Ford Mustang Archives - Sopwith Motorsports

Birth of the Fox Mustang

. They won’t get any cheaper than they are right now. Ford’s famous Fox Mustangs, built from 1979 through 1993, are moving up from the bottom of their value curve. The Fox Mustangs derived their nickname from the 1978 Ford Fairmont, which had been internally designated as the “Fox Project” within Ford’s management and design teams. Since the Mustang borrowed the Fairmont’s platform, the “Fox” name was naturally adopted for the 79-93 Mustangs within Ford and eventually by the public as well. Ford president Lee Iacocca had overseen the design of the original Mustang in 1964 as well as its Read More

Cox Gets Sneak Preview of Spectacular Mustang Collection

. “The Kenny and Marilyn Newcombe Mustang Collection is one of the finest collections of Fox body Ford Mustangs I’ve ever seen,” Mecum co-host Stephen Cox said after reviewing the cars last week in Atlanta. “Leave it to the Mecum crew to consign a historic collection of this importance. They’ve found something pretty special.” Ford manufactured what is now called the “Fox body” Mustang from 1979 through 1993, making it the longest running generation of Mustang to ever grace the roads. The Euro styling appealed to early 1980’s car buyers, and the powerful 235 horsepower 5 liter engine appealed to Read More

Rebuilding My Totally-Not-Collectible Mustang, Part VII

. The Stephen Cox Blog is presented by National Parts Depot Holy cow. I may have to give this series a new title. For thirty years no one cared about the early Fox body Mustangs. Then I took my 1980 Fox in for rust-proofing last week and the entire staff quit working and walked out to the parking lot to see it. Times certainly are changing. The early Fox body Mustangs are experiencing an unprecedented resurgence in popularity and price. All those 1981 Cobra owners who had their sanity questioned for decades are starting to look pretty smart. I bought Read More

Rebuilding My Totally-Not-Collectible Mustang, Part 6

The Stephen Cox Blog is presented by “Porsche Legend: The Penske L&M Porsche That Made Racing History” You know, if Fox body Mustangs keep soaring in value I may have to rename this series of articles. And that would be a good thing. My 1980 base model Mustang was originally equipped with a 2.3 liter, four cylinder engine, manual four-speed transmission, 13-inch wheels and a 7.5-inch rear end with a 2:73 open differential. Not exactly a performance monster, but in its defense, the car has traveled over a quarter of a million miles with nary a complaint and has been Read More

Rebuilding My Totally-Not-Collectible Mustang, Part 5

. The Stephen Cox Blog is presented by “Porsche Legend: The Penske L&M Porsche That Made Racing History” The first performance tests for my 1980 Ford Mustang “restomod” are complete and the early signs are very positive. Along with the 1974 and 1981 models, the 1980 Mustang is arguably the least desirable of any Ford pony car ever built and is certainly not worth the money and effort for a restoration. But the car has tremendous sentimental value for my family. I bought the car in early 1982 as the second owner. My wife and I dated in this car Read More

COLLECTOR CARS: Rebuilding My Totally-Not-Collectible Mustang, Part 4

Stephen Cox Blog is Presented by Sopwith Motorsports Television Productions The steering system on a base model 1980 Ford Mustang is not exactly track ready. Light and numb, it offers little road feel and an overly wide lock-to-lock ratio. Increasing the size and width of the original 13-inch tires actually makes the steering worse, not better. Honestly, driving this combination just isn’t much fun. The installation of a 400 horsepower Windsor small block, 15-inch Anson Slot wheels and a new Dynomax Super Turbo dual exhaust tempts the driver to push the car beyond the reasonable safety limits of its original Read More

COLLECTOR CARS: Rebuilding My Totally-Not-Collectible Mustang, Part III

. Stephen Cox Blog is Presented by McGunegill Engine Performance Ford Motor Company built 128,893 Mustang coupes during the 1980 model year, making my Medium Blue Glow four cylinder example anything but rare. I bought the car when I was seventeen and it was my primary transportation for a decade. It now has nearly a quarter of a million miles on the odometer. Since the car has little value, I figure there’s no point in selling it. I might as well rebuild the car into what Ford would and should have created had it not been for the interference of Read More

The Birth of the Fox Mustang

Stephen Cox Blog Presented by McGunegill Engine Performance They won’t get any cheaper than they are right now. Ford’s famous Fox Mustangs, built from 1979 through 1993, are now at the bottom of their value curve. The Fox Mustangs derived their nickname from the 1978 Ford Fairmont, which had been internally designated as the “Fox Project” within Ford’s management and design teams. Since the Mustang borrowed the Fairmont’s platform, the “Fox” name was naturally adopted for the 79-93 Mustangs within Ford and eventually by the public as well. Ford president Lee Iacocca had overseen the design of the original Mustang Read More

RACING’S GREATEST UPSETS: Trans Am’s 1966 Pan-American Endurance Race (Part 1 of 3)

October 5, 2016

Stephen Cox Blog Presented by McGunegill Engine Performance

On a hot summer afternoon in late August 1966, the telephone on John McComb’s desk rang.

On the other end was automotive design engineer Chuck Cantwell of Carroll Shelby’s legendary racing shop, calling with the surprising news that Shelby had a Mustang Group 2 racecar for sale.

McComb was delighted since his prior inquiries at Shelby had been met only by rejection. He had raced MGB sportscars for years but his first taste of Ford V-8 power came while driving Peter Talbert’s notchback Group 2 Mustang earlier that summer in the Trans-Am event at St. Louis. McComb and Talbert were leading the race until an exhaust pipe came loose, forcing them to settle for third place.

But McComb was already hooked. The car was more powerful than anything he’d ever driven. He wanted one of those Mustangs.

1974 DISCO ERA FACE OFF: Fiat X 1/9 vs Ford Mustang II

June 2, 2016

The Stephen Cox Blog is Presented by McGunegill Engine Performance

We don't always get what we want. Many 1974 sports car buyers still wanted a Mustang Boss 429 or a Hemi Cuda. What they got instead was a choice between one government mandated, smog controlled, regulation-laden nightmare or another equally pitiful bureaucratmobile.

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