New cobra, same old ford marketing crap.

Well, they make X amount per unit. When the dealer gouges enthusiasts for a few grand over MSRP, Ford doesn't see a dime of that.

Cheers,

I feel the same regarding dealers. ;)

My statement applies to Ford, Ford dealers, the 7-11 on the corner etc. If you were selling your house and knew you could get a million dollars for it even though you paid $500,000 for it two years ago would you sell it for a million dollars? I think nearly every one of us would take the profit. Ford dealers don't owe me anything. They do what is in their best interest economically. Just like you or I do on a daily basis. For some reason many of us think a business should play by different rules than we have for the individual.

I have spent insane amounts of money on my '89 LX. All that work and it makes about 425 rwhp and it is far from reliable (that would take even more money). Now I could buy a used '03-'04 Cobra and spend about $1,500 in mods and have 500 rwhp. The kicker is I could do that for less than I have spent on the LX. Next time around I'm getting as much as I can from the factory too. In the end I will definitely save money.

But the dealers are only able to take advantage of this situation because of the artificially low supply of product from Ford. Given the current energy realities in the US/World, you'd think they could free up a little production capacity and note all those Excursions/Expeditions now sitting in dealer lots unsold.

Cheers,

Yes, indeed.

When I picked up the Cobra I was pretty confident it would be a "keeper", the pinnacle of Mustang performance. The GT500 relegates it to "also ran" status. More motor, and better looks, too. The bastids keep coming up with ways to get my money. :)

Got to wonder what the true HP will be on the GT500, it would be nice if it came with the same degree of "bonus" power the blown 4.6 came with. The baseline dyno of the '03 showed peak rwhp at 386.

I'm looking forward to seeing the first one hit the lots, it's gonna be a feeding frenzy at the start. I remember the excitement the first of the '03 Mach 1s generated, it was a freakin' circus.

I doubt the GT500s will get much better mileage than Ford's SUV line. ;)

The last Mustang I bought new was in 1989 and I still have it. The '05s were the first model to really make me want to buy another one. IMO, Ford has hit a grand slam homerun with it. I can only imagine the other models they will spin off. I see them releasing an ass kicking NA Boss Mustang in a few years.

My guess is it will make between 425-450 rwhp. That should put it in the 500-525 hp range at the flywheel. I bet just a retune would get it close to 500 rwhp.

With 7,000 units I think the frenzy will die down after the first couple thousand are delivered. If Ford does another 7,000 run the following year then the price should stabilize to a little above sticker or right at sticker, IMO.

"Michael Johnson, PE" wrote in news:noSdnQ383deg56jenZ2dnUVZ snipped-for-privacy@giganews.com:

Michael, just a few thoughts from before:

a) See if GM will sell you a convertible Corvette with a Z06 motor. You can ask the salesman when you come back from your test drive. ;)

b) Check out what Steeda's offering for the GT. IIRC, they have some pretty decent turnkey offerings that you can purchase from your Ford dealer.

A blown 351 should be downright frugal compared to an Excursion or Expedition...

Cheers,

I think I'd rather have a coupe with that much torque under the hood.

There are already a few supercharger kits out for the 3V 4.6. I suspect a GT + suspension + blower + big brakes is going to still come out at a~$15k less than what the first sucke....er...uhm...customers...end up paying for the GT500 and will be almost as fast (or just as fast if you use more boost). Of course, if you're a collector, that's not going to cut it, but if you just want a fast weekend car...

The 351W is a nice motor though. The marine version of the 351 crate engine puts out nearly 350hp in normally aspirated trim. If I was going to build a modern Mustang hotrod, I'd probably start with one of those since my 428cj won't fit. 8-)

Cheers,

Not the way I drive. ;)

He would probably not know the engines are different. Salesmen are not known for their knowledge regarding the cars they sell. :)

Steeda, Saleen etc. make some potent versions of the Stang but they don't offer the 5.4L which, IMO, is what really sets the GT500 apart from the the garden variety GT's. It is essentially an iron block version of the Ford GT motor. That is what really attracts me to the car.

"Ritz" wrote

Except the new GT500 isn't getting a OHV 351 (5.8), It's getting a DOHC 5.4.

Ahhh...shows you how much I've kept up with newer Mustangs (other than the new look).

Cheers,

"Michael Johnson, PE" wrote in news:VfOdnbi snipped-for-privacy@giganews.com:

With all the "new" pricing offered these days (i.e., employee pricing, no-haggle price, etc.), I'm wondering what the salesman's role will be. We should be able to buy cars the way we buy groceries or clothes.

So the truth comes out! ;)

You know I'm a torque junky. How can I not be attracted to an engine with a 5.4Ls of displacement WITH a twin screw blower. :)

"Michael Johnson, PE" wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@giganews.com:

LOL! Can't argue with you there. So do you have a dealer in mind yet?

There are a few in the DC area that have SVT credentials. I also like the idea of flying somewhere, getting the car and driving it home. I think that would make for a great little vacation. :)