NCMustangMan

I wouldn't expect much of a discount if any at all on a GT. I have seen the dealer starting to discount the V6 Verts in recent weeks but no deals on GT's in my area anyway. I do see a few 2005 GT's selling used with less than 5,000 miles for a good price though. Good luck in the process, the sooner you get yours the better that's for sure!

Redfire

If yer gonna get the snows, definately get a set of wheels to mount em on. Its hard on the tires and yer wallet to keep changin em over. EBay has lots of wheels like yer stock ones at decent prices. But check around. You will be glad you have em ready to go when the first snows hit and the tire stores are full up with customers. That way, you can slap em on at home in a half hour or so. And as for the front drive/ rear drive debate, remember that here in the US, front wheel drive is fairly new. We have had horrid winters in the early 50s and late 60s, and most of us got through it fine with rear drive. You just need to build up experiece driving under those conditions.

tacticalnuke

As far as the wheels, what were a pair of stocks run on E-bay vs. a dealer?

Also, I can put them on when the snow hits at home. However, wouldn't I have to get them re-aligned each time I switched wheel/tire combo? Rotation, obviously, would come when it's needed and I'd need to make sure I recorded which tire goes on which spot for the rotation when I put them away. Would a rotation happen every year as well? For instance, say I'm running summers, I switch to winters when the snow hits, would I then, at my earliest convenience, want to take them in for a rotation and re-alignment?

I've never really done more than take a car for an oil change and to the shop when it makes funny noises, so I apologize for the noob questions. Thank you for all the help.

I'm looking on E-bay and seeing $725 with buy-it-now for the stock 17" wheel/tires set. I'm guessing I could get the wheels alone for maybe 400ish but I'm not sure. Heck, it could be even less I guess, but I don't know this very well.

Redfire

Not sure what the dealer wants for wheels, but you can call em first and ask. Then hit ebay and ask around till you find the best deal. If you put em on at the house, thats it. No realignment is necessary. You might want to ask one of your more experienced friends to show you the Star pattern you should use to tighten them. And he can show you how to safely lift your car so you can work on it, and how tight to get the wheels. Wouldnt want em to fall off, now would we? As far as rotation, follow the owners manual. But I put the ones with the least wear in front, unless your gonna be boilin the hydes a lot! Relax. Dont rush in to anything, and ask the folks who've done these things for help and enjoy yer car. Oh, and NEVER boil the hydes with studded snow tires!!

Wldstng05

Dude, IF you get an '06 GT you will pay pretty close to sticker unless you wait for demand to go down later next year. Simple economics. Supply vs. demand. There are likely thousands of folks who couldn't get an '05 that have an '06 on order so demand isn't shrinking and Ford is building all they can (80,000 more this year than planned!).

Check Edmunds.com on the '05's. They are listing MSRP as their TMV (true market value - re: what others are paying).

Also, do call and get an insurance quote - an '06 GT WILL increase that a good bit. Also count the cost of new tires - they ain't cheap and you'll likely go through them pretty quickly. Then, there are mods... those are addictive! I'm just guessing but I bet the average person on this board puts another $2-5K in their car. OH, don't forget tickets - you can count on at least one in the first 6 - 12 months... heck several on this board have gotten more than one the first month!

I'm not trying to discourage you from getting an '06 GT - I think they are the best car on the road for the money! I'm just trying to give you an educated heads up. Keep us posted!

Herknav

Not to mention... if you get the WRX, it will NOT be useless for the other 10 days.. it is a completely different driving experience... twisties vs straight line accel. Don't get me wrong, I love my Stang... but the WRX is a good car... excellent in bad weather, handles great, damned good performance bone stock, and easily mod-able, (so I have been told)... all in all a great value for your dollar. And the turbo sounds so cool...

Back to the 'Stang... I got pleanty of tickets in my 96 GT... and the performance of that car s*cked. I actually got a few less tickets in my 99 Cobra... but I owned it for less than a year, (and put 45k miles on it in that time). It was awesome, and had NO mechanical faults, (with a few warranteed exceptions). I have seen pleanty of cops so far in my new beast, but they have always been busy or I just slowed down.. or I am getting older... I will say comparing all three, that I like the 05 best. It is not the fastest, but taken all together, it is the best. It is far more comfy than the Cobra. It beats the 96 in ever category, (except price).

WLDFILY

I ordered mine, then waited for a long time, then did all of the paper work, gave them some money, then I got to drive the car. That was the first time i bought a car before I test drove it.

WLDFILY

I live in Spokane, & yes we can get some bad snow here. Save the good ride for good days, get another car for winter!!!!

2Stangs

Dang Don, where did you go? I went all over as well, Sonic Blue is just rare.


MSRP is about what you can expect, unless you buy one that's been sitting on their lot for over a month. Also, make them think you don't really like the color, but make sure they don't have one in the color you say want on the back lot. (Discount, because you'll have to paint it once you buy it.) Shop & buy the last 2 days of the month. (More discount, they are trying to make quota) Don't get any extra stuff from the dealership, get it through your bank/credit union. Don't deal with the petty little salesmen. Only deal with the Sales Managers. Don't be afraid to stand up for yourself. Don't talk about payments, stick to the price of the car. Don't finance through dealership. Don't tell them anything about a trade-in or down payment until the price for the car has been agreeded apon.

If you are going to order it, don't get the premium. Just get all the added stuff that you want from the premium. I believe the red interior is not available for the 06' if you were thinking that. You can get better sound system and leather aftermarket than from Ford, and it would be cheaper.

Well, hope that helps.

tacticalnuke

What, exactly, is wrong with the premium package? I'd rather not void any warranty by getting leather installed myself, and I like the look of the premium package. I've talked to several dealers and as far as they know the special red/black will be available in '06. The reason I want to upgrade to red/black is that it's only about $625 total. The other $375 is for the side-impact airbags, which I think are a good idea.

I will not be doing a trade-in, and financing will be through the bank. So, as I already told the dealer, I'll be paying cash.

I will shop the last two days of the month, and try for a Friday night, so the guy is itching to go home.

Basically the premium adds $1K, let me know if that's worth it. As far as I can tell the upgraded leather and interior is worth the other $675 (price from Ford.com). If there is a better way that won't void warranty or cost more, I'm all ears. I just like the idea of getting as much of the car from Ford, and if I want, say, a better sound system later I can do that elsewhere.

So basically you're saying go with the regular and get the interior done elsewhere?

As to the comment about a winter car, I've already stated I can't afford to have two cars. It is not unreasonable to drive this in the winter so I believe I'll be fine.