Piston Slap: Preserving the Poseur Package Pony

Sajeev Mehta
by Sajeev Mehta

Chris writes:

Hi! I really enjoy TTAC and especially the Piston Slap feature. I have a 2005 Ford Mustang Convertible with the V-6/Automatic “poseur” package (super optioned out with a lame ass driveline). Despite the slushbox, I really enjoy this car. It’s been 100% problem free.

I work from home, so the car only has 23,400 miles on it. Most maintenance schedules are stated by mileage, but my car is driven so little, it has original brakes, tires, etc. To my credit, I have been religious about oil changes every 3 months (regardless of mileage).

Now that the car is nearing 6 years of age, do you have any recommendations on maintenance I should perform based on age as opposed to mileage? I’m getting ready to drive from Florida to California, so this seems like good timing to be pro-active to avoid any breakdowns.

Sajeev Answers:

First off, 3 month oil changes aren’t even recommended for cars that see brutal daily commutes. FoMoCo uses a synthetic blend oil, plus its hard to find pure dino oil anywhere: the 3 month oil change interval is far from relevant to just about every circumstance. Including yours. But enough wrist slapping, let’s answer the question.

First, kudos to you for being so forward thinking: other fluids can be changed proactively. A coolant flush is a good idea and there’s a (slim) chance that water has contaminated the brake fluid too. But the rubber on your Mustang is the big problem. Check the serpentine belt for cracking or glazing. Vacuum lines can be on their way out, but it’s not terribly likely. The big problem are your ancient tires. Not only are they hard and slippery after that many years on the road, they are noisier and tougher on your car’s ride too.

My advice? Flush the cooling system and get new shoes for your ‘lil Pony. Those are timely and necessary upgrades. Enjoy your poseur ‘stang and don’t let us catch you slapping 5.0 badges on its fenders.

Send your queries to mehta@ttac.com

Sajeev Mehta
Sajeev Mehta

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  • Steven Lang Steven Lang on Jul 29, 2010

    I am going to disagree with the group here... Tires tend to have a very long life in Georgia and Florida. Our roads are smoother. The weather is more temperate than most of the US. Also, I would even think that this car was garage kept which should weigh down the degradation levels of the tires. I've had 8 to 10 year old tires on vehicles with no problems. Chances are if there is going to be any issues, it may be due to the tires being out of round or leaking. Both of which I doubt in their case. Unless she drives like a maniac, those tires should have plenty of life left. If it makes them feel better they can buy a new set during Black Friday and be done with it.

  • PoseurPony PoseurPony on Jul 30, 2010

    Hey Y'all! I'M THE OWNER OF THE SUBJECT CAR... firstly, to those of you that assumed "Chris" with a "poseur pony" was female, um... guess again. I'm currently writing you from the planned trip - in Phoenix right this moment. I submitted the question several weeks ago but they didn't run the response until I was already on my way. I'm happy to see such a lively discussion about the tires... just FYI, my Mechanic had the car on a lift and showed me the dry-rot on my tires. They were shot through with cracks... 3 years in southern california and two in Tampa Bay left them with great tread but lots-n-lots of cracks. All the rest of the rubber/vinyl checked out fine... I also had an oil change, air filter replacement, coolant flush and alignment before my trip. Unfortunately, I should have also gotten wipers changed... it rains ALOT in Texas. The car is awesome... looks like a million bucks (white with black top, red/black two-tone leather interior, chrome "ben-hur" wheels) but lame enough that I haven't gotten a speeding ticket. My last car was an RX-8 and I got 3 tickets in 18 months with that!

  • Dukeisduke Is the Volvo EX30 even on sale yet? It was pulled from the NACTOY awards because they were having software problems with the vehicle.
  • Wjtinfwb If you've only got 5k to spend on transportation, I cannot imagine a worse way to spend it than on a GM orphan from Sweden that's 15 years old with 150k on the clock and limited plus expensive parts availability and dwindling techs who'd even want to work on it. Go find a similar vintage Camry or Accord with 150k miles or even a Ford or a Chevy, whatever. Hell, even an old Jaguar is less of a crapshoot than a Saab. At least you can still get parts.
  • Kwik_Shift Brands that were considered from China include BYD, Dayun, Great Wall Motors, Maxus, Nio, Omoda/Chery, Seres, XPeng, and Zeekr. KG Mobility from South Korea also made the list of candidates.That's a lot of car companies from there ready to head here.
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  • Mikey 2019 Chevy Impala Premier FWD with 20 inch factory Bridgestones. I'm looking at replacing tires at the 65,000 KLM's (40,000 miles ) mark ....It doesn't thrill me .. I'm pricing Michelin Cross Climate 2 tires ouch !! ..Up here in Canuckastan ....Big $$$$$
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