Did I get a good deal on a 1986 GT

[stang&2Birds]

BTW, I don't have sympathy for the OP if he now has any second thoughts.

It seems like there are 3 zillion "what's this car worth" threads every week in this forum. So, unless the seller stole the OP's Chia pet and threatened to nuke it unless he bought the stang now :-O, having the OP asking after a Stang purchase if it was a good deal is too late. Especially if the seller is a member of this site.

The Stang looks like it's in very good solid shape. I honestly do not know how often cars like that come up.


I do know that there are plenty of Stangs that are bought with strut tower or frame rust. IMHO, those are almost always a bad deal.

Even with my car, I have to get my driver's side door replaced because of rust at the bottom of the inner door skin. My car has been garaged during the winter since the late 90's. Still, the rust on the passenger's side door keeps getting noticeably worse each year. It's cheaper/better to get a rust free door verses having the body shop do any door skin work. There are fewer and fewer good 4-eye doors available each year. So, I figure get the door replaced now. Figure ~$1K just for that door R&R and paint.


As I said, my only real advice is to upgrade the brakes NOW! Trust me, having the POS OEM brakes glaze over the pads after driving "a little fast", is a good way to see if there is really an afterlife!

 

[Codydubb]

Dont you think if he had second thoughts he wouldnt have bought the car? i think he was simply asking for opinions not the life story of your car.. Its a project not a show car.

 

[LilBerx]

Dont you think if he had second thoughts he wouldnt have bought the car? i think he was simply asking for opinions not the life story of your car.. Its a project not a show car.

Exactly... Here in Utah it is hard to find a nice fox... And I happened to stumble across this one that is STRAIGHT with NO RUST.

I dont give a F^@$ what you say about cost of a paint job... I have my hookup which will be 1800 for the WHOLE car with nice paint and clear coat and he does all the prep.

I'll post a pic when it's painted, then you can put in a couple more "IMHO's" bud.

 

[txstang84]

BTW, I don't have sympathy for the OP if he now has any second thoughts.

It seems like there are 3 zillion "what's this car worth" threads every week in this forum. So, unless the seller stole the OP's Chia pet and threatened to nuke it unless he bought the stang now :-O, having the OP asking after a Stang purchase if it was a good deal is too late. Especially if the seller is a member of this site.

The Stang looks like it's in very good solid shape. I honestly do not know how often cars like that come up.


I do know that there are plenty of Stangs that are bought with strut tower or frame rust. IMHO, those are almost always a bad deal.

Even with my car, I have to get my driver's side door replaced because of rust at the bottom of the inner door skin. My car has been garaged during the winter since the late 90's. Still, the rust on the passenger's side door keeps getting noticeably worse each year. It's cheaper/better to get a rust free door verses having the body shop do any door skin work. There are fewer and fewer good 4-eye doors available each year. So, I figure get the door replaced now. Figure ~$1K just for that door R&R and paint.


As I said, my only real advice is to upgrade the brakes NOW! Trust me, having the POS OEM brakes glaze over the pads after driving "a little fast", is a good way to see if there is really an afterlife!

I don't know if I'd go so far as to say deathtrap, but you're absolutely right that the factory 10" discs are woefully inadequate if you're car is ANY faster than stock. I drove my '84 nearly 10 years before upgrading to SN95 brakes up front and SVO style out back (please no questions about why not a t-coupe or just a whole SN95 swap...parts availability and perceived value by sellers had EVERYTHING to do with that decision). That upgrade alone was extremely worthwhile, but, the 10" rotors with the best pads and shoes I could afford never let me down...not saying much I know...but it worked adequately for me.

If I read this correctly, you're in need of a pair of rust free 4-eye doors??

 

[tannerc91gt]

Exactly... Here in Utah it is hard to find a nice fox... And I happened to stumble across this one that is STRAIGHT with NO RUST.

I dont give a F^@$ what you say about cost of a paint job... I have my hookup which will be 1800 for the WHOLE car with nice paint and clear coat and he does all the prep.

I'll post a pic when it's painted, then you can put in a couple more "IMHO's" bud.

coming off really arrogant for being so new to the boards. He may not have put it the nicest way but he wasnt wrong. Your "hookup" sounds like a cheap paint job to me. Everyone has their own "guy" or "hookup". No need to justify a purchase that you made. Its your car and frankly no one is going to lose sleep over you spending $2,500. If you didnt want "IMHO", dont make a thread asking for our humble opinions. seems simple to me

 

[txstang84]

if 86 mustangs are so sought after i should be buying all these up that sell for 2500-3800 that sit on CL and other sites for 2 years until they go away.

Just like people other tastes everyone has his own your car looks good, and for the price you got a nice set of gear. Have fun with it

Depends on what kinda condition those '86s are in your neck of the woods...are they hopeless rustbuckets with rats living in the wiring harnesses and the seller thinks it's worth that much because it's a milestone year, or are they diamonds in the rough just looking for new homes and a good owner? I know a couple folks who might be interested in a good condition '86GT

 

[txstang84]

coming off really arrogant for being so new to the boards. He may not have put it the nicest way but he wasnt wrong. Your "hookup" sounds like a cheap paint job to me. Everyone has their own "guy" or "hookup". No need to justify a purchase that you made. Its your car and frankly no one is going to lose sleep over you spending $2,500. If you didnt want "IMHO", dont make a thread asking for our humble opinions. seems simple to me

seemed kinda like tit for tat to me...although I typically respect 2birds opinions, he launched a salvo of on the dude-almost like he spent 2birds' money on the car. I somehow doubt he posted pictures of his car up, on quite possibly the most popular Mustang forums on the internet, for any other reason that to be happy that he found one he liked...doubt he's expecting anything on here other than some like-minded folks who might be able to offer helpful opinions and some networking.

...just a guess though

 

[FoxGT87]

Honestly if I would have been more patient and had a second doubt I would not have bought my car. My car was a snap decision and has given me a lot of trouble. Now it sits not running while I have a top end kit put together and no desire to get the thing running, But I just bought a brand new sports bike. So now my snap decision is freaking heart breaking lawn ornament. Oh I got a good deal on my car too 3k!

 

[NIKwoaC]

LOL at how the PO was so desperate to swap the front end, he didn't even bother to paint match the bumper, let alone the hood.

I personally just cannot understand aero conversion cars. I mean, do what you want with your car, but if you really want a aero-nose car... Just buy one. They made the EXACT same aero body style for 7 damn years. It's not hard to find them. On the other hand, they only made the 85-86 body style for well, 2 years. Why do you gotta take a car that's harder to find, and make it look like one that's easier to find?

To the OP, if you don't have the same fundamental automotive morals that I do (and it's OK if you don't, I take it to the level of a sickness), then it looks like you got a pretty good car for the money, especially if you have a means of getting it painted for not too much cash outlay. Any time you get into a car that's been hacked like that one though, prepare to deal with gremlins like poor wiring jobs, loose panels, etc.

As for the pistons, I wouldn't worry about it at all. Yes, the TW heads are about your only option with the '86 flat tops, but that's not really a big deal because TWs are phenomenal heads anyway. Really, they're arguably the one of the best stock-port location heads out there right now. Plus, the valve reliefs in the 87-93 pistons can't really accommodate any sort of a respectable valve size, so unless you're planning on running AFR 165s the rest of your life, it really isn't much of a deal breaker not to have the later-style pistons.

 

[Mustang5L5]

That is a Ford Explorer intake, not a GT-40 intake. It is similar to the Cobra Intake.

 

[85_SS_302_Coupe]

I swapped my stock '85 brakes (9 inch or whatever they are) for '87+ brakes (10 inch or whatever they are) and even that small of an increase was a big improvement. It gets pretty hairy slowing down at the end of a pass.

 

[LilBerx]

Took her up to 120 last night, I hate the 85MPH speedo! But I have an app called GPS X DRIVE, and it tells you your exact speed. I had no troubles stopping in 35 degree weather...

 

[GameCock5.0]

Honestly if I would have been more patient and had a second doubt I would not have bought my car.

Yea same here with my first Fox. It was an 87 with a BUNCH of gremlins.
Had some guy who thought he "restoring" it.
All he ended up doing was screwing up the wiring and dumping a bunch of money into parts he didn't need.
but i took a ride, caught a few gears, and it was a wrap.
dropped 3k cash as soon as we pulled back into his driveway.
after i joined some forums, found WAY better deals for that price.
but regardless, im glad i bought it.
it gave me a chance to learn about these awesome machines and rebuild and make it mine.
no better learning experience than jumping in headfirst with nothing but some guys on the internet to talk you through and basic mechanical knowledge to help.

 

[txstang84]

Bring a razor

I saw a ton of spindle assemblies on eBay for '87-'93 Mustangs, anywhere between $50-$200 depending on how much you feel like paying...they're a great swap as 85_SS said. Wasn't it the MKVII calipers that everyone was using before the SN95 swap became more common?

 

[txstang84]

Took her up to 120 last night, I hate the 85MPH speedo! But I have an app called GPS X DRIVE, and it tells you your exact speed. I had no troubles stopping in 35 degree weather...

have you looked for the 140mph speedos that fit your cluster, or do you plan on doing something different? I wanted something different...went with this:

 

[LilBerx]

have you looked for the 140mph speedos that fit your cluster, or do you plan on doing something different? I wanted something different...went with this:

Absolutely beautiful setup! Where did ya get them at?

 

[GameCock5.0]

that is a freakin awesome lookin setup! txstang84

 

[Boydster]

...went with this:

That looks nice, Tex.

 

[txstang84]

Thanks all-They're AutoMeter Phantom (first series). I bought them from either Jeg's or Summit-it's been a few years though...circa '03-'04. I already had to replace the fuel level gage once when I went to the later model fuel tank. And, I'll have to buy the electronic speedo here before I swap in the new drivetrain...the 4R75 I have doesn't have a speedo gear, so I have to use the electronic pickup version...there's another $200...