As with any other machine, given proper care and maintenance a long time.
There is a local guy who has an originally owned 1967 fastback 289. I have no idea how many miles or what has been done throughout the years but he daily drives it and it still looks and sounds great.
May help to be a bit more specific if you want specific answers as far as good and bad years as it's hard to cover 18 years of cars. Are you looking for a 98-04, 05-10, 11-14 ? Manual or auto, v6 or v6, etc.
As far as I know no major issues with any or the years assuming they had proper maintenance and previous owners took car of the car.
Mine had a sketchy history, but my buddies 03 cobra had only 20k and he put 15k on it himself and the shop i took my car to had about 4 cars that had the same issue
The advice you're reading above is quite valid. My experience has been that a well-maintained used Mustang will provide trouble free driving for some time, considering all the variables mentioned above. Continued proper maintenance is essential. By all means avoid any car that has been modified - it's an indication of what type of driving it has experienced, and you can assume that to be liability which increases with age. Check the Consumer Reports used car guide at your local library. While Mustangs are generally quite reliable cars when properly used and cared for, the guide will indicate which years experienced specific problems. I think the guide goes back 5 or 6 years. I bought a used '02 from a Ford dealer in '03, and drove it for over ten years with NO major repair problems. It had been a rental.
Ford and GM both have nearly identical build quality until you get up to about 2007 or so where Ford finally starts to get its act together ( though slowly) . That is, they are fine, but electrical systems, bushings, gaskets, and so on were only designed to last maybe 8-9 years, and by 15, the car was a rolling pile of needed repairs. The engine and suspension may be fine, but the rest of the car will be coming apart around them.
Also, the build quality of the Mustangs, well, the aren't BMWs or Audisfor a reason. The sheet metal on my 14 is almost half as thick as my dad's Audi. Of course, my car also cost 20K new, so that's a bit to be expected. If the car is well cared for and you are gentle with the interior, it should hold up fairly well. But 15 years is well beyond the lifespan unless the owner was a fanatic. 10 is kind of iffy as well, since a 2006 will be at dangerously close to the 15 year mark after a couple of years of ownership.
I would stick to trying to get as new a car as possible.
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Related Threads
?
?
?
?
?
Mustang Evolution Forum
2.1M posts
50.8K members
Since 2003
A forum community dedicated to Ford Mustang owners and enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about performance, horsepower, modifications, troubleshooting, racing, and more!