BigWave916

I just bought a 1997 SVT Cobra Convertible. Not my first Ford, but definitely my first Mustang.

I had an Olds 442 when I was a senior in high school and I had a lot of fun out running a local hot shot who had a ’69 Boss 428. I'd dust his *** on the street on Saturday night, then the poor SOB had to spot me at the drag strip on Sunday. I never really considered a Mustang, but my father in law had a ‘66 with a 351 and I tried to buy it but he gave it to my pecker head brother in law, who sold it in less than six months.

So fast forward to present day and here I am with a Dodge Ram that I bought new in 2003 and my wife is driving a Toyota Rav 4 that we bought new in 2008. Now my daughter needs a car and so I decided that I'll get something I want to drive after her crisis is over.

I looked at Corvettes and Camaros, but what really caught my eye was a white 1997 Cobra Convertible. It was out of my price range at almost $16,000 but the salesman asked can you swing $14,000. I told him my budget was $10,000 and he said "I can't go that low, but I might be able to go as low as $11,300.

I had to blame the little woman for my limited budget. I was also a little concerned about a car dealer asking $16,000 then going to $11,300. What's wrong with this picture? The car looked straight as a die, and the paint and the top were beautiful, so why let it go for such a low price?

I went home and did some research on this car and some others at other dealers and decided that if this thing is everything he says it is, $11,300 is a steal. I found a lot of cars at other lots and on eBay that were in the $16K range. I check the CarFax and another service (can't remember the name) and this thing checked out OK.

So, to make a long story from getting longer, I went back two days later for a test drive. The thing had no rattles or squeaks and it tracked straight down the road. I made a turn at a traffic light hammered the throttle and broke the tires loose, grabbed second gear and squealed the tires again. Allison, the salesperson along for the ride looked like she was gonna wet her pants. We get back to the dealership and I said "Well, I guess since I spun the tires and hit the redline, I gotta buy it." She didn't really know what to say so I said "If the $11,300 price is good, we got a deal."

I now own it, I love it, and I think I got a great deal on it.More pics to follow.

Regards,
BigWave916

BigWave916

xx10Gt

wow man thats a great looking car. If i had the money i wouldve bought it as well. How many miles are on her? nice buy, and good price!

BigWave916

Thanks for the compliment......it has 56,657 on it. The only wear I can see is the leather in the driver's seat. Not split or torn but defiinitely showing signs of distress.

xx10Gt

wow man thats great! i want an older cobra as well as the termi! haha dont we all

Timspony

Welcome to MF & congrats on the Cobra .... looks nice!

JC316

Nice looking cobra, I have it's coupe brother. Mine is a ton more beat up though. They are very fun to drive.

BigWave916

Thanks, I am amazed that I couldn't even find more than one little stone chip on the car. I'm wondering if it's been repainted. If so, they did a real nice job.

"Fun to drive" ??? Man, I didn't know what I was missing.......geez, that reminds me of the old marketing slogan "Have you driven a Ford lately? Then you don't know what you're missin'"

I was afraid I wouldn't be comfortable in the car since I'm over 6ft tall and pretty wide. On those little foreign made regional jets the airlines are using now I have to have a seatbelt extension. So I feel a little cramped in the Cobra and I've found that sneakers are better than boots for tap dancing on the brake pedals.

I love the sound and the power output of the 4.6L engine and I'm a guy who always believed there is no replacement for displacement.

Regards,
BigWave

JC316

You came from the older muscle and yeah the 4V is definitely a different animal. My dad drove a 1969 Mach 1 with a 390 and my mom drove a 64 Galaxie 500 XL 390/4 speed. Plus they dealt in classics in the late 80's/early 90's. Had a lot of muscle, SS396 Chevelle, Jensen Interceptor, Porsche 928, Corvettes, etc. Both of them had nice big smiles on their faces after driving my Cobra.

BigWave916

"Older muscle" That is a great way to describe it. I've had 4 '67 Oldsmobile Cutlasses (what is plural of cutlass?) and two of those were 442s. The first was a 4 speed with 4:56 gears and headers and I had a lot of fun tormenting the guy with the Mach I. I said it was a 69 but it must have been a 70 since it was grabber blue and I don't think the grabber colors were offered in '69.

The last one was a Cutlass Supreme convertible. I bought a 455 .030 over crate motor, headers, torque converter, and a Chevy 12 bolt rear end with 4:11 gears. That thing weighed almost 4,000 pounds and would run high 12s at the strip. We'd go get ice cream with a boat load of the neighbor kids in it, ridining through town with the top down and the 455 goin' rumpety-rump-rump-rumpety-rump-rump out the tail pipes. Really had fun with it, but that was probably 15 years ago that we sold it.

Closest thing I had to a hot rod since then was my Hemi Dodge Ram. Ordered it new and I've run the crap out of it ever since. 4 wheel drive pick up that has run 15:67 at the strip.

Cool thing stuff about the Cobra:
It's a 5 speed and I miss shifting gears.
It's fast as hell, but still corners well.
It's beautiful and the top comes down.

On top of that, the dealer calls and says "We have some stuff that was supposed to go with the car. Can you come by today and pick it up?" So I head over there wondering what they might have and they present me with a folder full of SVT stuff, like brochures and memos from Ford. Included in one of the folders was an envelope containing a certificate from SVT stating that mine is #1423 of 3,088 built, and the original window sticker. Also included was every little sticker and instruction sheet provided with the car when it was new, all protected in plastic sleeves.

I was able to confirm that it was built with a white top and since the dealer's listing on the internet said it had a saddle top, I thought maybe the top had been replaced. So now I know that mine is one of 60 some in white with white top and saddle interior.

I bought this car for $4,700 under Kelley Blue Book and I'm still looking for a reason why. I hope I don't find it because instead of having buyer's remorse like I usually do, I'm shaking my head at what a sweet deal this is.

The old saying goes "Don't look a gift horse in the mouth" I think I'll stop looking for something wrong and just enjoy my Mustang.