S197 3V 2005-2009 Buyer's Guide?

[Motonoia]

Hey everyone, I am in the market for a pre-facelift S197 and I am curious if there is a buyer's guide from the perspective of someone who is evaluating the car as a track/HPDE car. Is there anything in particular to inspect for or test on top of standard due diligence when making a purchase?

For example, I have read a few things about the cylinder head design change with the earlier years having a two piece spark plug that was prone to breaking/cracking versus the one piece design that started somewhere in the 2008 model year? Is that reason enough to pursue an '08-'09 model over a '05-'07 model?

Thanks in advance.

 

[blacksheep-1]

All you could ever want to know about an 05 to 09 Mustang Gt.

Project Super Beater

So at the tire tests in Daytona, and along with the recent NASA deal, it was nice to see people having fun with cars. I recently sold my yellow T4 car to a guy who's daughter wants to go racing. It should be perfect for her, not much power, and easily maintainable. I really liked that car...

trackmustangsonline.com

 

[Motonoia]

All you could ever want to know about an 05 to 08 Mustang Gt.

Project Super Beater

So at the tire tests in Daytona, and along with the recent NASA deal, it was nice to see people having fun with cars. I recently sold my yellow T4 car to a guy who's daughter wants to go racing. It should be perfect for her, not much power, and easily maintainable. I really liked that car...

trackmustangsonline.com

I see you ran into the spark plug issue that I read about. Having gone through that experience… Is it worth avoiding the 2-piece spark plugs altogether?

Also, did you replace the plugs with OEM 2-piece plugs or switch to an aftermarket 1-piece plug?

 

[blacksheep-1]

I see you ran into the spark plug issue that I read about. Having gone through that experience… Is it worth avoiding the 2-piece spark plugs altogether?

Also, did you replace the plugs with OEM 2-piece plugs or switch to an aftermarket 1-piece plug?

Oh gawd no, I threw those POS as far as I could. The "good" Motorcrafts are 1 piece
There's also a cooling system upgrade at the very end.