99 KB GT or a 03/04 Cobra?

JohnyD05 · Jan 10, 2006

I have a 99 GT and want more power, alot more. So i am trying to decide if i want to Put a KB on my car and then at some point I will have to do a forged bottom end. I would go with 9 PSI intercooled 1.7L. OR should I sell my car probably for around 9K if i can get that (its got about 70K on it) and Buy a 03/04 Cobra thats already making 390 HP and has a very Strong engine to start. I am not sure what i would be looking at for a price of the 03/04 Cobra. Plus the cobra has a 6 speed already. What is everyones input? what kind of money are 03/04 cobras fetching?
Also the 03/04 Cobras make less power then KB 2V and are a heavier car, but it would probably be more relaible.
Does anyone have any idea what kind of money it costs to Forge a 4.6 2v?

DocG · Jan 10, 2006

Don't have all your answers, but 03/04 Cobra's can go anywhere from $24k to $30k depending on location and availability. So you're spending 15-20k more than you're making off your 99. That's a lot of mod money for a GT, which you can definetely pull off more power with that money than the 03/04 Cobra. Heck, for 15-20k you can do a forged block, and KB 2.2, and kill any stock Cobra, but you won'thave the 6 spd, IRS, and it won't be a low mile almost new car either. A Cobra can be modded pretty easily to up the HP...but if you spend all your money on the car, no mod money.

So it just depends, you prefer to have a heavily modded older GT....or stock, newer Cobra. Probably got more potential out of the Cobra in the long run.

BTW, don't bother with the Shorty's on your to-do list....wait and add LT's with the KB if you go that way.

DocG · Jan 10, 2006

and WTF is a Yo-Dude O/R pipe?

JohnyD05 · Jan 10, 2006

Good point on the shortys. I have heard that a bunch. The Yo-Dude x-pipe is a company in FL that i found when i was in highschool and had no money. Its just a plain vanilla x-pipe. Its a little raspy but flows really well. It sounds ghetto i know, but I got it really cheap at the time. I don't have it on at the time because I had to pass emissions, and its an off-road pipe.

JohnyD05 · Jan 10, 2006

DocG2828 said:
Don't have all your answers, but 03/04 Cobra's can go anywhere from $24k to $30k depending on location and availability. So you're spending 15-20k more than you're making off your 99. That's a lot of mod money for a GT, which you can definetely pull off more power with that money than the 03/04 Cobra. Heck, for 15-20k you can do a forged block, and KB 2.2, and kill any stock Cobra, but you won'thave the 6 spd, IRS, and it won't be a low mile almost new car either. A Cobra can be modded pretty easily to up the HP...but if you spend all your money on the car, no mod money.

So it just depends, you prefer to have a heavily modded older GT....or stock, newer Cobra. Probably got more potential out of the Cobra in the long run.

BTW, don't bother with the Shorty's on your to-do list....wait and add LT's with the KB if you go that way.

You make a really good point, Either way I don't see either of these cars being a Daily driver once I graduate, considering the climate I live in. The Cobra would actually have a resale value, where as the GT wouldn't even with alot of money poured into it, I would never recover that money. I know what i want to do (mod the crap out of the GT and have a civic or something) It just doesn't make sense pouring thousands of dollars into a car, that i will never be able to recover. I wish I didn't have such a conscience. The GT is definetly a lighter car, and while it doesn't have IRS, the solid axle is a sweet setup for drag racing.

Do you have a good idea of what the complete KB setup is going for these days? How long do you think my 5 speed would last with KB attached?

hognutz · Jan 10, 2006

do you own the 99? if so it can be more econimical to build the car. I own my 01 so I am going to build it up. doing the rear right now. t-56 and kb to come.

03-04 cobra is ~25k

t-56 $2600
forged bottom end $2500(vt)
kb $4800
build rear $1500
total 11,400

so I would think around $12,500 would net you a 99gt with 500rwhp, t-56, and built rear.

so if you do the work yourself you can see that money invested the gt is way more economical. now resale is going to suck so you will have to keep the car. this is the advantage to the cobra. you can get to 450hp cheap and still have good resale but the gt can be make faster cheaper.

as for your tranny it won't last on a sticky tire. on street rubber being nice to it, it might last quite a wile. it is a week link though.

on thing to remember is the 03 cobra is not bullet proof if you mod it to much. the tranny is good to 450lbs of torque. it only has the 10 spline input shaft. the independant rear will need upgrades as well at a certian point.

JohnyD05 · Jan 10, 2006

DocG2828 said:
and WTF is a Yo-Dude O/R pipe?

Hey I like the Bright yellow car. How did u get the older style wheels on the newer car? I guess i am partial to those wheels as that is what came on my car. I heard those porsches were one of the best handling cars of all time with a perfect 50/50 Weight distribution.

JohnyD05 · Jan 10, 2006

hognutz said:
do you own the 99? if so it can be more econimical to build the car. I own my 01 so I am going to build it up. doing the rear right now. t-56 and kb to come.

03-04 cobra is ~25k

t-56 $2600
forged bottom end $2500(vt)
kb $4800
build rear $1500
total 11,400

so I would think around $12,500 would net you a 99gt with 500rwhp, t-56, and built rear.

so if you do the work yourself you can see that money invested the gt is way more economical. now resale is going to suck so you will have to keep the car. this is the advantage to the cobra. you can get to 450hp cheap and still have good resale but the gt can be make faster cheaper.

Yeah I own the GT, i would do most of the work myself. Considering I just look at the KBB value of my car and its only around 8, I might as well keep the car. Wether I Build it or not, its worth more to me than 8 grand. Thnx for pricing everything for me. 500 rwhp would be sick! Its just hard to look at 11,500 and know its just gonna be for a car that becomes a toy.

Kilgore Trout · Jan 10, 2006

Terminator

AmBo · Jan 10, 2006

Build the GT! It will cost you about the same, and there is nothing like the accomplishment you feel whenever you drive your car knowing that it's YOURS!

InfraRed · Jan 10, 2006

im in the same boat as you but im going with the terminator due to the looks and it being newer...and the biggest part, its a COBRA

04YELLOWGT · Jan 10, 2006

Id do the Cobra. You can easily get it in to the 11s and even the 10s. My friend has a 03 and put maybe 5 or 6k into it and is .1 sec away from bein in the 10s and its almost a daily driver.

hognutz · Jan 10, 2006

JohnyD05 said:
Yeah I own the GT, i would do most of the work myself. Considering I just look at the KBB value of my car and its only around 8, I might as well keep the car. Wether I Build it or not, its worth more to me than 8 grand. Thnx for pricing everything for me. 500 rwhp would be sick! Its just hard to look at 11,500 and know its just gonna be for a car that becomes a toy.

yeah I know what you mean. I have struggled with this myself. reality is though I am a car person. I usually have toy's of some kind. 3rd vehicle, street bikes, boats, dirt bikes etc. I alwasy have something.

It is alot of money but the perfromance that buys you would be crazy. If I don't do this I am just going to get rid of the gt and take a bath on it. then spend two to three times that on some other car that is similar in nature. go price cars right now. you don't get perfromance cheap anmore. I wonder what these new gt500's will go for. it is a sick car but you can build a car that will run right with it if not beat it for 1/4 the cost.

you can't run around in a big circle jerk with other cobra owners about owning a cobra but I have never cared about that.

I mean sure 5-6k in a cobra nets a bad car but that is 30k+ car. you could be in 11's as well no proablem complete streatable for half the money. you just have 16v instead of 32.

then again this is really only if you own the gt. for me it is nice not to have a car payment. you have to remeber that 25k cobra is going to cost you close to 30k over 5-6 year loan. you have to factor that as well. a modded gt I can do with spare money over the couse of time. no intrest to the bank.

BooWFO · Jan 10, 2006

Depends.
Cobra - can make stupid amounts of power but modded and resale drops.
GT - can make almost as much power as a cobra but will spend alot doing it.
Also if making stupid amounts of power are what your after I'd look into either the kb 2.2 or turbos.

OH and some 04's came with those wheels mine did too.

JohnyD05 · Jan 10, 2006

I don't see myself wantning more power than the 9PSI intercooled KB puts out, and if i did, and i had a built bottom end i would put on the 14 psi pulley and some race gas in the car. the only time i could truly seeing needing that power would be at the track. and thats where i would buy the race gas

I agree its nice to be able to say you drive a cobra.

Gearbanger 101 · Jan 10, 2006

You wanna car that mostly goes fast in a strait line, then KB your GT!

.....you want a car that also goes fast in a strait line as well as turn, brake, look and ride better than your GT......and for that matter can be made even faster with very minor, inexpensive bolt ons and in the process not have to be torn down and build back up in order to handle said additional power because your (GT's) stock bottom end sucks....., go with the '03-'04 Cobra.

A lot of people can't see the forest for the tree's. They always compare the additional price tag associated with the Cobra to power alone and deem it not to be worth it, since that kind of power can be had at a lesser cost, when in reality.....when you tally up everything else that the Snake does better, you get much, much more for your dollar with the Cobra.

DocG · Jan 10, 2006

JohnyD05 said:
Hey I like the Bright yellow car. How did u get the older style wheels on the newer car? I guess i am partial to those wheels as that is what came on my car. I heard those porsches were one of the best handling cars of all time with a perfect 50/50 Weight distribution.

Yeah, those wheels are stockers, some cars still came with em, even in 04...probably cuz the bullits wouldn't look right on the yellow. Only until I get some Chrome Saleen 18's or 04 Cobras!

Had to get rid of that Porsche, it was a 1989 car, but handled awesome. Not much power though since it was a base 944.

Ya know...I'm still pretty young and not too far out of grad school. Owning and building a car is what I want to do, but I got so much else going on...and am not making millions or anything. So since I'm just starting a career, spending 15k modding a car that will sell for about 6k by the time you're done a few years from now, its just not practical for someone like me, especially balancing a wife, house, and other expenses. Now I know spending alot on a big monthly payment is crazy too, at least the car has most of that value as you pay it down. So you building a car to win at the strip...or just want a fast street car? I would think a stock Cobra would be plenty fast for a street car. Just don't spend all your money on your car...unless your just that obsessed to sacrifice everything else!

Hunter-White · Jan 10, 2006

The thing that kicks my a$$ being 19 is that the insurance full coverage is INSANE on me with a cobra even having a clean record. If i'm not mistaken it almost doubles a gt. I'm in the same position as you are in tho. I don't know what I'm going to do.

reddrgn01gt · Jan 10, 2006

Gearbanger 101 said:
A lot of people can't see the forest for the tree's. They always compare the additional price tag associated with the Cobra to power alone and deem it not to be worth it, since that kind of power can be had at a lesser cost, when in reality.....when you tally up everything else that the Snake does better, you get much, much more for your dollar with the Cobra.

+1

If you can afford the cobra without going broke (the handful that are in my area are priced at 25-33k) get it. The cobra is a much better car.

OxMox · Jan 10, 2006

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