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Mach 1 Potential Owner Advice/tips needed

7K views 46 replies 11 participants last post by  sonicpony03 
#1 ·
So I'm looking into getting an 03-04 Mach 1, but I had some questions about it. I currently have a 2005 GT. If I got one, I would be using it as a daily, so is driving it in the rain at all an issue? I've always been curious, since the hood scoop is functional and what not. Besides that, I was just hoping to get any advice or if there's any potential issues with Machs that I should be aware of. Pros and cons of getting a Mach vs. Keeping my 05 3V. Thanks!
 
#2 ·
should be fine in the rain.
I have a 02 gt, the main things i noticed that are different are the sound dampening, theres way less in the 99 04 models. its a cable throttle, vs electrical throttle body, and cable clutch. same rear end. i think same transmission.
 
#3 ·
You will be fine driving it in the rain I daily drove mine the last 2 years in the summer and there are no problems they have drains for the water in the hood scoop the only thing that gets annoying is that when it's wet out the belt will chirp for a couple mins till it dries off

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#4 · (Edited)
I'd opt for a low-mid mileage 04 if you can. The 03's are known to have the head tick that the 03 Cobras had. Also Ford supposedly upped the hp/tq slightly for 04.

The 03's do have the center roof net and the black valve covers (which look better than the bare aluminum cast imo), but that's about it. The driver's side manual door lock bezel is chrome on 04's, black on 03's.

The interior upgrade package (IUP) consists of the silver painted bezel with the shifter ring, aluminum shifter knob, silver door locks, pedals (used on bullitts, IUP GT's), and larger headrests.

The non IUP cars are more rare but do not have any of the above features if that matters to you.

Rain really isn't an issue for the shaker..there is a drainage port/tube that evacuates any water collected. I got caught in some moderate/heavy rain last week and drove thru it for about an hour and checked my shaker/filter when I got home..no issues or soaked filter.

As far as the 03/04 vs 05, the 05 is more refined and updated (relatively speaking), but the new edges are definitely livable day to day. The 4v's are solid motors that can hit 300 rwhp with exhaust, intake and a dyno tune, and still net mid to high 20's on the highway.

To me the Mach 1's just have that cool effect. The overall vibe of the car is what sold me on one over an n/a cobra or a 3v. The heritage, the subtle throwback cues, and of course that shaker. You really don't see many of them on the street and honestly name another factory car out there that has a functional shaker sticking out of the hood that you can watch slam to the right as you row thru the gears.
 
#6 ·
If your shaker bushing are shot, it's possible to get leaks when raining or when snow melts. If it still has the stock intake setup and it's not staying together etc, that's most likely the reason. Also, it will clank on bumps and rattle a lot. That's pretty common and usually goes without being fixed on a lot of them that I've seen in person. I replaced mine last year and it was a nice improvement overall.
 
#8 ·
Good point...my bushings were okay but the shaker wasn't tightened down 100% when I bought it so the square metal shim plates were vibrating on the mounting tray. It would get really annoying around 2k rpms. I bought some hard rubber grommets to absorb some vibration and tightened the shaker back down...no issues since.
 
#7 ·
Def look into getting an 04. To avoid 03 head ticks. There's a mod you can do to the heads of 03 but to me is seems like a lot of work. Other than that I think the Machs are great. I have mine as a weekend car. My favorite part is not many people have them. (In my area at least)
 
#10 · (Edited)
I'm going to look at an 04 automatic Mach1 this Wednesday. If its everything the dude claims its going to be VERY hard to pass up a numbered car for the price he wants. It has 140k on it and is automatic so that's going to work in my favor. Miles don't scare me if it runs well now and the condition is good.

http://southjersey.craigslist.org/cto/4932829556.html


I know what to look for on the 4V and I know how to test an automatic trans and the rest of the car is literally a regular GT with some cosmetics AFIAK. Please let me know if there is any "gotcha" on these cars but I can't think of anything.
 
#13 ·
Blasphemy!!!!

Actually I was born in Houston... may have mentioned this at some point?

I wouldn't mind having an auto Mach. :cool:

The difference I know on the autos are that the crank isn't forged like the manuals and the redline isn't 6800rpm. That wouldn't bother me at all though. From what I hear, those 4r75w's are pretty stout.


@azurebluemach
The cast crank is good for 7k. No idea why Ford decided to put a Forged crank into the Cobras/manual Machs and use the junk rods they did that would never be safe to take past 7k anyway. The Termi is the obvious exception.

Get a good tuner, set the shift points to optimal and spin that bish up for the auto. The 4R75W is probably the best trans Ford put in a Mustang until the 2011s. People routinely run them into the 600ft lb range before the 23 spline stub shaft becomes a problem. "Building" a 03-down 4R mostly consists of upgrading to 4R75W guts.
 
#15 · (Edited)
If I get it, it would be my DD unless there is snow/salt on the roads. But I will always have my truck if I need to have it down for repairs...


Will see how it is on Wednesday, then I'll think about all that sort of stuff more. 140k is a lot but if I can get it for $7k or less and the car is clean then that's worth it. Already priced out a trans/motor in the JY just for giggles. Lower mileage 4R75w is $500 if I'm willing to travel a bit for it. Aviator motor is $1500 and I'm sure I could make at least half of that back parting out the Mach motor.


But I'm getting ahead of myself again.
 
#19 ·
Nothing wrong with being that thorough and detailed. Imo if the guy has a problem with any of the things you want to do then I would walk away right then. If he has nothing to hide I'm sure he'll let you inspect whatever you want. None of the things you just mentioned are beyond reasonable imo. But again, that's at your discretion.

Also, here's a link to an article on the M1R for that shaker mod. It has some decent pics identifying the threaded risers etc.

2003 Mach 1 Accessories and Products, Reviews, Installation, How To's

Good luck on the visit tomorrow. Hopefully everything checks out and he holds up his end. Mach 1's really are fun cars you don't see a lot of and a decent bang for your buck car from that generation.
 
#22 ·
I know..I looked at a DSG 03 that had the 1" spacer and it didn't look good imo. Damn thing was in the clouds and just didn't look right.

I think the height from the factory is perfect..and it shakes.
 
#23 ·
Yeah, TBTH I would not let some rando pull a spark plug out of my car I would do it for them though without even batting an eye. And yeah if I do get the car I'll probably be asking about any and all "gotchas" with the Mach. Although I am 100% not going to get it tonight even if we come to some sort of agreement.
 
#27 ·
Lol fact: cars look way better at night or when wet. Especially on a rainy night. Thats when I show mine to my friends.

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#28 ·
Yeah I learned the hard way not to buy a car at night or in the rain when I was 19.


Anyway survey with this Mach 1 is:


Its clean. Definitely can tell its been a DD all its life but no real rust, just some specs here and there and the bolt on subframe connectors have surface rust but they remove easily enough.


The motor was strong. No smells, no ticks, no leaks I could see anywhere. Trans shifted smooth but I did feel a few slight clunks when I let off the gas. This is a 140k car and the trans did shift very smooth through the gears and had good pull when I mashed it.


Exterior has paint that looks like it would really clean up well with a claybar and a polish. Headlights have some clearcoat flaking in the corners. Easy enough to pull those and wetsand that down. The Matte graphics had a few nicks and marks where it had peeled but nothing crazy. Again, this is a 140k mile car. Not like it all could not just be removed.


Interior. Very clean... but it looks like there has been no interior cleaners/conditioners used in it for a very long time. That said, no cracking and there was actually no tears or worn through leather on the driver's seat bolsters. Sitting in the seat, I really did feel like it was gripping me very well even at this age.


Final thoughts. This is a well taken care of but definitely well enjoyed bone stock (besides welded in flowmasters) 2004 automatic Mach1. No rust issues, interior would clean up in 2 seconds as well as the exterior. Motor feels strong, no smells/leaks/anything. No whining while I was driving it, no rear end clunk, trans shifted very smoothly except when letting off the gas I did sometimes feel a slight thud right about when the converter would be unlocking.


He said he is $8k FIRM for it, "can't take less" which is exactly what I would say. What do you guys think is the most I should offer for it?




*Oh also, he's not selling it till he finds the car he wants so who knows when he will actually be ready. Not going to wait forever but I'm not exactly in a huge hurry either.
 
#29 ·
Well it sounds like the car is in decent shape for the miles and age. Wear on the seats is normal, and if there are no actual tears in the leather that's impressive. I've seen cars with less than half that mileage with torn leather, let's face it, the leather from that gen is cheap. The seats are much more supportive than the same gen standard v6/GT seats.

The decals are the same way. You'd be lucky to find a car with less than 70k miles without a peeling hood stripe or chipped up side stripes. Latemodel Restoration makes a direct replacement stripe kit. It is dimensioned and fits exactlyl like the factory one unlike the American Muscle version which is slightly narrower.

The transmission may just need some TLC and fresh fluids. If the shift points are solid then I wouldn't be too concerned. Those 4r75W's are damn good transmissions.

As far as price, I guess it comes down to whether you feel 7-8k is worth it. I paid 10k for my 04 with 58k miles that only needed a new MAF and a hood stripe but our markets may be way different. Plus my seller needed money and really didn't want to store the car for another winter.

I definitely wouldn't hesitate to throw 7k cash at him and see what he says. I don't forsee a lot of people lining up to get a 140k mile Mach 1. But then it's not like he has to sell tomorrow so that works against you. Plus he could verbally agree to 7k with you, keep the listing up and get some fool that's willing to pay asking price and tell you to go pound sand.
 
#33 ·
...As far as price, I guess it comes down to whether you feel 7-8k is worth it. I paid 10k for my 04 with 58k miles that only needed a new MAF and a hood stripe but our markets may be way different. Plus my seller needed money and really didn't want to store the car for another winter.

Wow $10k is pretty good. No way in hell I would sell mine for that and I have 57k miles lol.

Silly peeps that put their cars on CL, yet they can't sell it until they find a new car. Eff that noise! If you're selling it - you're selling it. SMH I'd offer $6.5k and keep looking. Tell him you don't like that noise when you lift off the gas lol. Maybe he'll get scared it won't sell and have it looked at. Could it be a U-joint that needs to be replaced? Seems like I remember an S10 blazer we had do that and we replaced the joint at the rear of the driveshaft and it went away.


@azurebluemach
 
#30 · (Edited)
Hmmm **** I'd rather find one with the mileage you did for $10k lol. Honestly though with this one... if he had told me there was 80k on the car and I didn't have the odometer I'd probably believe him. Only thing I'd worry about is the transmission on this thing and they aren't exactly expensive or hard to swap if you have a lift.


I have time to mull it over. But I will say he will be itching to sell it once he finds his replacement and needs that mod money. So its more of a waiting game and I can outwait someone who really sounded like he was trying to get into a supercharged 5 speed.
 
#31 ·
Yah I'm thinking I got lucky though. I had a guy down to $9500 on an 03 Azure Blue 5spd with 105k miles 2 weeks before I found this one. That car did have full bolt ons, 4.10's, tune etc and was owned by a Ford master tech damn near since new and I felt good about it.

I was supposed to go look at the car on a Friday and I planned on bringing cash in case everything checked out (he offered to meet at the dealer he worked at and throw the car on the lift for me to look over etc) but the seller got cold feet the night before so that was that.

I'm glad though because I got year newer car with almost half the mileage for $500 more lol.

It doesn't sound like you're hellbent on owning this car which is good, tell him 6 or 7k is where you're at, not a penny more and to contact you when he's ready. If he gets the mod bug like you said for his new car he'll bite if he hasn't had any other offers.

If it doesn't work out, no big deal, there is no shortage of v8 mustangs out there.
 
#32 ·
Yeah I know and I'm in no rush. I will probably text him tomorrow like I said and tell him where I am at on it and if he gets his replacement and needs some $$$ to hit me up. Sounded like I was the only interested party in the car and its been on CL a month. Who knows. It may work out it may not.


Only thing is... I've always wanted a Mach and with my knee being wonky them having an automatic option is awesome. And if I ever do get one I will not get an 03 since the 75w is legit that much better.


Like I said we'll see.
 
#34 ·
Dude's father owns a speed shop in NJ so anything wrong with it will get fixed right away and for nothing probably.


Honestly what I think is going to happen is he isn't going to find a replacement soon and I'll wind up in something else and get a phone call in like July or August or right before it starts to cool off again in the fall "hey are you still interested".


Eh, at least I got to drive a Mach around for 10 minutes... love that shaker.
 
#36 ·
We used to have an azure mach here it was such a stunning car. Ford really nailed it on the mach. Personally I think the mach is like one or two in the list of best looking new edge, to me at least. Nearly bought a 04 comp orange auto Mach, bolt ons, priced good, decent mileage, regretting it now. But hey live and learn.


Adventure till you drop
 
#37 ·
There was an 04 Comp Orange auto Mach on the corral a few years ago for sale in Texas. It had a rebuilt title but the guy had a BOOK of receipts on the repair work and a bunch of other ppl vouched for the car. 52k original miles. Sold pretty quick for $7k.
 
#39 ·
Yeah I had bought my blue 98 GT like 6 months prior. I would have flown down and drove it back no kidding.

I did just find a 2000 Steeda GT #48 with 34k miles on the clock all original for $6600 though... Lost a cylinder so the motor has to come out which is why it is so cheap. Looking at it tomorrow if no rain.

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