first off 94-98 are the same bodystyle...... and the 94-95's have headgasket problems, well the stock headgasket anyway , so check that out if you get a 94-95........

i would get a 5 speed , most manual trannies have far less problems than automatics (in any brand car) if shifted properly......


besides that, it depends how bad you beat the car, a v6 stang driven normally should hold up well, but if you try to modify it and or race it beat on it, expect some stuff to give up ..........