One day soon, this 1999 Mustang SVT Cobra will be 25 years old and thus qualify for Historical designation license plates in many US states. The fact that 1999 doesn’t seem all that long ago, and that this car hardly looks to have been touched by time, does not change that. Still, picking up this machine, available here on craigslist, might not seem like a vintage purchase, especially given how clean the car is with only 8000 miles having rolled past. Tempting? If you want this Mustang, you can answer the seller’s $28,000 asking price, then head south of Denver to claim your prize. Thanks to Barn Find tipster Mark_K for this one.

In the early 1990s, Ford woke up its capabilities as a tuner company, producing a limited run of SVT (Special Vehicle Team) Mustang Cobras starting in 1993, along with other performance versions of standard model-line offerings, including the SVT Lightning pickup truck. In 1999, the Mustang received Ford’s “New Edge” body styling, featuring straight lines more than the previous 1994-98 series Mustang had, but the notable feature of the 1999 model-year Mustang SVT Cobra was that Ford finally found a way to get rid of the solid-beam rear axle (something they wouldn’t do on regular-production Mustangs for nearly 20 more years, in 2015). The new Independent Rear Suspension used on this and other 1999 SVT Mustangs bolted up in exactly the same place as the solid rear axle had done.

An interesting side note on these 1999 SVT Mustangs involved the engines, which did not put out the advertised horsepower. Production was thus halted in August of 1999 and revisions made by Ford. Notice the sticker, not very legible, under the hood as photographed on this Mustang. That indicates changes in equipment that must be disclosed per emissions regulations. Intake manifolds were replaced along with engine management hardware, as well as changes made to the exhaust, to reach the advertised horsepower figure of 320.

As a relatively low-mileage example, this Cobra SVT is, interestingly, ahead of the value curve. It would have listed at around $27,400 new, and you can probably get it for that or a little bit less now. So why do I say “ahead”? A similar non-SVT Mustang of the era is worth very little nowadays, having reached the bottom of the depreciation graph. On the other hand, this car warrants that kind of attention, because it is spotless in all respects, except for a few paint issues as noted by the seller. This car is so new, one wonders if the tires have been replaced, and if so, it would be only due to age. The originals certainly wouldn’t be used up, unless the car had been driven hard. There are no signs of such behavior. So if you’ve been pining for the car you never bought new in ’99, or should’ve bought used somewhere around 2009, this is your make-up opportunity.