You're telling me you bought an 8 year old Mustang GT for $3900 bucks and it wasn't a pile? With all due respect, I call complete BS.
Right, but your car isn't what I wanted. FYI, stock cars are worth more than modified ones, and the last thing I wanted was someone else's modified problem with mods I may or may not have wanted.
While I think it's incredibly childish to bring up my thread in a discussion about new V6 Mustangs, as it has zero relevance to this discussion, perhaps I should remind you guys of a few things:
--I live in Japan, and bought the car from overseas. Not a lot of dealers were willing to deal with that. I needed a dealer willing to work with me. My dealer turned out to be more incompetent than I expected, but they did work with me and get the car in my driveway and in my name, from out of state, and while I'm 7,000 miles away. Living in Japan also basically rules out private sellers, I don't blame them for not wanting to send a title to me and trust that I'll transfer it over. I know when I sell a car, I make the guy I transfer it to go to the DMV with me to make sure he actually does transfer it so it's no longer my legal responsibility. I wouldn't deal with an overseas buyer as a private seller, nor would I expect one to deal with me. Obviously private sellers are cheaper, but I was basically limited to dealers. I also avoided a private seller to protect myself, because who's to say that they will send me the title after I send them the money? No guarantee there.
--I needed the car shipped. Again, some dealers weren't willing to bother doing this, even without mentioning I was overseas. I found a black '98 GT, 30k miles, all original, mint, in Alabama. Dealer wanted $10k before negotiation. Before even bringing that up, I asked about shipping. They told me I'd have to arrange it on my own, that they don't/won't work with me on that. Screw that, they want the sale, they can call a transport truck and arrange delivery.
--That car wasn't really what I wanted. Cloth seats, 16" wheels, no Mach 460. I wanted leather, 17" wheels, and Mach. They weren't going to drop their price from $10k to $5k. I highly doubt they would've went down to $7k.
--Again, even if I had wanted that car, it would've cost about $1000 to ship it. Same can be said for the few other cars I liked. Always in California, or in the south.
--I live in the north. We ALWAYS pay more for clean cars, end of story. The cheapness of cars in the south/west is negated by expensive shipping costs to the north. Shipping is also a bit of a hassle as it is, price aside.
--The car I bought is the car I wanted. Black/black, MINT, 17s, leather, 5-speed, 460. 2-owners, non-abused unmolested car. Not a single ding or scratch on it. This is also going to be a slightly more desirable Mustang than say, a Forest Green Automatic, and easy as pie to sell later. Gonna have to pay a little more.
--Once you factor tax savings on the lower price compared to the $10k the dealer wanted, I saved over $2,000 from what the dealer was asking. That's 20%. Dealers aren't going to give their cars away, and that was after a week of negotiating.
--That car happened to be in Iowa, just 300 miles away. This means it didn't cost me $1000 to ship it. It was exactly what I wanted, at a dealer willing to work with me, and literally a straight shot off the highway passing right through St. Paul. It was kind of a no-brainer.
Keep in mind, I had a lot more constraints on my purchase than someone living in the US. I did pretty damn good to get it from a dealer for $7800 with exactly what I wanted, and mint. I was willing to pay a slight premium to get exactly what I wanted in terms of color and options, and most importantly condition.
But as has been said, on the internet everyone pays some ridiculously low price for their car, and claims up and down it's super clean and mint. Sorry, I don't always buy that. Look around, here's what's currently on Autotrader, completely ignoring the $30k cars:
98 GT, 28k miles:
Cars for Sale: 1998 Ford Mustang GT in Willowbrook, IL 60527: Coupe Details - 290483705 - AutoTrader.com
98 GT, automatic, cloth, same miles, badly stained carpet, slightly warped rear bumper, $10k:
Cars for Sale: 1998 Ford Mustang GT Coupe in Waterbury, CT 06708: Coupe Details - 295435669 - AutoTrader.com
98 GT, 140k miles, $9k:
Cars for Sale: 1998 Ford Mustang GT in Milwaukee, OR 97267: Coupe Details - 297425178 - AutoTrader.com
98 GT, same mileage, it's a beauty but it's an auto with tan interior, and in California:
Cars for Sale: 1998 Ford Mustang GT in Sacramento, CA 95815: Coupe Details - 295086983 - AutoTrader.com
97 GT, 46k miles but tan interior, auto, permamark on the trunk lid from a dealer sticker, and missing a piece of ugly side trim, $8k:
Cars for Sale: 1997 Ford Mustang GT in Selden, NY 11784: Coupe Details - 295024362 - AutoTrader.com
98 GT, 74k miles, passenger door has a bad paint match, so probably hit on the side, and wires hanging out of the dash and pep boys pedals, $7350. Rest of the paint is difficult to assess. Condition just deteriorates from here at this price point:
Cars for Sale: 1998 Ford Mustang GT in New Philadelphia, OH 44663: Coupe Details - 294634728 - AutoTrader.com
See where I'm going with this? There are 50 more where those came from. I'm not sure where people are getting these $3k-$6k mint SN 95s with the options I've listed, I'd like to see some, because a nationwide search doesn't yield any. There isn't anything mint going below that, and even the above aren't really mint for the most part. Did I pay more according to some people on the internet? Maybe, but I certainly didn't pay out of line compared to what the rest of the cars are being listed at in reality. I certainly could've done a lot worse, but I don't really see where I could've done much better given what's currently on Autotrader, let alone with the constraints I had.
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Back on topic--All I've maintained is that a $30k V6 Mustang isn't worth it, IMO, and I've got people jumping down my throat about it as if to say I can't dare say a bad thing about Ford or have a differing opinion. Hell, I even agreed with the one guy on a couple points and he put me on ignore over a disagreement on the perceived value of a new Mustang? Instead of having a discussion, or addressing any of my points, he decides instead to just put me on ignore. At least I rationalized my thoughts as to why. If you disagree, that's fine, but at least have a civilized discussion about it rather than calling me a troll or putting me on ignore.
You're telling me you bought an 8 year old Mustang GT for $3900 bucks and it wasn't a pile? With all due respect, I call complete BS.
Right, but your car isn't what I wanted. FYI, stock cars are worth more than modified ones, and the last thing I wanted was someone else's modified problem with mods I may or may not have wanted.
While I think it's incredibly childish to bring up my thread in a discussion about new V6 Mustangs, as it has zero relevance to this discussion, perhaps I should remind you guys of a few things:
--I live in Japan, and bought the car from overseas. Not a lot of dealers were willing to deal with that. I needed a dealer willing to work with me. My dealer turned out to be more incompetent than I expected, but they did work with me and get the car in my driveway and in my name, from out of state, and while I'm 7,000 miles away. Living in Japan also basically rules out private sellers, I don't blame them for not wanting to send a title to me and trust that I'll transfer it over. I know when I sell a car, I make the guy I transfer it to go to the DMV with me to make sure he actually does transfer it so it's no longer my legal responsibility. I wouldn't deal with an overseas buyer as a private seller, nor would I expect one to deal with me. Obviously private sellers are cheaper, but I was basically limited to dealers. I also avoided a private seller to protect myself, because who's to say that they will send me the title after I send them the money? No guarantee there.
--I needed the car shipped. Again, some dealers weren't willing to bother doing this, even without mentioning I was overseas. I found a black '98 GT, 30k miles, all original, mint, in Alabama. Dealer wanted $10k before negotiation. Before even bringing that up, I asked about shipping. They told me I'd have to arrange it on my own, that they don't/won't work with me on that. Screw that, they want the sale, they can call a transport truck and arrange delivery.
--That car wasn't really what I wanted. Cloth seats, 16" wheels, no Mach 460. I wanted leather, 17" wheels, and Mach. They weren't going to drop their price from $10k to $5k. I highly doubt they would've went down to $7k.
--Again, even if I had wanted that car, it would've cost about $1000 to ship it. Same can be said for the few other cars I liked. Always in California, or in the south.
--I live in the north. We ALWAYS pay more for clean cars, end of story. The cheapness of cars in the south/west is negated by expensive shipping costs to the north. Shipping is also a bit of a hassle as it is, price aside.
--The car I bought is the car I wanted. Black/black, MINT, 17s, leather, 5-speed, 460. 2-owners, non-abused unmolested car. Not a single ding or scratch on it. This is also going to be a slightly more desirable Mustang than say, a Forest Green Automatic, and easy as pie to sell later. Gonna have to pay a little more.
--Once you factor tax savings on the lower price compared to the $10k the dealer wanted, I saved over $2,000 from what the dealer was asking. That's 20%. Dealers aren't going to give their cars away, and that was after a week of negotiating.
--That car happened to be in Iowa, just 300 miles away. This means it didn't cost me $1000 to ship it. It was exactly what I wanted, at a dealer willing to work with me, and literally a straight shot off the highway passing right through St. Paul. It was kind of a no-brainer.
Keep in mind, I had a lot more constraints on my purchase than someone living in the US. I did pretty damn good to get it from a dealer for $7800 with exactly what I wanted, and mint. I was willing to pay a slight premium to get exactly what I wanted in terms of color and options, and most importantly condition.
But as has been said, on the internet everyone pays some ridiculously low price for their car, and claims up and down it's super clean and mint. Sorry, I don't always buy that. Look around, here's what's currently on Autotrader, completely ignoring the $30k cars:
98 GT, 28k miles:
Cars for Sale: 1998 Ford Mustang GT in Willowbrook, IL 60527: Coupe Details - 290483705 - AutoTrader.com
98 GT, automatic, cloth, same miles, badly stained carpet, slightly warped rear bumper, $10k:
Cars for Sale: 1998 Ford Mustang GT Coupe in Waterbury, CT 06708: Coupe Details - 295435669 - AutoTrader.com
98 GT, 140k miles, $9k:
Cars for Sale: 1998 Ford Mustang GT in Milwaukee, OR 97267: Coupe Details - 297425178 - AutoTrader.com
98 GT, same mileage, it's a beauty but it's an auto with tan interior, and in California:
Cars for Sale: 1998 Ford Mustang GT in Sacramento, CA 95815: Coupe Details - 295086983 - AutoTrader.com
97 GT, 46k miles but tan interior, auto, permamark on the trunk lid from a dealer sticker, and missing a piece of ugly side trim, $8k:
Cars for Sale: 1997 Ford Mustang GT in Selden, NY 11784: Coupe Details - 295024362 - AutoTrader.com
98 GT, 74k miles, passenger door has a bad paint match, so probably hit on the side, and wires hanging out of the dash and pep boys pedals, $7350. Rest of the paint is difficult to assess. Condition just deteriorates from here at this price point:
Cars for Sale: 1998 Ford Mustang GT in New Philadelphia, OH 44663: Coupe Details - 294634728 - AutoTrader.com
See where I'm going with this? There are 50 more where those came from. I'm not sure where people are getting these $3k-$6k mint SN 95s with the options I've listed, I'd like to see some, because a nationwide search doesn't yield any. There isn't anything mint going below that, and even the above aren't really mint for the most part. Did I pay more according to some people on the internet? Maybe, but I certainly didn't pay out of line compared to what the rest of the cars are being listed at in reality. I certainly could've done a lot worse, but I don't really see where I could've done much better given what's currently on Autotrader, let alone with the constraints I had.
---------------------
Back on topic--All I've maintained is that a $30k V6 Mustang isn't worth it, IMO, and I've got people jumping down my throat about it as if to say I can't dare say a bad thing about Ford or have a differing opinion. Hell, I even agreed with the one guy on a couple points and he put me on ignore over a disagreement on the perceived value of a new Mustang? Instead of having a discussion, or addressing any of my points, he decides instead to just put me on ignore. At least I rationalized my thoughts as to why. If you disagree, that's fine, but at least have a civilized discussion about it rather than calling me a troll or putting me on ignore.
The average V6 Mustang doesn't cost $30K. You can option them that way, but most are going to be a lot less.
I bought my 98 Cobra in January for $9000. It has 112,000, but it came with a Vortec, full fuel system, mm coilovers, konis, panhard bar, guages, 3 sets of wheels (1 with race tires), shifter, all the stock parts, and probably something else I'm forgetting.
you want your money back
Funny, I don't see anyone showing me any listings for what I should've paid for my car. Dealers aren't going to let their cars go for half of their price, plain and simple. Show me some of these dealer listings for dirt cheap, mint SN95s. I haven't seen too many stock, mint Cobras in the sub $8k range. I've seen 100k+ mile modified ones, that are clean, but not mint.
Believe it or not there are a lot of GTs selling for upwards of $15k on Autotrader, I didn't even show those.
Also, not all of us care about whether or not the car is NPI. The general public doesn't care either, so it's not like that's a huge value hit. I could've bought a new edge, but I don't like the styling one bit. I'm not modding it, and it's my year round daily driver, so I'm not really concerned that it's NPI.
$9k for a modified 98 Cobra with over 100k miles sounds about right.
Point is, whether you say I overpaid, this or that, whatever, it makes no difference when those are the prices the cars are going for, proven by a nationwide search and the listings. It doesn't really make sense to compare a purchase from two months ago to a purchase 4-5 years ago, because obviously if you bought your car several years ago, you probably aren't looking and haven't been looking at current prices. The listings don't lie.
My car is mint, and it's exactly what I wanted, and I was able to find a dealer willing to work with my constraints. $600 lousy dollars over book isn't massively overpaying, sorry. It's not.
Again, show me some $4k 98 GTs at dealers that are bone stock, mint, and heavily optioned. I don't mean clean, I mean truly mint. Everybody's talking, but nobody's producing.
heres how your dealer did it, he did 1 of 2. 1 he bought the car auction, paid 25-35% less then trade-in (fair cond) which is approx $4200. or 2 he gave approx $4200 trade-in (fair cond). if its a private dealer he bought the car at auction. used car dealers hardly ever trade, they buy at auctions and pay little to nothing for them. half the cars that go thru auctions have been repaired without report. that meens they dont report them to insurance or comply with local and state laws. so here in my area that car retails for only $7700. hell a 98 cobra completly loaded go for $10,8 and cobra converts go for $12,2. face it dude you got pulled and you know it.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/NO-R...7893238?pt=US_Cars_Trucks&hash=item5643653376
heres one on ebay, however its a convert, which technicly and it does prove worth more then a coupe looks like its mint and is beautiful
I like my car, I like what I paid for it, what difference does it make to anyone else? I got a damn nice car, exactly what I wanted--didn't have to compromise on anything.
fast97GT said:i bought my wifes 07 300 touring edition for $10,500, the dealer wanted 16,5, blue book was 18,9
With all due respect, if that really did happen great, but it sounds extremely far fetched. That's basically what it would sell for with a salvage title.