[Abb0]

Hey Team,

Well, after being here in the US for a couple of years I'm finally going to be getting the ass into gear and getting myself a Mustang in the next couple of months. What I'll be looking at is a '99-'04, hopefully a GT but I'll be more than happy with a V6 at this stage.
The advice I'm after is what pitfalls to look for. What are the problem areas that I need to keep an eye on when I'm looking at potential cars to buy.

Anything greatly appreciated.

Thanks
Paul

[Shelbydog!]

Get the most car that won't stretch the budget. I don't know your financial situation, but I would steer clear of a v6. Seems a lot of money is spent on the sixers to get them to look/sound like a gt. If a v6 suits your needs, by all means, go that way. Just buy from a reputable dealer or person - that's the best tip i can give.

[brokenweasel]

I'd recommend getting the car as stock as possible - there are garage hacks out there who do some "killer" work and you don't want to inherit someones car that just "needs a little work" or someone hacked together. Some examples:

Someone hacked the stock springs to lower it a ton. In moderation most people don't have problems with this, but if you cut too much off of stock springs things won't work right.

Depending on what state you live in, the car may have to pass emissions testing. Check the exhaust since that is a typical modification as I'm sure you know.

Use a magnet (without scratching the paint) to check for body work. Carfax is a good start too.

Stock tune? Or was the car tuned with a hand-held tuner but the tuner wasn't included? You may need to run 91-93 octane because of the tune, which would suck if you couldn't change it.

Probably the best thing you can do when you find what you want is post as many pictures up here as you can. People will check everything over based on your pics and let you know whats up and if they think its a good deal.