(UPDATE, more pictures!) I was just offered a Fox Body for $1,000. Help me decide if I should take on this burden

Hey Stang Net!! I’ve come across something that I wanted to run past you guys, just to get some outside perspective.

A mechanic friend of mine with a bunch of unfinished projects (10+ cars) swapped his 02 Camaro roller project for even more project cars. One of those cars that came with the swap is a early 90’s LX Hatch with an 8 inch rear and a 351 swap.

The only known problem with the car per the original owner is that the 351 has a spun bearing and is locked up and won’t move. Seems like this car was built for the strip.

My guy who just got the car has no need for it with all the projects he has going on, so he has offered to sell it to me for a grand total of, get this, $1,000.

What do you guys think? Should I take on this burden?? My main thinking going into this is that if I personally can’t get it back up and running, I can flip it for parts and get my money back in the end. What do you think it would cost to rebuild the engine??

I’ll include a couple of pictures. The pictures make it look clean, but we all know pictures and real life tell very different stories:
 

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Car looks to be in pretty good shape. I’d say it’s worth $1000...... but it would be a shame to see one like that parted out. It deserves to live!
 
fruk yeah... as long as the frame rails and floor are good... .. heck even if they weren't I would still jump on it... could easy make money back and them sum in parts if the bones were rotted...
 
^^^^^^^^^^HOLY LILCBRA ^^^^^^^^^^

I have wrote college papers for people with less word count than your signature.....

Hey, whatever works right? :rlaugh:No one has to ask me specifics that way. :D

Oh, and to help you help them with their education, it's "I have written...." or "I wrote...." That way if anyone comes along and wants to be an actual grammar Nazi you'll be better armed. ;)

Edit: You're welcome! :rlaugh:
 
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Is it in your possession yet?? If not then why not??

Currently, I'm waiting for my friend to actually have the car in his possession. In the coming days he's going to pick the car up and bring it to his shop. I'll probably be over there this weekend to actually get a look at this thing as well as decide If i'm going to take it off his hands right then and there.

I'm not a mechanic myself and have very little experience tinkering with things. My Mustang history its short, but like every Mustang owner, rather storied. I'm from a through and through Ford family and grew up around various Ford and Mercury dealerships. My very first car was ALMOST a 1992 black and silver GT hatch with 22,000 miles. The A/C was broken, and I came across a better deal, so I let it go. I still kick myself to this day. I daily drove a used 2011 V6 for almost 5 years before switching to an Escape for fuel economy and space etc etc, and between that car and my mom's 2009 Convertible V6, I promised myself I would be back in a Mustang one day. I just hoped it would be sooner rather than later. Enter this car and this deal staring me right in the face.

Is this engine rebuild something I can do in my backyard with the help of family, friends, and the internet? Or should I forgo that whole process based on my limited intellect of mechanics and get a quote to have it rebuilt?

Thanks for the kind words though guys. This thing has been on my mind since it was offered to me.
 
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Is this engine rebuild something I can do in my backyard with the help of family, friends, and the internet? Or should I forgo that whole process based on my limited intellect of mechanics and get a quote to have it rebuilt?

YES

In reality, all you need is some common sense, tools, friends, PBR, and a manual

Honestly, in my humble peckerwood shop manager opinion, this is that deal that WILL NOT come around again.

If you lived near me (Ohio Valley), I would be wanting to buy it.
 
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I’d do it.

I’ve parted out much worse cars and made more than $1k.

Buy a $300 explorer short block, swap it in and sell it for profit.

I honestly want to drive the car if I can and get it back up and running. I added in the part about flipping it for parts as a worst case scenario. I've always lusted after Foxbody Hatches, so you don't have to worry about me being a quick flip "give me a profit" sort of guy.

If anything, I more than likely will buy the car, figure out what's wrong with it and attempt to do the work myself. I figure its a win/win/win. I get a crazy deal on a car I've always wanted, I also get to use my brain (and hands) to figure out what's wrong with the car, fix it to the best of my ability and then be able to to bask in the fruits of my labor. The third win is the only thing I don't know. In my head, I can eventually sell the car and make back way more than I ever paid, even if that is 10-15 years down the road (hopefully)
 
In my opinion a Ford Mustang is the best car to learn on. There aren't a lot of things that need specialized tools to fix on these cars.

They will be worth more and more money in the future....but is difficult to even break even if the decision is to sell. To get a decent engine in there and other things it may need may set you back 5k...if done cheaply ( but not junk yard cheap ). I'm talking about fluids changes, brakes, suspension stuff, engine, and minor other stuff that may pop up in the process. There is a chance that this car may only need a new engine...but that chance is slim.

There are options with engines. The easiest would be a new short block and bolt on the factory heads and intake yourself. The heads will still need to go to a machine shop though. At that point a set of JY explorer heads would be the same machining bill. The best would be to install a complete assembled engine and bolt the intake on and fire it up. My local machine shop would completely rebuild a mustang engine for between 1600 and 2200 depending on how much it needed replaced. Gave a 1yr 12k warranty.
 
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