Today I placed a deposit to order the car……FINALLY! Likely to show up August 4 (9 weeks) give or take a week.

I added the option of getting a NOAH style car cover for $321 as part of the loan. After a lot of research, this style of cover is in the top 20% of all serious covers for cars.

I already had all the codes for all the other options I wanted, so things went easier for the manager to confirm my “Internet” pricing. Altogether after the usual Destination/Prep charges and Administrative fees, the final price is quite nice at $4710 off MSRP. They did at least $500 better than the next competing dealer.

I asked about the possibility of getting sticky summer tires with the wheels I ordered, but as I expected, those are only for manual transmission cars with the Brembo brake track package. The typical tire is an all-season Pirelli P Zero. Good enough tire, and when they eventually wear out, I can get summer tires. Summer would work for me as I don’t expect to be driving in the winter.

I sent an email to the Gibbs metal protectant manufacturer to see how much I’d have to buy to spray the bottom of the car. I covered this topic in an earlier post about protecting metal on cars. I figure at least six 12 oz spray cans at $72 total.

I’ve listened to a lot of YouTube vids to see if there are any mufflers out there I’d like better than the stock ones. All the third party sets run about $500-630. Kind of rich for me. But the one I liked about the best I can get on the Net for $310 shipped free, and it’s a Ford Racing part that won’t invalidate any warranties. It’s the same muffler used on the Shelby, but with a single outlet per muffler instead of dual like the Shelby, so it’s compatible with the GT rear fascia without any modifications.

I only like mufflers that sound throaty and deep. I don’t like the snapping, barking Rice Crispies kind of sound, which covers most of the aftermarket mufflers. They also tend to be louder than what I want. I found one like the Shelby that was quite nice, but it’s probably a bit louder and again, about $600.

I wanted to incorporate the Shelby mufflers into the loan, but my dealer is not a Ford Racing dealer, and if I had them get it, it would be an extra $40. So I’m ordering it myself out of pocket. When it comes in I can decide whether to install it myself or have them do it. I looked at a very well done YouTube vid showing the right way to do it without problems. I could probably do it in 60-90 minutes. The dealer wasn’t sure exactly how long it would take them, but said they could cover it for sure for $200, and if it only turned out to be $100 worth of time, they’d charge me that. I’ll make up my mind on that later.

I’m happy with the whole experience at this dealer thus far. This is the same dealer with whom I’ve spent a lot of time. I’m containing my excitement until I’m actually driving off the lot and driving it home. Then at that time my brain will likely pop like a balloon at 175,000 feet altitude!