Hi All. I have owned many low mile 73's, one with 90 miles I bought from the original owner, Justin Rosen, who owned Rosen Novak Ford in Denver CO. He bought the car for himself (got a real nice discount I'm sure), knowing that there would (supposedly) never be any Ford convertibles for sale, at least not Mustangs, ever again. Based on my experience, I believe this cars' mileage to be correct. The stripes are original to this car. The paint looks to be 100% original. The car was absolutely loaded with options from the factory (the Marti Report would confirm). I have owned and sold probably eight 73s with between 90 and 15,000 miles. Even my 90 mile car had surface rust on many underside and engine components. I bet most looked that way after one year, even if they were stored inside. If you want original, that's what you get! The factory paint jobs were all crap. Paint runs all over the place, no protection from UV light, etc. Most air cleaner set ups had the painted lid. I have certainly seen some chrome lids. The only 1971-1973 351 motor that I know for absolute certainty to come with a chrome lid was the 1972 HO R code motor. I sold all of my low mileage cars for way too cheap. I was happy to make a few grand on any car I got for between $7,000 and $22,000. I agree this car is a little high on the price. It is at least worth $30,000. Maybe up to $38,000 to $40,000. It would probably be worth more as a 4 speed. I sold my 90 mile Bright Red/White/White convertible back in 2000 for $27,500, but it was an H code decor group car with A/C and pretty much no other options. The car shown here has many 1973 ONLY options such as the leather wrapped steering wheel (which appears flawless and is the first thing to wear, supporting the claim of the low mileage), the slotted aluminum wheels, the side strip that is unique in the way it is applied (notice that the hockey stripes continue down onto the front valance, a point that most people miss when they throw the stripes on a 73 but leave the whole front valance painted black or argent), the TU-TONE hood (Yes, that is a 1973 ONLY option, and it included the hood locks, the painted hood patch in black or argent, and the non-functional NASA hood). I would love to have this car if I did not already have so many projects that need to get finished. And back to the originality of the side stripes. If you look very closely at the lower body black paint, you'll notice that the break between the red and black is NOT paint, but a special decal with the pin stripe and a 1/2? inch wide piece of tape beneath it. What keeps this car from being a $50,000 car is that most people know you can build a car that looks like this one, with the same options, and has a bright red shiny coat of paint coated in clear that will shine and last forever (with the new technology in todays' paints), for less money. What makes this car far more valuable than all the other cars out there is the fact that it came from the factory with all these options and that incredibly beautiful all original interior and dash!! Try sourcing NOS door panels, NOS interior quarter panels, NOS dash bezels, NOS power window bezels, NOS emergency brake handle, an NOS dash pad, an NOS radio, NOS carpeting, NOS seat belts, and you will soon appreciate what really make this car valuable!
