Stock or Modify - impact on resale value?

[CRUMPA]

Recently bought '03 Cobra, 10K miles, silver. Almost "mint" and tight as a drum. Value seems to be going up fast on low-mile Terminators in stock or near stock condition. Want to do sub-frames and a long list of other thing$, but sub-frames in particular is one mod you can't undue. (And finding someone who knows how to weld is another problem. Nothing worse than a hack-job on a mint Cobra.) Will adding sub-frames hurt collectible value, or enhance?

 

[HPLouis]

I think it would depend. If you run into a purist, who wants the car "as stock as it came from the factory"....and I mean dated tires, battery, air cleaner, grey filter, etc. then the subframes will hurt the value. If you find a driver who just wants a well taken care of Terminator with some tasteful mods, then the subs might be fine. I like low mile cars but not for collectability, but to feel a little safe in that things were done right and it wasn't beaten on too bad. All my Terminators were low mile (2700 mile vert, 9400 mile coupe and 14500 mile coupe) and the 2 coupes were the typical bolt on cars (pulley, intake, exhuast and tune) and they were in great condition and the work done on them was quality.

 

[HPLouis]

Holy crap!!!!!

2003 Ford Mustang SVT Cobra 10th Anniversary | eBay

The values are going up....wow

 

[Weather Man]

The older they get, the more mods hurt true collectability. Although, certain expensive tastefully done restomod corvettes have been doing decent, although doubtful price of mods recovered.

 

[gt347mustang]

Closest to stock as possible. Dont mod it if you're about collecting as an investment.

 

[CobraBob]

I believe that a 17 year old Terminator with multiple owners over those years usually means that an advertised "stock" car probably was modded along the way and de-modded for re-sale. The holy grails are single owner, low miles (less than 10K) that have never been modded. That said, I would bet that at this point in time, most buyers of an advertised stock Terminator accept the fact that it may have been/likely was modded over the years of previous ownership. The focus is on the car's condition, how it was maintained, with low to middle mileage (25K-50K) and that it wasn't raced often or abused. it is very difficult to tell if a car was modded. But not impossible.

If you're buying a Terminator to drive on weekends and mainly want to enjoy it but maintain its value, I wouldn't sweat doing minor mods like intake, exhaust, shifter, suspension (ie. lowering springs), idler set, upper pulley, and mild tune (450-470rwhp range). The average Terminator buyer would be fine with minor mods IMO if the car is in excellent condition and well maintained.

True collectors are interested in Terminators with super low miles in superb condition, with no mods (ever). These are destined to be garage queens, and rarely driven except for the occasional car show (often trailered there). Personally, if I owned another Terminator, I would HAVE to drive it at least around town on weekends and put maybe 3K miles on the odometer per year.

 

[94slowbra1]

Modding degrades value, clearly. With that being said I mod the shit out of all my cars, because thats what I want.
Do what YOU want with the car. Enjoy it and have fun

 

[HPLouis]

I believe that a 17 year old Terminator with multiple owners over those years usually means that an advertised "stock" car probably was modded along the way and de-modded for re-sale. The holy grails are single owner, low miles (less than 10K) that have never been modded. That said, I would bet that at this point in time, most buyers of an advertised stock Terminator accept the fact that it may have been/likely was modded over the years of previous ownership. The focus is on the car's condition, how it was maintained, with low to middle mileage (25K-50K) and that it wasn't raced often or abused. it is very difficult to tell if a car was modded. But not impossible.

If you're buying a Terminator to drive on weekends and mainly want to enjoy it but maintain its value, I wouldn't sweat doing minor mods like intake, exhaust, shifter, suspension (ie. lowering springs), idler set, upper pulley, and mild tune (450-470rwhp range). The average Terminator buyer would be fine with minor mods IMO if the car is in excellent condition and well maintained.

True collectors are interested in Terminators with super low miles in superb condition, with no mods (ever). These are destined to be garage queens, and rarely driven except for the occasional car show (often trailered there). Personally, if I owned another Terminator, I would HAVE to drive it at least around town on weekends and put maybe 3K miles on the odometer per year.

There are guys on the FB Terminator pages with 03-04 Cobras with 5 miles, an Orange Saleen Terminator, a 300 mile Mystichrome, a Saleen Mystichrome, cars still in the wrapper, etc. and those guys are in a whole different category of Terminator owner. You're right, cars that have miles on them are cars they won't even look at. I spoke to one guy and he was telling me he sends an appraiser down when he's buying a car and they look at the nuts and bolts and if it looks like they've ever been turned, they don't want the car.

 

[COOL COBRA]

In reality, the silver cars don't have the "hot" popularity. It's reflected in the sale price & time on the market. I never understood that because IMO a silver Cobra is gorgeous. But the market doesn't lie.
Mods to any stock Cobra? It's all or nothing. Either bone stock untouched or do what you want.
Personality I'd be glad I found a low mile car to start with. Make it your own!
Once any bolt is turned, it's no longer stock unmodified.
Life is short. You won't get rich on Cobra resales down the road.
Mod as you like and enjoy it!

 

[CRUMPA]

Thanks for all the input! Great thoughts in both directions, which I guess I had to expect. The car had two owners, and the 2nd left it mostly in storage. Has long-tube headers into 2.5" pipes to collector-box, then 3" pipes to mufflers and all the way aft. Has a cold-air intake (but too choked according to DEZ Racing), a 3-ish lb pulley and mild SVT tune, all putting roughly 400 to wheels. The IRS is very quick to hop, so abuse there for certain, but drive-line is normal according to DEZ. Stage one is a complete IRS refresh with Full Tilt bushing kit, Ford Racing dif cover and bump-steer. Car needs that much at least. Color is Satin Silver, which was not my first choice, but now that I see it, it's a close second to Mineral Gray. Old-guy colors for sure. Satin silver is also the lowest production color of all coupe Terminators. The paint is near perfect, as is interior. The glass is flawless. Engine clean and no obvious signs of things being changed around. It's a tough call what to do. Fortunately, I don't have to decide all at once, but will check-in here as I go. Great site where I expect I'll find info on just about every mod I could possibly consider...
Thanks, and all the best,
GRUMPA

PS. Yes, the front plate has to go...