[jsd512]

Let's here the pros and cons of each and what your predictions are when these two meet. IMO, the 302 is a natural competitor for the 392 and the GT500 and Z28 are a natural pairing. What do you guys think? Keep it civil however.

 

[JonW]

I don't agree that the 392 and the Boss are competitors. In fact, I think they are at opposite ends of the spectrum. The Boss is based on the base Mustang V8, not the GT. It's devoid of body insulation, power seats, leather, thumper stereo, etc. No options will be available except Recaro seats and a Torsen diff. It's designed from the get-go as a lightweight track car. The 392 on the other hand is a heavy car with more of a frontal weight bias than the Boss. 392s come with a lot of equipment standard and most are ordered with lots of options. The 392 is more of a luxury touring car than a track beast. Comparing the 2 is like apples and oranges.

Ma Mopar needs to drop the 6.4 into a stripped down, lighter weight Challenger body to compete with the Boss. AAR Cuda anyone?

BTW, the Boss is going to be very limited availability. One or 2 per dealer per year.

 

[MikahB]

I'll put in my $0.02 with the disclaimer that I know next to nothing about drag racing - my thoughts come 100% from the perspective of road racing. In the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Challenge Series, the Challenger 392 will indeed compete directly against the Boss 302R Mustang, so I'm pretty familiar with some of these issues though I'm not an expert by any means on either car.

Engine - Advantage Challenger:
This one isn't as simple as it the numbers might suggest. 6.4L HEMI = 470hp/470lb-ft, 5.0L Coyote = 444hp/380lb-ft. Obviously the 6.4 has a huge advantage in torque, and it is indeed torque that wins races (horsepower sells cars). But, the Mustang has a 7500rpm redline versus the 6400rpm limit for the 6.4. In road racing, it's really nice to have a wider RPM range to work with, so the higher redline is nice. But, at the end of the day, GRAND-AM is making us run a restrictor to keep our power in check, and they're not doing that for the Mustang. So, there you go.

Weight - Advantage Mustang:
The Challenger is nearly 4100 pounds as delivered, the Mustang is about 3650 (apparently - I have not weighed one). That weight differential is huge for the as-delivered cars and, honestly, is the only reason the two cars are comparable. For our racing program, we are reducing the weight of the Challenger to about 3300 pounds (no small task, mind you) to basically eliminate this variable. The Boss 302R has to run at 3300 pounds as well, difference being they will be running lead ballast to make weight, we are spending gobs of money to run lightweight this and carbon fiber that to have a chance to get to 3300.

Transmission - Advantage Mustang:
Both cars run Tremec TR6060 based transmissions. The Mustang unit, however, has some advantages - at least for road racing. First is the 2.29 gearset they run - very close ratio gears that are nice and evenly spaced all the way up. The Challenger gears are spaced much wider and there is a big jump from 4th to 5th and again from 5th to 6th making those two gears almost useless for road racing. So, with everything else (tires, rear gears, etc.) set per the rules, the Mustang is running 2nd through 6th gears and we can only use 3rd through 5th - effectively a 3-speed fighting a 5-speed. The other advantage the Mustang has is that the shifter mechanism bolts directly to the top of the tailshaft. The Challenger is a "semi-remote" setup with part of the shifter attached to the unibody and the other part attached to the transmission. As the drivetrain moves relative to the body, the gates move around and can be harder to find. This can be solved by stiffer (or solid) drivetrain mounts, but that has other consequences (wheel hop, harshness, etc.).

Suspension - Advantage...?:
This is a tough one because I really believe both cars have excellent suspension packages. The geometry on the Challenger is really good and the car handles better than it's size and weight should allow. The Mustang also carves corners really well, so in the end the difference (again, for what we're doing) will come down to who tunes the suspension better. There are a lot of variables and finding the sweet spot is a real challenge.

Exclusivity - Advantage Challenger:
Pretty simple here - I see about 1 Challenger for every 10 Mustangs that I see, maybe even less than that. The popularity of the Mustang is also its downfall in this respect - there are just a ton of them out there. Every Challenger I see turns my head, it takes a special Mustang for me to even notice.

So, there are some thoughts from somebody trying to really hard to make a Challenger (a little more than) equal to a Boss 302R in a venue where the Mustang holds many of the cards.

 

[huggytree]

i dont think theirs any doubt the Boss 302 will be faster than the 392.....ive read that the regular 5.0 is under rated, so id assume the Boss 302 will also be....it weighs less and may have a similar HP..since the normal 5.0 already ties 0-60 the 392 you have to assume the Boss will be a few tenths faster...

comparing a 5 passenger car to a 4 passenger car is apples to oranges though

 

[TommyGNR]

This goes back to the original Mustang vs Challenger argument. The Stang is a Pony car (its got 4 seat belts and you cant fit anybody in the back). The Challenger is a muscle car (its got 5 seat belts and you can fit adults in the back). The strengths and weakness of the two cars are completly different.

 

[theACE]

The Boss might be faster, but it lacks everything good about cars these days (power seats, navigation unit, heated seats, microsoft sync, glass roof, etc).

I would rather have a 392 than a 302 any day, I'd rather have good power and good creature features (392 Chally) than just an all out power fiend (Boss 302).

 

[bhayes335]

would a weakness for the 302 be that it looks like a blind clown painted it?

 

[HellRaiser]

You cant compare the two. The boss is designed to go crazy on a road course. The Challenger was not and that's fine with me 'cause that's not what I'm looking for.
There is nothing to compare new when you are looking for a Street Retro Old School Muscle Car. Nothing.
The mustang was designed with generic looks to please everyone from high school kids to 60 year old granny's. The Camaro looks like a womans shoe from the planet Pluto.
Gotta have looks, you can put performance into anything.

 

[Speedlogix-Sales]

Now, don't get the Boss 302 and Boss 302 Laguna Seca Edition Confused.

The Boss 302 is not a bare bones race car.

Here is the interior:

While the Laguna Seca is the bare bones race car:

Now I agree that the paint scheme is not for me. I see where they were TRYING to go with it. But I don't think they got there lol Leave the wheels alone LOL

But like other people have said - two very different animals. Creature Comforts - the BOSS is not for you. YOu want power? Then yes, a Boss would be good since it is lighter and smaller than the Challenger.

 

[theACE]

^^ True but Ford stripped down even the normal Boss 302, it might have 4 seats but all the real comforts it has is air conditioning and a base stereo, only options on the car are either Recaro seats or a torsen diff and floor mats. Not much creature comforts. Give me a 392 any day.

 

[Speedlogix-Sales]

^^ True but Ford stripped down even the normal Boss 302, it might have 4 seats but all the real comforts it has is air conditioning and a base stereo, only options on the car are either Recaro seats or a torsen diff and floor mats. Not much creature comforts. Give me a 392 any day.

Oh I agree there! the Challenger is the more comfortable drive for sure!

Its a toss up for me - I love the Challengers...for a DD they would be great.

But I also want the best bang for the buck in the power department the Boss wins.

 

[1sickR/T]

^^ True but Ford stripped down even the normal Boss 302, it might have 4 seats but all the real comforts it has is air conditioning and a base stereo, only options on the car are either Recaro seats or a torsen diff and floor mats. Not much creature comforts. Give me a 392 any day.

^^Yup. I agree. I would not a 302 until I get something more useful. I would never use a 302 as a everyday car, but would be an epic weekend warrior. BTW, I saw about the accident on the Mustang forums awhile ago and hope everything is fine.

There are not enough track days for the normal person to really make use of that car. Most of the people who are getting this car will probably never take it to a track either.
Knowing how dealerships raise the price of the GT500's and they get plenty of them a year, I could only imagine what they are going to do when they only get 2 of these a year. I could imagine they raising the price to 70k+.

I like the new mustang as a pony car, but I like the challenger more as a grand touring car.

 

[jsd512]

I know the two are different guys, but you know the magazines are going to pit the two against each other anyways. IMO, this is a tough call. The 392 has a stout, God-like torque curve while the 302 can rev with the best of them. When you sit in both of them, the 302 is all business while the 392 has creature comforts. From the outside, the 392 is a bit more sophisticated and sexy, while the 302 is more playful and boy-ish appearing. On a track the advantage goes to the lighter, more nimble 302, while on real roads the 392 soaks up the bumps. I think, again, that this will, as usual, come down to loyality and preference. It would be nice though, for the 392 to come out a winner in these comparisons.

 

[theACE]

Dude yall don't even have to worry about Mustang's, the Challenger will win in everyday driving....PERIOD. Unless yall are tracking the cars, Challenger FTW!

 

[theACE]

^^Yup. I agree. I would not a 302 until I get something more useful. I would never use a 302 as a everyday car, but would be an epic weekend warrior. BTW, I saw about the accident on the Mustang forums awhile ago and hope everything is fine.

There are not enough track days for the normal person to really make use of that car. Most of the people who are getting this car will probably never take it to a track either.
Knowing how dealerships raise the price of the GT500's and they get plenty of them a year, I could only imagine what they are going to do when they only get 2 of these a year. I could imagine they raising the price to 70k+.

I like the new mustang as a pony car, but I like the challenger more as a grand touring car.

quoted for the truth brother.

& yeah, dealers already tack 10 thousand dollar 'special vehicle market price adjustments' to the GT500's so they are going to RAPE anyone who wants to even test drive a Boss 302.

Thanks, yeah my car should be ready by Monday evening hopefully,