ok so im looking at 2 mach 1s. both grey.

seller one has a 2004 with70xxx miles on it, has a mechanical/electrical warranty on the car until Dec 2012 or 103k miles. mods include staggared FR500 rims, magnaflow catback w/ offroad x pipe, tinted windows and lights and its lowered.
owner is a gear head an has kept good care of the car (parked indoors, waxed etc)
Price: 15,000

I jumped on the ad when i first saw it but a few days later the guy said he was going to trade for an older 5.0 + cash because he was looking for a project car.

seller two has a 2003 with 58xxx miles. has a 3 year warranty on the motor because it was replaced earlier this year with a new one. only mod is flowmaster exhaust. i saw this car in person and it was pretty clean for the most part, a little ding on the front bumper and some curb rash on the right front rim.

so as im getting ready to seal the deal with this car, seller one calls me and says his buddy's 5.0 didnt pass the mechanics inspection, wants to know if im still interested..

I am stuck on the fence with this one.. seller one is a mid 20s car guy.. likes to do his own work. seller two is an 18 yo kid, but his car has a brand new motor..

what would you guys do? i love the mods on car 1, but that new engine in car 2 has me thinking...

thanks
Jonny

 

get the first one and try to get him down to like 13-14k.

the kid beat the car and toasted the motor and is trying to unload a pile.

 

forgot to mention that seller two wants 14500

 

Flag, yeah thats what i was thinking.. his car looked clean but god knows what its been through, i carfaxed it and its been in a crash, but other then that and the motor issue its clean

im really leaning towards the first car tho. it has everything i would do to this car since its going to be my commuter... im going to check it out in person after work today

 

Go with car 1. Cleaner history and if he really is a gear head that takes care of it then you're golden.

 

why not a 2005 or newer car for the same price?

 

i prefer the sn95 body over the 05s.. i was going to get a new 5.0 but decided that a new car would strangle my expenses too much. i like the fact that you dont see many mach 1s around. i just need a commuter with some power.

 

1st response sums it up nicely. 2nd vehicle most likely has other issues waiting to show up... probably would end up spending more than the difference trying to make it as nice as vehicle 1.

 

I agree with the others and get the first one. I personally am familiar with cars that had the motor replaced and they are never the same. My brother, girlfriend and I have all had cars that the original motor has been replaced and all agree that the car never ran the same after the motor transplant.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do, I love Mach1s!

 

cheaper cars

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2004-...item19bffe603f

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Mach-...item2eb0763e75

 

this is car 1

 

Get the first. A new motor in a 6 year old car doesn't bode well for the rest of what could show up. For the $500 difference, buy the peace of mind/warrantied/stock motor'd mach

 

Rebuilt motor or replaced with a factory remanufactured?

My F150 broke a ring @ 215k (no abuse) and I bought a factory remanufactured back in 1998 and it didn't skip a beat - just like the original. Me and a couple of buddies changed it out. Got about 35k + 12 yrs on it now and no issues.

So depending on circumstances (and receipts) I wouldn't necessarily assume that since it has a new engine that the tranny, rear end, etc. were abused.

Either way, paying a shop to do a thorough compression test is recommended.

 

Do you know how many/what TSBs either Mach has had? Did either one have the head "tick?"

For more information you should head over to mach1registry.com. TONS of information on the Machs.

In the second Mach is it a "stock" motor or an Aluminator replacement?

 

Go with the first one. And just FYI I just sold my '03 Mach 1 with auto, 40k miles, cobra front bumper, borla exhaust, JLT intake, and 4.10 gears for less than either of those cars..... so my point being that you can get these Mach's cheap even if they're in GREAT condition. The market is falling and the only people who argue that are the true Mach lovers, hahhaaa.... Good luck either way you go, Mach's are great cars.

 

I've owned 2 torch red '03 Mach's, & one thing to consider is that the paint on the '03 is more prone to chipping. Seemed like every time I drove it I found another small paint chip. Really frustrating. There are posts on this over on the Mach 1 Registry site. Great bunch of guys over there by the way. Very helpful.

 

+1 Ditto on the 03 Cobras too

 

Any updates? did you choose a car yet?

 

Got car 1 today. ****ing love it. I'll post pics in a new thread tomorrow.

 

Awesome, congrats!