what to look for when buying a 99-04

[russ1979]

i have my mustang toy (88 5.0) and now my wife wants one also. we are looking at 99-04 v8's with auto's (she refuses to learn stick shift) verts are a possibly.
the car will not be a daily driver but a weekend toy. we plain on doing a few mods (gears, catback a must, maybe even a charger) just to add a little more peep.

is there any thing we need to look for or keep a eye out for. any year better then anther. we are looking to spend $5000 to 15,000$

 

[slayerripkdc]

If you are willing to spend up to 15k Purchase a mach 1!

 

[Moon]

If you are willing to spend up to 15k Purchase a mach 1!

****in A. Don't need to worry about pep since it's more than a GT, but if you really want more, throw on a $4,000 supercharger kit and it'll fly. Plus, it'll handle pretty good. Perfect weekend toy, imo.

 

[russ1979]

Well we don't have 15k just to blow but would spend it on the right car. and if we came across a good Mach 1 it would be a strong contender.

 

[Moon]

Well we don't have 15k just to blow but would spend it on the right car.

Get your wife a bike and spend the money you save to get a nice h/c/i combo for the Fox

Just kidding. If you look hard enough and negotiate, you can probably find a nice Mach 1 for around $13k

 

[BlackStang03]

$5k-$15k is a big price range, I doubt you will find anything good for $5k unless you dont mind high miles. If you want a GT you could easily pick one up for under $10k, but you could find a Mach 1 for under $15k if you are patient.

 

[Deleted member 38176]

Since the car MUST be an auto, I wouldn't consider a Mach 1. I'd look for a clean low mileage 02-04 GT. I bought my 02 last May with 50K miles for $9K.

The only thing I can think of to look for is the COP issue with the new edge GT's. Take it for a test drive and pay particular attention to the 1300-1800 RPM range while CRUISING. Try to see if you can feel any sort of hesitation or miss during that RPM range.

 

[crazystang25]

Ya as far as I know its only the windsors that have the coil issue.

 

[slick35thgt]

IMO, i'd find a slick lower mileage '99-'00 car for a fair price, and put the money you'd save toward a few good bolt-ons and gears. You can be into a nice yanko car for fairly cheap if you go that direction. A Mach would be great but from what I gather out of what you told us, a Mach is a little more car than you are really going to need for the money.

 

[Deleted member 38176]

Ya as far as I know its only the windsors that have the coil issue.

And the COP issue is a BITCH! I'd know....I have it

 

[crazystang25]

ya ask me how I know its a PIA. I had to fix mine in a parking lot to my dorms up in Laramie wyoming in the middle of January when it was 15-20 degrees out.

 

[txredgt]

Would somebody mind explaining this 'COP' issue to me? I guess I'm out of the loop and should knock on wood I haven't had it yet

 

[Crzyhrse]

A guy just sold his '03 DSG Mach on Mach 1 Registry for $13,700. It was an Auto with 24K miles. A good deal if you ask me.

 

[2006KJ]

i just went though this.. only my price range was much lower... i had to buy one cheap with a few miles. So i found a 2001 GT with 100,000 miles.. i bought it for $4050 (nice black leather int. mach 1000 sound.. ect..). So far i've changed... Brake rotors, Brake pads, Modded exhaust to work, Short shifter (stock one worn out), Clutch, Throw out bearing, Pressure plate, Flywheel, Clutch fork, all 8 coil packs, tires and wheels, oil change, flushed coolant, wheel alignment, inspection, fog lights, front bumper, fixed drivers quarter panel and rear bumper. Granted most of that wouldnt matter for an auto.. just saying what you'll probably have to do / replace if you buy a car with 100,000 on it. Also try to get an 02 or newer... from what i've heard mid year 2001 and up have better engines and tranny's. When i was looking for a mustang i saw many GT's that were like new with under 50,000 miles for 7000-8000. Some private owners some at dealers. Look on craigslist and e-bay!!!. It also seems like auto's sell for less then 5 speeds.

 

[Deleted member 38176]

Would somebody mind explaining this 'COP' issue to me? I guess I'm out of the loop and should knock on wood I haven't had it yet

Short and sweet version: The ignition system on new edge GT's is a coil-on-plug setup. For some reason, the coil packs go bad, causing spark blowout. The only solution is to replace the coils which are $300+

 

[sneaky98gt]

You can get a great Mach for less than 15k. My granddad got a flawless auto 04 with less than 20,000 miles for less than 13k. It can be done, just have to be patient. And honestly, for a car that'll be driven a good amount, and you just want a little more giddy-up than a GT, the Mach fits that bill perfectly.

Another problem of the 99-early 01 GTs is that they have the plastic water crossover on the intake that will crack. Not a big deal, but it does have to be fixed at some point or another.

 

[scupking]

Go with a 2002-2004 GT seeing as the 99-01s had plastic water crossovers that crack.

Must have mods for an automatic:
3.73 or 4.10 gears
tranny cooler
3200K stall converter
jmoded valve body

 

[crazystang25]

Would somebody mind explaining this 'COP' issue to me? I guess I'm out of the loop and should knock on wood I haven't had it yet

spark plugs blow out of the cylinder heads because of too few threads in the head or because the plug threads thread to far into the combustion chamber causing them to heat up and start to warp some of the cylinder head threads enough for them to give.

 

[crazystang25]

simple solution is to get inserts put in.

 

[Deleted member 38176]

spark plugs blow out of the cylinder heads because of too few threads in the head or because the plug threads thread to far into the combustion chamber causing them to heat up and start to warp some of the cylinder head threads enough for them to give.

I guess Im thinking of a different "COP issue" lol