I sold my Rio Red 97 Cobra, 147k, 3.73 gear, new frpp c-springs, king cobra clutch this past spring.

It needed a paint job, it was a good 15 footer but close up you could see the oxidation, no matter what I did. Had the front bumper painted to match but then it stuck out and looked better than the rest of the car. I didn't have 2k to shell out for a paint job (and small dent repair).

It had a 4v replacement engine I installed a while back - I got it from MPS Auto Salvage - ran well but had a miss in it and also had a lot of valvetrain noise. I had replaced all 4 timing chains, still had the ticking. Probably lash adjusters . They told me when I bought it that it had 69k on it, but I'm not so sure that was true.

Over all, it was in good condition for its age, no rips in the leather but wear as normal for the age. Rather than replace lash adjusters, have the body and paint done, and take a chance on something else expensive going out on it, I sold it.

I thought with the cash I'd move into a newer 05+ GT, but life came along and stole my plans for the time being.

I just wanted to post this and say to it to the world for all to hear:

I MISS MY CAR! :-(

We had to buy the family a new ride the other day - Chevy Traverse AWD LT, leather, fully loaded. Very nice ride, we get a generous GM family discount b/c her brother works for GM Powertrain. That coupled with other GM incentives made it a great deal. I will not be using that discount for a Camaro, though. I've got to have another Mustang!

I'm thinking now to keep costs down, I might just get a low mileage New Edge GT, though my wife does not like that style as much as the 05-newer. I do like the New Edge, even over the sn-95, b/c I like the sharper lines and the higher rear profile better. The only 05-09 that I could likely swing anyway is the 6 cyl - Pony Package. Nice looking cars, but I'd probably be missing the V8. Plus, if the 4.6 SOHC were to die, it would be a heck of a lot cheaper to replace and/or rebuild that the DOHC was in my Cobra.

Anyhow, I'm just venting; I'm sort of stuck without one until probably next year (sigh)...

 

Hats off to you for putting the family first! Take an advantage of the situation. Start looking and test driving now. Not every day, on and off. Take your time looking. It will pay off in the long run. You are already off to a great start, you have a good idea what you are looking for. I started not knowing anything about what I wanted and took about 3 years (on and off) to make up my mind. Also, there is a bonus! You will learn how to walk away from deals and pushy salesmen.

 

Thanks Tom V! - and apologies to the mods for posting in the wrong forum. Yes, the family must come first. I am not a patient person by nature; like I said it is killing me to not have one, but time is on my side and I do now have knowledge of what I want in a Mustang. I will be looking very closely at any car I might buy and what the "real" cost of ownership is...

 

Nice story man.. Pretty sure you'll be in another stang sooner than later!

 

Thanks... She knows its not an "if", but a "when"