Rebuilding My Totally-Not-Collectible Mustang, Part VII

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

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

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

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

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