Newb from Northern Virginia

Nate Hartsock · Oct 31, 2011

Hey good morning everyone, I just joined the site about 5min ago. I am throwing around the idea of picking up a 94-98 cobra or a 94/95 gt. I feel so lost when it comes to SN95s so I came here to try and learn a little. I have an 08 GT500 now and I used to have an 04 cobra but never a 94-98. Bare with me as I try to find what to look for and get the best bang for my buck.

det_riot · Oct 31, 2011

Welcome! Glad you decided to kick back generations from your BA gt500. I've seen your car over on that other site.....so sexy! As far as a new car, what kind of budget are you looking to spend on the car?

Nate Hartsock · Oct 31, 2011

det_riot said:
Welcome! Glad you decided to kick back generations from your BA gt500. I've seen your car over on that other site.....so sexy! As far as a new car, what kind of budget are you looking to spend on the car?

thanks buddy.

Budget is kind of up in the air. I found a 94 GT with 160k miles, perfect paint, automatic for $3500 at a local ford dealership. Is that alot of mileage for these cars? I definitely want to stay under $5k so a 94 or 95 GT is probably more what i'm after. A project car would be ok also for the right price. I also like the idea of an automatic because of traffic around here an my wife would probably drive it to work a good bit. What kind of mpg am I looking at? Thank you so much

mygreengt · Oct 31, 2011

welcome to the forums! i see you on svtp quite often.

Nate Hartsock · Oct 31, 2011

thanks! yeah i have over 4k posts on svtp.

CC'S95GT · Oct 31, 2011

Welcome to the site Nate.5.0's are pretty durable. I have almost 200,000 miles on mine and wouldn't be afraid to take it cross country. But it all depends on the prior owners.My fuel milage is about 20mpg's with 4:10's, Mostly interstate driving at 80mph.

Nate Hartsock · Oct 31, 2011

thanks for the info. 94-98, which year is most desirable and why? GTs and/or Cobras. I'm trying to look up most of this stuff on my own but its nice to get some enthusiasts opinions as well.

det_riot · Oct 31, 2011

Nate Hartsock said:
thanks for the info. 94-98, which year is most desirable and why? GTs and/or Cobras. I'm trying to look up most of this stuff on my own but its nice to get some enthusiasts opinions as well.

Well it all depends on what you are most familiar with. 94-95gt are pushrod style 5.0 motors. 96-98gt are modular 2v 4.6s.
94-98 not much changed aside from the motors and their capabilities. 96+ are obd2 cars, before that they're obd1. Suspension is primarily the same aside from the cobra's getting beefed up sway bars and brakes. 96+ have cup holders in their center console where as 94&95 have ashtrays. If you aren't planning on modding it too much, and would rather have a virgin platform, I'd be willing to bet you could find a plethora of 94-98 gt's in good condition in your price range.

Ferocious · Oct 31, 2011

Welcome to the site! your gt500 looks pure badass man.

And regarding fuel economy, if you live in a traffic heavy area, you're looking at low mpg.
I mostly drive to school and back, and i average out 175-200 miles a tank;meaning about 11-14 on average.
With a few tunes and bolt-ons however, you could easily make your way to around 15-17 mpg in the city which isnt all that bad for an older mustang.

&I think getting a 5.0 gt is a good idea. I wish i had gotten a 5.0 over a 4.6.
Its all preference though.

Nate Hartsock · Oct 31, 2011

long term goal for the car is twin turbo. short term is lower it and do a spoiler delete or saleen spoiler. whats the best starting block for the TT's? Thanks everyone

det_riot · Oct 31, 2011

how much power are you looking to make? oem 5.0 blocks won't hold up much past 450-500 and their life ultimately depends on how good of a tune you have and how high into the rpm range you want to spin it. I'm fairly sure if you wanna go tt and make some good power then you'd want to go for the tekskid block found in the 97-98 cobras? With those though, the weak link is the rods and pistons but i believe the block will hold upwards of 1000hp. someone please correct me if i'm wrong.

Nate Hartsock · Oct 31, 2011

my goal powerwise would be 500rwhp max but probably keep it closer to 400rwhp. my gt500 makes over 600rwhp and thats more than I really need. maybe a single turbo would be better. i'm still learning so bear with me. the sn95s are pretty light. does roughly 3400lbs sounds about right?

Ferocious · Oct 31, 2011

yes sounds about right. mine is 3554 lbs i believe & it's a convertible.

Nate Hartsock · Oct 31, 2011

ok cool. I'm still trying to get a feel for the market. I just found a 98 GT owned by a woman and her husband is a mechanic. Somewhat local, about an hour away. 144k miles, paint looks great in the pics. Its blue, pretty sure Atlantic blue. Asking $3500 but i think i could get it for a little cheaper. thoughts? I really wanted black or white.

added a picture of the car...

det_riot · Oct 31, 2011

i think thats a bit high for 144k but if you could get em down under 3k it wouldnt be bad.[URL="http://detroit.craigslist.org/wyn/cto/2605316906.html"]

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slim101 · Oct 31, 2011

Nova!!!! What's up man. Surprised I have never seen you befor?!? I live in lorton/Woodbridge.

a306juGRnot · Nov 1, 2011

i might be bias on this subject but i really think the 94-95 body is the best bang for the buck compared to the 96-98 gt's. idk if you know anything about the older pushrod 5.0 motors but theyre extremely easy to work on and their parts are far cheaper than the 4.6 parts. if your goal is 500 max and around 400, id go with a 94-95 for the simple reason that itll make that power easy with less expensive parts.

oh, and unless you dont mind driving an auto, i would just get a 5speed right off the bat. those deals are decent but still no since theyre autos for me.

would like to see more pics of that gt500!

Nate Hartsock · Nov 1, 2011

slim101 said:
Nova!!!! What's up man. Surprised I have never seen you befor?!? I live in lorton/Woodbridge.

Thanks everyone. I live in Lake Ridge/Woodbridge and work at Ft Belvoir. The car doesn't get driven a whole lot. Mainly just on nice days and to and from shows or the gym.