[sixpackrt]

Hi, I just joined the forum yesterday because I'm looking for some info on the 05 GTOs. Of late, I have been involved in the debacle that is ordering an 05 Mustang GT. My salesman says he's pushing for me but I sort of don't care anymore because I've been looking more now at an 05 GTO, in fact I'm kind of hoping the Stang doesn't come in.

I shrugged the GTO off at first but now that I've had a peek at the interior and have seen the sport appearance package, I'm nearly sold. But there are a few questions I need to ask and I was hoping someone here could help.

How much do the red interior package and the sport appearance package cost respectively?

Also, I plan on getting a torrid red in automatic with the aforementioned packages; will I need to go in in advance and order this or would dealerships likely have this in stock?

If I should order to make sure I get this, how long does the order process take? I read one post somewhere on this forum where someone was saying that his ordering of a GTO was "frustrating". Are there problems getting one of these?

When are the 06s coming out? If I get this 05 it will probably be in late July. Would I be smarter to wait for the new ones?

Any help on any of this would be great. I plan on going to check one out and maybe test drive one this weekend.

 

[bemeyer]

Welcome!

I'll do my best to answer, or at least attempt to answer your questions.

The SAP for the most part is an add-on package you'd ask for when buying or ordering your car. If it's a car on the lot the package can be installed at the dealer. I beleive they're ~$800 to $1000.

The red interior is standard with your color of interest, the torrid red. I think black leather could be substituted on order. No cost with either I believe.

Torrid autos, or any autos, shouldn't be hard to find using the car locater on pontiac.com. This combination were the last of the 2004's at a nearby dealer.

I believe there are no more 2005 orders, not sure if 2006's have started. Think they'll be coming ~september.

 

[sixpackrt]

Thanks

But do I need to be paranoid (since orders have stopped) that I will still find the car I want at the end of July? I"m not familiar with how much they are stocked.

Thanks again.

 

[bemeyer]

I'm only guessing, but I think you could find a torrid red automatic by July. I really don't know the figures of how many of the 12-14k 2005's have been sold. Six-speed cars will probably be the first to disappear. Geez, July really isn't that far off anymore!

FWIW, the dealer just outside my window has two torrid red goats on the lot now. They've both been there at least a week or two. Not sure what tranny they have. :seeya:

 

[Tiger]

Yeah, I wouldn't expect it to be hard to find a Torrid Red auto with red interior in July.

Black is actually the standard interior color for all exterior colors except Cosmos Purple, where Deep Purple Leather was the only interior choice. Red is a no-cost option for Torrid red. From what I've seen, red interiors are a bit harder to find, but with a bit of searching and luck, you'll find them

 

[sixpackrt]

Okay, Thanks

I'm going to try to save up enough in time. I'm going to the dealership this weekend and I'll see what they can do for me.

 

[Tiger]

Here's hoping you don't get screwed over like I did...dang dealers...pushed me into the RX-8, nice car, but I gotta have my V8...luckily I didn't get it either. Just biding my time for a Brazen Orange '06 now....

 

[Big Red]

Welcome! I am also a new member to GTO forum. I just pulled the trigger on a 05 Goat in Torrid Red with a partial sport apperence pkg ( no grill inserts and stock spoiler). I went with the manual (a hot comodity), autos seem to be available in abundance, at least right now. Where do you live ? Have you searched dealer inventory in your region ? I Think everyone is waiting for July, August and Sept hoping dealers and GM will be trying to unload these beasts, that means choice could be limited. If you can find the one you want and its a fair deal, Do it ! I too was Jone'sing over the 05 Stang but Beleive me it just can't compare to a real man's Muscle car, not a pimply teenager, cheap interior car that the Mustang

 

[Tiger]

lol Big Red...I'm of the younger variety, only 21, and can't stand the new Mustang. You're right, the interior on those things just suck...really bad. I was at the Ford dealer one day getting parts for my truck and wanted to check them out to see if they were worth all the fuss...and no, they aren't....they are crap if you ask me. Just a watered down version of what a proper sports car should be to be force fed to the masses...well the masses can keep it.

 

[sixpackrt]

Well, I live in the Chicagoland area so traveling further towards or away from the city would not be a problem but here's my dilemma: I was planning on getting the 'Stang which was 25k. I was going to put 5k down on it and finance 20k with a co-signer (I'm 20 and this is the first car I'll be making payments on). This was all taken care of and dandy with the Ford place but now I'm not getting a car. ONE THAT I ORDERED! But I thought I had it in the bag so I got lazy on saving (beer, eating out etc.) after I had the 5k and now I'm looking at the GTO which is undeniably nicer but just a tad more expensive. I want this car but if I only put 5 or 6 down it'll be too big of a payment. I want the complete sports appearance too so I think I should have about 10k down which should take me just under or over two months.

So, I planned to do this and once again thought I had the GTO in the bag before I came here and learned that production had stopped. Now I'm just paranoid about getting the red car w/ red interior in time. Racing against the clock... :willy:

Honestly, the basic body of the 04 GTOs are not enough to sell me on the car though the performance is. But when I saw the 05s with the sport appearance... now I think they're sharp as hell and I want one! My dad doesn't mind the jump in price because he's a Pontiac man and he would just assume me having a GTO instead. (He's got two Bonnevilles one of which I am the current driver)

But that's my whole dilemma.

Oh and actually the interior of the Stang is what sold me on it! The old school 70's speedometer font is irresistible to a 20 year old kid who grew up loving movies like Vanishing Point and Bullit.

But I have nothing on Mustang bashing. I just hope I can get a damn GTO so I can join you.

 

[Tom]

I have the solution to your problems. it is a very simple solution.

Do not put anything down, put your 5k in the bank. lease or smartbuy the car. your payments will be lower, the value after 3 years will be guaranteed, and the interest rate right now is very low.

many will say that leasing a car means no equity. to that I say BS because by leasing the car you should be able to put the difference in payment away.

At the end of the lease if you have not smacked up the car, and if the car is not stolen you have the option of either buying the rest of the car, or turning it in. If it is smacked up and repaired, are you really going to want it?

How many people want a three year old muscle car that was driven hard?

The reality is that at 20 in a copbait red car, 400 hp is more than you could probably handle so putting mods on the car should not be an issue. insurance is probably going to strangle you as well.

Good luck with whatever decision you make.

 

[sixpackrt]

Do they do co-signers on leases? I really don't understand the concept behind leasing though I've heard my father shun it in the past. He would do it if possible but I would have to approach him with the right pitch.

As I understand, leasing is like renting with the option to buy. If I get this GTO I plan on driving it until the wheels fall off. I may buy another car down the road but I still want this sitting under a tarp in the garage when I have kids. But how does it work down the road when I want to buy the car? How much will it be then? I just kind of need the concept explained to me. Any help would be great.

And yes, I do realize that this is a VERY fast car. If you actually told me to work on a car I would be lost but I am well aware of the capabilities of a car with 300hp, 400hp and so on. I'm really not the hot rodding kind but I love the culture behind these kinds of performance cars and have always dreamed of owning one. I feel I can handle the 05 GTO with relative ease as long as I have an automatic transmission; with manual, my inexperience would certainly lead to me wrecking the car in some way. The most I plan to do is get it up 120 on a farm road here or there but really nothing more.

 

[Tom]

do a search on "smartbuy" and on "smartlease" that will probably take you to a gm site that explains it. driving till the wheels fall off is said so many times, and maybe a half of one percent actually do it. ive had my firebird 28 years, hardly drive it, and am selling it. while i wont give it away, i will take the first reasonable offer just because...

read up on a smartbuy and smartlease which are gm terms for a balloon payment and a lease, check my post a few days back where i crunched numbers comparing a smartbuy to an outright buy and as you have questions ask them and we will try to answer them as best as we can.

 

[StocktonRaider]

Buy A Moped!!!!

 

[sixpackrt]

Okay, I've checked up on what SmartLease is and I think that your suggestion is good; it would be a way to get around the payments. But I have one final question. I, of course, have no established credit. I plan to build from that when I buy the car. But I am assuming that without credit I will not be approved for the lease; can there be a co-signer (ie my parents) for it or does this not apply to a lease? I saw nothing about this on any of the web sites about SmartLease and this will be the first thing my dad will want to know.

Thanks again to everyone. This has been quite a bit of much-needed help.

 

[Big Red]

I feel you about the payments. Maybe your Pops can float you a personal loan that you can paid off slowly. Just a thought. It is a tough decsion when you really have your heart set on a specific color combo, but you could start by getting your Red/Red stock and adding the appearance pkg. later. Don't stress your only Twenty I can hardly remember that far back ( just kidding, I'm 45 ). Good Luck and let us know how this plays out. :cheers

 

[sixpackrt]

Well, the appearance package can probably fall into the incentives and if not $1000 more won't break me. I'm going to get what I want if I'm gonna buy this. The only thing I would really compromise is the red interior if that turns out to be hard to come by. I just know that those black seats will be searing in the summer and the red truly is sharp. I'm just still trying to find out if I can get a lease with co-signer instead of financing with a co-signer. Oh well, I'm gonna pitch it to dad and then we're going to the dealership today probably.

 

[sixpackrt]

Got It!

Thanks to everyone who helped. The place I went to had three GTOs, all automatic. The one right in the middle was torrid red with the red interior. I wasn't able to get the sports appearance which the guy told me was $3000, does that sound right? I ended up going with smart buy.

Well, I love it. Thanks again for the help.

 

[Subdriver]

I can't help you on the decision between the cars, but can offer some general advice for a first time car buyer.

- Consider insurance. Call your insurance company and ask for rates on the two cars. My guess is that the Mustang will be higher and the demographic for the GT is younger, meaning more accidents and a higher overall insurance rate. The Vette insurance is actually very reasonable because the demographic for a typical Vette owner is... uh... me. Mid-40s, family and fairly well off. Not your typical street racer.
- Don't be afraid to travel for a deal. I fly to another state to buy my Vette and drove it home saving thousands.
- Know the price of the car before you negotiate (tons of websites available can tell you this). Understand what dealer cost is and what dealer holdback is. On my last two purchases, I paid under invoice on each (03 F350 and 03 Chevy Trailblazer). Harder to negotiate on the Z06 as when I bought it supply lagged demand by a lot (Aug 01).
- Leasing may be a good option if you don't plan to drive much (say under 15k per year), don't plan on modding the car, and plan to get another car in about 3 years. I usually hang on to my vehicles for years so I have always bought, but my wife only kept her last truck 3 years. If we end up getting her another one within about 3 years, I'll lease her vehicle next time.

Whichever way you go, enjoy the ride and be safe out there. I know I'd probably be dead right now if I had a car like that at your age.

 

[Palmer]

:agree

AWESOME, AWESOME, AWESOME advice!!