2003 FORD MUSTANG

I am selling my 2003 Ford Mustang SVT Cobra ‘Terminator’, manual gearbox, V8 supercharged, for £19,495. I live in Wiltshire, close to junction 17 of the M4.

- Just under 57,000 miles

- One previous owner

- 500 bhp (estimated)

- Clean titles from the US and UK

- Good service history, including recent overhaul

- ‘Clubsport’ specification, with a nice balance between performance, safety and comfort

- Rare in the UK, highly regarded in the States

- Very good condition

- MOT until mid-October

4.6 litre V8, supercharged, quad cam engine making 500 bhp (estimated). 6 speed manual gearbox. Performance is brisk and the Bassani exhausts sound perfect, overlaid with the supercharger whine at full throttle. Stock manifolds and catalytic convertors ensure the exhaust note is road legal and pleasing to the ear, not overly loud (I live in a small village and remain on good terms with my neighbours). Modifications are a remap, smaller pulley for higher boost, K&N intake and cat-back exhausts. These are under-stressed engines, capable of considerably more power than is currently being produced. There are no warning lights or error codes.

‘Clubsport’ specification, with full interior trim, carpets, sound-proofing, airbags, air conditioning, stereo retained but with rear seats deleted, a full roll cage and sliding/reclining Recaro front seats. The weld-in roll cage has been professionally installed by ‘Paul’s Performance’ in Michigan, together with under-chassis reinforcement for the seat runners and optional harnesses, should the new buyer want to venture on track. With one change it would be Motorsport UK compatible for speed events or racing. The rear legs currently have a bend in them, these two tubes would need to be replaced for straight legs, a job that can be carried out by all good race preparers for a few hundred pounds. I’m 6 foot and the cage isn’t intrusive and the door bars are low, making it easy to get in and out. You could of course choose to remove the cage and find a donor car to restore the full interior and rear seats.

The ride is comfortable, with stock Bilstein dampers and springs and adjustable top mounts. The 2003 and 2004 SVT were the only Mustangs of this era equipped with independent rear suspension.

The 2003/04 SVT Cobra is highly regarded in the States, typically selling for $30,000 to $40,000 with these miles, though rare in the UK, with perhaps 4 in total over here. All Mustangs of this era were left hand drive only, this has never caused me a problem here. I will be happy to sell within the UK, or potentially overseas and even deliver it in person to the US, provided the seller pays for any taxes, shipping and delivery costs.

It has a clean title, both here and in the US, I have a full Carfax report and UK history check. Extensive service history, with almost 20 oil changes and service work, from when it was in regular use in Michigan. I have recently serviced it.

The chassis is almost completely rust-free underneath, what little there is, is very slight and cosmetic, on the surface only.

In the last six months I have carried out the following recommissioning work, as follows:

- Fully synthetic engine oil, diff oil and gearbox oil, from Liqui Moly.

- Coolant and charge cooler fluid changed, with distilled water and anti-freeze.

- Brake fluid flush and change.

- Brembo front discs and Hawk front pads, Hawk rear pads (the rear discs are good).

- Both belts changed and all tensioners checked.

- Twin fuel pumps, fuel filters and level sensor, plus neck seal.

- Various boost and fuel sensors changed (whilst diagnosing low fuel pressure).

- Yokohama V105 tyres x4, with full alignment.

- Wheels professionally refurbished in the correct Ford colour and diamond cut finish.

- Two small paintwork blemishes taken care of (bumper corner and drivers door).

- New front fog lights and surrounds.

- Returned the cruise control to full working order.

- New, second remote fob and key.

- Differential removed, casing re-sealed and new output seals, to prevent the common slow fluid leak these can develop.

There is a spares package which is included, including new oil filters, new spark plugs, new pads, the original supercharger pulley, intake and filter, K & N intake heat shield, tools and space saver spare and set of spare Mustang wheels.

The original owner bought it whilst working in Detroit, where he worked on the electronics for a sister SVT project, the Ford GT. He used it both as a road car as well as occasional track day car, which is why he had the roll cage fitted. He didn’t ever race the Mustang, as a result there are no rubs or excessive stone chipping (in fact, hardly any chips at all). After the original owner moved back to Europe the Mustang saw just 2000 miles of use, with one MOT, a brief stint in mainland Europe and a return to the UK and dry, indoor storage.

I bought it last year, unseen via a Pistonheads auction (see my readers cars thread). For the last six months I have used it most days, for work and pleasure, alongside my Corvette; this regular use gives me confidence the car is mechanically sound.

Anything wrong?

- It has the odd rattle and squeak, but I don’t believe this is any different from many other Fords of the era.

- There are around a half dozen touched in stone chips to the leading edge of the bonnet and touched in scratches to the base of the drivers side windscreen pillar.

- Last time it was in the air I could see that a front lower wishbone ball joint is leaking grease from a split boot. This will need repair or replacement at next MOT (it has no play).

- Centre brake light has one vertical crack, but is fully working, as is usual for this ‘New Edge’ model.

- The roof has a shallow indent, that you’d have to look for to notice. No other visible damage, no marks in the paint, I suspect this was from the initial cage installation. I have not tried to remove this, a professional may well be able to make this perfect again.

- Inevitably the odd small mark here and there, but it is in good condition for the year and miles.

Reason for sale

I wanted to experience ownership of this special car, see it recommissioned and enter the annual Pomeroy Trophy event at Silverstone, in part to prove reliability. It performed well, although the stock-sized brakes inevitably proved to be the weak link on track; no damage done and much fun was had. The brakes were replaced just after this and perform well on the road. I took a financial risk by buying it and have spent hours of time and some thousands to get it to this stage. It was always my plan to sell and will plough the proceeds back in to my Corvette.

Thanks, David