What's The Most Fun Ford Mustang You Could Buy For $10k?

Mustangs have been around for over 50 years. Some of them became global motoring icons; others not so much. For the most part they were generally fun cars to own, and yes, that applies to the slow ones as well. I’ve owned a couple myself - a 1992 LX 5.0-litre V8 automatic convertible that was stock and slow, and a 2003 SVT Cobra six-speed convertible with a supercharged 500bhp V8 that was not stock and silly fast.

I bought the 1992 Mustang for just $1800, spent another $3000 to fix it up, and enjoyed the hell out of it. The 2003 Cobra was a bit more at $21,000, but it could easily do second-gear powerslides in the dry. The Cobra was parked during winter, but I proudly drove the other ‘Stang all-year long without abandon, finding new and creative uses for a convertible in the process. Having enjoyed both, I’m still not sure if the Cobra was $16,000 more fun.

That got me thinking. At a modest $10,000 budget (about £7000), what kind of Mustang can you buy and/or build? Barring rebuildable wrecks or hopeless project cars, I dug up these three examples you could buy and drive right now. Why these three? Because, despite sharing the Mustang name, they’ll give you completely different ownership experiences.

We start with this 2001 SVT Cobra Convertible, currently selling on eBay through a dealer on the American Northwest Coast. This car is listed as being in great shape with 70,000 miles, and though it’s listed as being completely stock I do see some aftermarket frame connectors underneath to help stiffen things up. That’s good, because these Cobras did have a 320bhp DOHC V8 to contend with, and frame connectors absolutely help get rid of the bad flex notorious with this generation ragtop.

As for price, it’s got a measly bid price of $3350 as I type this. It’s a reserve auction so it will go higher, but here’s what I really like about the 1999 and 2001 SVT Cobras: they were quickly overshadowed by the supercharged 2003-2004 “Terminator” Cobras, and as a result, these are totally slipping under the radar right now.

They still have plenty of horsepower to be fast in stock trim, but more importantly, they have the independent rear suspension that gave these muscle cars much more of a proper sports car feel. Book values suggest this car should sell for around $9000, which is spot-on with the current Cobra trends. Whether you love or hate Mustangs, that’s a freakin’ deal for a 320bhp convertible that handles well and runs a high 13-second quarter-mile.

We can’t talk about Mustangs for under $10,000 without including a 1980s Fox Body Mustang, and this red 1986 GT 5.0-litre convertible in Wyoming could be a winner. The seller is asking $5500, and honestly, it looks pretty good for the price. It has almost 89,000 miles, and it appears to be completely stock which is rather extraordinary for a 1980s V8 Mustang.

The seller says it has a rebuilt five-speed manual with a new clutch and new tyres - the trifecta of repairs that always raises a red flag for performance cars on Craigslist - but I get the impression that it hasn’t been too thrashed. Rather, I think it’s just a survivor that is ready for some restoration.

That’s especially true judging by some of the faded trim in the photos, and the suggestion that it will need a new top “eventually.” Or, just buy it and enjoy it for a cheap driver as-is. The 200bhp V8 is crazy easy to modify for surprisingly little cash, but this era Mustang is quite small and fairly light so even modest power is enough to be entertaining. Then again, invest $4000 into engine and suspension upgrades and you’d have something that could outrun just about everything and still turn a corner. And Fox Body Mustangs are finally starting to climb in price, so now could be the time to pick one up.

I’ll close with a Mustang nobody expected me to praise. Here we have none other than a 1977 Mustang II Cobra, selling near Des Moines, Iowa for $10,000. Before you start complaining, you should know this isn’t a stock 140bhp 1977 Mustang.

It’s not clear exactly what the horsepower figure is, but the seller lists the engine as a 5.0-litre from a 1987 Mustang, which was 225bhp bone stock. Judging by the catalogue of add-ons in the listing, this engine is decidedly not stock. I don’t think 300bhp would be unrealistic, and considering this era Mustang is about the same size as a current generation Civic, that’s enough to easily make it the fastest of these three. But what I really like here is the transmission - usually such cars receive an automatic for consistent drag strip duty, but this 1970s gem is packing a proper five-speed manual.

I dig this car in a weird 1970s way. In a world where you see Mustangs on every street corner, you never see a late ‘70s Mustang II. And compared with the flamboyant (and gaudy) 1978 King Cobra, this classically striped blue ‘Stang just has style. These cars will never be worth much to collectors, but it would be a unique Mustang to own and it certainly has the power to impress. Plus it’s old enough to have that nostalgic feeling. For $10,000 I can’t believe I’d choose it over the others, but yeah, I think I would.