With our schedule jumping us around from Livonia to Ann Arbor to Milan, Warren, downtown Detroit and other places, it served to put the car through a four-day "liveability" test. The State of Michigan has fallen behind on road maintenance, because that budget is shared with the snow removal funds and those were sorely tested this past winter.

You can take that to mean that this liveability test was rather more extreme than may be encountered in the better parts of Florida, California and Texas. Our faith in the Roush product was again reinforced, as this blazing red, white-striped tester passed with flying colors.

The supercharged 4.6-liter engine is rated for 430 HP and 400 ft-lb of torque at the flywheel. You would need a dyno chart to see how broad the torque band is, making the car entirely suitable for city driving.

At the wheel of another Roush Stage 3 a couple of years ago, we were able to learn the road course at Waterford Hills by simply leaving the car in third gear and concentrating on 'hitting the marks' - now, that is torque that is usable!

The interior of the Mustang improved significantly when the 2005 model was introduced and Roush Performance has taken it even further. The rebolstered and reskinned front seats improve both support and comfort. The Roush shifter for the manual transmission is solid and provides both tactile and audible feedback.

The car's suspension is upgraded to handle the massive 18 x 10-inch wheels and tires, but in a fashion that fortifies road manners while preserving ride quality. On the highway, exhaust drone is virtually non-existent and intrusive road noise is left behind for lesser vehicles.

Previous testing has shown the Roush Stage 3 Mustang to be a 13-second car at the drag strip, with 12-second timeslips only waiting for a pair of drag slicks. From any measure, this Stage 3 Mustang from Roush Performance delivers the goods without compromise.

In the city, at the strip, on the road course or highways, you can choose how you want to live with this car and you won't be disappointed.

The only painful part of the experience was giving the keys back on Monday.