Speed dating the steed: Ford Mustang

Somehow I have never enjoyed one-night stands. They are too quick for my liking and hardly come with any baggage... After all, what’s the fun in engaging with someone if you can’t marinate in some twisted emotional potboiler! So when Ford invited me to try out the Mustang at the Formula One track, I knew that this was going to be one of those quickies that I would definitely regret. Regret I did, but not because of the opposing party I was engaging with, but purely because its pull was too hard for me to resist and say no to. So, against my better judgement, I said yes and landed at the track with my art director cum photographer cum car freak in tow.

So there we were at the track which was abuzz with streaks of red and yellow. The air was peppered with the sweet growls of several 5.0 litre V8 engines. Their revs were charging up the atmosphere and I could witness seasoned automotive writers wetting their pants in glee. And then I saw it… exiting the curve of the track, and entering the straight line with a slight drift that made the tyres squeal. With the rains lashing on the track, the Mustang was carving its way with the typical swagger of the quintessential American muscle cars.

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Totally charged up, I was all set to rip and roar on the track. I simply got behind the wheel, gave up all thoughts of gentle foreplay and just jammed the accelerator to the floor. And boy, oh boy… the steed did rumble. It started off by giving me a nasty whiplash and, before I knew, had crossed the three figure mark and the speedometer kept on climbing. With a nice curve up ahead, I slammed the brakes and drifted right out of the corner into the straight for another quick shot of speed.

And this, my friends, went on for six straight laps. Though I was left utterly dissatisfied by the overall time spent with the Mustang, it did give me a glimpse of what automotive heaven looks like. As for my art director cum photographer cum car freak, he was left drooling away in the pit lane. Now I need to figure out how to make him happy!

From the September 2016 issue of FHM India.