considering sellling the 95 and getting a 99-04. help me justify

strongly considering getting a 99-04 car or a 96-98 cobra. the cobras seem to be harder to find, especially low priced and low miled. 260hp vs 305hp. i know which one i want but all this is just a possibility.

give me some input, especially those who have either. my main concern of getting either of these is the cost of maintenance and parts. in my mind, these cars are harder and more expensive to fix but that be a myth?

99-04s seem to be getting more reasonable. i have seen several priced fairly. the latest i spotted today 2.5hrs away from where i live : 03 red GT 5 speed, 41,000 miles for $11k

if it was me, i wouldn't just buy a 99-04 gt, it would have to be a cobra or something else special edition like a bullit or mach 1. just not worth the added cost over your car for a 2v.

I wouldnt bother with a 2v or a 3v. Now the DOHC 4v's are fun but still will always love the good old 5.0!

Go drive one, then decide.
They have no lowend torque, not as fun imo.
Now modded, thats a different story, maybe a nice big KB s/c on top of the motor might give it that good ol 5.0 bottom end feel.

I have an 02 GT and let me tell you, for daily driving, nothing beats that super smooth 4.6L but that is what that car is for, just daily driving. To play I LOVE my 94 and would not trade it for the world, same goes for the 02' except I have no urge to go deep into the motor because it's serving it's purpose just fine, getting me aroung in a smooth comfortable ride with cols AC and almost zero concerns with the car. It looks nice lowered with the saleens and sounds pretty good with the flowmasters though.

i've driven one. i liked it. a steep gear should help some resolve the soft bottom end.

im thinking a 99-04 with a programmer, full exhaust, and a gear would be a little quicker than what i have now. i just have so much money already in my car and its still slow.

what will it cost you to upgrade? 2-5k$ depending on year? then another 2k$ to mod it?
3k will get you a nice hci, lots of hp and torque on the 5.0

Buddy of mine had a 00gt he bought new. He modded it and it was a good runner. He always wanted to put a 4v in it as the 2v was just harder to make power with. Sure you can bottle (he did), boost a 2v. But there is just more potential with a 4v...teksid block (older ones), forged crank, and heads that flow great stock just for a few.

He sold the mustang as he just really did not want to put the money into it to get it were he wanted.

He now has a 96 cobra. Much nicer car. He made the comment "I should have just bought one from the get go". Stock they make great power and with gears and some tires will run VERY well. His has gone like 13.1-13.3 with just 4.30's and ET DR. While still getting good mpg and that gear is fairly extreme for a street car IMHO. Also you get better brake's and rims out of the box as well. Even if you just keep it stock if your getting rid of your 5.0 for a 4.6 I would go 4v only.

$2700-$2900 parts
$800-$1000 installation labor
$600 dyno tune

$4100-$4300 out the door, not to mention a probable tranny update when the T5 craps out with 300whp

power is a concern, but not my main one. smoothness, nice paint, clean interior, mechanics, etc. these are also some considerations if i go 99-04

if attainable, the 4V would be the way to go tho

I priced this little package out a little white ago:

2001 Black/Black/Tan Convertible - 12K local to me (55K miles, could talk him down I bet)
Kenne Bell intercooled 2.1L Blowzilla Kit 9# - 5K
G-Force T5 (with the super tall 5th gear)- 2K
31 spline axles and auburn differential - 1.1K

The Kenne Bell Kit comes with the tune, so no need for that. Its also street legal with CARB certification. So for about 20K you are looking at a street car with 11 second potential and a drive train that will handle the torque. All of this is a true bolt on. Something to think about....

Adam

My 2003 went 14.0 stock, best time of 13.80 with a flowmaster cat back, tri ax, and a k&n with the silencer removed.

My 2001 auto went 14.20 with some flows welded in the stock exhaust and a cold air kit. 14.0 with an off road h. The off road pipe made a huge diff in the auto.

I would buy one based solely on the fact you can post in the 4.6 forums. Perhaps there you can have a constructive arguement like big boys do and the mods won't get all panty twisted and close the thread cause they hate the truth.



FWIW I just helped put on some longtubes on a friends 2v.....never again. Talk about a PITA

my mom had a 01 gt, very nice car, don't get me wrong, but it just doesn't have that raw power feel. It had a nice top end, but nothing like mine. i see your point about the newer interior/exterior/mechanics, but 5 years down the road you'll still have to update all that stuff like you have to do now for this car.

I'd sit down and think about what you want out of a car before purchasing anything. do you want something fun for the next couple years, then upgrade again or keep what you have for the next 10-15 and make it yours.

i had a 2001 gt vert. i loved it and it was beautiful. it was brand new. the motor was silky smooth. i thought it was fast, but that was my first V8 and if i drove another one now, i wonder what i would think aout it now ...

then it got totalled but a 16 year old girl who turned across traffic and right in front of me. i was very bummed.

then i bought a 96 gt. the thing was a dog. with 4.10 gears, third was alot of fun though

then i sold the 96 and got the 95 i have now. i have no regrets, except that my wife gives me !@#$ every time i try to spend a few minutes working on it.

if i were going back to a 99+, i'd definately get a 4v

i look at it like this.... sure im dumping money into my 95, but i dont have a note on it... its paid for, its mine... i wouldnt even bother with a 2v, theyre everywhere... u dont see many of our cars left at shows or on the strips(well, atleast for me this year @ car shows... one of the shows which is a big one every year, i was the only of my kind there...)

just my .02, but the cars paid for... make it urs... go nuts!

ive pro'd and con'd it over and over. but buying a car with less than 50k thats been taken care of would last me a long time without having to do major things minus routine maintenance. it will be a weekend car .

As stated previously the 99-04 are a good smooth everyday car.
I personally could't get rid of mine unless it was for a 96-98 cobra or a 03-04 (too expensive at the moment).
Keeping what you have or getting something newer you will still end up modding it either way.
Good Luck

something else that plays a part in this decision is insurance. i have ALOT tied up in my 95. even if i put full coverage on the car, if something happened the insurance company would only give me what the car is valued at. which is somewhere around $4240 (kbb value). i have well more than double that in the car. a 00 GT with 75k books $3000 higher. the cost of the cars vs the pay out of the coverage shows a difference. the tri monthly premium between a 95 and 00 really isnt much different either. ive looked into agreed value coverage for my 95 and it just isnt even affordable.

just another reason to question myself