what problems with the 30-04 cobras?

[ADRENLN]

guys im thinking of selling my gt and buying a used 03-04 cobra. it will be hard for me to let go after modding my car the way i wanted it. however i cant build the engine with out running the risk of not having a place around here to work on it if it were to break down. im a little dissapointed that ford cant work on it if i got a blower.

anyway, ive heard that the 4 valve may not hold up to well in the future with a high amount of miles on it. how are these engines holding up for you guys, any problems.

also whats going on with the tapping heads and engines.....what problems with the tranny. guys are saying that they always have their cobra in the shop and all the kinks were never worked out of these cars. what do you guys know about this? my gt runs good and i dont want to give it up for a car thats faster but always in the shop.

 

[Emil]

Just like any car they have there share of problems. The most prevalent are engine "tick" and a clunky drivetrain. Look here for loads of info:
http://www.svtperformance.com/
Knowing all the things about it, would I buy one again? Oh, ya !!!

 

[alfman9]

Mustangs always have crap with them. Who cares, this pony will run.

 

[ADRENLN]

i have the gt now and i know that they squeek and interior vibrate and that type of stuff. this car runs good though i dont want to upgrade to a cobra and have the engine ticking.

how can you not worry about a ticking engine? it could be serious down the road.

these are serious problems, my question is do most of the cobras have these probs. or is it just a small few.

anyone here have alot of miles on the cobra without any problems?

 

[Jpjr]

You drive a GT.. you shouldn't even be asking these questions

The 03-04 Cobra is the most reliable motor ever put in a Mustang IMO. It's a cast iron block with forged internals. Capable of handling very high levels of horsepower.. built for it.

Like other said every engine has its share of probs. The 03 block does have a ticking problem, but it has yet to affect performance. Mine has no probs at all, although I only have about 6k on it.

Bottom line.. if your looking to mod a Mustang, get rid of the GT and go with the Cobra. It's a much better starting point. New '04's are running SO cheap right now, you would be smart to just get a new or slightly (less than 5k) used one. Your looking at around 24-25k for a new coupe right now in some places, probably around what you bought your GT for.

 

[ADRENLN]

where do you live that a new one would be 25 grand, i went to the dealers around here and the still have them at full price and saying that there are no sales on them yet. i know they will come down fron the 34 thousand, but i didnt think that much?

id have to sell my car first anyway so i guess it doesnt matter.

 

[04BlackCobra]

I personally have only had my '04 since June, and "Knock on wood" have had no problems whatsoever. I know some others that have '03's and '04's and they haven't had any problems either. Some have done extensive mod's and others not anything. Everything that I have heard, read, and seen on the '03's and ''04's are that the engines are built for high HP and all the mod's that people are doing on them.

 

[chuckystang]

the 04's have no ticking at all. some 03's did because some of the pistons were overheating and not getting enough coolant flow. But there is a mod/fix for it. But the 04's already have the problem fixed.

 

[ADRENLN]

thank yo uchucky that is what i wanted to know! seems that they worked out some of the bugs on the 04 hopefully.

 

[TheDukeOfEarl]

28k miles and running strong.

Small leak in the rear end. Looks like the gasket was pinched when they put it together. No biggie.

Trans has a bit of backlash (Clunk when you tap the gas) Nothing big.

Small clunk in the IRS when its cold and I made my first left turn of the night.
(went away with the tube arm and coilover change)

I have driven this car VERY hard. I have a lot of road track days on her. She is tight and strong!! Get the 04!

 

[B-O-B'03]

I have almost 20K miles on my 03, plenty of driveline probs.
2 clutches, 1 tranny, 3 drive shafts, rear diff re-built - twice, replaced once, yada, yada, yada.

Zero engine problems, no tick, nada.

Put it on the dyno at about 1200 miles, made 409 HP 392 TQ, with just an exhaust and a drop in K & N.

I LOVE THIS CAR!!!