Questions for an Interested Marauder Shopper

[TsarBottomley]

Fellas,

I have been interested in purchasing a Marauder since late '02 when I first saw them. They were a bit out of my price range as far as sticker prices and gas consumption until now. I was hoping someone could answer some questions to help me along the way.

1. What is the difference between 300A, B? Is any of these preferable? Was the decontent bad? Can any 300bs be found with content?
2. Would you recommend an '03 or '04 and why?
3. Having a $8000 supercharger is really not an option for me, plus I don't require 400+ horses. I would like to get up around the 350 range though, what would be the safest and most effective way to increase my HP moderately?
4. This is a great site, I have been a reader if not a poster for about a year, and really look forward to getting a Marauder soon.
Any other advice or tips you could offer me are appreciated.
5. Also, a few years down the road could parts, etc, become very hard to find? Should that be a concern?
Essentially I am asking what the best buy would be should I have several directions to go with model year, etc, and how to add power and some tire burning capability without mortgaging my future. Sorry for being a n00b. !!

TsarBottomley
Columbus, Ohio

[BruteForce]

Fellas,
1. What is the difference between 300A, B? Is any of these preferable? Was the decontent bad? Can any 300bs be found with content?


A came before B. Both are good. Decontented may be bad or could be good depending on what you want. Yes there are hybrid AB. You can also mod one to be a hybrid.



2. Would you recommend an '03 or '04 and why?


2003 300A is the best. In black. Ask anybody.



3. Having a $8000 supercharger is really not an option for me, plus I don't require 400+ horses. I would like to get up around the 350 range though, what would be the safest and most effective way to increase my HP moderately?


Assuming you mean 350 to the wheels (not crank) then a bunch of bolt-ons and NOS. Cost? About $8K



4. This is a great site, I have been a reader if not a poster for about a year, and really look forward to getting a Marauder soon.
Any other advice or tips you could offer me are appreciated.


Buy one before they are all gone.



5. Also, a few years down the road could parts, etc, become very hard to find? Should that be a concern?
Essentially I am asking what the best buy would be should I have several directions to go with model year, etc, and how to add power and some tire burning capability without mortgaging my future. Sorry for being a n00b. !!


This is a problem with any car. So far we haven't run into any problems. Ten years from now? Who knows?

[RoyLPita]

Welcome aboard. Enjoy the site.

[blackf0rk]

3. Having a $8000 supercharger is really not an option for me, plus I don't require 400+ horses. I would like to get up around the 350 range though, what would be the safest and most effective way to increase my HP moderately?


Assuming you mean 350 to the wheels (not crank) then a bunch of bolt-ons and NOS. Cost? About $8K


Hahaha, so true! You gotta pay to play...

[Bluerauder]

1. What is the difference between 300A, B? Is any of these preferable? Was the decontent bad? Can any 300bs be found with content?
Welcome :welcome1: to the MM.Net, Tsar... and congrats on your first post.

The 300A came with a full sized spare, gas door release, map pockets in the front seats, and a separate small dash clock in the center. The 300B added traction control and elimated some of the above features and went with a donut spare and deleted the gas door release, map pockets and little clock. The only one of these that I find highly desirable is the full sized spare. I really don't need T/C especially on a performance car. The map pockets are just another place to collect clutter. The little dash clock was redundant. And, the gas door release is nice but not necessary althought it probably does provide a small amount of "deterrence" to gas thieves. Much of this "stuff" is a matter of personal preference ... and I listed mine above. :D

The 2004 MM has all the features/content of the 2003 MM 300B. However, the transmission was "improved" and dual knock sensors were added. Some say that the '04 MM is slightly faster .... I think not and they are very evenly matched. ;)

Both the '03 and the '04 are terrific cars ... grab one if you can ... in the color of your choice. I prefer the Blue MM; but they all look great. There are some dayum fine looking Blacks, Silvers, and DTRs out there. Personally, I would stay away from the orange, green, purple, white/cashmere, and puke yellow models. :rofl:

The MM needs a minimum of 91 Octane gas. It gets some 23-24 mpg on the open highway and about 18-19 mpg around town..... less if you like to play alot. If gas cost is a major concern for you, you may want to think this decision through a little bit. The best part of having a Marauder is driving it .... as much as possible. :D

[magindat]

300A is the best IMHO. It's the car Ford meant to build. It has more little niceties ie: clock, fuel release, full size spare, etc.

350 at the crank is easy. You're starting w/302. Here's a way to get a little better than 350 at the crank: JLT intake (about $150 delivered 10-15 HP) (don't flame me, it's the less expensive one), Mufflers and x-pipe (about $600 installed 10-25 HP), tuner chip of your choice (about $500, all priced about the same 10-40 HP). An optional item is the PHP spacer ($120 5 or so HP) Do them in that order. It'll sound good, pass good, and run efficiently.

Many will say 4.10 gears are needed. True, if you do mostly in-town 'pouncing'. If you are a highway driver (as I) keep the 3.55's since 4.10's will need a drive shaft for highway speeds (we are capable of).

Good luck. Good shopping.

[jdando]

Welcome aboard! Please see my comments below!

jeremy




1. What is the difference between 300A, B? Is any of these preferable? Was the decontent bad? Can any 300bs be found with content? Already covered
2. Would you recommend an '03 or '04 and why? In my opinion it is a toss up. There are more 2003 than 2004 so it might be easier to get a 2003. If I could I would get a 2003 300b Dark Pearl Blue. Why, because they are the ones. (Probably sacriligious since I have Black)
3. Having a $8000 supercharger is really not an option for me, plus I don't require 400+ horses. I would like to get up around the 350 range though, what would be the safest and most effective way to increase my HP moderately? It really is a great investment.
4. This is a great site, I have been a reader if not a poster for about a year, and really look forward to getting a Marauder soon.
Any other advice or tips you could offer me are appreciated. Get a nice clean car, pay a little extra for a lower mileage clean car. Use the resources of the board for OASIS, etc.
5. Also, a few years down the road could parts, etc, become very hard to find? Should that be a concern?
Essentially I am asking what the best buy would be should I have several directions to go with model year, etc, and how to add power and some tire burning capability without mortgaging my future. Sorry for being a n00b. !! Who knows what the future holds. But there are lots of Panther platform cars with 200,000 miles on them. Keep up with maintainance and I hope to keep mine for 10 years. Hopefully it will have less than 100,000 on it then:D

TsarBottomley
Columbus, Ohio

[Vortech347]

One of the reasons I was not weary of buying this car like a SHO is that the engine is used in far more cars. Replacing it will be very easy. The cams and intake are mach 1/Marauder specific but how often do they break? (Unless its a SHO) You do have to be careful when buying a "limited production" car.

These are solid cars with solid engines, The transmissions are also tough as nails too. I was more than excited when I finally got my paws on one. I've only seen 2 and I bought the 2nd one. LOL

[gpfarrell]

TsarBottomley
Columbus, Ohio

Columbus? That's about the same latitude as Pittsburgh... which means you get plenty of wet/slippery roads during the 3 seasons not known as "Summer".

For that reason (well, and really to get Blue) I opted for a car with traction control... that would be either an '03 300B or an '04.

I've found it easy to turn off, so having it never bothers me. Likewise, I never worry about my wife getting it sideways in the rain. In fact, I don't worry about getting it sideways either.

I've found the clock in the radio keeps good time so I don't miss the one on the dash.

My 5.0 Mustang has a fuel filler door release and I think its a pain in the butt. I don't mind our BMW's... it works off the car's central locking... but I digress... sorry.

Anyhow, I'd rather not have the fuel filler door release... I think I'll get the button though and use it as a kill switch on the fuel pump... someday.

Full size spare? Got my first flat 2 weeks ago... hit it with fix-a-flat and we were on our way. I'd like a full size, but its no deal-buster... really, none of this stuff was important to me besides finding a blue one.

It sounds like the '04s have a bit more bite off the line do to a looser torque converter and better ECM programming. As noted above though, a good program from pick-a-tuner will really wake up either year.

HP-wise, originally I was going to go for a "chip" (okay, "tune") and I thought I'd go 4.10s... seems like that should be a mid-14 second set-up. I really like the car though and intend to drive it lots and keep it forever. I'll pass on the 4.10s and spend the go-dough on a supercharger. If my budget was tighter though, I'd be very happy with the chip & 4.10s. For now, I'm happy with the chip, it really woke the car up.

I don't think parts will ever really be a problem again. This internet hickey has made it possible to find most anything at 3:00 am and still get next day shipping. Also, the mechanical goodies are pretty well sorted since the Marauder is a parts bin car. Finding nice bucket seats in 15 years might be hard, but I'll worry about that in 2021!

No worries about being a nooBee, we're all nooBees at something! Actually, I think we prefer nooBees to the crusty old know-it-alls... especially when they don't!

Find a nice car with a clean history & fair price. ENJOY!

Greg