New 99 Cobra Owner! Few questions...

tahoeboy3 said:

Purchased my black on black 99 Cobra today with only 5000 miles on it and it's mint! Bone stock and I plan to keep it that way. It's my daily driver (only about 25 miles per day though total). I had a few questions: What is the best type of oil to use, I've heard Mobil 1 5W30 is best for these cobras, can someone confirm that? I hear a bit of a whining sound when i downshift and sort of let it rev down, mainly in 1st and 2nd gear, is this normal? You could say I'm a little paranoid of anything going wrong with my new baby. lol. And does anyone have any other suggestions or tips on the care and maintenance of my car? Thanks!

Chris

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Congrats! You sound as I excited as I am to get a Cobra!
The oil question is one I would like to see (definitively) answered. I've heard Mobil 1 5w30, Motorcraft (5w30? 10W30?), Amsoil 5W30, and even 0w20 (can't remember the brand - Amsoil I think).
What everyone seems to agree on mostly, is that if you do your changes every 3000 miles, it doesn't really seem to matter as long as you are running the proper weight (NOT 10W40 from what I understand).

As far as outside (paint/washing) and interior care - check out the 'Sound and Shine' Forum and www.autopia.org.

Your car is so low on mileage, probably the only thing you need to worry about right now is the oil/oil filter and air filter. Everything else should be in great shape. Check your service book to see what is next to do.

Don't forget - she gets Premium Gasoline only!

At least add a Cold Air Intake and change the exhaust (at least the cat-back). Those are easy to do and pretty straightforward to undo if you need to (for example service).

I've been running Mobile 5w30 since 5,000 miles. I would suggest you change the oil now so you know it's fresh. If it doesn't already have it, get a K&N air filter....and while your at it a whole Cold Air Kit.

Rotate the tires if they are all the same size (stock).

As for maintenance, nothing really. Plugs perhaps, but theoretically they are good for 100,000 miles. You have coil over plugs so no need to change wires or anything.

Make sure you put premium only in the car....and get a cat-back on there so it sounds good.

plain old valvoline 5w30 will do just fine also, as long as you change it every 3k.

plus congrats on the snake, lifes short drive it, and enjoy it!

First off congratulations on your purchase.

As far as oil, especially on that low of miles, I would recommend nothing but synthetic. There are plenty of threads on this forum about oils and the advantages of synthetic. I personally run Series 2000 0w30 Amsoil. But that might be an overkill on a daily driver that gets no track time ($8 per quart). So I would either recommend Mobil 1, or the plain Amsoil synthetic.

As far as the tranny, are you sure it doen't have an aftermarket shifter? Those are common, even on car's that aren't moded otherwise. Either way, the whine is normal unless its exsesive. One thing I would recommend is changin the transmission fluid with Redline Synthetic.

Also, use Amsoil synthetic in the rear end along with Ford friction modifier.