Decisions Decisions S197 or Termi

[usmcsvt98]

Well I sold my 98 Cobra awhile back, and ever since then Ive had the itch to buy another stang. I will be in the market for one in around 3-6 months and I havent been able to make up my mind wether i want to pursue an s197 or a Termi. Ive alwasy wanted an 03/04 cobra, but with my record of horrible luck it seems the s197's are so much cheaper to maintain. the 3v is dirt cheap compared to my old 4v in my 98 much less the termi 4v setup. I cant stand the outdated feel of the interior in the older mustangs. But i love the fact that the termi is so easily modded. My budget is going to be around 20k and im def not going to buy anything with over 60k miles. That being said it is possible to find a clean termi in that range. As for a newer model i would be looking at a stage 3 roush around 05/06 for that price range. There out there, & I dont mind traveling for the rite vehicle. What do you guys think? What are some pro's and con's that im not factoring in here?

 

[Zemedici]

Why the hell would you want an s197? There's a reason they're dirt cheap and the termis have plateaued in value from 18-22k.

Termi.

 

[BlueSnake01]

Cobra will feel exactly the same as your ol 98. Given it will feel a bit newer and smoother, overall it wont be a drastic difference. It'll come down to easy raw power or overall car.
Many people will tell you Cobra, but if you want something different from the 98, go for the S197.

The only problem I had with my Cobra twice is the alternator, other than that, no problems. Just simple oil change, tune up crap.

 

[usmcsvt98]

Why the hell would you want an s197? There's a reason they're dirt cheap and the termis have plateaued in value from 18-22k.

Termi.

Well, one of the reasons is I personally like the updated interior creature comforts etc. The one thing that bugs me most about the Termi is that when I sit down in one it almost feels like im crawling back into an sn95 for a few exceptions. That platform seems ancient! ps. Im by no means ragging on termi's I like them a lot!

 

[VenomousDSG]

The Cobra will be much more fun to drive, but the S197 will be quite different from the SN95 style. More refined and more comfortable. They are two completely different cars. The Cobra is much more of a sports car though.

 

[Zemedici]

ahhhhh ok for some reason I've never really thought about the interior of the car. I care about how it looks on the outside, I could care less about the inside, and the cobra blower doesnt hurt

If you want a different feel, s197 fersure. The cobra interior is about as bland as can be.

 

[Sick03Vert]

Well, one of the reasons is I personally like the updated interior creature comforts etc. The one thing that bugs me most about the Termi is that when I sit down in one it almost feels like im crawling back into an sn95 for a few exceptions. That platform seems ancient! ps. Im by no means ragging on termi's I like them a lot!

If interior amenities mean ANYTHING to you, go S197. My ex-fiance had an S197 at the same time I had my last Terminator convertible. The inside was much roomier than my Cobra and the ride was smooth. It felt like it had a lot more power than it actually did.

I debated getting an S197 when I was looking at this Cobra...actually went to look at an 07 GT that they had on the lot. The Cobra was right beside it and, even from 50 yards, I could tell the Cobra front end from the rest of the Mustangs sitting there. Once I got up to it and saw it was a Torch Red 10th, coupe, and had just 16k miles....it was over. The S197 I was looking at was cheaper by $6k, but had cloth seats, was an auto (nothing wrong with that), had 40k miles, and sitting next to the Cobra.....it was no contest.

Honestly, it probably would have been no contest if the mileage had been the same. I did pay a premium for the Terminator name and all, but to me it was worth it as the two cars are night and day.

So again, if you just want to swap up the interior some, then the S197 is a great car. But if all-out performance is your thing, it's the Terminator all the way. Honestly, I think in your situation I'd get the Cobra because even though the interior hasn't changed much, these cars DRIVE completely different. Plus, I'm not sure what mods you had on your old Cobra, but the GT may come off as underpowered to you.

In the end, it's up to you and your budget. I struggled with spending $20k+ for a ten year old car myself, but I'm now glad I did as every Terminator I come across has upwards of 60k miles and still has an asking price of $20k or so. That bodes well for resale value in the future, which we all know the S197 will not have. Good luck! :beer:

 

[usmcsvt98]

Good points here guys, but I wouldn't buy a regular gt. like I said it would have to be a roush stage 3, which comes with a pretty decent interior package/handling package and a roushcharger. Still probably not as fast as a termi but I bet it's fairly close. If I could afford a GT 500 I wouldn't even bother looking at these two lol. I'm an SVT fan at heart, but the roush stage 3 dosent seem like a bad package.

 

[Stang Lover]

S197. I miss my old one & I wouldn't have gotten rid of it if it was a manual. The interior is nicer & comfortable & the ride was smooth also. I see your in Willmington, NC. There's a lot here in fayetteville that has an 07 GT manual fully loaded with 21K miles for $19K. Only mods on it is borla AB & K&N AB it's a real nice car.

 

[SHOdown220]

I die a little more every day since I sold my s197 vert

 

[11GT50]

The Cobra will be much more fun to drive, but the S197 will be quite different from the SN95 style. More refined and more comfortable. They are two completely different cars. The Cobra is much more of a sports car though.

Depends on what your definition of fun is. An S197 is going to be a helluva lot more fun in the twisties than any new edge will be. Some people do actually like to turn their cars.

 

[Sick03Vert]

Good points here guys, but I wouldn't buy a regular gt. like I said it would have to be a roush stage 3, which comes with a pretty decent interior package/handling package and a roushcharger. Still probably not as fast as a termi but I bet it's fairly close. If I could afford a GT 500 I wouldn't even bother looking at these two lol. I'm an SVT fan at heart, but the roush stage 3 dosent seem like a bad package.

Roush stage 3 is NOT a bad package. They are love it/hate it cars as far as appearance go. Personally, I like them. However, the issue with them is the resale sucks because, though dealers will charge an arm and a leg, they are only recognized as GT's on trade in and, also and more importantly, to banks.

So trying to finance one at the higher prices dealers try to charge gets fairly tricky. I'm not saying it can't be done though.

If I were choosing between a Roush Stage 3 and a Terminator.....ah who am I kidding...I'm going Terminator every time. :-D

BUT....that's just me.

 

[Sick03Vert]

Depends on what your definition of fun is. An S197 is going to be a helluva lot more fun in the twisties than any new edge will be. Some people do actually like to turn their cars.

IRS anyone? The Cobra can handle the turns just fine when set up right. :shrug:

I guess it's a matter of how many days you spend on the track vs how many times you run from red lights. :-D

 

[xXGadfly09Xx]

IRS anyone? The Cobra can handle the turns just fine when set up right. :shrug:

I guess it's a matter of how many days you spend on the track vs how many times you run from red lights. :-D

just sayn IRS doesnt mean it can handle well...

the IRS was redneck engineered to fit the car,

honestly

S197 > IRS > SRA (new edge sn95 etc)

 

[Camaro_94]

Cobra!!

 

[RX1Cobra]

just sayn IRS doesnt mean it can handle well...

the IRS was redneck engineered to fit the car,

honestly

S197 > IRS > SRA (new edge sn95 etc)

Have you ever owned a Cobra with IRS? :??:

 

[roy_1031]

Cobra all day! :rockon:

 

[KurtDog]

If your worried about maintenance costs stay away from the cobra. They are 10+ years old at this point. And alot of them have been beaten to shit.

I bought mine with 35k miles several years ago. The engine gave up the ghost at 48K. I'm betting the previous owner tracked it.

 

[ibleedblue65]

Good points here guys, but I wouldn't buy a regular gt. like I said it would have to be a roush stage 3, which comes with a pretty decent interior package/handling package and a roushcharger. Still probably not as fast as a termi but I bet it's fairly close. If I could afford a GT 500 I wouldn't even bother looking at these two lol. I'm an SVT fan at heart, but the roush stage 3 dosent seem like a bad package.

I put longtubes on a stage 3 recently. It was extremely unimpressive.

 

[JStyles]

If your worried about maintenance costs stay away from the cobra. They are 10+ years old at this point. And alot of them have been beaten to shit.

I bought mine with 35k miles several years ago. The engine gave up the ghost at 48K. I'm betting the previous owner tracked it.

The engine in your cobra gave up? I doubt tracking it was the culprit. As long as you do the basic maintenance (oil changes, misc fluids, etc) tracking it won't hurt the motor. Did you check the tune when you bought it? A bad tune can destroy any motor, no matter how new or built it is.