Well i sold my 03 cobra close to a year ago and really miss having a supercharged snake. The reason i got rid of the 03 is it wasnt exactly a pleasure to drive, i hated the shifter location, the tune was crap and didnt feel like driving 400 miles to get it tuned again, plus just wanted something a little newer. Well ill soon be in a position to buy another car. just wanted to get some GT500 owners opinions on there car in general or compared to there 03 cobra if they ever owned one. Ive done searches but never found what i was looking for. They seem to respond better to mods than the 03, which makes since with the bigger motor. Any common problems with the GT500 like grinding transmissions or other problems? The other car i will be looking at for a similar price is 06-07 C6 ZO6s. Being 22 i was thinking insurance would rape me on the Z compared to the GT500. Ive driven a ZO6 and they are nasty but less practical and parts/working on them may be insane. So what do you guys think?
Thinking of buying GT500
- Thread starter Ls1z28-00
- Start date
SicShelby09
Banned
Heres my opinion. I had an 04 cobra, and like you I felt awkward in it with the shifter location and the crappy interior. To me the style of the car felt dated and didnt look as sexy as it once did. I traded into a new vette and that car too felt all wrong. So a few years later I was able to get my GT500.
My impressions on this car is that I love how smooth the engine is. In stock form, this car has enough in it to keep up with pulley terminators, and is so smooth to drive around. Not to mention, if you can get navigation, the interior is very modern and the gauges are smokin sexy. The stock nav system is pretty to look at, but soon you will be wanting more from it. Easy fix. The blower has a different but similar whine to it, and has the same luxuries as the 04 cobra interms of pulleying it down and porting and such. The suspension is firm but not tight. You will want to do springs to make the car handle like it should from the factory. All in all, I am happy with mine, and it has more potential in it than I will probably extract from it. I wouldnt think twice about replacing the 03/04 with a GT500.
I think you need to hit the search button, as this topic is brought up on a bi weekly basis.
Comparing a 03/04 Cobra to a GT500 is like comparing a slut to a prostitute......they both get the job done, one just cost more money to do so.
Comparing a 03/04 Cobra to a GT500 is like comparing a slut to a prostitute......they both get the job done, one just cost more money to do so.
I've never owned a 03 Cobra but i think the interior is enough to make you decide. that sh*t was bad. lol
If you're cross shopping a C6Z then you should give the GT500 a fighting chance and look at 2011's since they are now on par with a ZO6 ever since the 2011 PP came out. It feels and drives like a different car the the earlier models do to all the upgrades and used 2011's are going for cheap. Go down to your local dealer and just sit and play around with a new 2012 and you should be hooked especially if you've been sitting in 5 year old vettes. But if you are after all out performance and can afford a built motor to keep up with lightly GT500's then get the Z. Also the new 5.0L could be an option since they are running 9's with the FRPP TVS and race gas.
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I had an 03 Cobra, as well, and agree with your assessment. I traded up for a 2007 GT500 and found it very much improved over the 03. Then came the 2011 and I couldn't resist. The 11 is vastly improved over the 07 and may be my last one! If you can afford it, going with the 2010 or 2011 is the best way to go. I found the 07 through 09 greatly improved over the 03/04's but still a little rough around the edges. Ford got it all right with the 2010/2011. The aluminum block in the 2011 markedly changes the way the car handles and feels. Good luck in your quest!
I have an 03 and like the interior design much more. Quality isn't up to the 05-later standards. The 07-09 Shelbys are better but to me wasn't enough to justify the big price difference. The 2010 cars were much improved on aspects I didn't like of the 07-09 cars namely the seats and interior layout. I recently drove a 2012 with Recaros and I must say I'm hooked on this car. Now the GT500 is eligible for X-plan it makes the car something that meets my expectations of what a 45-50k sports car should be. If I had more money I'd buy one while doing the SCJ but I have to choose one and the SCJ wins for me.
A small word of advise however is stay away from car payments.
A small word of advise however is stay away from car payments.
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Mann... the 2012's are X plan... That is huge news that I have not heard anywhere else. I am sure glad I got a killer deal on my 2011 or I would be having serious buyers remorse right now!
To answer the posters question there is no comparison between a 2011 Shelby GT 500 and a 2004 Cobra. The 2004 Cobra was a visceral compromise of mustang body and interior with killer power and power potential. You would not have raced a Z06 and a 04 Cobra around a track and had the slightest possibility of victory or much fun doing it (if you were in the Cobra). Given the time, the terminators were the car to have for us older Mustang guys that needed to put the LS crowd in their place... especially if you owned a 1995 Mustang and had a run in with a Camaro; boy was that embarrassing.
The 2011 Shelby GT500 has come all the way to legitimate super car performer on a track or at a drag strip and owes no apology. So it gave a tenth to a Z06 or a GTR in a recent interview.... with the 50 grand I saved on either of them I would have handed those cars their ass for far less money (considering I had 50k to play with in modifications). I love driving my GT500 for all the right reasons. It is nimble, fast and fun on a solid chasis that begs to be pushed (my 04 Cobra would make some of the most interesting chasis noises going over speed bumps or leaving my driveway that I thought it would twist in two). The interior differences are subtle from a peer but when you live with the cars they are substantial. I would find myself with the radio on all the time in my 04 to cover all the squeeks and rattles where I love to drive my 500 with all the electronics off and just enjoy the car.... and there are 0 squeeks or rattles! I was torn between a vette and the 500 and know I made the right choice. Grand Sports and Z06's are everywhere but these Shelby's are rare and deliver equivilent performance for seriously less.
To answer the posters question there is no comparison between a 2011 Shelby GT 500 and a 2004 Cobra. The 2004 Cobra was a visceral compromise of mustang body and interior with killer power and power potential. You would not have raced a Z06 and a 04 Cobra around a track and had the slightest possibility of victory or much fun doing it (if you were in the Cobra). Given the time, the terminators were the car to have for us older Mustang guys that needed to put the LS crowd in their place... especially if you owned a 1995 Mustang and had a run in with a Camaro; boy was that embarrassing.
The 2011 Shelby GT500 has come all the way to legitimate super car performer on a track or at a drag strip and owes no apology. So it gave a tenth to a Z06 or a GTR in a recent interview.... with the 50 grand I saved on either of them I would have handed those cars their ass for far less money (considering I had 50k to play with in modifications). I love driving my GT500 for all the right reasons. It is nimble, fast and fun on a solid chasis that begs to be pushed (my 04 Cobra would make some of the most interesting chasis noises going over speed bumps or leaving my driveway that I thought it would twist in two). The interior differences are subtle from a peer but when you live with the cars they are substantial. I would find myself with the radio on all the time in my 04 to cover all the squeeks and rattles where I love to drive my 500 with all the electronics off and just enjoy the car.... and there are 0 squeeks or rattles! I was torn between a vette and the 500 and know I made the right choice. Grand Sports and Z06's are everywhere but these Shelby's are rare and deliver equivilent performance for seriously less.
You want a GT500 Trust me it's a bad ass car I love mine! Anywere I go nothing but look's and power. I like the vetts but they are all over the place. I have only see two around me and not the same they were older one's 07-09 mine is all stock 540hp and 510 torque is enough for me I think.
As someone who owns a z06, a 2010 gt500 and a 2011 gt500 with svtpp i can say stock vs stock the gt500 is in no way on par with a z06. I assume you mean performance wise and although my 11 svtpp has lots of mods the z06(stock) will walk it from a standstill or rolling start. It also handles 10x better. Vettes are a bit more expensive to modify espesially if you cant do the work yourself. The warranty is much better on the vette too. I buy my corvettes from hendrick chevrolet in NC and they dont give a crap how you modify them...they will still warranty it. I have done a tune, headers, cams, exhaust, etc and they didnt even blink an eye. I do road race my z so i consider myself as able to answer this question. They are two completely different cars built for different reasons but i dont want anyone here to think these cars are on par performance wise. Remember, a good (really good mind you) driver can get a stock Z into the 10s with slicks only. I love both cars but just want to add my dose of reality.
Everyone likes to compare these two cars and its clear that most of those people dont actually own both.
I do like the idea of a new 5.0 with a supercharger.
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stop thinking... get it.
I believe the 2011 GT500 PP is now on par with a Z06 for a few reasons even though its a totally different car in a different class.
Like you said the Z is capable of 10's with slicks only and I feel that the 11.1 put down by a fellow member here with a stock 2011 on slicks is on par and the 2011 PP and with the added weight of a roll cage the 2011 fell right between the ZO6 @ .2 slower and the GS @ .1 quicker during testing at VIR and pulls 1.0g. The Boss also beat the 06 Z around Laguna Seca and the 2011 PP recently beat the Boss around the streets of Willow. The PP has yet to be tested at LS.
2011 Ford GT500 bests 2010 VIR lap time by 9 seconds video: Left Lane News
All of this is why I feel its safe to say a 2011+ PP its on par with a 06 Z06 even though the Z is faster but not by as much as some people think.
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I wouldn't buy anything from his crooked ass. Not to hi-jack the thread but he should be well into a 20-30 year stint at the local federal penal insititute with his dealings with Honda. His butt hole should be big enough Ray Charles could throw a head of swamp cabbage thru it, at night, blind folded, from behind the back and not draw the rim. All his co-conspirators went to jail but he got cancer and escaped jail time
. He is a big contributor along with Baby France to the downfall of NASCAM.Yeah, I'm sure his fatass would do jest about anything on warranty. He's a CONVICTED FELON. I wouldn't piss on his head if his hair was on fire.
I owned a 2003. Everytime I see one I remember the dominance those cars were/is. Quality on the GT500 is a lot better. The chassis is tight. Everything is well laid out. Get a 2010 GT500 up. I have only seen a handfull of GT500's. I see a vette everyday several times over.
Afterall, everybody and his damned brother owns a vette and most people can not tell the difference from a Z06 and a "V6 vette", hehehehe. Put a twin screw on the GT500 and butt rape Z06's. Yeah, Z owners always pull out the road course bull shit but 99 percent have never been on a road course. Small consolation after they "drive home in their vette" after getting raped by a GT500. Vettes are no longer status symbols. Drive that GT500 to Rockingham and park next to a Z and nobody would give the Z a whiff.
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Are the 2010's that bad?
SicShelby09
Banned
No way. Its just they are that odd ball model in between the 07-09 run and now the aluminum block 2011-12 model. Ford should not have released that car without the aluminum block or they should have continued the 07 body style to 2010. The 2010 is awesome, but knowing that the 2011 has the aluminum block, i'd choose one of those. Its worth paying a little more for that type of upgrade.
is it worth 7000 more? im really on the ropes here.
Yes it's worth it. Ford gave 2011 owner's over $10k in upgrades over the 2010 model and that's even without the SVT PP. Here is a list I made for a member on TS who wanted to know the difference between a 2010 and 2011 non-PP. Tell us where the $7k difference is? You can get brand new 2011's for $46k and used for $42k.
*Aluminum block
*Electric steering
*Silver finish on SC
*Blue power coat valve covers
*Improved exhaust manifolds
*Larger exhaust diameter
*H pipe vs 2010 X pipe
*Painted rear end
*Finned aluminum diff cover
*Improved brake cooling
*Auto start ignition
*40% larger inter cooler
*HID's standard
*No gas guzzler tax
*Flip up/ down rear headrests
* Improved under body aero dynamics
*Orange antifreeze
*Bigger faster more complex computer
*Wideband o2's?
*New colors
*Improved suspension, fixed the 2010's wheel hop.
*10 horsepower more but seems to make more like 20whp
*Factory "Boost a pump" for the fuel pump
*"My key" for limiting speed and TC for certain keys
*Different cam part numbers, some say its the Ford GT cams due to the 2011's making peak whp at redline
*Optional glass roof
*Blind spot side view mirrors.
*extra sound deadening material
+ everything that's in the SVT PP like
19 and 20" light weight forged wheels
Goodyear G2 tires that pull 1.0g same tires as Z06
Lowered suspension
Larger sway bars
Improved shocks/ struts
3.73 rear end
White shift knob
Lemans stripes
I recommend you take a 2010 and a 2011(PP) out for a thorough test drive and maybe you wont need or miss all the 2011 upgrades.
*Aluminum block
*Electric steering
*Silver finish on SC
*Blue power coat valve covers
*Improved exhaust manifolds
*Larger exhaust diameter
*H pipe vs 2010 X pipe
*Painted rear end
*Finned aluminum diff cover
*Improved brake cooling
*Auto start ignition
*40% larger inter cooler
*HID's standard
*No gas guzzler tax
*Flip up/ down rear headrests
* Improved under body aero dynamics
*Orange antifreeze
*Bigger faster more complex computer
*Wideband o2's?
*New colors
*Improved suspension, fixed the 2010's wheel hop.
*10 horsepower more but seems to make more like 20whp
*Factory "Boost a pump" for the fuel pump
*"My key" for limiting speed and TC for certain keys
*Different cam part numbers, some say its the Ford GT cams due to the 2011's making peak whp at redline
*Optional glass roof
*Blind spot side view mirrors.
*extra sound deadening material
+ everything that's in the SVT PP like
19 and 20" light weight forged wheels
Goodyear G2 tires that pull 1.0g same tires as Z06
Lowered suspension
Larger sway bars
Improved shocks/ struts
3.73 rear end
White shift knob
Lemans stripes
I recommend you take a 2010 and a 2011(PP) out for a thorough test drive and maybe you wont need or miss all the 2011 upgrades.
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Thanks for the breakdown BIGDAN! if i can just get them down another $1k im getting the 11
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