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Comments
I agree they'll be closer to normal price in a year or so. I don't think they'll overproduce them, though. They've made a conscious decision to cut back on the fleet sales.
You have to weigh the potential cost of buying one now with not driving the car for a year. If you can wait, great. But if you don't want to wait, that's ok too.
Now, the bid winner pays the guy $1,000 and has to go to the dealer where the car will be delivered and negotiate the price. Wanna bet it won't be under MSRP?
Taking a look at what dealers are doing locally, I'd say that MSRP will be the going rate for GTs until well into the '06 MY. Since used GTs with miles on them are commanding MSRP at auto auctions, and new '05 GT orders are all filled up to the point where the factory will be busy building them through the end of the '05 MY, I'd say that resale on the '05 GT will be very good for a while, yet.
Best to have a shop put them on on (unless you really know what you're doing, it's best to let professionals handle it), and as far as cleaning, wash normally, but do not wax over them.
Agree, I don't use the mags as the end all either when I make my purchase, they're entertaining and decent lite reading for me. And agree that mags do have a bias of our engines too. I recalll reading that "all Amercian 4-cyl. are noisy and thrashy, yet Japanese 4-cyl. are smooth as silk" Somewhat true but I owned / driven some Japanese 4-cyl and they could be just as loud and rough as an old GM Iron Duke!! But then the Quad 4 came out, and the mags praised it, which was strange since it was American. But the VTECs hit, and once again the American engine was crap. There were all kind of reviews of the 180hp from the del Sol and the like, but they glossed over the fact you had to rev that sucker to 7600rpm. The Quad 4 made 180 too at a lower rpm (like 7200 or something, maybe lower), but they weren't a Japanese engine so they were crap-o-la.
See, we can agree on some things
But other than that, really nice piece. Black's a nice color for this car. Have also seen two GTs on the street, both the silver? color, like a lite gray mist.
I'm sure the aftermarket will say they can improve it.
For an OEM unit, I've yet to hear anything any better (and plenty that are worse). But, if you're among the "thumper" crowd, you might want to look into the Shaker 1000. Personally, for the $1,000+ that costs, I'm certain you can do better in the aftermarket, however.
The standard 500 system is all I need, though. Plus, I'm pleased with it.
Almost every GT in stock at local dealers has leather seats...here in the cold north, the prospect of (unheated) leather seats on a cold winter day isn't very appealing.
On April 17, 1999, I celebrated 35 years of Mustang with my first musclecar...a bright silver 99 GT picked up on the very same day of the original Mustang. 35 years to the day and over three years, I put nothing but oil and gas in it, never any problems and with TC and winters, it was an easy car to drive in a typical Canadian winter. Loved that car. Sure, the driving position was never ideal. Plastics sucked but at least it was all well put together. Got the car for 29,000.00 CAD. Buy back was 17,500.00. I sold it privately for $20000!
Had a Volvo S60 T5 that was up at the end of the lease. I struggled with choosing between a G35 Coupe and S60R. My rationale for a coupe was I drove alone 95% of the time and 4 seats were a waste. But the S60 R was such a tremendous car. Power. Style. Comfort. Refinement. The G35c appealed to my eyes more than to my heart. It looked great, especially with the 19" wheels, but it was simply too punisihing. My back was aching every time I got out. The interior looked better but the engine did not appeal to me, sound wise. You also literally had to cane it to get anywhere near what is quoted. I like torque which is why the S60 T5 appealed to me, why the R appealed to me. After driving both for hours, I made up my mind: S60R. Red with Atacama. I gave the dealer the green light and I was ready with funds and committed to this path.
Problem is no one could find one. Everytime they found one, it was sold. I was waiting weeks when it dawned on me...if I were considering a G35c, why not another Mustang? I decided to give it a shot.
Immediately, upon startup, I was hooked. I could actually get comfortable. not only that, but the ride felt almost BMW-like compared to my 99 GT (which felt light years ahead of my bro's 97 SVT!). The shifter/clutch combo was perfect. The refinement of the interior, even in its base guise, was stunning. I couldn't beleive how "tight" the car felt. Amazing power and sounds! Have to say, though, up to about 3000-3500, it did not feel like my 99. It felt timid. However, the difference at 5000+ was night/day to my wheezing 99 near redline. The only reservation I have are the Pirelli tires that while quiet are easily overhwhelmed by my right foot. Strange tire choice, isn't it?
When I pick it up it will be tinted and equippied with American Racing "Casino" wheels, 18 x 8.5 with 255/45zr18 Falkens. I am going to check it out today whether or not to put in the lowering springs I ordered as well (Eibach).
Same dealer. Same month, and if it were not for the calender diff, I would be picking up this new black w/red w/int upgrade on the 17th of April...2005. I will have to settle for the 18th this time. Funny how karma works isn't it?
By the way, my brother was driving beside me in his 2003 375bhp 350Z complete with a 12.80 qt slip (which will be even quicker with his latest mods!). In a side by side 3rd gear romp, the Mustang held its own while the Z was slooooowly reeling me in. My brother said that a stock 350Z wouldn't have a chance!
I would rather have seat cooling in the summer!
I've never felt the need for leather hides, so am questionning the need now as I contemplate my purchase of a new '05 GT or order of a '06 GT. On a resale basis the market would likely prefer leather, but I intend to keep the GT for a while so resale is a non-issue.
Just parted ways with my '67 Camaro SS after 20 years, so I'm looking for a quick and more modern V8 replacement.
I was almost set to go for a Sonic Blue, but the more I think of it, I'm leaning towards Legend Lime...seems to be a "classic" colour and I would think it will be one of the less common Stang colours on the street. My '67 SS was bright yellow, not sure I want to attract that much attention (from law enforcement) again in a yellow GT...
I am considering a Mustang GT Convertible (5sp) vs a pre-owned C5 Corvette. The C5 would probably be a coupe with removable roof. I plan on it being a daily driver.
I live the advantages of the Mustang; new with warranty, back seat (small), price for new...... But it is not a Vette. The C5 would be, say..an 03 with low miles for very similar money.
Anyone have thoughts or experience to share????
:confuse:
C5s are "good" vettes.
Mustang GT's are one of (if not THE) hottest cars on the market right now. You may be hard pressed to find a convertible that isn't marked up well over MSRP (if you can find one at all).
If you live in winter climate, the Mustang GT comes with good P-Zero all weather tires with trac control. My guess is the C5 has strictly summer tires. Plus, I wouldn't consider it a 4 seasons car (but could be passable in the winter with proper winter tires).
Comes down to what you want. If you've always wanted a 'vette, there will be no substitute. A Mustang GT convertible will offer the most fun you can probably find in all of cardom currently, though.
Even if the Mustang launched sedately, he would have taken you. If you "floored it", the steering wheel would have jerked out of your hands so quickly, you probably would have ended up two lanes over since torque steer is terrible in the Altima.
I really like the new Mustang, too, but I wonder how many people out there simply think they can buy a car that is rated 5.3 secs 0-60 and can really make the car do it, or do they just think they can just floor the pedal and make it win? It takes more than specs to make the vehicle achieve its potential.
I'll put an experienced gear head (read: 50 years old) against a driver that only knows what Car and Driver tells him any day.
Great observation.
It's also true that no matter what the car you drive is capable of doing, that doesn't automatically mean that the driver has any indication on how to make it perform the way it's capable of.
Put an idiot behind the wheel of any car, and they'll drive it like........well.......an idiot.
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No problems filling up, and the car is tight as a whistle, I just can't wait for the break in, 1600km seems a bit long!
The problem you're going to run up against is it may be impossible to put an order in for an '05 Mustang GT. I don't believe that factory is taking any more orders since their order banks are totally full for the rest of the '05 MY.
You might want to think about an '06. Dealers will start taking orders for those the middle of next month.
You are really going to like the springs. I had Eibach springs years ago and forgot how good they are.
I considered having Ford install them this time, but I need to get that suspension popping(that we all seem to have) looked at/fixed first. When I get my first oil change, I'll have all the little niggles checked out. I've had it for almost 5 months and just rolled 2500 miles on the odometer. The only issues are the popping suspension, the very rare CD skip, and something about a couple of bolts on the transmission not being installed from the factory.
I recommend a set of inexpensive 16"wheels & Blizzaks.
Pop off the center cap, and scribe or punch a mark in the wheel that identifies the location of the yellow tape.
Why? The tire manufacturer ID's the "high" (maybe "low") location of the tire so at the assembly plant it can be matched with the opposite on the wheel. When it comes time to replace tires, you'll want to do the same by matching your mark on the wheel with the colored dot on the sidewall of the new tire. If you don't, there's a chance that you'll have high spot & high spot aligned. This will produce vibration even if perfectly balanced dynamically. Then, $$ to have the Hunter 9800 do its thing.
Note that I said "Wheels", not "Rims". Rims are the steel bands around the wooden wheels on Conastoga wagons.
The V6 performs like the V8 of several years ago, throaty sound and great off-line (0-60) performance. Its the BEST compromise if you can't get the V8.
Some people have more money than brains.
Definitions:
Tire - the thing in contact with the road surface
Rim - what the tire gets mounted to.
Wheel - the connection between the rim and the hub
Hub - the thing that holds the bearings and connects to the axle.
In modern vehicles, the rim and the wheel are usually integrated units - but typically the word rim is used, reserving the "wheel" to mean the tire and rim as a unit. (Confusing? - You bet!!). And in the case of Conestoga wagons, the steel band is the tire. The wood part would be the wheel.
Hope this helps.
Not always true. Check new vehicles on the lot or car carrier.
"Many aftermarket tires aren't marked for high point (or the marks fall off)"
I make it a point to look for the mark whenever I'm in Discount tire, etc. & have yet to see a replacement tire that doesn't have the mark. The mark is not tape, it appears to be a painted dot about 1/4" in diameter. Not likely to "fall off".
Are you trying to persuade new car owners to not mark the location of the marks?
Besides, better tires will help you in acceleration, braking, and cornering; TC would only be beneficial in acceleration. You've still gotta be able to STOP the silly thing.......
I respectfully disagree. If one driving wheel is on ice, and the other on dry pavement, traction control will apply the brake to the wheel that's on ice, allowing the differential to divert torque to the wheel that's on dry pavement.
LOL! Yeah, thank you Fast N Furious "culture"...
Let me amend my stance to snow/ice, traction control, and the Mustang to this: traction control is okay, and certainly better than no traction control. But a decent set of snow tires on a car w/o traction control will fare better in snow/ice than 'summer' tires on a car with traction control.
Very different.
An LSD Multiplies the torque applied to the slipping wheel & sends it to the other wheel. If the slipping wheel has zero torque, then LSD does nothing. This is why it's important to lightly apply parking brake if not making headway.
With TC, the brake is applied to slipping wheel, allowing other wheel to get a grip.
A few years ago, wife while backing up, dropped the left rear into a rain drainage ditch. Car bottomed out & LR was hanging in the air. LSD did no good at all until I applied the parking brake. The other wheel then threw gravel.
No doubt, tires are an essential part of the traction equation ... I don't question this. I just want to avoid misconceptions on the value of traction control,