full attention at times when your attention needs to be on the road, but in the Mustang, the screen works pretty well. You can use voice commands for most functions and adjust others while stopped. The right controls are brought out to actual buttons.

Perhaps less than ideal is putting climate controls on the screen: you’re likely to want to adjust these while driving.

Also not ideal is needing multiple operations to turn on heated seats: instead of pushing the icon until the desired level of heat is on, you push the icon and then slide another icon to set the level. Fine when you’re stopped, but not great when you’re now warm and want to turn it down. Other climate control functions operate similarly.

Mustang, even in convertible form, has an advantage for normal folk many sports cars lack: trunk space. The convertible, due to the roof folding into the trunk area, has less space than a coupe, but still enough that you can get a set of golf clubs or two, or suitcases, to the country club or weekend getaway. Try that with a Miata, 911 or Boxster.

With a starting price of $41,325 — $67,025 for the GT Convertible — and decent power even in the base engine, Mustang provides an attractive entry point into the sports car genre.

You may, however, wish to opt for the “My other car is an EV” licence plate holder option …

kelly.taylor@freepress.mb.ca