Future 2008 Shelby GT500 buyer! what to lookout for?

[BulletPROZ]

delete

[msb64]

You should be able to find plenty GT500s out there under 60,000km, possibly as low as in the 10,000-20,000km range or so.

I recently heard about a black convertable locally, that they are only asking 33K for, but not sure what the mileage was though.

With the 07 - mid 08s or so you have to worry about a possible warped flywheel, and all 07 - 09s have the potential for bad clutch, syncros etc., especially depending on how it was driven.

If you find one that has had the TSB done already, with the newer 2010 style clutch you should be good for awhile, and up to about 650-700 rwhp or so.

The 07s also have a poor/heavy dampener on the motor that should be replaced with an 08 or later one, or a good aftermarket one like an Innovators West.

Probably best to pick up a car with few or no mods, so that you if you do add some mods yourself, you can make sure the right parts and tune go into the car.

It can be a real pain sometimes trying to figure out what someone has done before hand, and whether what they did was done correctly.

If you do get a modded car, try and get the oem take off parts too, you never know when you might need or want them.

You can also check out the U.S. market as well, just make sure that the car you choose is not modded or they will not allow it into the country.

There is a Canadian government site that lists the allowed and prohibited vehicles, and it is interesting to note that even Shelby modified cars like Supersnakes etc are not allowed either.

You need to have anything like that performed up here in Canada at an authorized dealer like Sean Hyland Motorsports to be legal, go figure that one out.

Make sure that you take your time looking, there are plenty of them out there to choose from.

I haven't had any issues at all with my 08 other than the warranty covered clutch/flywheel/syncro TSB, maybe others can relate some potential problems to look out for.

Getting the car to hook up off the line, that is a whole other story

[msb64]

Here is the website and relevant page:

 

http://www.tc.gc.ca/roadsafety/SafeVehicles/Importation/Usa/VAFUS/list2/FORD_MERCURY___LINCOLN.htm

 

If you bring up a U.S. car, you will have to get daytime running lights installed to meet the Canadian requirements.

On HID headlight equipped U.S. cars, they usually turn the fog lights into the daytime running lights.

For U.S. cars equipped with standard headlights, I believe the dealers might be able to activate the daytime running light feature in the ECM.

Someone who knows for sure may be able to confirm that.

[89Saleen215]

No problems other than the condition of the car. Don't buy it sight unseen. I looked at at least a dozen that were low miles before I found one that didn't have dents, scratches, and ripped leather interior. One that I looked at - the dealer wanted low $40k for it and it looked like someone bought it and parked it in the desert somewhere for a couple years...all rubber seals were pretty much gone.

[BulletPROZ]

some things i probally should have added, i am a collage student and will also be using the car as somewhat daily driver, i am on a budget tho, the reason i said 60,000km is because i saw one and it was for around $26,000 so it is a good low cost deal with the negitive being it has high km, i will ofcourse take it to a ford dealership for an inspection i guess, also i was wondering can the ford mechanics tell me if the TSB recall work has been done on the cars by checking the vin though phoneing them or do i have to physically bring it there?

 

i did see low km gt500s with 10,000km but it was around 35k which would mean i would have to finance the rest which i really dont want to unless i have to.

[cormy]

..I am a collage student...

[texaggie]

I just traded mine in. I can give you the dealerships number if you like.

[texaggie]

Ok, just read the $26,000 part. If you can get one for that price in good condition and a good clutch, then you need to jump on it.

[robertlane]

Check with the registry to see if it's been reported as wrecked.

[BulletPROZ]

it is single owner, still has warentee till 2014, he already did the clutch TSB and he has all paperwork. it with 60,000 km and he acepted my offer of $26,000. gona give my downpayment on sept 6. it seems to be a solid car. ill ask him if thier are any accidents or if it has a clear title, but im pretty sure its clean.

[texaggie]

get a carfax or the like on the car. Good luck, and congrats.

[msb64]

Sounds like a pretty decent deal, if there is no relevant damage to the car.

If you can get it up on a hoist, and check it out carefully, you should be able to spot any serious past damage.

Get the dealership to put it up in the air, and ask them to let you come in with a camera so you can take a bunch of pics to checking it out.

They should know how and where to lift it properly, but a lot of places don't and you may be able to find damage from the lifting units themselves.

Make sure you post some pics when you do get it.

 

Good Luck

[BulletPROZ]

That's a good idea, I'll ask for a carfax and also talk to him about bringing it to a dealer to see underneath. He told me it was never winter driven so their shouldn't be any rust damage. What things should I be looking out for under the car?

[msb64]

Check for obvious signs of damage to the frame, floorpan, bent or broken suspension pieces front and rear etc.

The dealer should have a mechanic on staff who can easily pick out any stuff like that, if you are not familiar with it.

A good eye can pick out a lot under there in only 5 or 10 minutes, if there are any issues.

It wouldn't hurt to check for bent wheels, axles etc too.

Some alignment/damage issues can be detected by unusual wear patterns on the tires, they can check that out for you as well.

[BulletPROZ]

ok thats good to know, the car comes with ,premium care till 2014 so if by chance i do mind some things out of line, it would be covered free right? of course ill make the owner fix it first... but overall i really think the car will be in decent shape from what he has described so far, ill take photos of the car and post it here, im gona go look at it on oct 6.

[BulletPROZ]

update, I just looked at the car, the owner is so professional. he has every piece of paper work ever done on the car, single owner, orininal sales slip, original stickers it came with, all his maintance was done at one single ford dealer place, he has like 30 papers with everything on them from oil changes to small problem fixes to the clutch tsb replacement. he provided a clean carproof. i took pictures of the underside and thier was no rust from what i could see, he says it was never winter drivin. car has 68000km or 42000 miles. the car is a sexy vista blue with white stripes. the only inperfection i found was the front spiter had one 2-3 mm small dent (not really noticeable).

 

all i know this is my car, its was professionaly kept, the owner even came with a shelby jacket on.

[texaggie]

Congrats again! Welcome to the cult, I mean family!

[msb64]

That is a heck of a deal, and even already has the clutch TSB performed.

No big deal on the splitter, the oem plastic ones shouldn't be too crazy in price, if it really bothers you.

Keep in mind that those are really easy to damage because the front end is so low, most curbs will hit them if you pull in too close when parking.

Btw, here is one of your own

http://www.fordcollection.ca/EN/Product/FRDC300674?cat=FRDSH

[BulletPROZ]

delete

[msb64]

Looks like a curb wrinkle or something similar on the front splitter.
Order yourself a new one and wait a bit before putting it on, that will give you a chance to get used to how low the front end of the car is first.
No sense damaging a new splitter right away, the list on it in the US is just over $100.

Everything looks stock, it even still has the oem air box which is one of the first things people usually change.
The back end looks stock as well, it still has the oem LCAs.

The underside shows the signs of daily driving, but should clean up well.
It is just starting to get some surface rust, you should take care of that right away.

The dash power outlet plug is missing, it came with a plastic plug that said power outlet or similar.

Btw, what are those things on the dash air vents, air fresheners?

Make sure that you let friends and family know that your new car can use some mod parts for Christmas

A few suggestions are:
MRT 13.5" Antenna (can even get one in Vista or Kona Blue from CJPony)
Redline Tuning Hood struts (bolt on, no drilling required)
Ford Racing 113mm CAI and SCT tuner (a 2.5" or 2.6" upper pulley with puller would be nice too)
LCAs with poly bushings (check out the ones at the Shelby Store)

That should keep you busy for awhile

[BulletPROZ]

ok thanks for the advice. the owner told me the car is fully stock with no mods at all.

 

yes thats a air freshener, he shoud have the dash power plug still.

 

I will most likly get all the mods that you listed here. as for the splitter, im probally gona keep it for a while.

[BulletPROZ]

also would any of those mods affect a factory warranty, the car has factory priemium care till april 2014 which i might plan on extending. would things like the CIA and tuner void the warranty. Also things like the LCA or an exhaust change, would that void the warranty. thanks.

[msb64]

Should be no problem with the cosmetic stuff, but the power adders will be a concern.

I was told if I went with a Ford Racing CAI and tuner, and it was installed at the dealership then they would cover it under the factory warranty.

You can verify that with them, but keep in mind that will probably only gain about 30hp or so, so it may not be cost effective for you.

A small upper pulley with the CAI and tuner will add about 120hp or so, which is a fairly good gain but will cost you around 1K.

If you wait until the warranty runs out, then you can pretty much do what you want.

If you are considering an extended warranty, then you have to make the call on how to proceed.

Might be best to just do some cosmetic/personalizing stuff for now, which there is no shortage of.

Whatever you do change out though, make sure you keep the original parts.

You never know when they might be needed later on.

[Robert M]

 

There is a Canadian government site that lists the allowed and prohibited vehicles, and it is interesting to note that even Shelby modified cars like Supersnakes etc are not allowed either.

You need to have anything like that performed up here in Canada at an authorized dealer like Sean Hyland Motorsports to be legal, go figure that one out.

 

 

Sorry for the late reply, but I have just read this two page discussion.

 

So you are saying that a 50 state emission legal U.S. built Super Snake can not be imported into Canada, but a Canadian built Sean Hyland Super Snake is acceptable in Canada? I thought the Super Snake(s) all of them from Shelby Las Vegas, Tasca Ford R.I., Quantum Perf. TX. and Sean Hyland Canada were all built around the same Shelby specifications?

 

Are you saying that Canada requires a Canadian company like SHM to build the car for it to be accepted in Canada? and an outside Canada build of a "like car" is not allowed in Canada? or does SHM have different specs for a Canadian built Super Snake?

 

 

R

[msb64]

They are built on the same specs, with a few minor exceptions like daytime running lights, metric speedo etc.

For some reason they do not want newer modified cars brought into the country, but not sure what their reasoning is though.

You must have missed this link that was also in post #3, Transport Canada website clearly states "All other Ford vehicles modified by companies such as Saleen Performance Cars and Shelby Industries are inadmissible."

http://www.tc.gc.ca/roadsafety/SafeVehicles/Importation/Usa/VAFUS/list2/FORD_MERCURY___LINCOLN.htm

I know of one person locally that ran into this issue, after he had sent his car to Vegas for the Supersnake conversion.

Not sure what his resolution to the situation was.

The Shelby GT, GT-H, GT500 and GT500KR are in the admissible column though.

Maybe Shelby reps can identify the reasoning, but I suspect it is just Canadian bureaucratic red tape.

[HARALD KELLEY]

Congrats on the vista blue GT500. Looks like a nice car and great color.

[Robert M]

They are built on the same specs, with a few minor exceptions like daytime running lights, metric speedo etc.

For some reason they do not want newer modified cars brought into the country, but not sure what their reasoning is though.

You must have missed this link that was also in post #3, Transport Canada website clearly states "All other Ford vehicles modified by companies such as Saleen Performance Cars and Shelby Industries are inadmissible."

http://www.tc.gc.ca/roadsafety/SafeVehicles/Importation/Usa/VAFUS/list2/FORD_MERCURY___LINCOLN.htm

I know of one person locally that ran into this issue, after he had sent his car to Vegas for the Supersnake conversion.

Not sure what his resolution to the situation was.

The Shelby GT, GT-H, GT500 and GT500KR are in the admissible column though.

Maybe Shelby reps can identify the reasoning, but I suspect it is just Canadian bureaucratic red tape.

 

 

I read a portion of it but missed that.

 

Since SHM Super Snakes are allowed it does sound like................... "I suspect it is just Canadian bureaucratic red tape".

 

Thanks for the information.

 

 

 

R

[BulletPROZ]

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[32vsnake]

hey msb64, your canadian, where do you buy your parts from? i ussually buy from americanmuscle.com, but it comes with shipping charges and ussually 3 week wait. do you know of any good canadian places that dont markup thier costs darastically or any american sites that offer free shipping to canada (toronto).

The Shelby store ships via USPS and I find their shipping rates very reasonable...revan racing is another one that has decent shipping. I haven't really found any homegrown (Canadian) places that compete on pricing or oddly enough shipping

[msb64]

I also buy parts from Shelby store, and agree that their USPS option on many items is very reasonable.

CJ Pony Parts periodically offers free shipping to Canada on select Wednesdays and Thursdays, and it just so happens that they have that deal on now for Oct 16th and 17th.

If you sign up at CJ for notifications, they will send you an email when they put on specials like that.

Bigger and heavier drivetrain parts like rear axle assembly, driveshaft, strut brace etc I have purchased from Sean Hyland Motorsports in Ontario.

Other items that I order from the U.S, from places such as VMP Tuning, American Muscle, Jegs etc I ship to Menke's Parcel Service in North Dakota.

Usually with the free or vastly reduced shipping charges offered within the U.S., and not having to pay a brokerage charge, you can save a fair amount if you have the option of running down and picking them up.

Depending on where you are located, that might not be a viable option for you though.