S550 Daily Driver

[PatrickStapler]

My wife is in need of newish DD. I have pseudo convinced her to consider a Mustang. I think she is hip to the idea. However, I know very little (actually nothing) about the new cars. I think the last one I drove was possibly a '88 LX, and the last one I owned was a '83 GT. She has only three constraints...which is odd for her, but that's an entirely different issue.

1. Must be V8
2. Must be manual
3. Must be black

So that narrows it down. Now where to start?

What years of the S550 platform should we consider the best?
What pitfalls should we look for in this platform?
What maintenance issues should we look for?
Are there any recalls on this platform that need to be addressed?
What features should we consider as absolute minimum?

I'm sure there are other things to consider, but I don't know what I don't know.

TIA!

 

[TMSBOSS]

Holly sat in my GT350 and liked it. Get her one of them.

 

[KazarS197]

My wife is in need of newish DD. I have pseudo convinced her to consider a Mustang. I think she is hip to the idea. However, I know very little (actually nothing) about the new cars. I think the last one I drove was possibly a '88 LX, and the last one I owned was a '83 GT. She has only three constraints...which is odd for her, but that's an entirely different issue.

1. Must be V8
2. Must be manual
3. Must be black

So that narrows it down. Now where to start?

What years of the S550 platform should we consider the best?
What pitfalls should we look for in this platform?
What maintenance issues should we look for?
Are there any recalls on this platform that need to be addressed?
What features should we consider as absolute minimum?

I'm sure there are other things to consider, but I don't know what I don't know.

TIA!

There's a pile in your area. Tried to drop the Autotrader search with everything filtered that your wife wants but will not allow.

 

[PatrickStapler]

Holly sat in my GT350 and liked it. Get her one of them.

Baby steps... . Honestly though...not in the budget. Racing budget this year is through the roof. And now I'm two Champcar teams to boot.

 

[PatrickStapler]

There's a pile in your area. Tried to drop the Autotrader search with everything filtered that your wife wants but will not allow.

Will look into AutoTrader. I glanced at Car Gurus and found one black.

 

[KazarS197]

Will look into AutoTrader. I glanced at Car Gurus and found one black.

Get this one!

 

[PatrickStapler]

Probably cant get her to swing that, but nice.

 

[JeffV8]

Used Mustang or most any car are great for seller but bad for buyer right now..

 

[302BOB]

Patrick, Let Wifey sow her oats...There's a lot a performance Ford stuff out there she can choose from.......But the Lambo could get a little pricey......

 

[KazarS197]

@PatrickStapler

Take a look on:

Vroom: Buy, Sell or Trade-In Used Vehicles Online

Buy, sell or trade-in your car entirely online. No haggle, no pressure. Easy online financing available. Cars delivered straight to you.

www.vroom.com

There are quite a few in the 30-35,000 range. A couple newer ones with low mileage for a little more. Prices suck right now. Maybe check with a dealer and tell the what you are looking for and willing to pay. Let them do the footwork and get something shipped in so at least you can look at in person.

 

[PatrickStapler]

Yeah...seen several of those...which is palatable. Am I hearing those aren't really good deals...even though they are advertised as such? Again, I know nothing about these cars...including market trends.

 

[KazarS197]

Yeah...seen several of those...which is palatable. Am I hearing those aren't really good deals...even though they are advertised as such? Again, I know nothing about these cars...including market trends.

Ya none of the prices are a " Grest Price". I was looking at comparable S197's just like mine with similar mileage. The darn things are going for 5-7 grand more than I paid in October 2020. It's crazy. Good luck in your search. When we were looking for my wife's Jeep a few years ago we found the best prices at non Jeep dealers. They seem to be motivated to sell vehicles that are not their brand. PM'd you a lead for a nice cool S197 for fun.

 

[PatrickStapler]

Thanks for the heads up. Maybe we should reconsider waiting until the "chip shortage" rectifies itself and the dealers can restock new vehicles.

 

[302BOB]

Supply and Demand will always even things out.....Too much dependence on foreign supply will always bite you, especially now a days with supply chain problems worldwide.........

 

[mikeD4V]

1. Must be V8
2. Must be manual
3. Must be black

What years of the S550 platform should we consider the best?
What pitfalls should we look for in this platform?
What maintenance issues should we look for?
Are there any recalls on this platform that need to be addressed?
What features should we consider as absolute minimum?

2015-2017 are Gen2 coyotes with Gen2 mt-82 (1:1 5th gear with one overdrive gear). Performance package 1 available.

2018+ are Gen3 coyotes with dual mass flywheel and mt-82 D4 (1:1 4th gear with two overdrive gears). Performance package 1 and 2 available. Digital dash is available.

There are reported hood corrosion issues, AC evaporator core leaks, and AC compressor failures reported on the 2015-2017 cars. The OE clutch does not handle high rpm shifting reliably. I don't know if this continued to the 2018+ cars.

IMO the 8" screen is a must for these cars and it's available in the premium package. Premium also adds drive modes (normal, sport, track, rain/snow), climate control, leather, upgraded stereo, etc. Most of the premium features can be retrofit but a lot more effort than simply buying a premium. The Performance Package adds track focused options which are nice to have for track days but not necessary for DD and most can also be retrofit. The digital dash is great but wasn't a very common option and can also be retrofit.

 

[PatrickStapler]

Great info. Thank you.

 

[Steve68Cougar]

I bought an '18 about a year ago and the list price has gone up in the 7-8k range since I bought it. The shifting forks on early '18 cars are supposedly a weak link because of some bad spot welds. So far, so good on mine. A standard GT has 460hp, whereas the Bullitt has 480hp. The PP1 package is really nice, but not necessary if it's just a daily driver type vehicle. When I'm looking for cars, I usually try to do window sticker lookups to see what options the cars have. They've clamped down on the window sticker lookup, so it's not always available. I know you said a Bullitt was probably a little much, but they are typically loaded out pretty nicely. They only had 3 options - electronics, Recaros and Magneride. They came standard as a pretty high level car, so a base one is still well equipped. My car only has 18k miles on it, so other than a supercharger related bad cat, it's not had any issues. I don't know that there's a "have to have" on them, but heated/cooled leather seats are pretty nice.

 

[PatrickStapler]

I had a very educational conversation with @Bill Pemberton today. He has certainly opened our eyes to some options. All good points here. I appreciate the inputs. This is all very helpful. Fortunately, we are in no hurry and under no pressure to make a knee jerk decision…especially without a proper education. Happy to be a member here.

 

[JDee]

I searched for a NOS '16 base, PP1 car with zero options in 2017. At that time there were only 2 in the entire province, the one I didn't buy had an upgraded sound system that I didn't want due to a heavy assed sub-woofer. My car had been spec'd by the dealer who had it with Recaros as well, but they were useless on track and were sold for enough money to buy good racing seats, Watson bar and harnesses. So there was only 1 base PP1 with zero options car in the entire province of Ontario at that time. Obviously, optioned out cars make the dealers (and Ford) more money. I got a whack of money off the price due to Ford rebates and the dealer wanting rid of it as no one wants a car like that. Plus I was trading a luxo barge '11 'stang in that they already had a sale for.

I went that route simply because it was going to be primarily a track car and anything that adds weight is a huge negative to that task. Most options involve weight, if you could delete A/C from the factory I would have done that too, instead I just took it all out. The stock clutch is for sure junk for track work and it should be replaced immediately with an Exedy, doing that might buy a couple more years before the MT-82 needs a rebuild. Other than the clutch/trans issues it actually has been a pretty decent track car, good enough that I now run in the race cars group and the car holds its own with that bunch. The speed that the Vipers and Vettes pass me at on the long straight is amazing, but in the twisty stuff the 'stang is right there with them. And yet even with the FP Race suspension the thing is very civilized to drive and is still road legal and licenced. Damn good bang for the buck without a doubt.

 

[302BOB]

the one I didn't buy had an upgraded sound system that I didn't want

You must be like me JDee.......I've never even used the sound system in my Boss......I got my music from the sound of the engine and exhaust.....