kewlstory

I guess I should specify. Just got on this forum to look for advice from good ol longtime owners. I've been saving up for a project car for a while and the whole time I was looking at buying an lt1 camaro/firebird. My budget is now a bit higher than I thought it would be and I may be able to afford an ls1 but at the same time the 99-04 mustamgs caught my eye. I didn't think much of the lexus sc till recently but now I realize the potential of the 2jz. The toyota is def more reliable than the Americans but both pony cars are faster right out of the box. My budget is 7k stretchable to 8k if I see something rly rly good. This car will be in my hands for a while and I plan on sinking some money into mods and it won't be my dd in the nearest future. Advice? Pros n cons to either of the 3?
Thanks guys

chnk

iTrader: (12)

The sc and mustang is easier to work on than a camaro/firebird.

Some of the engine is under the dash in the camaros and firebirds. More aftermarket handling suspension is available for the scs than camaros/firebirds. The interiors in scs are better. Played with both prefer the sc. The camaro and firebird stock doesn't feel underpowered like an na 2jzge

Mustangs I've never touched so I have no say.

bigwes

It depends on what u like I guess. With an SC u won't get as much attention from people due to the fact that most people haven't heard of this car. The mustang is about as equal as the sc as far as power potential goes. But the sc is waayyy more reliable. Plus, with the sc u can buy cheaper parts by getting supra parts for the car. I don't think u can do that with the mustang.

mikef

iTrader: (3)

give me a inline 6 any day over a v8. and plus mustangs have alot less torque

Asha'man

iTrader: (1)

Mustangs make plenty of torque. You can find decent New Edge ('99-'04) five speed Mustang GT's for $3500-$7000 all day long. The PI 2v 4.6 is a solid motor backed by a T-45 or T3650 tranny ('99-'00 or '01-'04) and 8.8 limited slip rear. All drivetrain parts are very good and will hold up to a lot. Plenty of aftermarket power parts, a multitude of suspension and body.

If you like having plentiful and affordable aftermarket support, the SC is NOT the way to go.

travi19

I have owned mustang and lexus . in my perspective if you want something muscle I owned two mustang 5.0 a 89 and 92 both notchbacks 92 was chp prior police on title and buck tags . I would say go for supercharged fox body or turbo sc300 a lot of people haven't caught on to the 2jz power but the 5.0 foxbodys v8 have same power as sc300 before 97 at around 230hp if im correct and 5.0 produced 235hp but is lighter and is not luxury

Albatross

iTrader: (1)

I've been down this road. I've owned a mustang prior to this and a fully built 240SX. I chose the SC because of the chassis pure and simple. The mustang is great for what it is (in each of its evolutions) but the SC has the potential of a supra and for my goals (a nice GT cruiser that I can track every once in a while) the SC fits better.

The SC's interior is just a nicer place to be. The frame is stronger. The aftermarket is more expensive but you also get what you pay for. You can do everything from throwing a 15K drivetrain in it for a track beasty or you can just have a nice little GT car. The sky is the limit.

I bought an SC because its way cheaper than a porsche and way higher quality than any mustang for the same price.

I remain convinced an SC with a TT supra powertrain and a good suspension setup can be a great track car.

SCereal

iTrader: (4)

Boost an SC and be done with it. Well in your budget and way more potential. Don't even bother with LT1s, WHEN the optispark craps out, it ain't cheap. LS1 based FBody if you want to go fast in a straight line with those horrible interiors. Mustang to make any real amount of power is not cheap to do right.

Remember, the SC when new was a $45-50k car back in the early 90s. It's built as such and over engineered. Parts are cheap and plentiful, there's a huge aftermarket thanks to chassis commonality with the supra and they're just nicer cars. Add to the fact that most of us SC owners are cheap, we've found a myriad of "oh this cheaply available oem part from another car can be fitted in an SC" type upgrades.

KahnBB6

iTrader: (5)

^^^ ++++

My vote goes for the SC unless you're starting with a truly cheap and rust-free Fox Body 5.0 (which needs $10k of Global Control or similar suspension work to handle as well as an SC), or a '99/'01 Cobra Mustang, 97-02 Camaro SS / Trans Am or an '03-07(??) GTO. Any of those in GOOD condition already equipped with a manual transmission and a factory 300+HP V8 engine will set you back between $9k-$16k.

OP, the SC chassis is already very solid, safe, and designed for handling. Pieces from the Soarer, LS400 and Supra MKIV TT parts bin transform it while still not giving away that it was originally sold in a muscle car trim level (Soarer 2.5GT's). And the engine is as legendary as any modern domestic small block V8. There are so may modern engine computer tuning options available now.

Price to get it there and finding cosmetic parts are the only caveats-- like MKIV's, these aren't cheap to make fast but when you get it there you'll be very happy.

kewlstory

So wait, does the sc have a lot of aftermarket parts available or does it not? The thing that rly gets me with an sc300 is the whole poor man's supra thing but in a nicer package. Is this really true, can an sc300 have as much potential as a supra without swapping the engine?

mikef

iTrader: (3)

They do have alot of aftermarket parts, the only reason people call it a poor mans supra is because of the price you can get one right now,

look at it this way

a supra you expect it to be manual turbo
a sc you dont expect it to be manual turbo, but if it is, you turn more heads because its more rare

if you dont mod an sc its just a normal GE supra with heavy seats lol

LEXXIUM

iTrader: (1)

Sc is the muscle, it's a sleeper kind of muscle that creeps up on stangs vetted and other domestic cars when modified. Not to mention handling, indep rear suspension, and the cool factor

Sc all the way!!!

CatManD3W

iTrader: (18)

Get and SC400 it is an SC and it has muscle with the 1uzfe V8

Joey-E

iTrader: (1)

This^^^

Go with the SC you dont see too many around and everyone drives a stang you see those all the time.

If not go with something with a LS1 in it

INTIMAZY

iTrader: (5)

I just got into my 5th new edge Mustang last week. I've built just about all the combos you can imagine.
'02 GT vert with an auto
'01 Cobra coupe
'00 GT coupe with 5-speed
'03 Terminator Cobra coupe
'99 Cobra vert again now
There's a specific charm to those cars. They make a TON more torque down low than the JZ series FYI.
Here's a few of my recommendations....

1. The 4.6 is a solid motor but is limited by WEAK rods and crank. 500ftlbs is limit on anything besides Terminators. The boosted JZ is a far better power plant in every way over the modular 4.6. There is NO comparison.

2. The 4.6 sounds incredible but that's all it does well... make noise. It's very difficult to break 400rwhp NA like the LSx motors. They need boost for big numbers. Luckily, the Terminator 4.6 might be the sweetest set of noises money can buy.

3. The heads flow very poorly and the bore is very small so there's no room to make a decent flowing head like the LSx motors. You either need overpriced trickflows or go 4-valve and deal with lack of a good intake manifold.

4. The chassis are in desperate need of stiffening. Full length subframe connectors are a minimum requirement IMO.

5. The front strut suspension has terrible geometry with no camber adjustment from the factory and non-existent caster. A tubular K-member can push the front wheels out and improve weight and weight distribution but then the bumper fitment becomes an issue.

6. Don't get me started on the non-Cobra OEM brakes. Just don't.

7. The rear axle is really good at laying power down from the line. Works well. The chassis does't like to take it very long and the torque boxes warp. But it launches hard. Just don't ask the car to go over a bump while cornering. It doesn't like to let the rear end get light.

8. The IRS setup in 99, 01, 03-04 Cobras is junk. We've raced with one and it's far better than the axle but it's still not a great setup at all.

9. (Insert comment about horrible high-riding seats, Fisher Price interior, misplaced shifter, shakes and rattles here)

That being said, I would gladly buy #6 which will hopefully be another Terminator coupe. God I love those cars.