Cross roads with my cobra

[97cobra...]

So I've owned my car for the last 5 years and it's been great, now I'm ready to either build my car or sell it a land get something newer or maybe an 03/04 cobra. So I don't know what to do on one hand I love my car and would like to keep it for ever and the only thing that is holding me back from building it is the title I branded, I don't know what way to go. If it were one of your guy's car what would you do ?


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[PACIFICGREENSVT]

04 Swap & keep it.

 

[mr. b_98GT]

Need more info? Is this your daily? What is your budget? Can you do a lot of the work to do the mods? Can you afford to keep it, and save up for a second car to play with? Can you maintain two cars? Would you want to? Do you have the space for two? What do you want out of the car, cruiser or race car? How badly do you want something with newer technology and creature comforts?

Personally, I wouldn't sink a lot of money into a salvaged title car, but I'd drive it as a daily in a heartbeat, especially if it was clean and reliable. I had a chance to either get something new or get something I've always wanted, and I chose the latter. I've spent a ton of money on it since I bought the 03, and I'm still spending, but I have no regrets. Sure, the interior is still the same dated one I've been staring at from my 98GT for 16+ years, but I just drive my wife's 2013 Fusion if I want to play with paddle shifters and buttons on the steering wheel for the radio.

If you are limited and can't do two cars at once, but you like the idea of building up an 03-04 Cobra, you have the perfect car to get started with. You can throw a T56 Magnum in it, irs, build up the teksid block, put on some ported 9 thread c heads with your cams or aftermarket ones, toss a ported eaton or maybe even a whipple, and maybe even get some cheap new edge seats and reskin them with new 04 Cobra dark suede leather from TMI. Enjoy it for a bit as a terminated sn95, then find a clean 03-04 Cobra roller with relatively low miles on the body (like 20-60k) and transplant everything to it. The 03 would be worth more than a salvaged titled terminated sn95 cobra, and you could still say you built it instead of just buying one already built up. You could also just get a 03-04 Cobra roller now and build it up while you drive the 97.

Or if you have the scratch, and you don't have any sentimental attachment to your car, sell the 97 and buy a nice clean low mileage twinscrew powered 03-04 Cobra for ~$22-28k (depending on rest of mods), and sit back and watch everyone give you thumbs up when they see you driving it and know what it is.

If mod money is an issue, and/or you need/want something with a warranty, then building up your car or an 03-04 are not ideal and you are better off with an 11-16 GT. You would be dealing with a car that is depreciating vs. one that seems to be holding steady or even slightly increasing in value, and you will run into cars similar to yours more often, but the new 5.0's are no joke. I still want one. Maybe once I pay off the cobra and sell the 98, I'll get one for a daily.

Sorry for the long read. Not sure if I even helped, lol. Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

 

[97cobra...]

Need more info? Is this your daily? What is your budget? Can you do a lot of the work to do the mods? Can you afford to keep it, and save up for a second car to play with? Can you maintain two cars? Would you want to? Do you have the space for two? What do you want out of the car, cruiser or race car? How badly do you want something with newer technology and creature comforts?

Personally, I wouldn't sink a lot of money into a salvaged title car, but I'd drive it as a daily in a heartbeat, especially if it was clean and reliable. I had a chance to either get something new or get something I've always wanted, and I chose the latter. I've spent a ton of money on it since I bought the 03, and I'm still spending, but I have no regrets. Sure, the interior is still the same dated one I've been staring at from my 98GT for 16+ years, but I just drive my wife's 2013 Fusion if I want to play with paddle shifters and buttons on the steering wheel for the radio.

If you are limited and can't do two cars at once, but you like the idea of building up an 03-04 Cobra, you have the perfect car to get started with. You can throw a T56 Magnum in it, irs, build up the teksid block, put on some ported 9 thread c heads with your cams or aftermarket ones, toss a ported eaton or maybe even a whipple, and maybe even get some cheap new edge seats and reskin them with new 04 Cobra dark suede leather from TMI. Enjoy it for a bit as a terminated sn95, then find a clean 03-04 Cobra roller with relatively low miles on the body (like 20-60k) and transplant everything to it. The 03 would be worth more than a salvaged titled terminated sn95 cobra, and you could still say you built it instead of just buying one already built up. You could also just get a 03-04 Cobra roller now and build it up while you drive the 97.

Or if you have the scratch, and you don't have any sentimental attachment to your car, sell the 97 and buy a nice clean low mileage twinscrew powered 03-04 Cobra for ~$22-28k (depending on rest of mods), and sit back and watch everyone give you thumbs up when they see you driving it and know what it is.

If mod money is an issue, and/or you need/want something with a warranty, then building up your car or an 03-04 are not ideal and you are better off with an 11-16 GT. You would be dealing with a car that is depreciating vs. one that seems to be holding steady or even slightly increasing in value, and you will run into cars similar to yours more often, but the new 5.0's are no joke. I still want one. Maybe once I pay off the cobra and sell the 98, I'll get one for a daily.

Sorry for the long read. Not sure if I even helped, lol. Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

You did make a few good points , so a little more on my cobra it's been paid for since I got it so it doesn't coast me anything to keep it, and it's not my daily driver I only drive it on nice days or when I want to have some fun on my way to work. And I do have some sentimental value to me it was my first car lol, that's really part that is pushing me to keep it, and an 03/04 cobra for me has just been a car I've always wanted since I was a little kid. And as far as the work I would try and do most of it myself

 

[greasy]

Bypass the 03/04 swap and head straight to Coyote swap.

 

[mr. b_98GT]

You did make a few good points , so a little more on my cobra it's been paid for since I got it so it doesn't coast me anything to keep it, and it's not my daily driver I only drive it on nice days or when I want to have some fun on my way to work. And I do have some sentimental value to me it was my first car lol, that's really part that is pushing me to keep it, and an 03/04 cobra for me has just been a car I've always wanted since I was a little kid. And as far as the work I would try and do most of it myself

I understand all to well about the sentimental aspect (both of my daughter's have grown up in my 98GT), but you have to seriously weigh the pro's and con's of dumping money into a car, much less a salvaged titled car. I thought about doing just that a few years ago with my 98, and I even have some parts in the garage waiting to go on the car when I finally paint her (Saleen HE Hood, Cobra bumper). I decided I wanted to play with an 03 Cobra instead. I have plans for the 98, but the 03 is taking up most of my time and money right now. Sure, I'll still loose a huge chunk of change if I ever sell the Cobra, but I know it would have been even uglier if I went crazy on the 98 and then decided to sell it. If you are okay with that sick feeling you'll get down the road should you want or need to sell it (after dropping huge amounts of $ on the car), then by all means tear that car up and make it how you want it. There's always the option of selling off the car in pieces to recoup more money out of it if it's built up with quality parts. If you don't think you want to know what that feels like, and you don't have the funds to keep it and start on something else, then you have to decide just how attached you are to it. It might be best to take lots of pictures of the car, drive the hell out of it for a few more months, then let her go and start with something else. If you can, test drive some cars and see how you feel about them. In the end though, only you can decide which way you want to go, and you'll have to live with whatever decision you make. For me, it was a simple thing of life is too short, I'm not made of money, and I want to see what owning an 03 Cobra feels like. I also want to eventually own a few other cars, so I don't know if I'm going to keep the Cobra as long as I kept my 98GT (16 years and counting). I may try to hold onto it as long as possible though and down the road play with a newer 5.0, Jeep SRT8, Challenger SRT8, CTSV, etc. as daily drivers.

 

[Tickle]

I'm going through a similar debate. I love my 96 but I'm at the point where the next mod would be a power adder and I'm not sure I want to go that route.

I've always wanted an e46 m3, I'm thinking selling the cobra and getting one.

The Cobra is paid for. Just got the new TMI custom interior. It's running great. But it would be nice to step up the luxury a bit.

 

[97cobra...]

I'm going through a similar debate. I love my 96 but I'm at the point where the next mod would be a power adder and I'm not sure I want to go that route.

I've always wanted an e46 m3, I'm thinking selling the cobra and getting one.

The Cobra is paid for. Just got the new TMI custom interior. It's running great. But it would be nice to step up the luxury a bit.

I agree one of the cars I wouldn't mind getting is a e92 m3 I love the way that v8 sounds with the right exhaust

 

[Mr.Bolt-on]

If it were my car I would:

Build a 427 stroker for it. Possibly use Aluminium Cleveland heads and produce lots of N/A horsepower. Plus it would be lighter than a supercharged 4.6, and faster in the curves.

I would order a full maximum motorsports suspension for. Coilovers/Tubular K member/ ball bearing suspension.

Next I'd get Wilwood brakes all around.

The 8.8 would be built, and I'd have a TKO 600 transmission.

For wheels I'd get True Forged Victory's, and then an S281 spoiler to complete the car.

I'd sell all the parts I took off, and call it day.

 

[Balt21]

You did make a few good points , so a little more on my cobra it's been paid for since I got it so it doesn't coast me anything to keep it, and it's not my daily driver I only drive it on nice days or when I want to have some fun on my way to work. And I do have some sentimental value to me it was my first car lol, that's really part that is pushing me to keep it, and an 03/04 cobra for me has just been a car I've always wanted since I was a little kid. And as far as the work I would try and do most of it myself

Sentimental value, especially of a first car can be a hurdle. I passed up a lot of good cars when I was moving on from my first car to my second just because nothing really struck me enough to get me to give up that first car and all of the memories that went along with it for quite some time.

On the other hand, finally owning something you have lusted after for many years is a very good feeling. You can mod the sn95 all you want, terminator/coyote/lsx/whatever swap it, make it stupid fast with the best suspension, wheels, seats, etc., but it will never be an 03/04 Cobra at the end of the day.

In the end, drive whatever will make you the most happy for what you can afford. If that means building the heck out of an sn95 and knowing you have transformed your first car into a beast, then go for it. If you will be truly happy every time you sit behind the wheel of an 03/04 and are able to afford it; make piece with giving up the sn95 and find a nice terminator.