Ford Mustang High Performance 2.3L Convertible 2020 Review

A bitterly cold Melbourne day hardly seems the best time to be doing it, but mulling over the merits and demerits of the 2020 Ford Mustang High Performance 2.3L Convertible brings up the same philosophical question it always has: Does a four-cylinder engine have any place in a Mustang?

Lower-powered Mustangs are not a new thing. Over the years Ford has explored many market-driven directional changes with its storied pony car, including a major second-generation downsize in the 1970s which, along with a wimpy four-cylinder engine option, made it more a puny car.

That best-forgotten era is fortunately all behind it now. Yet questions about the validity of a non-V8 Mustang are still being asked.

But you know what?

If you left out the always-present, alluring V8 throb that is such a part of the Mustang GT’s character, there’s plenty about the four-cylinder High Performance (HP) variant that is appealing too. And that includes not just its performance, but also the way it sounds.

And the savings, in initial purchase price and running costs, are worthwhile too.

The Mustang GT, in the premium sports car zone, might be almost bargain-priced, but the four-cylinder 2020 Mustang HP convertible, at more than $14,000 below its V8 equivalent, is even more of a bargain.

At $60,790 plus on-road costs for the 10-speed automatic version (unlike the HP 2.3L Fastback, no six-speed manual is available), the 2020 Ford Mustang High Performance Convertible is about $1000 more expensive than its EcoBoost predecessor but brings an uplift in both performance and handling abilities which are more than compensation.

Cosmetically, the interior is further refined with upgraded internal trim materials, a customisable digital instrument display and an aluminium backdrop complete with a plaque inscribed with an individual serial number.

Leather trim, and the option of Recaro front seats continues, and there’s standard Ford SYNC 3 functionality along with sat-nav, Apple CarPlay/Android Auto and self-dipping LED headlights.

The front seats are heated, cooled and power-adjusted with the peculiar Ford mix of electric fore-aft, lumbar adjustment but manually-operated seatback recline.

There’s also a bit of GT V8 in the 2020 Ford Mustang HP via its adoption of the more-pugnacious front spoiler and the addition of a red, white and blue badge on the left side of the grille.

The 19-inch alloy wheels, as per GT V8s, are now staggered, measuring 19x9 at the front and 19x9.5 at the rear but wearing the same 255/40ZR19 rubber (Pirelli P Zero on the review car) at each end. The GT’s rear tyres measure a wider 275/40ZR19.

The 2020 Ford Mustang High Performance 2.3L Convertible may be a notional four-seater, but the back pews, though nicely comfortable once you’re in place, are unnecessarily difficult to access.

Key culprit is a sticky, manual seatback lifting system that doesn’t factor in any forward sliding while you’re going through the motions.

Unlike the powered fabric roof that will activate in just 7sec, the front seats slide at a glacial pace.

Once that awkward insertion into the back seat is out of the way though, the 2020 Ford Mustang HP Convertible quickly ingratiates itself.

Overall, the quality of the trim is excellent and most of the switchgear, though hardly European, feels nice and tactile.

Parts fit occasionally lets it down, however.

More than we can remember of the previous EcoBoost four-cylinder Mustang, the upgraded 2.3-litre four-cylinder in the Mustang HP springs to life with an almost-V8 thrumming that leaves you expectant of what effect the minimal power upgrades (224kW to 236 and from 441Nm to 448, both at higher rpm and giving a wider torque spread than before) will have.

Especially when you are also aware that the gearbox and final drive ratios have been lowered as well.

It’s a pity Ford doesn’t readily provide any claimed acceleration advantages over the EcoBoost, which was credited with a zero to 60mph (97km/h) time of 5.4sec. But we do know the power-to-weight ratio has improved, from around 127kW/tonne to 134kW/tonne, and that’s before factoring in the response-friendly final drive and gearbox ratio adjustments. 

It’s not quite a ripping, slam-in-the-back experience, but flooring the HP Mustang is nevertheless thrilling, aurally and physically. It’s undoubtedly quicker, and doesn’t mind a bit of a rev.

The four-cylinder Mustang HP’s 53/47 front-rear weight distribution puts it on a slightly more balanced footing than the V8 (around 54/46) and the suspension is upgraded with heavier-duty front and rear stabiliser bars so, although most of us won’t detect it, there’s a slight difference in the way it handles.

The fuel economy advantages look better on paper. Against the official claim of 9.6L/100km, our Mustang High Performance Convertible regularly clocked in at more like 11.4L/100km. Given the lowering of the gear ratios and the extra engine output that’s not really surprising.

We did do a lot better in 2019 with an EcoBoost Mustang convertible which beat the formal claim by recording 9.3L/100km. Ford suggests the HP should be run on 95RON fuel, but gives the nod to an E10 ethanol mix as well.

This is the question for which Ford hopefully has the correct answers. Where a V8 Mustang, in any of its ever-escalating high-performance guises, is unquestionably exhilarating, the 2020 Ford Mustang HP, especially in convertible form, is more suited to cruising seaside esplanades than thundering along on the long and winding road.

If you can wrest yourself away from the V8 Mustang image, the 2020 Ford Mustang HP, in particular the convertible, is nicely suited to a boulevard stroll in front of an admiring audience that is out of proportion to what it represents in actual dollar value.

It’s undeniably a great-looking car and more than equals the original mid-1960s model (look for our coverage of a 1965 coupe in the classifieds section of carsales.com.au) for its impact on the streets. A Mustang for the poseurs? How dare you.

V8 or four-cylinder Mustang convertible? It all comes down to what that $14,000 price differential means to you.

In terms of road presence, physical and aural, there’s no question the 2020 Ford Mustang High Performance 2.3L Convertible is well endowed. It’s fast, nicely composed on the road, well-equipped and comfortable to live with.

But if the words ‘Mustang’ and ‘V8’ are inseparable for you, then you already won’t for a nanosecond consider anything less.

Then again, if your pony car priorities aren’t R-Spec weapons-grade and you have respect for decent, well-balanced performance, there’s not much to disappoint in the High Performance Mustang – convertible or coupe.

How much does the 2020 Ford Mustang High Performance 2.3L Convertible cost?
Price: $60,790 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Engine: 2.3-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol
Output: 236kW/448Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Fuel: 9.6L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 222g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Not tested