Hey guys,
I know I haven't posted and supported this site in a long while, and I apologize for that. The momentum that appeared suddnely for my '98 GT a year or so ago disappeared as fast as it came to be, when plans to 'mod it using a local speed shop turned ugly and left a sour taste on the whole thing. I abandoned any plans to 'mod it's mod motor internally, and was just content to DD it bone stock.
Fast forward to about a week ago and I rear-ended someone in the '98 because I just wasn't paying attention on a lazy afternoon spent all day at the beach. Airbags went off and this was the result of the damage on the outside:
AAA, my insurance company quickly wrote the car off as a total loss. I was heartbroken to say the least. I bought this car brand new off of the showroom floor in 1998 with 10 miles on the 'odo, and this car has been with me through hell and back over the last 18 years. Sure, after I bought it I got into F bodies, a '97 Z28 Vert and a '99 F-bird T/A WS6, and I always kept and built on my first car, a '69 Charger R/T, but I always kept my Mustang GT around as an ultra-reliable DD that didn't have the "drama" (reliability, practicality) issues that the other three cars have.
So, with my life-long buddy about to be taken away from me forever I was very miserable. I figured I was screwed, in that I did not want to have to rely on the F bodies or the Charger for DD duty anyway. Even if I wanted to, I see how modern auto insurance treats older cars like ours and if something were to happen to the rest of my stable I'd be screwed just like I was with the Mustang. You guys can imagine how stoked I was when AAA said they were going to give me $6300 to take the car; $6K if I kept the car.
At this point I started to feel hopeful, since I figured with $6K I'd be able to buy a daily driver to protect my other three cars and carry on with my life. So, with a lot of hours spent on the internet I found this thing:
It's an '01 A4 with 57K on the 'odo. Now I know the SN95 and the 'Edge are about 5,000 years old but like I've always said, the SN95 and the Edge are MY personal favorite Mustangs of all time. Yeah, there are faster, more advanced/classic Mustangs and all that, but I grew up worshipping these cars so that's where my loyalty is. Anyway, I can't remember being this excited for a car in a long while, and I'm eagerly setting on the same 'mod route that I followed for my '98 GT: springs for lowering and handling, and matching shocks and struts.
This is where I need to ask you guys: I used SR Performance lowering springs and Koni STR.T's for my '98. Now although the look is KILLER, I'm not sure the handling was. Everytime I'd take a dip in the road at speed the Mustang on rebound would bounce me up in my seat so hard and high that my head would almost hit the roof! I was going to buy the same setup for my New Edge, since I loved the 1.5" drop all around, but can you guys recommend something that won't rebound as badly as my '98 does? Other than that I plan on fixing the few dents and dings on the body, fixing some of the interior trim pieces, replacing the Mach 460 head unit (nice sounding system but that 6 disc changer just ate my cd's!). I don't plan on digging into the rest of the car because quite frankly I think it's just about perfect, and I don't have the time and money when I've still got three other cars that need attention also. Any other suggestions on maintenance or 'mods you guys have that might be unique to the New Edge, or any other input on the New Edge would be greatly appreciated.
Now if you guys will just bear with me for a little more, I have one more question to ask. I figured with my totaled '98 I'd take the 6K from AAA and pay off the New Edge, since that's how much I paid for it. BUT...my insurance 'rep is a super cool girl who had the craziest idea I have heard all week: if I love the '98 GT so much, WHY DON'T I JUST KEEP IT? She says there's no law that says I can't keep the car and slowly fix it on my own and putting it on the road again. Sure, it'll be a salvaged vehicle, but who cares? I don't plan on selling it since I consider it a part of my life. What do you guys think? I love this car despite its shortcomings so do you think that's a reasonable idea? How much damage do you guys think the '98 sustained? Do you guys think it looks badly damaged? What about the airbags? Would I have to replace those things, or could they wait until I got the car's body fixed again? How much do you think a body shop would charge for the body work?
I know this is a lot to post after disappearing for a bit, but I need your guy's input since no one else can relate to my love for these misunderstood and under-appreciated cars. I thank all of you for listening and hope you have some ideas to toss my way regarding my New Edge as well as the fate of my beloved '98 GT. Thanks again for being there...
I know I haven't posted and supported this site in a long while, and I apologize for that. The momentum that appeared suddnely for my '98 GT a year or so ago disappeared as fast as it came to be, when plans to 'mod it using a local speed shop turned ugly and left a sour taste on the whole thing. I abandoned any plans to 'mod it's mod motor internally, and was just content to DD it bone stock.
Fast forward to about a week ago and I rear-ended someone in the '98 because I just wasn't paying attention on a lazy afternoon spent all day at the beach. Airbags went off and this was the result of the damage on the outside:
AAA, my insurance company quickly wrote the car off as a total loss. I was heartbroken to say the least. I bought this car brand new off of the showroom floor in 1998 with 10 miles on the 'odo, and this car has been with me through hell and back over the last 18 years. Sure, after I bought it I got into F bodies, a '97 Z28 Vert and a '99 F-bird T/A WS6, and I always kept and built on my first car, a '69 Charger R/T, but I always kept my Mustang GT around as an ultra-reliable DD that didn't have the "drama" (reliability, practicality) issues that the other three cars have.
So, with my life-long buddy about to be taken away from me forever I was very miserable. I figured I was screwed, in that I did not want to have to rely on the F bodies or the Charger for DD duty anyway. Even if I wanted to, I see how modern auto insurance treats older cars like ours and if something were to happen to the rest of my stable I'd be screwed just like I was with the Mustang. You guys can imagine how stoked I was when AAA said they were going to give me $6300 to take the car; $6K if I kept the car.
At this point I started to feel hopeful, since I figured with $6K I'd be able to buy a daily driver to protect my other three cars and carry on with my life. So, with a lot of hours spent on the internet I found this thing:
It's an '01 A4 with 57K on the 'odo. Now I know the SN95 and the 'Edge are about 5,000 years old but like I've always said, the SN95 and the Edge are MY personal favorite Mustangs of all time. Yeah, there are faster, more advanced/classic Mustangs and all that, but I grew up worshipping these cars so that's where my loyalty is. Anyway, I can't remember being this excited for a car in a long while, and I'm eagerly setting on the same 'mod route that I followed for my '98 GT: springs for lowering and handling, and matching shocks and struts.
This is where I need to ask you guys: I used SR Performance lowering springs and Koni STR.T's for my '98. Now although the look is KILLER, I'm not sure the handling was. Everytime I'd take a dip in the road at speed the Mustang on rebound would bounce me up in my seat so hard and high that my head would almost hit the roof! I was going to buy the same setup for my New Edge, since I loved the 1.5" drop all around, but can you guys recommend something that won't rebound as badly as my '98 does? Other than that I plan on fixing the few dents and dings on the body, fixing some of the interior trim pieces, replacing the Mach 460 head unit (nice sounding system but that 6 disc changer just ate my cd's!). I don't plan on digging into the rest of the car because quite frankly I think it's just about perfect, and I don't have the time and money when I've still got three other cars that need attention also. Any other suggestions on maintenance or 'mods you guys have that might be unique to the New Edge, or any other input on the New Edge would be greatly appreciated.
Now if you guys will just bear with me for a little more, I have one more question to ask. I figured with my totaled '98 I'd take the 6K from AAA and pay off the New Edge, since that's how much I paid for it. BUT...my insurance 'rep is a super cool girl who had the craziest idea I have heard all week: if I love the '98 GT so much, WHY DON'T I JUST KEEP IT? She says there's no law that says I can't keep the car and slowly fix it on my own and putting it on the road again. Sure, it'll be a salvaged vehicle, but who cares? I don't plan on selling it since I consider it a part of my life. What do you guys think? I love this car despite its shortcomings so do you think that's a reasonable idea? How much damage do you guys think the '98 sustained? Do you guys think it looks badly damaged? What about the airbags? Would I have to replace those things, or could they wait until I got the car's body fixed again? How much do you think a body shop would charge for the body work?
I know this is a lot to post after disappearing for a bit, but I need your guy's input since no one else can relate to my love for these misunderstood and under-appreciated cars. I thank all of you for listening and hope you have some ideas to toss my way regarding my New Edge as well as the fate of my beloved '98 GT. Thanks again for being there...
