In the Market for a Ford GT Again


Oct 14, 2009
367
Alberta, Canada
I believe you have become richer. Money comes and goes.......... a Ford GT is special. It is art, emotion, extraordinary mechanical engineering, exhilaration, pride, self fulfillment........ it is a complete package. I don't get any of that from a fat bank account.

QSS
 

Shark01

GT Owner
Jul 22, 2012
575
Houston Texas
I believe you have become richer. Money comes and goes.......... a Ford GT is special. It is art, emotion, extraordinary mechanical engineering, exhilaration, pride, self fulfillment........ it is a complete package. I don't get any of that from a fat bank account.

QSS

I agree (still hard to hit that submit button), shortly I will be the caretaker of two iconic cars....not bad for an ex-janitor.
 

GT@50

GT Owner
Mark II Lifetime
Dec 14, 2019
852
Issaquah
Congrats! I took the wife for a spin last night. "What, in the dark, in the rain", she said. She loved it!
 
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Shark01

GT Owner
Jul 22, 2012
575
Houston Texas
Congrats! I took the wife for a spin last night. "What, in the dark, in the rain", she said. She loved it!

Thanks....good to see your pillow did not become exhibit A in some cheesy made for TV movie. I'll be interested in your full review once you get in on dry pavement.
 

2112

Blue/white 06'
Mark II Lifetime
Did I miss the color and options?

Congratulations!
 
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Shark01

GT Owner
Jul 22, 2012
575
Houston Texas
Did I miss the color and options?

Congratulations!

Thanks, and no you haven’t missed anything, I’m waiting until the transaction is complete before giving full details.
 

Tomcat

GT Owner
...then will drive the grueling 8 miles back to the house.....
My initial purchase drive was 500 miles...you are short-changing yourself :)
Congratulations!
 
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Shark01

GT Owner
Jul 22, 2012
575
Houston Texas
My initial purchase drive was 500 miles...you are short-changing yourself :)
Congratulations!

LOL, thanks....I am going to miss not seeing you in Hickory NC though. The salesguy there just e-mailed me again, guess the market wasn't what he thought it would be 3 weeks ago when he thought it wasn't going to last the weekend.
 

Tomcat

GT Owner
LOL, thanks....I am going to miss not seeing you in Hickory NC though. The salesguy there just e-mailed me again, guess the market wasn't what he thought it would be 3 weeks ago when he thought it wasn't going to last the weekend.
So, you own the car now? Are you picking it up in Hickory? I'm doing a Shriner Car show in Greensboro with my GT this weekend.
 

Shark01

GT Owner
Jul 22, 2012
575
Houston Texas
So, you own the car now? Are you picking it up in Hickory? I'm doing a Shriner Car show in Greensboro with my GT this weekend.

No, I guess I said that wrong, I'm intending to buy one in Houston.
 

Tomcat

GT Owner
No, I guess I said that wrong, I'm intending to buy one in Houston.
Cool...post the specifics when finalized/able to.
Congratulations.
 
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Shark01

GT Owner
Jul 22, 2012
575
Houston Texas
OK, as of last night now an owner of a 29k mile GT in the fastest color. Solid driver grade car, lots of Mods I would pony up for, great value, great seller (forum member). Very comfortable to pay cash and have lots of funding left.

I'm writing a full introduction with tips for new buyers, will start posting it this weekend.
 

spartan

GT Owner
Mark II Lifetime
Feb 11, 2017
1,216
Bloomfield Hills MI
Congratulations. It's all part of the journey.
 
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68Rcodeman

GT Owner
Mark II Lifetime
Apr 5, 2008
800
Spring Hill, FL.
Congratulations, Glad you did all the chasing. You will appreciate the choice more. Can't wait to see your spec.
 
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Shark01

GT Owner
Jul 22, 2012
575
Houston Texas
I'll post a full review of the decision process and the car's details next week.
 

Shark01

GT Owner
Jul 22, 2012
575
Houston Texas
I'll post my full recap a section at a time over the next few days.

Introduction

I am the new caretaker of 2005 car 1711, a red 4 option car with approximately 29,000 miles (more on that below). Many thanks to Ricky May, the previous owner for being upfront about everything and a pleasure to work with. The car was not on the open market, so it gave both of us an opportunity to take our time without the added noise of tire kickers, scammers, low ballers, underfunded dreamers, the “my wife wouldn’t let me buy it” crowd and the like. And it was 8 miles away….perfect location. It is also a car that some buyers would dismiss based on the miles and a couple of stories.

I am a Mechanical Engineer by trade, so being accurate and thorough is my business. This recap will be long, and if it helps even a single new buyer, worthwhile.

The car has a couple of stories, but a thorough inspection indicates it’s a solid, honest car with nicks here and there reflective of a well enjoyed icon. My goal as a caretaker is to improve the car for future caretakers…..and have some fun.

The GT now shares a garage with my 1999 Lamborghini Diablo Roadster.
 

Shark01

GT Owner
Jul 22, 2012
575
Houston Texas
The Stories

I’m one of those people that always wants to hear the bad news first, the glass is always half empty, that kind of thing. So the challenges always come first.

I don’t mind a car having stories if the origin, severity, and aftermath are verifiable in some way based on paperwork or by simple inspection. I got a huge discount on the Diablo (14%) that way because I did my homework and discovered the “accident” was a $6k stoplight bump. They’re cars, subject to real world stuff.

On the other hand, there have been cars I inquired about during this search where the dealer had no idea why the report indicated a car had an “accident history”, I steer clear of those situations as it’s pretty clear either they are trying to hide something, or too lazy to do their own homework . The pretty exterior of a GT can hide some ugliness below as Rich Brooks told me once about looking at repaired salvage cars. This car has seen a few track days, which doesn’t bother me like it would a Ferrari.

The former owner told me the car had a previous minor incident before his ownership, so when I pulled the CarFax there was a blemish that referenced some damage (not an accident, which in the history reporting world is an important distinction). So you know just from that designation that no other cars were involved, no police report, no tow truck.

I was told the car had a parking lot low speed bump with some obstruction. The splitter and the bottom lip of the bumper were cracked (both replaced). The very bottom of the radiator (which hadn’t been replaced – it was still working 10 years later) was pushed up slightly in one spot about ¼” right in the center indicating to my mechanic that it ran over some debris, the corner of a curb or possibly bumped a stud sticking up from a concrete parking bumper (the pushed up spot is pretty narrow) since the car sits 1” lower than stock. So clearly a minor event I was OK with since a flimsy radiator had just surface damage, not requiring immediate replacement.

The other story makes a case for why we should always have these cars on tenders and NOT jump them from other vehicles. When the former owner went to purchase the car, it had not run for months so the battery was dead…..the seller jumped it, and promptly blew out several gauges along with the odometer display. So the car has a full set of Speedhut gauges, which I am told was the solution of choice around 2012, before you could buy re-designed Auto Meter originals. The car went without an odometer display for almost 6 years (but the true mileage could be read from the OBD2 port so the CarFax always listed true mileage). The display was finally replaced in 2018, but required a control box (pollack (sp?) box the owner bought from Shelby) and a trip to the dealer to activate it. So then the odometer started over, true miles are today about 28,500 give or take.

This won’t be an issue titling the car in Texas (anything over 10 years old can claim exempt from odometer reading with some details), but will turn into a reporting challenge the first time the odometer reading is less than before. I’ve already started a dialogue with CarFax how to handle it in the paperwork when that does happen.
 
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Beez

GT Owner
Mark II Lifetime
Oct 28, 2016
195
South Denver
Shark, very interesting read, and it sounds like you made a series of good decisions to get a real driver. If I ever get back into one, it would be with a similar strategy. Wish you and your new car all the best!
 

Shark01

GT Owner
Jul 22, 2012
575
Houston Texas
Shark, very interesting read, and it sounds like you made a series of good decisions to get a real driver. If I ever get back into one, it would be with a similar strategy. Wish you and your new car all the best!

Thanks....although I was really close to buying a 4k mile car, having to drain all my funds plus borrow $40-50k was creeping me out. Then I would be driving the premium away.
 

jaxgt

GT Owner
Mark IV Lifetime
Jul 12, 2006
2,794
Congrats!!!
Now drive and have fun. Life short.
 
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