Getting Ready to buy a 94 or 95 5.0

dewwy5.0 · Dec 29, 2011

I've been reading the posts for sometime in this forum. Sometime around the end of Febuary I will be purchasing a new Stang. I am steering towards a 95 GT, 5 speed vert, or a saleen if Im lucky. I will have some where in the neighborhood of 6000 to play with. I guess my question is what do I need to be looking at as far as mods go that i hope the car will already have. I would like to find one that already is modded pretty heavily. Im just not sure what combinations of mods perform well together. Also I will need to be able to identify some of the mods from sight, like heads and manifolds. Are there pit falls I should watch for with modded cars and what are some of the ones you guys might see from time to time that would be good for me to avoid? Any help in this department would be great.
I have an 89 Gt so I am somewhat familier with the 5.0, but I know that the 94 95 5.0 are somewhat different. I've seen alot of 96-98 GT's but I think if I had to go that rout it would have be a Cobra. I don't get the single over head cam on the regular 4.6's. Seems kinda of a waste.

Three50won · Dec 29, 2011

If you already have a Fox stang then I'd recommend switching it up a bit and getting a Modular. For $6,000 you should be able to get a fairly decent 96-98 Cobra considering the state of the economy, gas prices, etc. You might be able to find someone who's willing to negotiate.

The 96-98 GT's are not a total waste of time, but again you might be able to locate a New Edge GT in decent condition for $6000. Probably a 99 and maybe, maybe, a 2000. Anything over 96 is going to be easier to tune but a bit more difficult and expensive to modify so keep that in mind.

Identifying aftermarket heads and intakes are easy. They all stand out because they all have company logos and stamps on them. I like my cars bone stock but I bought my 95 with a 351W in it because I was already planning on doing a 351W in a 95...so my work was 75% complete and I got the car for a steal. So you would be doing yourself a favor if you already know what you want as far as mods. That way you can either try to find a car that already has some of the mods or you can try to find the best deal possible and use the left-over money for mods.

dewwy5.0 · Dec 30, 2011

Three50won said:
If you already have a Fox stang then I'd recommend switching it up a bit and getting a Modular. For $6,000 you should be able to get a fairly decent 96-98 Cobra considering the state of the economy, gas prices, etc. You might be able to find someone who's willing to negotiate.

The 96-98 GT's are not a total waste of time, but again you might be able to locate a New Edge GT in decent condition for $6000. Probably a 99 and maybe, maybe, a 2000. Anything over 96 is going to be easier to tune but a bit more difficult and expensive to modify so keep that in mind.

Identifying aftermarket heads and intakes are easy. They all stand out because they all have company logos and stamps on them. I like my cars bone stock but I bought my 95 with a 351W in it because I was already planning on doing a 351W in a 95...so my work was 75% complete and I got the car for a steal. So you would be doing yourself a favor if you already know what you want as far as mods. That way you can either try to find a car that already has some of the mods or you can try to find the best deal possible and use the left-over money for mods.

dewwy5.0 · Dec 30, 2011

I had an 03 GT for some time with a chip and modded exhaust that I had lowered but I never really cared for the lack of performance. Not long after the 03 I got my fox body. The fox out performed my 03 by alot. Granted the fox has several mods. The 03 was much more comfortable and was a much better DD. The 96 to 98 cobras shoud perform better than the 03?

Three50won · Dec 30, 2011

Yea I gotta say my 03 is soo darn comfortable to drive compared to my 95. I had a 91 a few years ago and that was just a plain terror to drive as a DD. The 96-98 Cobras will definitely outperform the PI SOHC engines.

dewwy5.0 · Dec 30, 2011

Three50won said:
Yea I gotta say my 03 is soo darn comfortable to drive compared to my 95. I had a 91 a few years ago and that was just a plain terror to drive as a DD. The 96-98 Cobras will definitely outperform the PI SOHC engines.

Im already looking at what is in the area and there are tons of the 96 to 98 cobras. Most in my price range have anywere frome 95000 to 130000 miles on them. Should this be a concern or do you think the milage as long as the car was well taken care of will be ok? I am only 4 hours from LA, 3 from Phoenix and an hour and a half from Vegas so there are literaly lots to chose from.

revhead347 · Dec 30, 2011

If you have a Foxbody, then you will already be familiar with the mods. All the mod parts are identical with very few variations. The accesories on the engine are configured differently, and the throttle body is at a different angle, but all the standard mod parts you would buy for an SN are the same. If you like your Foxbody, you're going to love the SN. It has all that nice Foxbody performance in a tighter better built chassis. The most noticable thing you will find is that when the tires start to spin, the car doesn't go all over the road like a Foxbody. There are way fewer squeaks and rattles as well.

Kurt

Jman900 · Dec 30, 2011

dewwy5.0 said:
Im already looking at what is in the area and there are tons of the 96 to 98 cobras. Most in my price range have anywere frome 95000 to 130000 miles on them. Should this be a concern or do you think the milage as long as the car was well taken care of will be ok? I am only 4 hours from LA, 3 from Phoenix and an hour and a half from Vegas so there are literaly lots to chose from.

If it helps mines over 100K (stock motor) no majors I've open tracked it, drag raced it and it’s my daily driver. As for listing some modifications: Steeda suspension, tokico shocks, steeda clutch goodies, short throw shifter, fluidyne radiator, autometer water & oil temp gages, 03 cobra seats, 18" wheels- extreme contact continental tires. Second transmission-somehow reverse broke on the 1st one, replaced rear end clutch packs, distributor went out last year… not going to list all but I enjoy turning wrenches.

dewwy5.0 · Dec 30, 2011

I don't mind turning wrenches either. I expect some issues from time to time as long as it doesn't get into my go fast money too often...lol.

Jman900 · Dec 30, 2011

Good luck with your hunting.

Three50won · Dec 30, 2011

dewwy5.0, you might be able to get more advice in the Cobra/SVT/4V section of this forum. Like revhead347 said, you're really gonna like driving the SN...it's a night and day difference...!!

dewwy5.0 · Dec 30, 2011

Three50won said:
dewwy5.0, you might be able to get more advice in the Cobra/SVT/4V section of this forum. Like revhead347 said, you're really gonna like driving the SN...it's a night and day difference...!!

Im gonna post over on the SVT side. Thanks for all the advise Guys. Ya'll Have pretty excited about these Cobra's and I haven't even driven one yet.

redsn95gt · Dec 31, 2011

I had this same decision a few years ago when i bought my project mustang. I could either spend more up front and get a newer, more advanced car with lower miles and have no money to buy toys, or I could get a cheap push rod 302w 94-95 that would be cheap to build up and have plenty left to spend on it. I was a big fan of the sn95 body and the 94-95s were so cheap, i picked mine up for $2500 with zero rust 100% florida car! Its definitely been a challenging car with the odd 94-95 quirks and changes, and tuning has been interesting, but I am so glad I did it. I can definitely say I have something a little more unique that sticks out among the endless fox body and modular cars any time I roll to an event or go to the track, its pretty cool.

stanger9410 · Jan 2, 2012

The 94-95 5.0s are pretty touchy with mods (well at least mine is) i put a 95 cobra intake on with 24lb injectors and MAF and it wouldnt run without a new tune which cost me 300$. once you have a chip the tunes are like 40$ but its still a new tune everytime you want to change something. the fox bodies are not like this, and the 4.6s are easier to tune. i love my 94 its just a pain to mod.....

Venom351R · Jan 7, 2012

The Fox body ECU is more accepting to mods then the 94/95 but any capable tuner can tune a 94/95 ECU. Anyone that says they are more difficult to tune just dont know what they are doing.

If you want to buy a modded car regardless of if it is a pushrod or a modular engine find out why it was modded. Cars are modded for different reasons, some just for show some just to say hey I have this for mods and are driven but not driven hard and others are drag raced frequently. Any car that is raced can be built right and be reliable but if thats not your intention with it then you may discover problems that did not raise their head at the time of purchase such as the life of the clutch or the rear end. Every day street driven cars that are not race are not short of possible issues either but a lot of of it is gut feeling and what it is that you are looking for. Any car you test drive be sure to check for rattles or shakes that could either be drivetrain or balancer issues. check for any leaks or stains from previous leaks that could have been cleaned up. Check for the condition of the wires and hoses. Drive the car with the radio off, drive slow, drive fast, take turns, go in reverse. Check for over heating issues and it would not hurt to buy a code scanner and bring it with you for the 94/95 purposes. The Ford OBDI scanner can be bought very cheap and it is very easy to hook up and do a quick scan for codes and it will tell you any possible issues that are not apparent.

RsStanG1987 · Jan 7, 2012

stanger9410 said:
The 94-95 5.0s are pretty touchy with mods (well at least mine is) i put a 95 cobra intake on with 24lb injectors and MAF and it wouldnt run without a new tune which cost me 300$. once you have a chip the tunes are like 40$ but its still a new tune everytime you want to change something. the fox bodies are not like this, and the 4.6s are easier to tune. i love my 94 its just a pain to mod.....

that dosent seem right. i have my car pretty modded and i havent had to tune chit

stanger9410 · Jan 7, 2012

Well some cars react differently, you are lucky you don't have to tune it.

dewwy5.0 · Jan 12, 2012

Thanks for all the advise. you guys have been a lot of help in my decision of what to buy. I think it'll be a Cobra! This is a great site. I will be using it alot in the future. Now I just have to get my ole 5.0 back on the road.

Venom351R · Jan 12, 2012

Cobra's are awesome

screamin5oh · Jan 13, 2012

94/95 cobras are going to be the one to look for, they are going to be very rare and hard to find soon,and so are some of the gt's with rare color/combo options like mine,96/98 cobra's are nice but still over priced, a 94/95 cobra will be worth more and be more fun to mod then the 96-98 eventually, do not waste time buying a 96/98 gt i did and got rid of it asap, new edge cars are nice, i would buy one second over a sn95 5.0 car but not before, unless you do what nota4.6 did and do a 5.0 swap, and no matter what sn95 you buy the first thing you do needs to be gears, we all make the mistake of hitting bolt ons and but what these cars really need is gears before anything!!!!!!!!!!

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