It has the Holy Trinity – manual, rear-wheel drive, and a V8.

Jack Holmes

I loved my E36 M3. Loved it. And for a time, I was determined to keep it as a second car =(

But I got promoted. And alas, before ICE (internal combustion engines) become relics, I was determined to own an American V8.

And what a V8 Ford shoved into the S550 GT350!! 8,250 redline. 526 horsepower. 5.2L displacement. Flat-plane crankshaft.

This thing is special. It reminds you of a Ferrari V8, but those are too small and high-pitched. It burbles like a big-block American V8, but it’s too light, refined, and crazed. It is somehow both.

Even after I became a car enthusiast, I never pegged myself as an American muscle car guy. And I still have little interest in a true muscle car (think the current Dodge Challenger line-up). But the current Mustang is, in my opinion, more European sports car than even the current generation M3. The GT350 is faster, more charismatic, louder, better-handling, and more unapologetic. And if nothing else, it’s nastier.

Yes, I prefer the clutch pedal feel of my M3. Yes, the GT350 is all exhaust noise, and I miss the induction noise of my old M3. But nothing matches the sonic experience and sheer power of taking my GT350 down a track straightaway.