the 03 i'm looking at has been sitting simply because the guy doesn't drive it and it does need a couple of repairs, the oil cooler has a leak and the diff has a small leak, other than that the car is good only has 50k miles and has been pullied and tuned,this guy has owned it for the last 5 years and probably put less than 3k miles on the car. what's the car worth, it's black 10th anniversary car and is in great shape cosmetic.
I sold a previous 03 Cobra and ordered a 13 Gt track pack. It was a fun car, but as others have said, I missed the raw feel of the 03 Cobra. I ended selling it and got back into my current Cobra. 3 years later, I’m happy I switched back. I didn’t/ don’t daily drive my mustangs, so I preferred the raw feel. But if it was my daily driver, I’d prefer the newer more refined mustangs.
I have both and am glad I don't have to choose one over the other. You'll have to drive both and figure out what will work best for you. The handling and braking is going to be way better in the 2012 if it has the track pack. It is more technologically advanced and the suspension is a design that was developed to compete with the M3 compared to a car whose suspension design was originally used in a 1978 station wagon. The motor is the Cobra is an overbuilt beast from the factory and will handle lots of power reliably. But, the new 5.0 pulls great, has a wide rpm range, and tons of mods are available.
Long term, the Cobra will be worth more money and be more collectible.
What are your plans with the car? Are you going to keep it under a cover in the garage and constantly see if it's gained value and bragg about how many miles it doesn't have or are you going to drive it and use it? The last sentence was just a joke so hopefully I didn't upset anyone .
They are both good platforms to mod and have endless aftermarket options. I have owned both and I prefer the coyote hands down. The only thing I miss about my Cobra is how hard it hit when you went wot. Other than that the coyote is better all around. My cobra was obnoxious, everything rattled, and would scare you when you smashed the go pedal. If I was back in my 20s with no kids I would pick the cobra all day. Now that I have little ones, the coyote is better for cruising, I'm sure once I get my TVS installed it will be a fun cruiser.
The coyotes will drop like a tank in value but if you plan to use it and abuse it who cares. I love the look of the terminators but at the end of the day it's still a new edge with a stout drivetrain. If you are a collector then I'd get the terminator hands down.
A few years ago, I was contemplating trading my Cobra for a current year GT. I'm glad I didn't. You see Mustang GTs everywhere, Terminators not. And, I could probably resell my Cobra for what I paid for it 5 years ago.
I never realized the Fairmont came with an IRS, Bilstein's, Brembos, rock hard springs and fat sway bars at both ends. Thanks for clearing that one up for me.
First and most importantly don’t buy any car thinking it’s value will be $xxx down the road. I’ve yet to meet anyone on this site with a crystal ball however if you have one please give me the winning powerball numbers!!! If you are a larger frame guy (like me) the 03/04 Cobras are not comfortable especially as a daily driver you will regret it after the newness goes away. The 5.0 is more refined and much easier as a daily however it’s not a Terminator. Life is a series of trades, only you can make that choice!
IMO.......The 03-04 Terminator is the best looking Mustang ever produced! Great raw fun power and will always have a timeless look. Buy the car that looks the best to you and drive it! They are both nice machines.
I haven't owned the Cobra long enough to form a really cohesive opinion about it, but I can offer this...
I have a '16 GT350 now. It'll slaughter the Cobra as it sits. Maybe if I start tinkering I'll get the Terminator in the business of terminating, but for now, the 350 will out-perform it in every way, especially on track. The car simply amazes. That's fine for me. I bought the Terminator to terminate boredom on long cruises and car shows predominantly anyway.
I traded in a track-pack equipped '14 GT that had some minor bolt ons and suspension work. It was pretty quick also, faster than the Cobra, at least from my very minor seat time with it.
The Cobra does feel more special...It's probably the boost whine and mystichrome paint though. lol
The comments above are spot on. The newer car will have newer tech and if you're used to it, that'll matter. If not, it won't.
I also agree that the Cobra being a special model will always remain so. If you go with a garden variety Coyote vs. a Boss or GT500/350, you'll see values drop.
I kept my '14 for about two years, bought it way below invoice, put cash down and got high book in trade value for it. I still lost money.
In contrast I paid about 2k more for the Cobra than I got for the '14 this past week. That's pretty amazing resale for a 13 year old car.
I've got both. 2012 coyote auto with suspension mods, tune and exhaust. It's a damn good and fun DD. TVS cobra is entirely different. Expensive toy. Lots of good and expensive parts but it's way more fun to drive. Wouldn't want to daily it though. Many reasons. Lose value with miles, lose the fun factor because you get used to it and one thing you maybe haven't thought of a 2003 car is gonna need more maintenance than a 2011+. I've daily driven my coyote for 6.5 years and it's never failed once. Ever. It was cranking slow but replaced the battery and all good. Just keep these things in mind. Toy the cobra wins every time IMO but the rabbit hole is deep on mods and maintenance
As others have said. For a fun car, i'd take a Cobra hands down. If i had to daily it, i would take a Coyote. I would never daily a Cobra. Not a fun trip car, not comfortable. Good for the raw feel and unrefined power. You feel everything in the Cobra. The newer cars are just too boring.
I have both. 2017 gt auto and tvs cobra. Neither are daily drivers. Cobra is definitely more fun to drive especially since its stick. I love the way the 17 drives and all the technology it has with the track aps stock wideband etc. My son always wants me to drive the cobra though. I want to keep both if i can but currently have the 03 up for sale. I completed my goal with it to get past 600 rwhp and now I just want to move on to mods for the 17. If i dont sell the cobra which im perfectly ok with i will just have to wait a few years until i can start modding the 17. These coyote motors love boost - its insane what a hellion twin turbo can transform these cars into. The tvs cobra is completely different and is a blast to drive. I got next to a gtr on the highway and did pretty darn good against it - he just started pulling from me once his boost started building which took a long time. The next day i saw him at a car show and found out he is putting down about 1300 rwhp. He thought my car was putting down close to 900rwhp. When i told him only 615rwhp he didnt look too happy. Guess he thought he should have slaughtered me alot more but nope these terminators are awesone i must say. Excellent street cars!!