01 or 03-04 Cobra???? Please advise.....

[STREETRACEMY50]

Ive decided my next car will be a Cobra and i like the 01+ however im split on the fact that i dont know which one to get? I like the 01 because i could pay for one cash and have no payments and i would have money for mods but the drawback is that its much slower, or i could go for the "terminator" which would take care of the power issue but id probably have to finance $10k or so on one and wouldnt have much for repairs/mods.
Im really looking for something thats reliable,quick and somewhat newer(less than 10 years old) with lower miles, i put MAYBE 500 miles a month on my cars and most of that is grocery getting with the occasional messing around on a saturday night.
I have always owned fox bodies and have been somewhat leery of the modular engines due to reliability and cost of repair/replacement so out of the two which would be better? I heard the 01 romeo engines are weaker but ive also read about the "head tick" on the S/C cars, what about the trannys?? i do know the old t-5's were crap, are the 5-speed 3650 or 6speeds any better??
Any info/advice would be really appreciated
Thanks,
Rob.

 

[shoobs99svt]

Hey let me know if youre ever in the charlotte nc area (i see that youre in columbia) over a weekend and want to take a look at my 1999. Not a lot different motor/drivetrain-wise from the 01 (31 spline rear, thats it i think) but still IMHO the 99/01 has good potential for a cheap n/a car. 70k and no problems whatsoever, just preventative maintenance.

I was in the same situation when I bought mine 4 years ago... looking back sometimes I wish that I worked 3 jobs instead of 2 to make the payments on a Termi . Im very happy with the car and it's a blast to drive (coming from a noob), except now that im all tapped out with bolt-ons, it still wouldnt be close to keeping up with a stock 03/04 . As much as it hurts to say so, id go Termi FTW.

 

[coupeownerBE]

Hey let me know if youre ever in the charlotte nc area (i see that youre in columbia) over a weekend and want to take a look at my 1999. Not a lot different motor/drivetrain-wise from the 01 (31 spline rear, thats it i think) but still IMHO the 99/01 has good potential for a cheap n/a car. 70k and no problems whatsoever, just preventative maintenance.

I was in the same situation when I bought mine 4 years ago... looking back sometimes I wish that I worked 3 jobs instead of 2 to make the payments on a Termi . Im very happy with the car and it's a blast to drive (coming from a noob), except now that im all tapped out with bolt-ons, it still wouldnt be close to keeping up with a stock 03/04 . As much as it hurts to say so, id go Termi FTW.

+1 ... go term.. if you can find one for a good price 18k to 20k .. you can usually find one fairly priced.. or if you dont mind a sn-95 .. 96-98 cobras arent that bad.. I picked one up with just a lil hail damage for 4k.. and 87k miles..

 

[saleensonoma]

i like the front fascia on the on the 99-01 more than term. not alot ppl notice the diff but its alot more aggressive/mean lookin than term. Personally i would get the 01 and throw procharger or kb and other mods. like u said 10000 more for term but thats alot of mods in an essence. just my .02

 

[STREETRACEMY50]

Yeah i ended up buying a 99 because i got a deal on it, i ended up selling it a couple of months later because i didnt like it, i may get a term one day or another fox body i dunno??

 

[saleensonoma]

what didnt u like bout it

 

[anotherstangfan]

I have owned 2 foxbodies before the 01 cobra I bought a few months ago, so I know where you're coming from. If you want a fairly fast car that will still beat the majority of cars you see on the road then the 01 will suffice. Throw some gears and bolt ons and you have a pretty quick car for thousands less than 03/04. of course you lose out on the supercharged fun and the 6 speed which is a better tranny than the one in the 01 which is notchy at times esp when cold. I would try to drive both and decide from there.

 

[95 yellow 5 0]

03/04. If you go and supercharge the 01, you're gonna have to worry about the internals holding up and the transmission breaking. You'll end up spending more money on the 01 trying to make it faster than a stock 03/04. The value will go down more and more on the cars so you'll end up dumping over $10k into the 01 and having it worth nothing when you're all done with it.
If you want something in between, get a mach 1, or look for a modded mach with a T56. It goes as a GT on insurance and is faster than a stock 01 cobra (same motor with an intake and iron block).

Next time I get back into a mustang it will be 1 of the 3; a 1998 Bright Atlantic Blue Coupe that has some GOOD mods like forged internals and/or a T56, 285+ tires on the back; A Mach 1 with forged internals or a T-56, big tires, or an 03/04 Cobra priced right in the 500rwhp range.

 

[saleensonoma]

im more of a turbo guy so i would end up doin internals anyway plus i need the intake off 99+. if u go with term u could always do a compound boost setup(sc and tc together). thats always bada$$

 

[NotoriousGT350]

03/04 Terminator! Nuff said