A good friend of my son's and I is jealous of my son's Talon and now wants to get out of his Kia and into something reasonably sporty/fast. The kid is not an experienced wrench turner so I obviously told him NOT to buy a DSM lol. He is basically looking for something relatively sporty/fast, probably bolt on mods like exhaust etc. would be as far as he would go or want to buy a car with. Still relatively reliable and easy/cheap to fix.

So obviously I am recommending a 4.6 or 5.0 Mustang but being "Mopar" Jim I have only owned 3 Mustangs a 70, 75, and the only relavent one being a 92 GT in my life am looking to defer to my expert buddies on here as far as:

What should this kid be able to pick up in the $3000 or so range?
What years should he be looking for - what years were best bolt on mod-able, easiest to maintain, or what years should he prefer/avoid?
Anyone have or know of anything for sale right now at a decent/good deal for this kid?

Brief look around CL seems like maybe a mid-late 90s should be obtainable in that price range...

Just looking to help the kid out and get him a good deal and the right car, he's a real decent kid.