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For $4,000, This Custom 1997 Ford Probe Could Let You Reach Your Inner ‘Vette Lover
For $4,000, This Custom 1997 Ford Probe Could Let You Reach Your Inner ‘Vette Lover-October 2024
2024-02-19 EST 22:09:59

A mule is the sterile offspring of a horse and donkey, and is a testament to making a marriage work. Likewise, today’s custom Probevette seems the child of many parents. Let’s see if its price means the seller is shooting blanks.

You know, you expect to get fleeced when going to Las Vegas, that’s just how the casinos there work: they’re huge, gaudy vacuums for your money. What you may not expect is to have the same thing happen when going to Sin City simply to buy a car.

That however was the consensus regarding yesterday’s and its twelve-grand price tag, which earned the well-worn desert warrior a 72% Crack Pipe loss. Oh well, I guess it really will stay in Vegas.

Look, I want to preface today’s candidate with the caution that this is a car that you yourself—yes, even you over there—would never gravitate towards. In fact, if you saw an empty space next to it in a crowded parking lot you’d likely choose the walk from a less convenient spot over the chance someone might mistakenly think you’re coming from it. That’s because it looks like the official car of the Island of Misfit Toys.

That’s not to say that it doesn’t have appeal however, it just requires the right sort of individual to appreciate it.. or more appropriately, them.

This you see, actually exhibits styling cues from about a half-dozen cars in total, and that’s an amazing packaging tour de force. It might just represent an excellent value considering what all you get for your money.

What’s in there? Well, along with the Ford Probe GT you get a Corvette C5 rearend replete with aero aids. In addition to that you get fixed headlights in place of the poppers just like the later model original Acura NSX. The interior’s body color dash and door treatment is reminiscent of pretty much any car from the ‘50s or ‘60s… or maybe a Disney Autopia car, while those doors themselves flip the bird just like those on a Lamborghini Countach. Topping that all off is a paint scheme right out of The Fast & Furious.

It’s a cornucopia of cars!

Underneath all the custom work lies a standard Mazda FWD platform with the 2.5-litre, 164-bhp V6 and a five-speed stick that made those so delightful. The lowered suspension and likely added weight of all the customizations will probably dull the GT’s ultimate performance, but then this is a car that’s about making a scene, not driving to it.

It’s not all a beauty show however as the ad notes that the 137,000 mile car does exhibit some issues. Those include wipers that don’t wipe, gauges that don’t gauge, a horn that’s not so horny, and a front spoiler in need of Dr. Bondo, stat! On the plus side the ad notes that the A/C is both hot and cold.

Considering all those properties, and the car’s presentation, it’s now time for you all to weigh in on this custom car’s $4,000 price tag. Knowing that you don’t want it at any price, does that still seem like a deal for someone—say who still has an extensive HotWheels collection—that just might? Or, is this a Probe that’s just not going anywhere?

You decide!

Jackson MS , or go if the ad disappears.

H/T to Mark Howell for the hookup!

Help me out with NPOCP. Click to send a me a fixed-price tip, and remember to include your Kinja handle.

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