Need help with modified used GT purchase

[ZLwhat]

@ZLwhat did the car get a clean bill of health? Hope it turned out a winner for you.

It did! Was able to contact the previous owner and talk to them about why they traded it in. Older gentleman had the Roush installed less than a year ago, it's a manual, and he is no longer able to drive it due to health reasons with his left leg, was pretty torn up about it you could tell. So he traded it in for an automatic that now also has a Roush on it that he had installed at the same shop.

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[coffeehound]

@ZLwhat did the car get a clean bill of health? Hope it turned out a winner for you.

Good question, inquiring minds want to know.

 

[ZLwhat]

Good question, inquiring minds want to know.

I already answered that in my response above^^^

 

[coffeehound]

I already answered that in my response above^^^

Whoops, managed to overlook that post somehow.

That's awesome, congrats and enjoy it, should be loads of fun to drive.

With the car getting a clean bill of health, I'm a little surprised they let it go at the price you had mentioned.

A 2015 with 55,000 Miles and only 2 prior owners, other then those very ugly seats, you got a pretty good deal IMO.

 

[ZLwhat]

Whoops, managed to overlook that post somehow.

That's awesome, congrats and enjoy it, should be loads of fun to drive.

With the car getting a clean bill of health, I'm a little surprised they let it go at the price you had mentioned.

A 2015 with 55,000 Miles and only 2 prior owners, other then those very ugly seats, you got a pretty good deal IMO.

You'd think they'd only sell at that price if they knew something was wrong with it? This place has pristine lamborginis porshes etc, very high end dealership, it doesn't seem like the shady mom and pop type "bring us your paycheck for a used car" type dealership.

 

[coffeehound]

You'd think they'd only sell at that price if they knew something was wrong with it? This place has pristine lamborginis porshes etc, very high end dealership, it doesn't seem like the shady mom and pop type "bring us your paycheck for a used car" type dealership.

That's not what I was implying at all, maybe try to stop being so defensive all the time.

I'm saying that based on the current market, I thought you got a pretty good deal.

The mileage on it is a little higher then I would have liked, but still a good deal none the less, considering all of the performance upgrades.

I went to a high-end dealership very similar to that in Sarasota, FL about 2 months ago, while looking for my wife's Mustang.

We actually went there looking at a Black (with Gold racing stripes) 66 Mustang Coupe with a 289.

Good looking car in the pics, but after seeing it in person, this car really needed some TLC. They were asking for just under $30K and while I was certain there was some wiggle room on the price, this car seemed like one where you would be constantly fixing things, which I didn't want to deal with, when you're shelling out $29K-$30K.

This particular dealership, only dealt with high-end performance muscle cars and they would take them in on consignment, knowing what the owners reserve (selling) price was.

They had some really gorgeous cars there, they also had some cars there, that I would classify as projects, that were still pretty pricey, in my opinion.

Point being, that just because a place sells high-end cars, doesn't mean there isn't a few lemons, hiding in plain site.

 

[ZLwhat]

That's not what I was implying at all, maybe try to stop being so defensive all the time.

Not trying to defensive lol, it just seems that every thread on this forum seems to be someone trying to find the negative in everything it becomes tiring.....

 

[The Watchman]

@ZLwhat - kop the car, pull the motor, build the block, T56 Magnum swap and send it…

 

[coyote550]

You'd think they'd only sell at that price if they knew something was wrong with it? This place has pristine lamborginis porshes etc, very high end dealership, it doesn't seem like the shady mom and pop type "bring us your paycheck for a used car" type dealership.

You never know really, big or otherwise. I had an awful experience when I was younger. Really big and prestigious dealership in New york. They had GTR's, Lambo's, Ferrari's and all that. Right before I got my 2008 TL type S, I originally came in for a black one they had. Same make and model just a year older, and with a little more miles but price was great. The young and stupid me decided that I don't need a pre-purchase inspection and they showed me a clean Carfax too. I felt comfortable so I ended up financing the car and about two days later noticed something funny about the rear wheels. They looked to be a little off to the right but you could only see it if the car was further away from you. I started measuring and it seemed fine and I thought it was just me but I had this gut feeling something wasn't right so I tore the trunk apart and removed the carpeting. What I saw under was haphazard welds all over, the car clearly had frame damage and was repaired cheaply and half- assed. They didn't even bother making the welds look somewhat decent, just painted all over it.

I went to and Acura dealership right away and asked them to look at it. They confirmed the damage and took photos. I called the bank right away and told them what happened and they agreed to stop the payment. Once the dealer realized he's not getting his payment, he called me. I told him he's selling me that 2008 (had less miles and was about 5k more expensive) he had for the same price or I'll blow this shit wide open. He agreed.

Anyway, that dealership closed down 5 years later after many negative reviews, BBB complaints and lawsuits. Turns out that basically every car they had was bought at an auction, repaired haphazardly and then sold, even the lambo's and ferrari's. They faked Carfax reports and worked with a facility that would fix the cars for them, roll back the odometer, and etc. There was a local news article about it. So yea, looks can be very deceiving and the size of the dealership mean little to me now. Private dealership all engage in shady practices. The only ones l trust now are the "official" ones such as honda, toyota, ford, bmw etc so if I'm buying a ford, you'd better have a name badge with the ford logo on it.

 

[robvas]

Good looking car in the pics, but after seeing it in person, this car really needed some TLC. They were asking for just under $30K and while I was certain there was some wiggle room on the price, this car seemed like one where you would be constantly fixing things, which I didn't want to deal with, when you're shelling out $29K-$30K.

I went to a big Ford dealer in the area to look at a GT500 a few years back, right at the start of covid. They had a 2009 GT500 for 29k so I went to take a look at it

The paint on the front and rear bumpers looked really weird. The sale guy got a cloth and a bottle of meguiars and starts buffing it all out..."It's just water spots!"

The transmission/clutch made some strange noises, they quickly printed off a TSB for me to explain it (it could have been a minor issue or maybe not)

Then we got the car up in the air, and a control arm on one side of the car was damn near brand new. There was also oil residue on half the side of the car underneath.

It just didn't look right, I offered 24k but they wouldn't budge so I left.

The sales guy called me later that week saying they would take 28. The sales manager called the same day and said 26. Then three weeks later they said they would take 24 if I wanted to come back in and pick it up today.

 

[The Watchman]

In June of 23' at 40 years old, I realized I could finally "afford" a performance car. Went thru the same line of thinking many here did, looked at late model Supra, Camaro, Vette's etc.

Settled on the s550 for the same reason many do, great value to performance ratio. Originally I planned on doing exactly what @ZLwhat is attempting to do. Late model, low to mid mileage with all the right performance upgrades done aftermarket.

I wanted a blower and some of the other goodies like LTH etc. Ended up finding something about $6k above my budget.

A 22' GT with Roush 2650 installed by Lebanon Ford. Haggled the dealership down as much as possible and ended up getting a great deal and interest rate.

Only problem was the dealer basically lied about the warranty. Original 3/36 warranty is for those who buy an s550 and had the Roush Kit installed by Ford Tech. Once original owner sells the car with the blower installed then the powertrain warranty is null and void.

I ended up with a whip without a warranty. I bought the car with 2500 miles on odo. Last summer the MT82 died an miserable death...

The good news is we t56 magnum swapped and dumped a bunch of money into the car and the car is an absolute beast making 803 rwhp and 760 torque.

Moral of the Story: be careful out there because the world is a mischievous place filled with lots of people who do not have your best interest in mind. Hence, here we are warning you of the real world risks and consequences...

Anyway, @ZLwhat when are we gonna start your 9 second 1/4 with fully built motor thread?

 

[robvas]

A 22' GT with Roush 2650 installed by Lebanon Ford. Haggled the dealership down as much as possible and ended up getting a great deal and interest rate.

Only problem was the dealer basically lied about the warranty. Original 3/36 warranty is for those who buy an s550 and had the Roush Kit installed by Ford Tech. Once original owner sells the car with the blower installed then the powertrain warranty is null and void.

I ended up with a whip without a warranty. I bought the car with 2500 miles on odo. Last summer the MT82 died an miserable death...

There is so much bad information out there about the Whipple/Roush warranties...glad you got everything fixed up

 

[The Watchman]

There is so much bad information out there about the Whipple/Roush warranties...glad you got everything fixed up

Absolutely. These cars can go south very, very quickly and the $$$ adds up fast.

Sadly, many of these dealers are basically legalized con artists who take advantage of their customers with regularity.

Again, be very careful out there in the big wide world...

 

[coffeehound]

I went to a big Ford dealer in the area to look at a GT500 a few years back, right at the start of covid. They had a 2009 GT500 for 29k so I went to take a look at it

The paint on the front and rear bumpers looked really weird. The sale guy got a cloth and a bottle of meguiars and starts buffing it all out..."It's just water spots!"

The transmission/clutch made some strange noises, they quickly printed off a TSB for me to explain it (it could have been a minor issue or maybe not)

Then we got the car up in the air, and a control arm on one side of the car was damn near brand new. There was also oil residue on half the side of the car underneath.

It just didn't look right, I offered 24k but they wouldn't budge so I left.

The sales guy called me later that week saying they would take 28. The sales manager called the same day and said 26. Then three weeks later they said they would take 24 if I wanted to come back in and pick it up today.

Sounds like you made a good call walking away.

 

[coffeehound]

Absolutely. These cars can go south very, very quickly and the $$$ adds up fast.

Sadly, many of these dealers are basically legalized con artists who take advantage of their customers with regularity.

Again, be very careful out there in the big wide world...

Exactly why I will never own a car with forced induction.

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