'97 Mustang Cobra or '97 Mustang GT

Lynx131 · Mar 10, 2004

I posted this in the 4.6 forum, but i figured i would get your guys' opinion also. Right now i have a 97 mustang v6, and im looking to get a v-8. I really want the cobra, i like everything about it, but the only thing that makes me wonder is the power 300+ thats double of my v-6. The only v-8 i've drivien was my buddys 92 camaro, 305, and i didn't think it was that fast, plus it was pretty easy to control. Another reason i want the cobra is so all the boys in my high school auto shop will shut up about my v-6 and i could start buging them for their stock 5.0's But im just worried of one thing... im a 16 year old driver. After talking with my dad, im actually kind of afraid of having one because i don't wanna do sumthing and then screw up and end up wrecking the car.. or worse... Any opinions here?

Tony W · Mar 10, 2004

The main thing you have to ask yourself is if you think you are ready to handle a Cobra. I also had a 97 V6 about a year and a half ago. I drove the heck out of that thing for 3 years and thought it was decently fast. Then I stepped up to a 2001 Cobra. The horsepower and torque doubled as did the size of my ego. I thought I was the biggest baddest mofo on the planet just becuase I owned a Cobra. Luckily I was never caught doing anything stupid, but I realized pretty soon that I had to be much more responsible. If you think you are responsible enough to handle that much power then I wouldn't see any problems with getting one. If you decide to go with the GT instead, that is still plenty of car and there are lots of mods out there for them. Good luck with your decision.

Cobra X · Mar 10, 2004

As long as you aren't stupid, go for the Cobra. Don't let us younger stangers get a bad reputation. I got a '95 Cobra when I was 16 and stepped up to my '97 when I was 17. I'm 18 now and I've never had an accident or any tickets (except for my exhaust, but thats a different story)

AmishRebel · Mar 10, 2004

I'm 20 and I bought my very first car when I was 18 (A 97' Cobra). The only reason I never had a car previous is because I wanted a powerful sports car and daddy wasn't gonna front the money so I saved. While everyone else in H.S. had their hondas and crap, I had nothing because what I wanted was too expensive and I was willing to work (and ride the bus) to save for it. I guess what I'm getting at is I worked so hard for my car I really appreciate it and try not to do anything stupid without being 100% sure I can pull it off. I've had 2 tickets since I bought the car about a year ago, neither have been too serious. Just letting you know the cops WILL target you because your a young driver in a Cobra. The other thing to look into is insurance, personally I found out insurance on the Cobra was cheaper than that on a GT for the soul reason of the age of people driving Cobras (middle aged men as opposed to teens/younger males). If you think your gonna act like a complete tard in the car either learn to drive or don't get it. The only mistake I'd have to say I made when I bought the car was not having a beater (cheap ass daily driver). I'm working on that now but when you get a cobra you wanna keep the miles low for the soul reason it being a cobra, and if you do drive it every day gas is gonna put a dent in your paycheck. The other thing your gonna have to consider is maintenence, cobras aren't the hardest thing to maintain but they require alot of time and effort to keep them looking clean and mean and on a 97' car it's prolly going to need some routine maintence right after you buy it. Since I bought my car about a year ago I've prolly dumped about $1k in just maintence alone and things going wrong (I had some bad luck with my PCM and right now it's having overheating issues). What I'm getting at is if you really want the car you also might wanna learn the car (invest in manuals). Treat the car like you would a really hott girlfriend: pamper it, know it, maintain it, and then drive the motherloving sheit out of it. A 97' is definetly a good choice, but definetly not a weak ankled granny shifters car.

cold96snake · Mar 10, 2004

I got the impression from the way you said the "boys" in you class... that you are a girl. If thats the case, honestly ask yourself if you have the ego issues young men have. We like to show off a little. And this isn't really the car for a young driver to do donuts in. Other than that i have to agree w/ amishrebel

Lynx131 · Mar 10, 2004

nah im a guy, i just call them boys cuz thats how they all act (immature)

joey8656 · Mar 10, 2004

Stock the 97 isn't all that fast. The key thing is driving it responsibly.
Like the other guys said, you must consider a few things
1.) You have to be able to stand up to peer pressure to drive like an ass. Your shop buddies are gonna be pushing your buttons and begging you to "do something cool". You have to be certian that you can resist the urge to be the center of attention...at least until you're used to the car.
2.) You have to drive like a wuss in the car for awhile unitill you get used to ever apset of it. ie. How the car acts in repsect to braking and cornering and throttle response. Pushing the car to the limits or getting carried away could mean the end of your car or something worse. (This is why I didn't get the Cobra until I turned 21).
3.) The financial aspect of the car can be a burden. For me, I'm 23, the Cobra was $5400 a year with no points. That's under NJ insurance, which is notoriously high.
4.) The car doesn't go in the snow and is worse in the rain then the V-6. For these reasons, along with milage concerns I have a DD- which I put 550 miles on a week.

P.S. Are you only considering a 97 Cobra?

Lynx131 · Mar 10, 2004

Yea i totally understand what your saying about resisting the peer pressure, when i first brought my car in the shop ppl were like aww man... i wanna see something cool, i was like u wanna see sumthin cool?, get your own car. And they look at me and walked off. lol Yea when i got my 6 me and my buddy with his camaro would hang out alot n stuff and hed always be doin burnouts etc in front of me wanting to follow suit, but until i got completely confortable with the car and felt i knew how far i could push it, i never did anything in it. And yes i am basically only considering the 97 cobra. Cuz my 6 is a 97 and i just LOVE the body style. When we went to get this car, actually the guy had 2 cars for sale, a 89 mustang and then this one. We went up there lookin at the 89, i looked at this one and said eh it's cool, then my dads like u kno, maybe we should ask to take a ride in it and see how u like it, and that did it... i was hooked. So yes pretty much what im looking for is a 97 cobra, if i can't find it i'd prolly go for a 96, 98 but yea. If i did end up with a cobra it would be my daily driver. But of course i would drive like a granny in the rain with it, and i won't ever take it on in the snow so i don't have to worry about that.

TheMirror · Mar 10, 2004

When I was in high school (mid 80's), I essentially had the fastest car in school. '67 Camaro, lowered, 350 with heads, cam, Edelbrock, Holley carb, headers, 4 spd. Probably in the 270hp (net) range, and the car weighed somewhere around 3000lbs. Lots of other guys in school had nice cars, and lots of them got wrecked. My Camaro only suffered one dent, and that was from me hurling my keys at it when the door latch broke for the third time.
I drove that thing very hard, very fast, all the time. It had 4 wheel non-power drum brakes! I never wrecked it, and it wasn't too much car to handle. That's because......

.......I learned high performance driving from the get go. My pop was an enthusiast since youth, even did some hillclimbing (in an MG I think). He taught me how to heel and toe, anticipate situations, proper apexing, smooth inputs, etc. etc. That knowledge from the beginning has allowed me to step into very high performance vehicles and be quick (and safe) from the get-go.

Point is that if you get the Cobra (and I think you should), do NOT get it without going to a high performance driving class. Depending where you live, there should be one at a racetrack near you. You don't need to spend $2500, many of the less formal schools are under $1000 and teach you more in 2 days than you could teach yourself in 2 years. Ya gotta do it. Do IT.

Best,
-Mirror

Craig Mack · Mar 10, 2004

joey8656 said:
Stock the 97 isn't all that fast.

It's all relative. A guy coming from a V6 stang is going to think a Cobra is a powerhouse, the power will be unreal, especially if he hasn't driven a lot of fast cars. If you have a guy coming from a Dodge Viper, the Cobra is going to be slow. I came from a S/C'ed Maxima @10psi, so the Cobra felt a little lacking stock.

In general, i'd definately say the Cobra stock is a fast car, since it runs high 13's out the box, which is faster than a lot of sports cars. But it's really all relative. I love owning my Cobra though, theres the fun factor, and sense of uniqueness that comes along with owning one. Not to mention all the looks you will get, especially if you have exhaust.

fiveofanatic · Mar 10, 2004

The Cobra has bigger brakes. Buy it for the obvious safety increase!

Fast94Cobra · Mar 10, 2004

im 20 and i drive a nitroused 5.0, numbers in sig with no prob. i moved up from 4 cylinder cars to a stock cobra to the car i have now. i dont see a problem with it if you're responible enough, but remember the insurance, it might be bad enough to give your poor dad a heart attack

doogz · Mar 12, 2004

I bought mine when I was 19 and never got into any trouble. My buddy has a low 12-sec 5.0 so I somewhat learned what speed felt like on his and how to pull yourself out of hairy situations. Just be careful with it and learn to control the throttle.... Very simple and it really isn't all that fast. It's fun but I wouldn't consider it fast by any means.

From experience:
Give yourself stopping distance if you're doing high-speed runs. Going 100mph in a DOHC is very doable but just remember how fast you're going, relative to the traffic around you, and the car takes time to slow down.

Don't mash the gas around a corner, on bald tires, or on anything other than a straightaway on dry pavement. If you want to get comfortable getting it sideways, do it in a semi-wet parking lot and just remember to back off the throttle to straighten it out. You're going sideways because the tires are being overpowered.

Pick your battles wisely. I have a good idea of who I can beat/hang with and won't go anything over 20mph the limit if i'm comparing cars on the street. It's really not that hard to decline a race and i'd much rather pull a personal best on a track than beat an idiot driver in a faster car on the street.

Lynx131 · Mar 12, 2004

can't thje cops give u a ticket for spinning the tires in a parking lot ( an empty one ) ?? i always thought they could but im not sure

1996COBRA · Mar 17, 2004

I got my '96 when I was 16y.o. back in '98 and have only been ticketed once. I was driving out of town and didn't realize I was speeding. Act responsible with it and you should be okay.

blk32V · Mar 17, 2004

Lynx131 said:
can't thje cops give u a ticket for spinning the tires in a parking lot ( an empty one ) ?? i always thought they could but im not sure

I think they can only tell you to leave the parking lot, no ticket, not 100% positive though

svtguy · Mar 18, 2004

Forget Peer Pressure!

Whatever you do don't throw a short shift, gears & exhaust on the thing. After that the Cobra begs you enough on it's own to break traffic laws

Remember, hammering gears with a short shifter is allot like Hammering your GF from behind...its hard to resist the temptation.

97mboi · Mar 18, 2004

I think you'll regret not getting the Cobra man. Don't be stupid and you'll be fine.

Let us know what you decide!

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