16k mile turbo 03 cobra concerns

Mack Verde

Active Member
Established Member
Joined
Feb 26, 2015
Messages
113
Location
United States
Yep and I have a feeling that car would have left some wounds if it turned out to be head gaskets

May 11th 2005 was my join date on my original account. Been around for a little bit. DrZacharyus if it rings a bell
 

c6zhombre

E85 NutSwinger
Established Member
Joined
Sep 14, 2008
Messages
5,430
Location
League City, TX
Ya I recommend passing on this car, for a multitude of reasons. Too many red flags then add in the friendship angle.....just a bad idea all around. There are and will be plenty of fish in the sea, especially with winter right around the corner. Markets are starting to shake a bit. I'm betting you find more value and a cleaner example in the upcoming months.
 

roy_1031

roy1031
Established Member
Joined
Apr 20, 2011
Messages
4,796
Location
Rancho Cucamonga, CA
Those welds look like they were done with a flux core welder. It’s hard to get a good bead on thin metal and hardly ever look pretty, but it does penetrate. Looking at those pics it doesn’t look like it has very good penetration. It’s a lot of work to repair those welds and if a shop says they can do it for $500, I’d steer clear of them. They’re probably just going to wash right over the bad welds with a mig welder leaving the bad root pass under. The only thing that car has going for it is it’s color. It’s a lower produced color so who knows how many are left of the 242 satin silvers. If you and your friend can sort out the coolant issue before making a deal and you are up for doing the fab repair project yourself, it wouldn’t be the worst deal ever made. Pick up a cheap welder and start practicing.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
 

BOOGIE MAN

Logic and Reason
Established Member
Joined
Feb 10, 2005
Messages
7,678
Location
Under the bed
Hard no to the friend if I was in your shoes. Regarding the low mileage aspect, not all miles are equal. 3 owners, the "quality" and type of the mods, and the overheating issue(s) tell me those were hard miles.

Could find a better quality car for around the same price with more "softer" miles IMHO

*edit* Also agree with the comments about steering clear of shops that say it's a $500 job to fix the welds

"Nothing makes me question ALL of my life decisions like SVTP."

Posts and likes are not mine.
 
Last edited:

CobraBob

Authorized Vendor
Established Member
Premium Member
Single Barrel Sirs
Joined
Nov 17, 2002
Messages
105,349
Location
Cheshire, CT
Best advice I can give you on this also applies to life: “don’t buy or sell questionable items to friends if you a)like the person b) care to be friends continuing forth.”
Key word there being "questionable", of course.
 

CobraBob

Authorized Vendor
Established Member
Premium Member
Single Barrel Sirs
Joined
Nov 17, 2002
Messages
105,349
Location
Cheshire, CT
That is still LOW miles, and the price is about where it should be. How many previous owners? I ask because sometimes these cars are de-modded by previous owners.

Any pics?
 

Venom351R

Well-Known Member
Established Member
Joined
May 3, 2007
Messages
1,253
Location
Maine
There are definitely better options out there. Its caged with a turbo and a solid rear axle which means it was drag raced and probably done so hard. I could never buy one of these without blower whine to begin with but that's me.
 

Black02GT

*Not 2KBlackGT
Established Member
Joined
Dec 12, 2004
Messages
6,227
Location
NY
FWIW, a friend of a friend has been dealing with an over heating issue like this. It's passed every block test, but would randomly lose coolant and overheat. It's finally in a shop and I believe they found some of the head bolts were looser than others. How loose I can't tell you, but it shows something moved that shouldn't have moved.

Just had this issue. Used a block tester (the juice) psssed, compression was fine, leak down showed some issues. Taking heads off a couples bolts took way less torque to remove than they should. When I say bolts I mean stud nuts. But when you got on it for a little it would pressurize the coolant loop.
 

Mack Verde

Active Member
Established Member
Joined
Feb 26, 2015
Messages
113
Location
United States
Thanks again everyone. The guy with the low mile DSG couldn't let the car go. So I kept looking and this fell into my lap. 2 owners and stock besides fixed heads by AHP and 1 7/8" LT's.


I know it's not a cobra but this car has been an absolute blast. My last Z06 really have me a hard time after dropping a lifter and wiping a cam 48 hours into ownership...hoping this one is kind to me as I have been kind to it
 

TerminatoRS

Well-Known Member
Established Member
Premium Member
Party Liquor Posse
Joined
Jul 29, 2019
Messages
2,378
Location
Wisconsin
Thanks again everyone. The guy with the low mile DSG couldn't let the car go. So I kept looking and this fell into my lap. 2 owners and stock besides fixed heads by AHP and 1 7/8" LT's.


I know it's not a cobra but this car has been an absolute blast. My last Z06 really have me a hard time after dropping a lifter and wiping a cam 48 hours into ownership...hoping this one is kind to me as I have been kind to it
Great car in a beautiful color!

I've been slowly convincing myself to get serious about a C6Z for months. Really enjoying no car payments, though. Not to mention I already have two garage queens. The young man in me says do it while the somewhat mature side keeps shutting the idea down. lol
 

Mack Verde

Active Member
Established Member
Joined
Feb 26, 2015
Messages
113
Location
United States
Great car in a beautiful color!

I've been slowly convincing myself to get serious about a C6Z for months. Really enjoying no car payments, though. Not to mention I already have two garage queens. The young man in me says do it while the somewhat mature side keeps shutting the idea down. lol
Thank you! Don't go drive one or else you'll be buying. It's hard to deny the out of the box performance this car offers. They're amazing machines
 

Mack Verde

Active Member
Established Member
Joined
Feb 26, 2015
Messages
113
Location
United States
I've seen this turbo car for sale on multiple FB pages....the issues described here are not listed.....
Not too sure if he's disclosing them to serious buyers or not. He's a good guy and he was upfront with me about them at least and I don't see why he wouldn't to others
 

BlckBox04

I am the liquor
Established Member
Premium Member
Joined
Dec 24, 2007
Messages
8,496
Location
NJ
Thanks again everyone. The guy with the low mile DSG couldn't let the car go. So I kept looking and this fell into my lap. 2 owners and stock besides fixed heads by AHP and 1 7/8" LT's.


I know it's not a cobra but this car has been an absolute blast. My last Z06 really have me a hard time after dropping a lifter and wiping a cam 48 hours into ownership...hoping this one is kind to me as I have been kind to it
Excellent pickup man. And believe me I know your pain with these motors. I had a h/c/i and exhaust done on my 08 z and dropped a valve after three weeks
 

CobraBob

Authorized Vendor
Established Member
Premium Member
Single Barrel Sirs
Joined
Nov 17, 2002
Messages
105,349
Location
Cheshire, CT
Congratulations on deciding to go with that good looking C6Z. No doubt you'll enjoy it. Not as brutal from the driver's seat as a modded Terminator, but FAST. Enjoy it. Is it stock? Any modding plans?
 

Users who are viewing this thread



Top