2003 Cobra retaining value with aftermarket parts?

[Mach1Stang]

I'm considering an 03 Cobra I found a few states away. Car has under 40k miles, has fully forged Teksid build motor, Tilt/MM suspension, 2.9 Whipple, forged wheels, Wilwoods, all suporting mods, etc. Everything on the car has been upgraded but the interior/exterior are bone stock. Car makes about 860hp and all work was done by a reputable shop that specializes is Cobras.

The car is expensive; $47k..... but with the name brand parts, rare color, CCW wheels, and low miles, I think its justified.

My question is, as an investment, will the long term value of this car suffer from the non #'s matching block and aftermarket stuff, even it its built to a high level?

I don't normally care about investment value, but if these cars do what the 93 Cobras did, then I think its at least worth looking into. I just sold my GT3 and am hunting for a well done, less expensive toy that will hold or gain value.

Thanks in advance.

 

[5.0 Hatch]

I don't see any of what you listed as having a negative impact on value. All of them are improvements and are universal when it comes to people's preferences. Now if you said it was SRA swapped, roll cage, coyote swapped, etc., I can see that hurting value. It's also not still in the wrapper with no miles on it.

This is just my opinion though.

 

[Mach1Stang]

I don't see any of what you listed as having a negative impact on value. All of them are improvements and are universal when it comes to people's preferences. Now if you said it was SRA swapped, roll cage, coyote swapped, etc., I can see that hurting value. It's also not still in the wrapper with no miles on it.

This is just my opinion though.

Thank you. I come from old school muscle cars where a non-numbers matching engine kills the collector value. I know Teksid is a stronger block, but was unsure if it would hurt value long term.

$47k is a lot of money for a 20 year old Mustang lol

 

[robvas]

Have you looked at what similar modded cars have listed for here? That seems $10k higher than I'd expect

 

[Black Gold 380R]

Bone stock is ALWAYS where it will be at when it comes to investment or resale value years down the road.

However, with that said, I believe there will always be buyers, like you, who will want to purchase a modified 03/04 Cobra making 6 to 8 hundred HP. As long as the mods are done with reputable parts and done by a reputable installer.

So, in your case, a rare color Cobra with a Whipple, CCW's and corresponding modifications should fetch at least as much as you paid and possibly more in the future.

I think you're good to go with that price point and the mods listed that you will not lose money in my opinion.

 

[Mach1Stang]

Have you looked at what similar modded cars have listed for here? That seems $10k higher than I'd expect

I have a little. Hard to find ones with under 40k miles with any amount of mods for under $35k from what I've seen.

 

[Mach1Stang]

Bone stock is ALWAYS where it will be at when it comes to investment or resale value years down the road.

However, with that said, I believe there will always be buyers, like you, who will want to purchase a modified 03/04 Cobra making 6 to 8 hundred HP. As long as the mods are done with reputable parts and done by a reputable installer.

So, in your case, a rare color Cobra with a Whipple, CCW's and corresponding modifications should fetch at least as much as you paid and possibly more in the future.

I think you're good to go with that price point and the mods listed that you will not lose money in my opinion.

Thanks for the solid response

 

[5.0 Hatch]

$47k is a lot of money for a 20 year old Mustang lol

Yes, it does seem very high. Getting into gt350 territory with that one.

 

[Mach1Stang]

Yes, it does seem very high. Getting into gt350 territory with that one.

Thats true. Unfortunately I was not very impressed with the couple GT350's I've driven.

Plus the GT350's are still going down in value and the older Cobra's keep going up

 

[5.0 Hatch]

Thats true. Unfortunately I was not very impressed with the couple GT350's I've driven.

Plus the GT350's are still going down in value and the older Cobra's keep going up

I may very well be wrong, but I think GT350s will find their footing soon. It seems the natural progression for cobra owners and 07-14 GT500 owners is to move on to the GT350.

 

[TK1299]

Are you buying the car to save and sell in the future if prices take off, or are you buying the car to drive and enjoy? Either way, unless you wreck it, the car will sell later down the road. If you’re buying to possibly sell in the future then at least look for one with the original motor and lightly modded. But if it’s the latter, who gives a shit. Buy it and enjoy it. If you want something else later then sell it and not worry about losing a bunch of money on it, because you probably won’t.

 

[P49Y-CY]

Bone stock is ALWAYS where it will be at when it comes to investment or resale value years down the road.

i've often wondered which condition most folks would prefer if i ever were to put my high mileage terminators up for sale...

1. leave them as is, slightly modified but run so much better than stock, or 2. return them bone stock as much as possible, with the huge pulley, pulley guard, tune, shifter, etc.

and also, if i left them as is, would i include all the stock parts in the sale? or sell them separately afterwards.

 

[HudsonFalcon]

The price is up to you to negotiate but, that being said, the mods you listed won’t affect value.

It’s not a collector car so if you want to just drive the snot out of it, have some fun and get back your investment down the road you should be fine.

It’s still a rare two year car and you’d be hard pressed to find one that hasn’t been modified after 20 years.

 

[03' White Snake]

Thank you. I come from old school muscle cars where a non-numbers matching engine kills the collector value. I know Teksid is a stronger block, but was unsure if it would hurt value long term.

$47k is a lot of money for a 20 year old Mustang lo

It would be hard to build that car for that price. With the mileage, it is a driver and not a collector car anyway. Buy it and enjoy it for what it is.... A bad a$$ mustang. If you are looking for a collector car, this is not the particular one to start with.

 

[DCguy]

Go for it.....sounds like a solid car.

 

[LS WUT]

@Mach1Stang why are you buying the car?

 

[Mach1Stang]

@Mach1Stang why are you buying the car?

Because I just sold my 15 GT3, bought my wife a new S7, and want a toy that's fun and not $150k....

Plus I was in high school when the 03 Cobra's came out, so its just one of those bucket list cars for me that I can actually afford to keep forever, along with my 69 Mach 1.

 

[LS WUT]

Because I just sold my 15 GT3, bought my wife a new S7, and want a toy that's fun and not $150k....

Plus I was in high school when the 03 Cobra's came out, so its just one of those bucket list cars for me that I can actually afford to keep forever, along with my 69 Mach 1.

Okay well that was going to be my next question. You’re asking in regards to value in the future. However you just stated you’d keep it forever because you can afford to. I say the price is high, however if it’s whatever you wanted to do to the car, and you couldn’t replicate it for the same amount of money? I’d say go for it. Enjoy the car it’s not a 2k mile wrapper car or anything. It gives you the opportunity to enjoy the car and not wait for the mods to be done.

 

[NateDogg]

Alot of things come into play for me when looking into a modified car. I'm a huge fan on buying them as long as they are done right, with good comp/leak down tests. The more documentation the better, but not a must for me.

I can tell you this. Any desirable color terminator with semi low miles, CCWs , Whipple and supporting mods is worth 40k imo.

I know you aren't supposed to factor in ROI on mods when you go to sell them but just think of all the money that is in the car. The wheels alone are 5k.

Stock cars are cool and all if you want a collector. However, there will always be a robust market for a modified terminator. The entire reason why the terminators are so special and sought after is because how well they respond to mods.

Hard to say what the future holds for the price of a terminator, but I'd say you would at least break even, I don't see these becoming any cheaper for a clean example, modified or not.

 

[CobraBob]

You said it's a rare color. What color is it?

All the guys above have already said what needs to be said, so I'm not going to add anything. I will say, though, check it out thoroughly before you commit to a purchase. That includes the motor.