Progress Thread Finally got my first Fox Body - 1988 GT

Here’s how the horns are mounted/wired on my ‘88

Power in on black wire, jumps between both horns on purple. Grounded to bracket

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Don’t know anything about the horns, but agree that you are good with the factory air box. I am running an ‘88 intake tract on my ‘89 Fox with 347. I have a Microsquirt and had it tuned using speed density.

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Don’t know anything about the horns, but agree that you are good with the factory air box. I am running an ‘88 intake tract on my ‘89 Fox with 347. I have a Microsquirt and had it tuned using speed density.

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Holy crap that’s a clean engine bay! I love that intake manifold, it looks so badass
 
I posted a recent thread about issues I had with my horn and undoing the poor rig job the prior owner did. Check out that thread. Lots of good info for you that will help.

Also congrats on the car! I bought my 87 last April and have been working on it here and there since. In the next few months I'll be ordering parts to rebuild the front and rear suspension. Good luck.
 
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The intake you are asking about is the GT40 Tubular. I have it on two of my cars, my third car has a trick flow. I like the looks of the GT40 tubular personally.

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My 90 GT

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My 90 LX (7UP)

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Awesome. Thanks for the additional pics and details. I love the way that looks. I’m assuming that if I eventually went with a GT40 intake, I would have to have my speed density setup tuned to get any real gains out of it?
 
Awesome. Thanks for the additional pics and details. I love the way that looks. I’m assuming that if I eventually went with a GT40 intake, I would have to have my speed density setup tuned to get any real gains out of it?

Nah, not for just an intake. Get an adjustable fuel pressure regulator and bump the fuel pressure up a tad and you’ll be good.
 
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Nah, not for just an intake. Get an adjustable fuel pressure regulator and bump the fuel pressure up a tad and you’ll be good.
I did notice this gauge when I was putting the stock CAI back on (fuel pressure it looks like?) but didn't notice anything else so maybe it's just a gauge and I still need the actual fuel pressure regulator. Unfortunately didn't have a ton of time to look around as much as I wanted because we had some friends come over.
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I did notice this gauge when I was putting the stock CAI back on (fuel pressure it looks like?) but didn't notice anything else so maybe it's just a gauge and I still need the actual fuel pressure regulator. Unfortunately didn't have a ton of time to look around as much as I wanted because we had some friends come over.
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yes, that is a fuel pressure gauge... it's hooked onto the sherader valve on the metal fuel lines that feed the fuel rails..
 
Let's see under the hood. Is it still speed density?
'88's are a transition year, MAF's were California, only.
Wheels are 15's, stock tire size (225-60x15) will rub the fender skits at full lock.
I still have the original turbine wheels as spares; they are impossible to clean.

Not too many GT's with the red interior, almost all were gray..
'88 seats are fully articulated with lumbar support.
I think they changed the seats in '90 when the air bag was introduced.
Your steering wheels tilts, air bag ones do not.

BTW, I drive my fast car slow, safe in the knowledge it will go incredibly fast when necessary.

I'm a little late responding to some of these more specific questions. Obviously by now you know it is a speed density car. Before I got the car I didn't know much about the differences so I've been doing some reading online.

I can definitely see the turbine wheels being difficult to clean/keep clean. I'd love to get something a little bit bigger. I love the SVE Saleen and SC style wheels but for some reason, I think they only look good on pretty much every other color fox than white. I'll have to do some more searching to find the right wheel.

The lumbar support is super impressive! It seems way more useful than the lumbar support in my 2014.

Everyone who has seen the car in person seems to love the red interior. I didn't notice this until yesterday but the roof lining looks like it's brand new so I assume it was replaced sometime in the past couple of years. I also forgot to include this in the first video but it has the old school map light too. Might need a fuse or a bulb though.
Those rain guards " look cheap and stupid "....lol. I'm really just joking. They don't look bad on your fox.

The AC compressor is missing for sure. Looks like the dryer may be over in the passenger side on the firewall. If it isn't getting the parts and fixing it isn't too bad.

That car still has the factory spark plug wire cover on the distributor. Very nice.

If it were me I'd take that car back to stock. With maybe just a little more gear...like a 3.73. It's so rare to see a car that isn't completely hacked up.

The Budweiser shifter is pretty cool. That wouldnt get changed if it were me. Adds character.

I have to admit. I was thinking a real Bud drinkin' older guy owned that car...until I saw the Lil'Wayne CD. When I say older I'm talking like over 55...I'm 42 so....Lil' Wayne is on my playlist.

Very nice score man !!! The next vid needs to be diving into finding all the issues. Close ups of the strut towers and under the hood. Doesn't look like there will be any huge surprises with that one.

*rips off rain guards while crying frustrated tears

I kind of like the idea of bringing it back to stock, as you suggested but I don't know if I could go back to stock exhaust. The current setup sounds decent but I will probably change it to get more of the sound I like and just make sure it continues to sound the way a 5.0 should sound. There's definitely some drone at certain RPMs so I'm wondering if it's because of the offroad X or if there's something else I can adjust or update. It sounds tame compared to my 2014 with the Roush ABs though.

I also like the idea of the 3.73s. Two of the other Foxes I tried to buy had 3.73s and they were a blast to drive. I'm not completely sure the gears in my fox are stock so I will have to check at some point.


I’m sure you are already aware of this, but just be sure you understand the Fox will never be as solid and nice to the touch as your S197. They have to be appreciated for what they are or you’ll be over it in no time. They simply don’t have the build quality that today’s cars have.

I let myself get away from the feeling of stepping back in time when in mine, and got frustrated with it’s quirks. While I do plan to address them, I had to step back and remember what the car is for.
Definitely understand. If anything, driving the fox now and then has made me feel like my 2014 is so much more refined and luxurious, lol.

Totally agree/understand on your point about "stepping back in time". I just keep thinking of it as a time warp and just try to appreciate it for what it provides.

Nice find, welcome to the rabbit hole..lol
Looks pretty clean, any rust issues that need to be addressed ?
Oddly enough I kinda like the turbines, I would like to see someone produce a
slightly more modern 17" version.
The turbines are growing on me. I think a 16 or 17 maybe a little bit wider would fit the car pretty well, especially on a two tone style like this:
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Throw a K&N filter in that stock box and call it a day. You’ll spend almost $300 bucks on one that you are describing and won’t gain anything out of it. Youll need the adapter that goes where the mass air flow sensor goes if you car is speed density. That thing alone is $70.
Coming back to this because I am still curious about the cold air intake issue...

When I bought my 2014, the only mod I did was the Roush ABs just to make it sound a little bit more aggressive. I did a ton of reading about other bolt on parts and the general consensus seems to be that there aren't a lot of gains to be had with an aftermarket CAI, even with a tune...so I have stuck with my stock airbox (though I did add a AirRaid tube that I got second hand for cheap recently because it looks a little bit nicer). The way I've understood it, newer cars don't necessarily stand to benefit from changing the intake, though in some cases it can help if the car is tuned for the updated parts. Regarding the older cars, I always just kind of assumed the CAI upgrades still made a difference. Is this "new" information or has this been pretty well established for a while?

If the factory CAI is sufficient, I'll take the advice in this thread and stick with that, maybe just upgrade the air filter. Is there any situation in which a different CAI would really provide worthwhile gains? I mean, now that I've seen the stock CAI up close and how there's a tube that looks like it pulls air up from underneath and directs it to the airbox/filter which is less exposed to the engine compartment's hot air, it makes sense. I feel like I'm learning so much stuff this week, lol.
 
To make sure the horns work you could lay the bracket end on the negative battery post...take a piece of wire and put it on the positive post. Tap the wire on the horn where the plug goes. If it doesn't make noise the horn is bad.

The earlier ( pre airbag horn pads ) are easy to fix. On the 93 there should be buttons on the strering wheel for the horns.
I might have to give this a try. Thanks.

That depends on your budget. Fluke is the best, but costs the most. I wouldn't buy a DMM (DVM) from AutoZone, probably way overpriced. Definitely get an auto-ranging DMM.
This one is advertised as a Fluke & looks a lot like one but it says Thsinde on the face.
If you keep searching, you'll find the same meter for less than $30.


$21.95 on Amazon
Amazon product ASIN B06ZZG2F2NView: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06ZZG2F2N?tag=t003de-20&linkCode=ogi&th=1&psc=1


The Fluke that it is copied from is the Model 87-IV - True RMS for $440. I've had one for 15 years, price keeps rising, was $350.

I didn't end up going to Auto Zone. I will have to wait until early March before I can get back to trouble shooting the horn issue and looking over the rest of the car. I will probably do some reading and check out your links - see what I can find. My wife and I are traveling out of the country for a couple of weeks. I'm hoping to have my second video up before we leave though.
 
The factory system is a CAI system...pulling air from outside of the engine compartment. With a stock engine there is no gain from an aftermarket CAI on even these older cars. Once you start adding intakes, a cam, injectors, and/or heads the engine will out grow factory throttle bodies and intake tubes.
 
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