Hey guys, I'm new to the forums and I don't even own a mustang. I own a Subaru WRX but I'm looking to purchase a ~93 notchback in the near future for a huge build. I've been searching around and it seems that you guys don't have any stickied common questions threads so I started a new thread (sorry in advance if I missed something easy to find). What are the weak areas associated with mustangs? what are the first things to go? Anything to check for (out of the ordinary) when making a purchase? Thanks for any help, Matt
I had an 03 WRX.. it was my DD and i loveeed it.. i plan on getting another one for a DD.. just dont sell it whatever you do!!! These fox body stangs sure are fun tho!!!!!
Ask for when the heater core was last replaced. Those are one mother F'r to do imo and they're bad to blow out. Other than that, drive the car, check the maintenence records or at least the one on the windshield to how many miles is on it, etc. The factory tranny is by far the weak link. The bottom end if cared for can hold the same amount of power as a stock block.
Might want to have a look at torque boxes, if you find one thats seen extra curricular duty. They might be torn up if not reenforced right. And pull up the trunk carpet, you should find no holes drilled in the metal floor. If'n you do, coulda been spraying, maybe correctly, maybe not. All the standard beat the crap out of it, then sell, stuff. Tranny, yeah, if it doesn't have a Tremec, and you like to tear up gears, you'll need one! You're gonna have a ball
The door hindges like to go bad which will make the door sag, it is very easy to look for if you know what youre looking at. Look for rust obviously.
jrichker posted this in another thread....very good info "Welcome to Stangnet... Not all of us know how to fix everything, but some of us know how to fix some things with excellence! If you want to do the fix up & power up thing, make sure that you have some other form of reliable daily driver. That way the stang can sit while your wallet and hands take a rest from the last project that didn't quite get finished on that 3 day weekend. Things always cost more and take longer the first time you do them. Having some other working vehicle makes life easier since it isn't the big crush to get it running for the Monday morning drive to work or class. Plan on spending some money on tools it you don't already have them. The stang has both metric and american fasteners, so you really need two sets of wrenches. A timing light, digital voltmeter, vacuum gauge, compression tester, fuel pressure test gauge and fuel line coupler tools are some of the test & tuning tools you'll need. Visit the pawn shops and sometimes you can find a deal on tools & test equipment if you stick to well known name brands. A sheltered work area is almost a must, someplace that you can leave the car in pieces without upsetting anyone. Some guys here have changed a transmission in the parking lot of their apartment in a rainstorm, but they will tell you it wasn't fun. Depending on where you live, a warm dry garage is a nice place to do the winter projects that stangs tend to become. EFI (Electronic Fuel Injection) Computer - every stang after 85 has or had one: don't let it intimidate you. The computer based EFI systems are not hard to fix and most of the time they tell you what's wrong with the engine. Here's a book that will get you started with how the Ford electronic engine control or "computer" works. Ford Fuel Injection & Electronic Engine Control 1988-1993 by James Probst :ISBN 0-8376-0301-3. It's about $20 from Borders.com see http://www.amazon.com/ . Select boo...ore you get started.[SIZE="7"][B]"[/B][/SIZE]
well thanks captain obvious that was big help for all of us....if the door sags...replace the bushings
Thanks for the info guys. That's exactly what I was looking for, a list of the first things to go and harder things to fix. I know all about the daily driver mod to ensure less stress when starting a project. My 06 WRX is fast and I hope to run 11's this summer but it's still very reliable. I also work in Manhattan so a DD is not THAT important. I want the mustang to be a complete custom build. This will be a purely track car (but I still want to take it 7-11 to turn some heads ) so many of the problems will be addressed when the engine and tranny are built. Just reading through a few threads a day makes me want one even more.
The Tech Section Will Most Likely Give you all Your Answers.. Also Try the Search Option It Works Rather Well And Will Assist you with all Your Needs... Welcome to Stang-Net And Good Luck With Your Huge Build!
Ryan is a big bag of know it all 15 year old jack ass, just ignore him. There are a lot of other high schoolers here who demonstrate on a daily basis that they know next to nothing about mustangs or cars in general, so ignore them too. That should be part of the stangnet faqs.
