I’m all done with studio gear with the exception of maybe down the road in a year or so:

One microphone (not too likely but possible, about $500-700). I don’t actually need it.

Upgrading the already very excellent converters in the RME interface to state of the art for $750 (maybe within 2 years)

Within 3 years a 12 string bass guitar.

I have all the other acoustic, electric and bass guitars I want. Any other axes would be 5 years out.

After a year, about 200 a year for music software during Xmas time during specials, except for this coming Xmas while I’m super pinching pennies.

Technically I’m insane for wanting the Mustang. However it’s a once in a lifetime chance for something special, and I know for a fact that I’d kick myself in the ass forever if I don’t at least try to get it. Plus it gets rid of my jones for a 1968 442 as it’s a much better car with 90 more hp and better everything except for personal nostalgia.

If something too difficult happens during the wheeling and dealing for terms and whatever I have up for a down payment or trade in, then I can drop the price $6000 by getting a stripped Mustang, but still with the shiftable automatic.

By the way, if I didn’t already say it, I would get the wheels you saw as part of the car package. I would then get the standard plain Jane wheels for winter with likely Bridgestone Blizzaks, though there are maybe two other winter tires under consideration. There are no studded or even studdable tires from any brand available for that car, which is disappointing, but I can live with that.

Ironically I found this not long after sending the last email. It really shows the car very well, and ironically even has the optional wheels I want:

That car was not altered as far as power is concerned, the one I’m getting will do all that. They might’ve altered the suspension so it wouldn’t get trashed so much so they could shoot more scenes. But unlike most movies or TV shows, I can tell you they didn’t have to boost the engine. That’s 420 hp!

Looks like I’ve completed major previous purchasing goals including hardware and software, and have earnestly started real penny pinching to save up as much as possible for a Mustang. I talked to my salesman and he’ll keep me advised so I can order a 2013 as late as possible. Mustang model years come out very early. The 2013 came out about April 2012! It takes 6-8 weeks to order. I’m hoping to order February or March, but want to be ready even if I have to order as early as December for some reason.

I’ve looked at all my installment loans. My car will be paid off in December, but will pay it off a month early so I can have the title about December.

I have my Newegg account which will be paid off in December as well. So the monthly payments for those I can factor towards car payments that will be a lot higher than my current ones.

I will also pay off a number of older Sweetwater charges about then as well. However a month or so ago I bought an expensive audio interface that was 10% off because it was a demo, which in the case of Sweetwater means identical to new. I saved $230. There’s more to that story, but suffice to say I was going to get the next lower model some time down the road, but got this top model for only $400 more. I have a year from now to pay it off. So after December I have no installment loans at all except this one.

I’m glad to have this interface, it’s over and done with. The Sweetwater card came in handy. This has been described as the Mercedes-Benz of interfaces:

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/FirefaceUFX

I also found a company in Chicago that can upgrade the already great convertors to state of the art for about $750 which I can do way down the road.

Back to the car:

All of this plus my expected trade in value gave me pretty much what I can expect for monthly payments.

It’s really important to get the 2013 because that’s the end of the retro appeal. The 2015 will be a really different car and the 2014 is a transition to that. I like them both okay but am not interested. Ford wants to use the Mustang name to make more money, as right now their demographics are such that age of the average owner is 51! They want to make it a bit smaller and it will still be two doors, but will be designed so they can make it four doors if they want. There’s never been a four door Mustang! Suffice to say if I don’t do this car, I’m keeping the Buick, though a Nissan 370Z (smaller car with a 330 hp V6) would be entertaining for the same money, but not as desirable to me as a V8 Mustang. Otherwise it’s impossible to get over 400 hp for as little as $32k.

I have two options:
A stripped model for $32k, or getting it with the minimum options that are useful to me for $38k. Which I get will depend on what happens at the time I’m doing a deal. I also want to incorporate a set of winter tires and wheels into the loan. Because you can’t use steel wheels, etc., this will cost about $1300 give or take a hundred.

Going to rear wheel drive with fairly wide treads means I want aggressive real winter snow tires, not all seasons or mud and snows. Ideally Bridgestone Blizzaks. I was hoping to pop on skinny steel wheels and studded tires, but that’s impossible on this car for technical reasons, and there are no studded tires available that I can find. But the Blizzaks and another I found look pretty good and have very good reviews.

Anyway, depending on how things work out I’ll pay at least $400 a month for the Mustang or up to $100 more, possibly. I’m going to be aggressive hunting down the best possible interest rate. I’d like to do 60 months but will likely have to do 72. As it stands now if I get the options I want at 72 months, it’s $479 a month including 4.9% interest. That’s for the car at $38,280, $2500 down with $6000 trade in.

I’m also timing things so that my credit rating will be as optimum as possible. The ideal is constant use and payment with a remaining balance of 30% on an account. Higher than 50% or lower than 15% gives you a lower score. I’m shooting for at least one of the 3 credit agencies giving me over 800, which I’ve done once before. Right now they’re all floating around 785 or so. Long term I want them all over 800, but it might be too much to hope for by December. I hope that the fact there will be nothing left to owe on my Newegg card by December won’t hurt my score; I just don’t know technically. Same with no longer having car payments.

I’m looking hard again at the color called “Gotta Have It Green”. This is like some custom car colors that have been around since I was a kid. It’s a tri-color paint technique, so it has a lot of depth and dimension. However it’s also very flashy and super vivid. As much as I like it, I had to ask myself if I could live with it.

So I was inclined towards Deep Impact Blue. I happened to be on the local dealer’s site and saw they had one there in that color so I went down to look at it.

I’ve also attached 5 renders with it equipped exactly including the right wheels.

My salesman Robb was there. I liked the color a lot. The right darkness with very nice depth, and with the faintest touch of red in it. He happened to have a model from last year with the Kona Blue, which I had previously been inclined towards. It was very nice with the right darkness, but was a pure blue, and is no longer available anyway. So I’m definitely getting the Deep Impact Blue. It also looks better than however you see it on the Web.

This years model has 420 hp over last year’s 412. This car can use premium or regular gas. On regular, hp is still 402 (both this year and last year).

Two of you remember driving my 442. Back then it was rated at 360 hp. It was a bigger block than the Mustang so it had a lot of torque grunt though. By today’s hp ratings, the 442 would be about 330 hp and it had to use premium.  I probably averaged about 14 mpg. Now compare that to the Mustang which is lighter with better aerodynamics, with 420 hp. And it’s supposed to get 25 or 26 mpg highway! I can expect to see about 24 highway probably and average about 17 including all my in town driving. My Buick is 31 highway and around town around 17, and for the kind of driving I do, I average about 20. If I remember right the Coyote engine shuts off 4 cylinders and locks up the torque converter to save gas when the conditions permit.

The 442 was 0-60 mph in about 5.4 to 5.8 seconds and quarter mile time of 13.5 to 13.7 seconds at about 103 mph. Top speed was said to be about 115 mph but I had mine up to 125 real mph (after adjusting for speedometer error) and it felt like it was good for 128-130. Keep in mind aerodynamics weren’t happening back then. Mine had a fairly short differential and a police grind camshaft, so it was in between a standard 442 and the special W-30 version.

If I looked for a 1968 442 (my favorite year), it would cost at least $25,000 for one that needs nothing. They are also hard to find (needing nothing). At any given moment you can find only one for sale in the U.S. Ten years ago you could find 3. If I was rich, I would have one for sure for nostalgia (and for the sound of that 400 block). But the Mustang is a way better car.

For the Mustang:
I can expect 0-60 in about 4.9 seconds. Quarter mile would be about 111 mph in 12. 74 seconds. Top speed is about 170, but is factory speed limited to either 150 mph but more likely 155 mph.

Here’s a good spot for checking out what the car’s about, and it happens to be in Gotta Have It Green:

If you look carefully at the way the sunlight hits the paint, they did a great job with the dimensionality of the paint layers, etc.

There’s a heavy duty lime lemon green large flake metallic that was on lots of custom cars of the 60’s that is so bold it just makes your eyes pop. On the right car I think it’s cool.
The green on the Mustang is not that kind of custom paint from years back, but has depth to it because of the way the paint was applied, and the way it bends light between surface highlights and shadow, so that’s primarily my reason for liking it. But I’m afraid I’d regret it after a while. The blue I’ll always like.

I’m just so bored with silver because I wound up with too many of those, or I’ve certainly spent too much time in silver cars, and again they’re so common. I don’t like Ford’s Grabber colors because they are too flat and vivid (non-metallic): Grabber Blue, Grabber Green, Grabber Yellow (or Orange, don’t remember but it’s like a school bus).

I don’t really care much about gas mileage because I drive so little nowadays as it’s 5.5 miles to work. I could drive a Lamborghini and the gas hit wouldn’t be much.

As much as the 305 hp in the V6 felt really good, I feel I should get 420 hp.

I really want to keep my Buick for the winter, but really need it for part of the down payment. I hate the idea of driving the Mustang in salt but have no choice.

I’m going to install my electronic rust killer, but have to find the right dielectric pads for it as they have glue on the sides and inevitably got torn when removed from my Saab some time back.

I’m seeing Steve Vai in concert in 5 weeks and that’s all I’ve got scheduled. I’m not buying any more tickets, software or whatever no matter how good the deal or the appeal. I’ve already encountered some recent temptations.