Author Topic: Mustang GTs (Read 1045 times)

Gunslinger · « **on:** January 03, 2005, 10:11:30 PM »

I didn't want to clutter up the 05 mustang thread so I figured it deserves a new one.

my wife is dead set on geting a Stang convertable GT 99-02 model. I am against it myself and would rather see her (if she wants a sports car) in a celica GT/eclips or something like that but this is what she wants.

Does anyone have any advice on what to look for in the different models and such. I've seen them priced out around $8-10k for one under 50K miles wich is right around were I like to buy a car.

anyone know what kind of highway milage they get. I know its not gonna be great but it has to be better then our explorer wich is a gass pig.

rpm · « **Reply #1 on:** January 03, 2005, 10:34:49 PM »

I have a girlfriend that has a '99 GT. Sweet ride, but it's lacking in the top end HP Dept. Oh, and forget about using the backseat for anything but infants or a couple bags of groceries (and I mean SMALL bags.)

Gunslinger · « **Reply #2 on:** January 03, 2005, 10:55:32 PM »

Quote

Originally posted by rpm
I have a girlfriend that has a '99 GT. Sweet ride, but it's lacking in the top end HP Dept. Oh, and forget about using the backseat for anything but infants or a couple bags of groceries (and I mean SMALL bags.)

I seriously don't want my wife to have alot of HP and we have two kids both under 5. ty for the advice

Cougar68 · « **Reply #3 on:** January 03, 2005, 11:04:02 PM »

A friend of mine has an '83 GT convertible that she bought new. She got out of the hospital a few months back and as a present to her, her husband and I freshened the whole thing up. 230,000 miles and aside from a little faded paint and a wore out driver's seat it's in perfect condition. She's maintained it very well.

The biggest thing I look for when judging a used sports car is to see if the previous owner ragged on it. Make sure the back tires have the same amount of tread as the front. If they don't, someone was smoking them up. Also look in the rear fender wells and undercarriage for rubber residue that might have been kicked up. If it's an auto trans, hold the brake and shift from reverse to drive a couple of times with the door open while you listen for a clunk sound from the driveshaft. This would indicate a worn out u-joint and another pointer to hard driving. Make sure the oil is in good shape on the dipstick and also pop off the filler cap and check the underside for build up. Cars with performance decals in the windows, exhaust systems and other mild upgrades are signs that you've got a worn out pony on your hands.

As for mileage you're probably looking at around 20 on the highway. Mustangs can be great cars and there's tons of aftermarket products out there. A few bolt on parts and a weekend's worth of time and you can make quite a performer for just a little bit of dough.

Cougar

rpm · « **Reply #4 on:** January 03, 2005, 11:16:20 PM »

Quote

Originally posted by Gunslinger
I seriously don't want my wife to have alot of HP and we have two kids both under 5. ty for the advice

Don't get me wrong, it can still get away from you if you are not careful, and has plenty of acceleration for freeway passing...but don't think you will set any 1/4 mile or top end records with one. Oh yeah, the stock exhaust sounds awesome.

Gunslinger · « **Reply #5 on:** January 04, 2005, 12:10:35 AM »

Quote

Originally posted by rpm
Don't get me wrong, it can still get away from you if you are not careful, and has plenty of acceleration for freeway passing...but don't think you will set any 1/4 mile or top end records with one. Oh yeah, the stock exhaust sounds awesome.

You know it's what she wants. They're pretty cheap so that cures some of my woes. I really don't care how fast the thing is a V8 in that kinda car is gonna be faster than anything I've ever owned. Also I've heard them engines are a dime a dozen stock so if there's any problems there it wont be that much of a heartach. The only problem is I've never owned a mustang and really don't know what to look for. There was one on the resale lot on base for dirt cheap but it looked like a kid owned it before and I said hell no (stickers and illegal tinting).

Thanks for the advice couger. I'll be checking it out.

Masherbrum · « **Reply #6 on:** January 04, 2005, 12:14:12 AM »

The problem you ARE going to run into are the Teenagers that literally rag the watermelon out of em. Personally, I would ESPECIALLY shy away from the Automatics. Sticks are EASIER to maintain IF a problem should arise. You are more than likely to encounter either a Clutch or Hydraulic Slave Cylinder issue with the Stick.

Btw, HP isn't what you should be concerned about, it's the Torque. Torque gets you going and the HP keep you going. Torque and gearing.

Karaya

Gunslinger · « **Reply #7 on:** January 04, 2005, 12:16:22 AM »

Quote

Originally posted by Masherbrum
The problem you ARE going to run into are the Teenagers that literally rag the watermelon out of em. Personally, I would ESPECIALLY shy away from the Automatics. Sticks are EASIER to maintain IF a problem should arise. You are more than likely to encounter either a Clutch or Hydraulic Slave Cylinder issue with the Stick.

Karaya

how hard is a clutch change out compared to any other V8 style engine?

Masherbrum · « **Reply #8 on:** January 04, 2005, 12:20:27 AM »

Clutch work for me is simple man. I was just comparing a $200 aftermarket clutch to having to tear apart an Automatic (including roughly $400 for a brand new Torque Converter). People can try to make arguements all day about Automatics (and how "realiable" they are). Bottom line, the Mustang is a sports car (regardless of the opinion of some) and Manuals can handle more abuse than Autos.

But to answer your question. Clutch change would take me about 4 hours and 3 beers

Karaya

rpm · « **Reply #9 on:** January 04, 2005, 12:22:48 AM »

Definitely go with the manual. Yeah, the hydraulic clutch is a pain, and it WILL go out at some point. But, I don't think they are any worse or harder to repair than any other Hydro clutch. If you want to see what you are in for, check out an online Haynes manual. I think AutoZone.com has one.

eagl · « **Reply #10 on:** January 04, 2005, 06:17:31 PM »

If it's going to be your wife's daily driver, I'll go against my own preferences and suggest getting an auto. They take less attention to drive and sometimes futzing around with the gears instead of collision avoidance can result in an otherwise avoidable accident. You'll lose performance and cool points, but it's a convertable so you're obviously not getting it for the racing circuit. If you want to race a convertable, get a miata and have twice the fun at half the cost

Get the car up on a lift and look for floorpan cracks. If you off-road a mustang, there's a good chance you'll break the rear suspension mounts at the attach points to the floorpan. Sometimes they're welded back together, sometimes the owner doesn't notice so the floorpan crack slowly grows until pieces start falling off.

Swaybar mount cracks can also point to suspension mods that have been removed prior to resale. Brake rotor cracks or severe front rotor discoloration can point to multiple hard stops from high speed. Chips on the wheels can indicate curb impacts from doing donuts in parking lots... Are all 4 wheels IDENTICAL or has one or two been replaced? Does the front wheel camber look normal or did the previous owner dial in a bunch of negative camber? Are the springs seated correctly or are any rotated slightly off the normal perch, indicating either a complete in-motion unload (as in car went airborn then bounced) or a poorly done spring swap?

Just some things I look for, not necessarily mustang specific except for the rear suspension mounts.

Gunslinger · « **Reply #11 on:** January 04, 2005, 06:31:02 PM »

Ok change one to change two. We found a pretty good priced one that is not a GT (I actually like that....cheaper all around and ALOT cheaper insurance)

It's a V6 4.3 automatic w/ 55,000 miles on it.

kellyblue book on it is $9800 and I have them talked down to $8500. It's just what I'm looking for in price and payments and they even have a pretty good bumper to bumper 2 year warrenty.

rpm · « **Reply #12 on:** January 04, 2005, 07:00:17 PM »

That sounds like more of a "wifemobile". Once again, the only thing you have to worry about with automatic is lifespan. On average, if they are well cared for, you can expect from 80-100K before they thrash. Then you have to pray you get a "good" rebuilt, which in my experience is a pig in a poke.

hawker238 · « **Reply #13 on:** January 04, 2005, 07:05:06 PM »

Off topic question: is horsepower a measurement of force or of energy?

Lizking · « **Reply #14 on:** January 04, 2005, 07:06:10 PM »

I hve never, ever had an auto go bad, and have many that went over 150,000, some to 250,000 with hard use (trucks). On the other hand, I have replaced the crap out of clutches on cars and trucks.

If you ain't racing, you don't need or want a standard (unless it is a little econobox, where you NEED one to get on the highway).