Which Stang to Buy?

[logixrat]

I bought one for my wife awhile back, it was a '96 with a V6 5speed. Nothing special but an okay vehicle considering the lack of power.

Anyhow, that Mustang has been gone awhile. She's moved onto a SUV and I have been driving an '04 Jeep Wrangler. But I've got the itch to get another sports car. I've had Vettes, Camaros, etc. in the past but never a V8 Mustang.

I'm looking to keep my entry price low (less than $9k), and was curious what years I should look to purchase. It seems most vehicles have specific years that are better than others. Also any special options I should look for? I really want a manual tranny.

I'm just really looking for some advice. As much as I love my Jeep, I'm tired of going slow and need something different.

PS - What kind of gas mileage can I expect (when being easy on the skinny pedal)?

 

[BurningRubber]

Hey fellow Jeeper! I own a Cherokee along with the Mustang, so ive got the best of both worlds, lol.

I bought my 2000 GT for under 8k, but it wasnt an every day deal, I got a pretty good price on it. You can find 99-00's for around 9k or a little less if you look.

If you want something newer (as in 4.6 engine) then I would shoot straight for a 99+ GT with the more powerful 4.6. If you dont care as much about the power you can find good deals on 96-98 GT's, but they are a bit slower. Another GREAT choice is a 94/95 5.0 GT, last two years of the 5.0 in the semi-newer (94-98) bodystyle.

Gas mileage wise the best I have gotten was 23.x MPG, mixed city/highway and I couldnt keep my foot out of the gas the whole tank, lol. On this tank I have done a tuneup, and havnt gotten on it at all and so far it looks like ill be getting some nice MPG numbers.

 

[tjmaxx]

My 96 Gt is pretty fast with the 4.10's and I get like 17 mpg.

 

[sunburstgold]

I also have a jeep and a stang and love it but back on topic...

The 99 and newer 4.6's have the pi (power improvment) heads wich ups the horsepower from 225 to 265 i believe, that is the reason that they are more desirable but like stated above if your not so interested in power better deals can be found on 96 to 98's

 

[Skidzz]

If you budget is $9000, then go for a 96-98 cobra. You could find one in good shape with decent mileage for $9000 or maybe even a little less and have a MUCH better engine. You'll have 305 bhp instead of 215 or 260 and have a much better engine to work with. 4v > 2v

 

[Pennywise2]

If you are only looking to spend less than 9K I would seriously
consider a 96-98 Mustang GT.Last year I found my 96 GT with
low miles and in excellent condition for 9100 and I am very happy
with it.If you look around you will find a nice one.
www.ebaymotors.com
www.autotrader.com

 

[deftsound]

get the 5.0 you wont regret it

 

[alsyr44]

I say spend a little more money and buy mine


But if that is not an option, I would try to find an older Cobra, or 99+ GT's. 96-98 GT's are OK, but you will get a lot more power with a Cobra or 99+ GT.


I'm going the oppostie direction...I will be going from my GT, to a 4 banger camery. Not by choice, but you do what you gotta do.

Good luck either way.

 

[logixrat]

Sweet ride alsyr44. Love the color. I would consider buying except it's out of my price range.

Hmmm....I hadn't thought about the Cobras, figured they were out of my price range. I will do some more checking as that is the most attractive option to me. Price is always important but so is horsepower.

Thanks guys for the comments, keep'm coming. I am reading and learning. I am curious, not too many recommend the early models w/ the 5.0. I figured that would be a big hit as it's the old 302 that is so famous.

 

[LB0193]

5.0 for sure

 

[BurningRubber]

Your probaly gonna get alot of biased answers in the 4.6 forums, lol.

Honestly, if I had to do it over again I would have bought the 95 5.0 I was looking at when I first started looking for Mustangs. I like mine alot, but there was just something about that car...

Probaly the best bang for the buck Mustang is a notchback LX from 86-93 with a 5.0 and a 5 speed. Those things are incredibly light to start with, and mods come cheap for 5.0's.

 

[deftsound]

you can make buy the holley systemax kit for 2,5000 and it gurantees around 330hp for a 5.0...lets see you do that with a 4,6

5.0's are great motors

 

[GoneMad96]

96 all the way! just add a few mods like me

 

[tjmaxx]

There was a Cobra in the classifieds a few days ago that I believe was a 96 with 99k miles but looked nice with a few mods and was $7000, that is a steal. a 95 Cobra with the 5.0 would be really nice.

 

[hotmustang331]

you can make buy the holley systemax kit for 2,5000 and it gurantees around 330hp for a 5.0...lets see you do that with a 4,6

5.0's are great motors

But isnt that a heads/cam/intake package?

Lets see what you can get from a 4.6....both systems need a dyno tine so we wont add that. And both require ALOT of work, so we will forget instal.

4.6 2V

$1100 for FULL exhaust
$600 for VT stg 1 cams
$490 for TB/plenum/JLT RAI (CAI)
$140 U/D pulles
= 290RWHP or 330 at the motor


Come on guys the 2Vs arent THAT bad . Sure after this stage the 5.0 can make WAY more power though...but for the adverge person IMO the 4.6 is quick enough. Just depends on what you want I guess.

 

[01Steeda]

But isnt that a heads/cam/intake package?

Lets see what you can get from a 4.6....both systems need a dyno tine so we wont add that. And both require ALOT of work, so we will forget instal.

4.6 2V

$1100 for FULL exhaust
$600 for VT stg 1 cams
$490 for TB/plenum/JLT RAI (CAI)
$140 U/D pulles
= 290RWHP or 330 at the motor


Come on guys the 2Vs arent THAT bad . Sure after this stage the 5.0 can make WAY more power though...but for the adverge person IMO the 4.6 is quick enough. Just depends on what you want I guess.

exactly right hot, people look at the 5.0 and say mods are cheaper, yes they are but your starting with more HP from the get go in the 4.6 andit will make more power in the end.

 

[Team Ford]

Plus the 99-04 body style is the sleekest looking of all mustangs.

 

[logixrat]

Thanks for all the replies. I am still looking for the right car to buy! We are currently selling our house and cashing out some equity to get ourselves a little more debt free.

One of the things I'm doing is selling the Jeep so I can obtain a different vehicle w/ cash only. I don't like banks and borrowing money.

I'm pretty sure whatever I buy will be determined by price. For the most part I have always owned vehicles with less than 75k miles on them. It seems the price range I am looking at is about where the mileage starts on these vehicles. How long can I expect to run it before having to do engine work? I realize that is a *very* conditioned question, but in general. And what is the typical cost of an engine rebuild?

Would it be worthwhile to buy a V6 w/ the 5-speed and drive it until the engine kills over and then replace with a built 5.0 or 4.6?

 

[BLK_ROUSH]

I guess in truth if you're looking for transportation that could be a long term project... a V6 might meet the requirement.
If you get a V8 at 70-80k .. you could double that mileage and rebuild it too, so I guess it really does depend on what you run across first that fits the budget.

 

[logixrat]

I guess in truth if you're looking for transportation that could be a long term project... a V6 might meet the requirement.
If you get a V8 at 70-80k .. you could double that mileage and rebuild it too, so I guess it really does depend on what you run across first that fits the budget.

If it's reasonable to get around 160k before a rebuild is required, I'd prefer to do that and get the V8 now and not have to worry with a conversion later on. Make no mistakes, I don't *want* a V6 but I was checking all the options.

I guess I was sort of in that mentality of about 100k and the car needs redone.