New here - tired of dealing with my Foxbody and looking to finally get an LS1 Fbody
01-09-2023, 01:11 PM
#1
New here - tired of dealing with my Foxbody and looking to finally get an LS1 Fbody Hey all,
Figured I'd register and introduce myself here, not sure if some of my questions would be better for another forum subsection but anyway here goes.
I'm in my early 30's. Back in 2005 or so an LS1 Fbody was my dream car, but I ended up with a 2005 Mustang GT instead. Parents loaned me the money, I only had $5k to put down from my restaurant job, and I paid off the rest over the next few years. I owned that Mustang up until May 2020. Otherwise, I've owned some decent cars. I leased an Infiniti Q50 as a daily from 2015-2018. I was so disgusted with that car and having to deal with an automatic transmission that I immediately bought at 2008 Corvette Z06 once that lease was up, and I daily drove that Corvette until August of 2022. I also bought a 1991 foxbody LX 5.0 hatchback Mustang as my "weekend car" in March of 2020.
Currently I daily drive a 2021 Mustang GT premium 401(a)/Performance Pack 1. I still have the foxbody, but it's become a nightmare and after two years of trying to get it to be "reliable" enough for occasional driving, I'm giving up and selling that car.
So now I'm going back to my dream of owning a fourth gen LS1 fbody. My buddy had a '00 SS in college and I'll never forget how much fun that car was, even bone stock.
My budget would be around $15k. Maybe more or less depending on how much I can get for the foxbody.
This would be a weekend car, not a daily, so I have zero concerns about it being uncomfortable, loud, bad on gas mileage, etc. I want something loud and rowdy, as much car as I can get away with and have it still be somewhat reliable, and of course something where I won't constantly get pulled over (I live in Florida). . I'm guessing a mild HCI build may fit the bill here. I have zero plans to race the car or even beat on it super aggressively, so maybe that's in my favor as far as reliability/longevity. Just a clean, fast, fun, loud car. My mechanical skills are unfortunately limited, but Redline Motorsports is right around the corner so I have a good shop I can rely on.
Not sure if this is realistic in that price range. I'd like an SS or a WS6, but I think a WS6 would probably be outside of that price range. Maybe a Z28 if it fits the bill otherwise.
Would love to hear any advice, experiences driving these cars regularly, etc.
Thanks in advance!
Figured I'd register and introduce myself here, not sure if some of my questions would be better for another forum subsection but anyway here goes.
I'm in my early 30's. Back in 2005 or so an LS1 Fbody was my dream car, but I ended up with a 2005 Mustang GT instead. Parents loaned me the money, I only had $5k to put down from my restaurant job, and I paid off the rest over the next few years. I owned that Mustang up until May 2020. Otherwise, I've owned some decent cars. I leased an Infiniti Q50 as a daily from 2015-2018. I was so disgusted with that car and having to deal with an automatic transmission that I immediately bought at 2008 Corvette Z06 once that lease was up, and I daily drove that Corvette until August of 2022. I also bought a 1991 foxbody LX 5.0 hatchback Mustang as my "weekend car" in March of 2020.
Currently I daily drive a 2021 Mustang GT premium 401(a)/Performance Pack 1. I still have the foxbody, but it's become a nightmare and after two years of trying to get it to be "reliable" enough for occasional driving, I'm giving up and selling that car.
So now I'm going back to my dream of owning a fourth gen LS1 fbody. My buddy had a '00 SS in college and I'll never forget how much fun that car was, even bone stock.
My budget would be around $15k. Maybe more or less depending on how much I can get for the foxbody.
This would be a weekend car, not a daily, so I have zero concerns about it being uncomfortable, loud, bad on gas mileage, etc. I want something loud and rowdy, as much car as I can get away with and have it still be somewhat reliable, and of course something where I won't constantly get pulled over (I live in Florida). . I'm guessing a mild HCI build may fit the bill here. I have zero plans to race the car or even beat on it super aggressively, so maybe that's in my favor as far as reliability/longevity. Just a clean, fast, fun, loud car. My mechanical skills are unfortunately limited, but Redline Motorsports is right around the corner so I have a good shop I can rely on.
Not sure if this is realistic in that price range. I'd like an SS or a WS6, but I think a WS6 would probably be outside of that price range. Maybe a Z28 if it fits the bill otherwise.
Would love to hear any advice, experiences driving these cars regularly, etc.
Thanks in advance!
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SpeedtimeEsq (01-09-2023)
01-09-2023, 04:03 PM
#3
I see pretty nice LS cars on facebook marketplace all the time for under $15k. Because you are going to modify it anyway, I personally would get a lower model t/a or z28 and just do the upgrades you like. It would be cheaper to get a decent mileage t/a for $10-12k, and then get a ws6 hood, wheels, aftermarket suspension and exhaust that you would like more than the stock ws6 stuff anyway (same with the ss).
Do they make WS6 aftermarket hoods? My understanding is that there's only one manufacturer of an aftermarket WS6 hood and the fitment is always poor.
01-09-2023, 04:21 PM
#4
There are a few companies that make them... Mine is from Suncoast Creations, but they're out of business. Most any aftermarket fiberglass hood is going to take some work to get it to fit right, which a competent body shop should have no problem with, but you're gonna have $1500-2000 into the swap by the time you're done. Where are you located? I think you're on the right track with buying one that already has had mods done, as mods typically don't add much value unless they're crazy ( a 25.2 cage, for instance ). But I'd search out one with an adult owner who likes to do some spirited driving but doesn't hammer on it, and has receipts for the work done. They're out there, and you might even find one through the marketplace here.
01-09-2023, 04:25 PM
#5
There are a few companies that make them... Mine is from Suncoast Creations, but they're out of business. Most any aftermarket fiberglass hood is going to take some work to get it to fit right, which a competent body shop should have no problem with, but you're gonna have $1500-2000 into the swap by the time you're done. Where are you located? I think you're on the right track with buying one that already has had mods done, as mods typically don't add much value unless they're crazy ( a 25.2 cage, for instance ). But I'd search out one with an adult owner who likes to do some spirited driving but doesn't hammer on it, and has receipts for the work done. They're out there, and you might even find one through the marketplace here.
I'm still working on getting my foxbody sell-able (it's actually still at the shop now) so I'm using this time to do research, ask around, and bolster what knowledge I do have about these Fbody cars.
Definitely already been poking around the classified section here. Seems like some decent examples out there for around what I'm looking to spend. Once I'm ready to buy, I'll wait for the perfect one to come along!
01-09-2023, 04:26 PM
#6
There are a few places that make hoods (there might only be one that specifically does ws6 - but there are lots of Firehawk style ones), it's not that difficult to find OEM ones either. The t/as that are already modified don't cost any more than a stock one unless it has a turbo or supercharger.
01-09-2023, 04:47 PM
#7
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Just an FYI...there are no WS6 specific tail lights; all V6/V8 cars including Firebird, Formula, Trans Am, Trans Am/Formula WS6, and any trim level of Firehawk all used the same tail lights from 1998-2002. The V8 Pontiac models had a specific tail light in the LT1 (1993-'97) years, but it applied to any V8 (not just WS6) and such was not the case for 1998+.
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WT 00 WS6 (01-14-2023)