Lot of great feedback here, very much appreciated. Glad to see there’s not any knock out face punches, but certainly some things to consider.
@Syonyk - thank you for your detailed responses. I have, admittedly, not spent a ton of time digging into good handling cars, mostly just straight line power. My cousin did have a Miata when we were younger and it was a fun car. I do think I’d want something with a back seat, in the event we have a child in the next year or two, riding by myself or just the wife would probably be limited. My reluctance on that route is, again, due to my location. If I had any twisties, or even relatively winding roads, it would be way more of an opportunity. Instead, I’m in a town of about 15,000 people with not so much as a curvy on-ramp lol. The nearest city is about 60 miles away, which would just have your standard highway/interstates turns, which could be fun, but also a drive. One potential “upside” to this, is because the car would be less HP, cheaper, more reliable, and better fuel mileage, it could also potentially replace our aging 1999 Toyota Camry as a DD for either myself or my wife. I do have a 100 commute once or twice a week (I get reimbursed per mile and drive time) and the other 3 days I drive to a construction site, which is gravel for the last half mile. I have looked into other options into replacing the Camry with a more fun car, that would also be a DD, such as a Golf R, Civic Type R, or similar.
Tires are definitely a cost. I actually just priced out the tires for the mustang yesterday, and it looks like they’d run about $1000 for all 4, and they would last around 8k-10k miles. I would plan to drive it around 6k-8k a year.
In the past, I have modified a ton of vehicles. Jeeps, 4Runner, Motorcycles, Mustang I had in college, etc. I could do a lot of the work myself, however right now I’m working 6 days a week and am looking for something more complete that I can just enjoy. The Cobra’s I have been looking at mostly have pulley swaps, basic bolt ons, and put down around 450-500hp at the wheels.
As to the other comments. I have had many motorcycles over the years: 2006 R6, 2002 R6, 2006 R1, 2006 V-Rod (Screaming Eagle), Yamaha Super Tenere, Ducati X-Diavel. I am definitely familiar with the different types of speed, at least according to bikes. Honestly, my V-Rod felt like a turd compared to the R1. Many people spoke highly of the v-rod, but it definitely lacked that face melting speed of the R1 or Diavel.
The modifications of many of our “toys” have been with adventures/trips in mind. Our Yamaha Super Tenere we modified to no end in preparation of a 3,500 mile motorcycle trip through Baja Mexico we did over a 3.5 week period. We camped on the beach every other night and had full camping gear with us for the trip. We did a lot of very challenging trails (and went down a lot) but built it with that purpose in mind (lights bar, skid plat, crash bars, better seats, windshield, aluminum paniers, etc.)
On our 2017 4Runner, it was a very similar situation. We built it up, along with a 1966 M416 military trailer for a 2 month, 8000 mile camping trip we did over the continental divide, parts of Canada, and the northern US. We lifted the 4 runner, light bar, bumper, sliders, ARB 50 qt fridge w/ deep cell battery, awning, etc.
This is some of my history with the vehicles. We sold the Tenere as our aging dog was no longer fit for boarding so we could build up the 4Runner on a trip to bring him with. Unfortunately he passed away before that trip (and we did get another dog before the trip, which was still a blast)
Likely my next sabbatical will not be for a couple years as I’m in a long term project right now. We do expect the next sabbatical to likely be a 6 month North American camping trip. By then will likely trade the 4Runner for a truck and get a small airstream. We want something more livable, that will at least have a bathroom, kitchen, and AC and heat. There are too many variables in that option to start planning for now. This project could easily extend into more jobs, 4-5 years down the road which would basically bring me into full FIRE. I would hate to get 4 years from now and be like “damn, I could have spent my weekends enjoying that dream car, but instead I was constantly too busy worrying about the future.”
Decision decision..