So I've come back to the forum after a bit of an absence. There's been some work drama, and some life drama, both of which are ongoing, and I've let myself spend a little too much time getting wrapped up in that drama. So, it's time to come back.
It's also time to come back to bask in my good fortune a bit.
I've just posted the last chapter in my other build thread (search for "Getting In Over My Head"), which ended with me selling the car to someone who truly has the skills needed to bring the car back from the sorry state it was in. This was a bit depressing, as I really enjoyed that car. But the wife was very much about "getting back into the saddle" with a replacement, and we had the money to get something truly decent.
Surfing Facebook Marketplace, I noticed a 1985 GT down in the Cincinnati area that looked pretty good, but that wasn't selling. The listing was by the seller's son, who had actually owned the car for a while before passing it to his dad due to changing life circumstances. The dad said he just wasn't driving the car much, and felt it needed a new home before it sat and rotted in a garage or driveway. One thing led to another, and I made my way to Cincinnati to look at it.
After giving it a good look-over and a test drive, I was convinced, and we agreed on a price. But I had driven down there by myself, and the seller was paranoid about keeping the plates (something about Kentucky tax law). So we drove it together to the Cincinnati airport and parked it in long-term parking, and I drove back to Indy that evening. The next weekend, the wife and I made our way back, drove to Frankfort to pick up temporary plates (which you can only get in Frankfort--why, I don't know), then back up to Cincinnati to pick up the car, then back to Indy. My first ever drive in the car was a few-minute test drive; my second was a 130-mile road trip. Very Roadkill...
...except that the car made it without a hitch. And was amazing. At one point, I needed to make a quick pass in some traffic, hit the gas to speed up, and freaked myself out a little; the front end lurched up and the G's pulled me back in the seat, and this at somewhere in the 60 mph range. It was glorious.
I got approached by a guy while buying gas who told me stories of his old Mustang, and was literally offered a trade while driving on the highway from a guy in a truck. (I don't think he was serious; he offered the contents of his truck, whose bed was overflowing with junk.)
Since the trip, I've had it at our local car show, where it got star billing for being a Fox during the 40th anniversary of the first Fox Mustang.
So, the details:
It's a 1985 GT hatch, manual, with T-tops. The engine is not stock; it's built, and I have a whole binder of receipts I'm still making sense of. The transmission was also rebuilt, though it's whining a little; it clearly has a short-throw shifter. The clutch is a Centerforce; it has very little "slip room" between fully disengaged and fully engaged, so it's been a learning experience. I'm pretty sure the carb is a bit wonky, as it idles at startup at about 2100 rpm, but will immediately try to kick down to below 1000 rpm if you touch the throttle, which usually causes it to stall. When warm, it seems to have a little fishbite, but otherwise runs well. No real issues starting it, whether cold or warm.
I have a box of original parts for some of it, including the original carburetor, air cleaner housing, and rear lower control arms. The interior is immaculate. The only non-stock bit is the radio (which is close to being period-correct; it's a Pioneer cassette single-DIN with the big knobs on each side) and a set of analog gauges positioned where the ashtray used to be. It's got lots of little flaws in the paint, especially in the replaced fender and nose, which look pretty terrible; there's also some rust in a few places, but nothing serious. That front nose is also for a non-GT, so no fog lights (although I have the switch still). The T-tops are in OK condition; the plastic trim is really loose, and the tint is faded and splotchy, but the seals have all been replaced, and it locks in pretty well. The driver door sags a little, but not as bad as my old '89 did. Power locks and power windows all work.
There will likely be more problems found, and these will all need to be fixed. But the basics are there. I'm kinda giddy. This car tickles all the right bits of my brain, better even than the '89 did.
Don't have a whole lot of pics yet; here's what I have:
It's also time to come back to bask in my good fortune a bit.
I've just posted the last chapter in my other build thread (search for "Getting In Over My Head"), which ended with me selling the car to someone who truly has the skills needed to bring the car back from the sorry state it was in. This was a bit depressing, as I really enjoyed that car. But the wife was very much about "getting back into the saddle" with a replacement, and we had the money to get something truly decent.
Surfing Facebook Marketplace, I noticed a 1985 GT down in the Cincinnati area that looked pretty good, but that wasn't selling. The listing was by the seller's son, who had actually owned the car for a while before passing it to his dad due to changing life circumstances. The dad said he just wasn't driving the car much, and felt it needed a new home before it sat and rotted in a garage or driveway. One thing led to another, and I made my way to Cincinnati to look at it.
After giving it a good look-over and a test drive, I was convinced, and we agreed on a price. But I had driven down there by myself, and the seller was paranoid about keeping the plates (something about Kentucky tax law). So we drove it together to the Cincinnati airport and parked it in long-term parking, and I drove back to Indy that evening. The next weekend, the wife and I made our way back, drove to Frankfort to pick up temporary plates (which you can only get in Frankfort--why, I don't know), then back up to Cincinnati to pick up the car, then back to Indy. My first ever drive in the car was a few-minute test drive; my second was a 130-mile road trip. Very Roadkill...
...except that the car made it without a hitch. And was amazing. At one point, I needed to make a quick pass in some traffic, hit the gas to speed up, and freaked myself out a little; the front end lurched up and the G's pulled me back in the seat, and this at somewhere in the 60 mph range. It was glorious.
I got approached by a guy while buying gas who told me stories of his old Mustang, and was literally offered a trade while driving on the highway from a guy in a truck. (I don't think he was serious; he offered the contents of his truck, whose bed was overflowing with junk.)
Since the trip, I've had it at our local car show, where it got star billing for being a Fox during the 40th anniversary of the first Fox Mustang.
So, the details:
It's a 1985 GT hatch, manual, with T-tops. The engine is not stock; it's built, and I have a whole binder of receipts I'm still making sense of. The transmission was also rebuilt, though it's whining a little; it clearly has a short-throw shifter. The clutch is a Centerforce; it has very little "slip room" between fully disengaged and fully engaged, so it's been a learning experience. I'm pretty sure the carb is a bit wonky, as it idles at startup at about 2100 rpm, but will immediately try to kick down to below 1000 rpm if you touch the throttle, which usually causes it to stall. When warm, it seems to have a little fishbite, but otherwise runs well. No real issues starting it, whether cold or warm.
I have a box of original parts for some of it, including the original carburetor, air cleaner housing, and rear lower control arms. The interior is immaculate. The only non-stock bit is the radio (which is close to being period-correct; it's a Pioneer cassette single-DIN with the big knobs on each side) and a set of analog gauges positioned where the ashtray used to be. It's got lots of little flaws in the paint, especially in the replaced fender and nose, which look pretty terrible; there's also some rust in a few places, but nothing serious. That front nose is also for a non-GT, so no fog lights (although I have the switch still). The T-tops are in OK condition; the plastic trim is really loose, and the tint is faded and splotchy, but the seals have all been replaced, and it locks in pretty well. The driver door sags a little, but not as bad as my old '89 did. Power locks and power windows all work.
There will likely be more problems found, and these will all need to be fixed. But the basics are there. I'm kinda giddy. This car tickles all the right bits of my brain, better even than the '89 did.
Don't have a whole lot of pics yet; here's what I have: