Opinions Please!!

I am quite literally in the cusp of buying a 2014 Mustang GT500.  I have had several loan approvals for the $65,000 price tag being asked by this private seller.  Yesterday I went and test drove it.  The car was amazing and with only 6500 km (about 4000 miles) it is basically a new car.

So what's stopping me?  Well there are several things.  One is of course the fact that's it's a lot of money for a 2014 vehicle, even one with 662 horsepower.  I can make the payments well enough but right now I have no car payments and really like that.  Plus the loan officers look at me like I'm crazy.

The big question in my head is whether this Shelby will follow the trend of other Shelbys and
appreciate in value or am I buying a $65,000 car that will be $30,000 in a few years.  This model is the end of an era in the Mustang styling and the most powerful Mustang to be produced.  It's a factory car that can do 200 mph.  Certainly that is something that will hold value in years to come but if the 2017 GT500 has 700+hp will it cause my car's value to plummet?

Another thing is my 2007 Mustang GT sitting in the garage.  We don't have lots of space and you aren't allowed to park anything on the street longer than 3 hours even in front of your own house.  So what the hell am I going to do with two Mustangs?  Of course I need to sell the 07 but how long will that take?  Especially going into the winter months.

So what should I do?  Should I drop the hammer and purchase it or hold on?  The car is stunning in person and sounds amazing with the Borla exhaust added by the seller.  The interior is crap but that's not why you buy this car.  If you had $65,000 approved loan would you do it or go for something else?  Or do nothing at all?  The pictures here are of the car I intend to buy.

The Problem With Mustangs

The problem with Mustangs is that they are so damn hard to find.  Sound ridiculous?  Sure it does.  Just going to work each day I must see at least 5 and that is minimum.  During the summer months that number can be well into the 20s in the Toronto area.  So what am I talking about?

I'm talking about the "special" Mustangs.  I'm talking about the Mustangs that people buy and keep a hold of.  I'm talking about the Mustangs that Ford produces limited amounts of and you can't get your hands on even of you have a pile of cash.  Mustangs like the 2016 GT350 and GT350R.  Here in Canada the GT350 costs $71,000 while the GT350R goes for $91,000.  That is if you can find a dealer that can order you one and you're willing to pay the 10k to 15k price gouge the dealers are handing out.

So I got the bright idea, why don't I go for a different "special Mustang" like a 2014 Mustang GT500?  They have 662 horsepower and there aren't lines of people trying to buy one.  However it turns out they are equally hard to find.  I found only one in Ontario for sale and they guy was asking $65,000.  The car sold new for $61,000.  Not to mention Royal Bank of Canada values the car at $55,000 which means you're not getting a loan for the full amount of the car.  Yes I went and talked to a bank about getting a loan.  What can I say, I'm weak.

I'd also have to sell my currently Mustang privately which could be an issue just to make the remaining money to pay for the car.  Although the loan officer talking to me said he might want to buy it. :P

In general it seems my previous post is correct.  I'm done with cars for this year.  Sigh...


Really seriously though.  I'm looking to buy a 2014 Mustang GT500.  I'm not just talking here so if you know of one in Ontario let me know.

2015: My Damn Disappointing Year in Auto Enthusiasm

The 2015 “car season” in Canada is just about over.  Unless there are a few miracle warm October days in the works I’d say the my summer car is staying in the garage.  Overall this has been a pretty fucked up year for my car enthusiasm on so many levels.  From car accidents, car damage and dissatisfaction or maybe we could call it  restlessness to keep what is currently in my stable.

It all started with the damn Dodge Hellcat.  I really wanted this car and was so high on getting one.  The Challenger is beautiful but let’s face it, the car is a heavy pig.  However with 707 hp it really doesn’t matter.  I ran into some problems with getting one however.  One was that I’m a “nowhere man."  I am not a resident of Canada and I don’t live in the States so as far as banks are concerned it’s a reject on either side of the border.  You need to reside in the place you get a loan from. The other is that the cars were limited production and you just couldn’t find a dealer that could order one.  And the final nail in the Hellcat coffin was that my girlfriend was against it.  She is not a car enthusiast and does not understand my horsepower addictions.  Which is the same issue most men encounter I assume.

If you look back on my past posts or you actually read this blog then you know I was also after a damn Pantera.  I found that to my girlfriend it makes more sense to “invest” in a car that will appreciate in price rather than depreciate.  Also to me it made sense to buy a car that I could continue to improve upon and keep forever rather than chasing after the newest hot car that hits the market.  I picked the Pantera because it is unique, isn’t coming out with any new cooler models, and it can be made to be super-fast.  When I started looking I found that the cars for sale seem to be in one of two categories which are restored, in great shape and very expensive or if you find an affordable one it is a complete and total piece of crap basket case.  Then there was also the question whether or not I could actually fit my 6’2” tall self in the car.  So the Pantera was out.  The good ones all seemed too good for my budget.

In May while driving my Hummer back from the States some damn trucker lost a rubber wheel block off his trailer.  It bounced up and smashed my windshield.  Even though the driver stopped and gave me his insurance info he later denied everything and his insurance (Lancer Insurance) refused to pay for any damages.  My insurance agreed to pursue the case however they said it could raise my rates and we’d have to pay our $500 deductible.  A quote to repair all the damage was over $2000 but we found a place that would replace just the windshield for $300 so we went with that and left the insurance out of the picture.

Of course the biggest event of the summer was getting into an accident with my damn Mustang which took it out of commission for months.  The final verdict was that the other guy was to blame so I didn’t have to pay any of the $8000+ bill.  Most of the damage was to the suspension as he struck the front passenger wheel and bent it. It of course also then dragged the front of his car down the side all the way to the bumper.  So a lot of panels and paint was needed to repair it.  I really thought the car would be called a loss by insurance because it’s only worth about $9000 but no, they fixed it.  When I got it back it tracked fine down the road and you really can’t tell anything happened at all.  They did a great job. But it really deflated my love for the car which wasn’t very high to begin with.  That 4.6L is just a crap engine compared to what is out there currently and 300hp is a joke.  I spoke to a local Mustang performance shop about my car.  Would it be worth adding power adds to or would it just blow up?  They suggested coming in and getting the cylinders tested to see if it could handle more power.  But even if it could the 4.6 is not recommended to be pushed over 450hp which is still a low number.  Imagine dumping a huge pile of money into an engine with tunes, supercharger, etc. and just getting a horsepower number barely above a stock current generation Mustang GT 5.0.  What a huge waste of money.

I saw the new 2016 Mustang GT350 as a beacon of possibilities.  It could solve so many issues.  I could get rid of my current car, it has 520+hp, and it’s going to be a classic so it’s in theory a car that would increase in value and be something I could keep for a long time.  However I am faced with the same issues I faced with the Hellcat which was getting a loan and finding a dealer.  However things seemed to be coming together though.  I found a SVT dealer about 45 minutes from me that has a few tickets left to order a Mustang GT350.  It wasn’t the GT350R but I think I could live with that.  Then suddenly I got my Canadian residency approved so I could get a loan.  Everything was looking good!  But then my girlfriend put the brakes on it all.  She does not understand why I need a new Mustang when mine runs fine.  I say, “Because I want a better track car.” She does not understand why I would want to go to the track and risk crashing my car and getting hurt.  Unfortunately saying, “Because it’s fun and exciting" is not a valid reason in her eyes.  So now I see I have a serious problem here for any automotive joy in my future.

And now just to rub it all in my face Ford is coming out with a Focus RS that has more horsepower than my Mustang GT. *sigh*

For me the clock is ticking.  My Mustang is worth at best $8000 trade in, it's worth less than my Hummer, and is worth even less every year I wait.  The clock is ticking on availability of the cars I want, they aren't just sitting out there waiting for me to be ready.  I found a dealer with GT350 orders available and all I can do is watch.  The clock is also ticking on me.  I'm not spring chicken at 46 and I've already been dead once.  How many years of fast driving do I really have left?

I’m overwhelmed with frustration over this entire year.  So I’m putting the damn Mustang away for the damn Canadian winter and going to try and forget the whole damn thing.  Dammit.

Mustang Repairs

Had time this weekend to take a look at the work done on my Mustang since I got it back last week.  I found one sensor dangling that they forgot to connect.  Other than that it looks pretty good from what I can tell.  The engine bay was a dirty disaster but that is because it sat in a body shop for months.  Here are some pictures comparing the damage and the repaired pictures.

Overall I’m satisfied with the work done.  The issue I’m currently having is that the car is now damaged goods.  On the one hand the original car is altered but on the other hand I now have new parts and paint.  So I’m struggling with the question should I trade it in or not.  I spoke with a speed shop and they felt that due to the high miles I should have an engine compression test done to see if the car is worth investing in power additions.  Not sure if I’ll do that this year or wait till spring.