05-09 Mustangs. I spotted this vert below last week and I thought it looked a bit sad.
While I do have my quips with certain design elements of the S197 (and the S550 - even though I'm partial to it), the dark blue and black combination doesn't pop, and the center license plate adds clutter to an already busy front end.
Try this by comparison. Lousy camera angle, but the tan top makes it pop:
Same combo as the original image (sans black wheels), much better camera angle:
Granted, the more aggressive front ends of the later S197 models may make the original seem a bit dull, but I prefer the flatness of the original '05-09 bumper and it's proper headlights.
Incidentally - one thing I can't get used to is the S197 convertible roof side profile. It honestly looks as if the designers plopped the SN95 roof on top of the new bodystyle (until you get to that beautiful wide rear window, which is purely S197). It also emphasizes the one huge problem of this bodystyle: Just like the SN95s, the beltline is a wedge. A hidden, very straight wedge, but still a straight-from-Japan-4-door-sedan-hell wedge. The rockers also look like a cheap bodykit - wish someone would make a kit to roll them under the body rather than that hovercraft look.
The S550 convertible roof does look more unique, but it takes too much out of the rear deck when paired with the sharply angled tailight panel (honestly,
it looks Gremlinish from some angles) - and the fact that the S550 does have a hidden, fat beltline becomes very obvious with the lower roofline.
-Kurt