The time has come for me to let the Marauder go. I love the car, and in a perfect world I'd hang onto it, but the gas costs aren't friendly with my daily commute so I'm downsizing.

-1 of only 417 Silver Birch Marauders made in 2003, out of about 8000 Marauders total that year. I've never actually seen another silver '03. The color was slightly more common in '04 but there were still only about 1500 silver cars total out of about 11,000 Marauders produced. Most were black.

-No matter the color it's got some attitude. Blacked out grille, blacked out headlamp reflectors, unique front air dam and rear valence, and 18" polished aluminum wheels. 235/45-ZR18 in front and 245/55 ZR-18 rear for a slight rake.

-4.6 liter 32-valve DOHC InTech V8. Same engine as used in the Mustang Mach 1, but with a slightly less aggressive cam profile. 302 HP, 318 lb-ft torque. The car is heavy (curb weight ~4100) but that's still good for 6.5 seconds 0-60. Won't win any slaloms, but it handles reasonably well and is definitely fun to drive for a big car.

-Leather interior, power everything, 6 CD changer with factory amp and (small) sub, and overall the car is in very good shape for its 119,200 miles.

-New plugs, replaced #1 coil, transmission flush, new front tires in the past year. Rear tires still >50% tread. Have most service records, though I change my own oil so you'll have to take me at my word for those intervals.

The downsides--
-Fuel economy admittedly isn't great. Factory rated 17 city/24 highway. Realistically I get about 14-15 city and 21-22 highway.
-Radio does not get AM or FM reception. In-dash CD, trunk mount changer, and tape deck (LOL) all work great. I usually listen to CDs or to my ipod through a tape adapter.
-Heated seats work poorly. This may be a fuse or relay issue, which I plan to investigate this weekend.
-HVAC functions all come through the same set of vents. This is usually due to failing seals in the EATC module, from what I have read. (inexpensive fix)

Looking for $7000. Pics to follow.

[Edited on November 17, 2011 at 8:51 PM. Reason : .]

11/17/2011 8:50:37 PM

I don't have any recent pictures--the situation will be remedied this weekend when I actually have light. Some older photos of the car:





[Edited on November 17, 2011 at 10:20 PM. Reason : stupid non-html]

11/17/2011 10:18:04 PM

car still for sale?

5/19/2013 8:38:55 AM

lol.

5/20/2013 4:38:05 AM

If you've got a time machine that will take you back to November 2011 and are willing to give me more than the $7700 I got for it at the time, then yes.

Otherwise not so much. Maybe you can find the current owner and ask them.

5/30/2013 11:14:49 AM

Quote :

"-HVAC functions all come through the same set of vents."

1 or 2 ton unit?

6/7/2013 1:34:44 PM

Touche, sir.

6/9/2013 1:27:39 AM

clearly this thing has been rode hard and put up muddy. protip: never buy a car from an owner down on his luck who also espouses the virtue of the car's performance. DUH. and does his own maintenance...

or at least check the compression of the engine. like find a mechanic that will actually write down the numbers he gets from the vaccuum thingy.

6/9/2013 6:23:51 PM

^I'd be irritated if I were still trying to sell the car. Considering it's been gone for OVER A YEAR, troll away.

Though I'm still not sure where "down on his luck" comes from.

6/10/2013 4:43:42 PM