Well I'm not sure if I'm posting in the right forum or not but hopefully someone can point me in the right direction. But anyways heres my story and questions. I have about 20,000 to spend on a car (so basically looking for a used one.) I've looked at many of the Mustangs but the GT / standard are too slow and not appealing enough to me so I'm looking in the Cobra range. I'm guessing with 20k I'm not going to be able get a newer cobra but 2000+ (the newer body style) I'm looking for. Anyone know if I could get a regular cobra or a convertible for around that price? Another thing is reliability... how reliable are Cobras and how good are the younger years like 2000 and up? Don't flame if I sound like an idiot... just trying to get some basic info before I make my car decision. I probably have more questions but hopefully that will help out.
Have you considered a MACH 1?? I know you may have your heart set on a COBRA but from what I hear (no flames here, I may be wrong) the 99's had minor problems that were eventually addresed by Ford, which made for a model year skip for 2000 (once again, I may be off here, but I think they skipped 2000, just made an R) 01 Cobras would probably be your starting point and from a price standpoint, you may be able to slide into a newer Mach 1 for approximately the same $$$.
You should have no problem getting into an '01 for under 20K. I paid right at 20 for mine a year and a half ago with 28K miles on it. I've heard talk of coupes coming in around the 17-18K range these days, so I suspect that you could get a convertible with 20 to spend. I drove a brand new Mach I before I bought my Cobra. Nice car, but I had my heart set on a Cobra. Be patient in your search and you can find an '01 with relatively low miles in excellent shape for a good price. Not sure what '03's or '04's are running for these days, but it would be tough (read that as next to impossible) to get into one of those puppies for anything less than 30K. Good luck!
