Build Thread My 1986 T-top Build - Lasting Memories

I've started an album for Doby and Robby. If you want to skip all of the crap in this thread and just see pictures, i'll be posting them there as well. I'll be updating the pictures whenever i get back on Doby. I still need to add pictures, i'm trying to be thematic in their order.

I got a new (to me) 1986 GT with T-tops. It is TOTALLY disassembled. My brother started it three years ago. I'm going to finish it and drive it till I'm dead and leave it in my will to my son. I have six months to make it street able. All the bodywork is done, I'm going to paint it next weekend (I've been a car painter since the late seventies). I've convinced my wife it needs to be assembled in our garage and I'm ready to get after it. Lots has been done to the car and drivetrain up to this point, LOTS more needs to be done. Whom ever has done a total rebuild, please offer your advice (hell, even if you haven't done a complete). I will be grateful and consider most anything you post to me. It will be painted a Toyota red (paint code 3R1), I really like that color. I'm using sikkens paint. Thanks in advance, I'm going to need your help.

90sickfox said:

Good luck on the build. I was thinking of using the Toyota metallic green on my next build...it has a beautiful gold metallic. Don't know the color code....I've gotta chase down a tundra.lol These cars are pretty simple to assemble. Are you going back original ? Or are you building a strip street car ? The guys here are awesome with advice. Welcome aboard and good luck. Can't wait to see it done.

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It'll be a nice street car with mild performance. The rear end has been narrowed 2.5" on each side (I like the deep dish look on the rear wheels). Coil overs on the front already with MM k-member. Engine is pretty much done, still need to buy the carb. for it. My brother ripped out all of the wiring for fuel injection. The interior was red, it'll go dark grey.
My brother has two other '86 mustangs with roll cages already welded in. I wanted one of those, but I still have a couple kids left at home that I need to take places, so no cage for me right now.
Kind of like the T-top thing, back when they were on these car new I thought they looked stupid! I think it's the uniqueness of them that makes me like them. I don't see many fox bodies anymore at all, and haven't really seen any with t-tops.
Got to figure out how to post pictures from my iPad and I'll start a thread with the build.

madspeed said:

Welcome aboard, you should start your own build thread, everyone likes lots of pics and gives inspiration for others to progress with their projects.

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will do on the build thread, my avatar is the front after a lots of bodywork on the hood. where do I start the thread?

90sickfox said:

T tops are awesome...a lot of them rusted out because the tops always leak a little. Its going to look mean with the deep offset in the rear. Can't wait to see pics. Does it still have the four eyed front end ? Charcoal gray and Toyota red sounds like a good combo. My coupe has a ding on every panel. I figure over the winter I'll pull the inside panels and start smoothing them out.

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A big +1 to the four eyes, they are my favorites. Tell me about the dings! It took awhile to get it straight, had to put in new floor pans on both sides where the seats mount. Next weekend I will paint it. The Oklahoma/Oklahoma State foot ball game is this weekend or it would get painted now. The car is in Stillwater where my brother is (so is OSU). I'm going to bring it back to my garage next Sunday. Lots of details to give out, I'll do that in the build thread. With Christmas I don't have lots of spare cash for it, but starting in January I will dump $500-1000 per month. December will be about changing the color of the interior. It's red, going dark grey. Basically free there, got our paint jobber to donate the materials needed for that. Decades of doing favors for others will payoff in this build. And they all thought I was just a nice guy!!

madspeed said:

Start the thread in the fox general section. If it gets really technical, we can move it to the tech section

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Thanks brother, will do tomorrow, just watched the Sooners beat the tar out of OSU and need to head to bed. I appreciate your help.

My 1986 GT is totally disassembled and I'm getting close to the reassembly stage. I want to rebuild the heater box (plenum?). I'm going to put in a new heater core while I have it open and cleaning it. The original foam and seals are degraded badly. I've tried to find a foam and seal kit for it with no luck, found lots for the classic mustangs. Any ideas?

mikestang63 said:

go to home depot and get some refridgerator or hvac foam tape and cut it to length

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yeah, was thinking that or some of the foam tape that goes on beds of pickups before we reinstall a camper shell. Just seeing if anyone knows of a nifty kit with everything needed to rebuild it.
I haven't torn it down yet, I guess I really may not need much.

I've been looking at other people's build threads on their cars and it is inspirational in motivating me to continue on my build. So, here I go with mine.

I have a 1986 GT with t-tops that was originally a red called something like mid canyon red? (What the hell were we thinking in the eighties?) It is getting ready to be painted a red pearl. The color code is from Toyota, but I've mainly dealt with it on their Lexus' vehicles. The paint code is 3R1.

This needs to be done on a budget to just get it on the street. So some things might leave you shaking your head, it does me too. Don't worry though, just because it will drive in six months doesn't mean it will be close to being done. I will be keeping this car the rest of my life and pass it down to my son in my will. I'm 53 now, so I've got about three decades of modifying left in me!

Lots of work has already been done on this vehicle already, I'll post pictures so you can see where it sits right now. I'll give a brief run down of what's been done to it:

Drivetrain


The stock 5.0 was rebuilt with new rods and Pistons (not forged), GT40X aluminum heads with roller rockers and a comp roller cam with appropriate hydraulic lifters. Nothing real wild, just new. Bored .030 over mainly to have clean cylinders. Also an Edelbrock Perfomer RPM intake. MSD distributor. It will have a Quickfuel carburetor 650 or 680 (depending if I want to go manual secondary or vacuum). It has an Edelbrock water pump as well. It turned out to be real close to what FRPP offers as a crate engine, btw. It does have a nice set of March pulleys and brackets as well.

My brother started this build about three years ago and the first thing he did was rip out all of the efi wiring, so I'm going carbureted for now.

The stock 8.8 rear end has been narrowed 1.5" on each side. The tubes have been welded and welded on brackets for coil overs (for a much later mod). I have a set of Strange five lug, 31 spline axles cut to length for the narrowed rear. Still need the differential, probably will go FRPP on this. Not sure where I want to go with the gears, maybe 3.73's. It will eventually have 18" wheels for the back. I can fit 10" wheels with a -4" backspacing. Would like to fit 285 tires back there, already rolled the lips on the quarters. Might need to beat in the inside of the wheel well a little.

I will use the stock T5 after I get it rebuilt with a 2.95 first gear in it. Stock drive shaft, will go aluminum sometime.

Not sure of the clutch, I don't need anything real fancy as this engine combo might only put out 350 at the crankshaft. I will get a new steel flywheel.

BRAKES AND SPINDLES

Cobra Disc front, '95 spindles,. Drums on the rear until I can afford disc brakes. Rebuilt the drums. New master cylinder. Some new brake lines (lines on the differential)

SUSPENSION

Coil overs on the front, MM k-member. Rear has stock trailing arms right now, probably will buy a cheap set from upr until I can get what I want. Want to go with a torque arm and panhard bar eventually, I might get the panhard bar early just so I don't tear up the new tires.

PAINT & BODY

All body work is done!! Woohoo! Going to paint it this weekend at my brother's body shop in Stillwater. I'm buddy's with the local Akzo Nobel rep, so it will be Sikkens for paint. He is giving me all the materials, if you have painted your car, you know what that means. And I mean everything was given to me, from sandpaper to the cleaners for the plastic in the interior all the way to rubbing compound (hopefully won't need to rub too much!)
I'm still missing a hatch and front bumper, but I have a pretty good line on that, they'll have to be painted later.
Had to patch in the floor on both sides where it rusted out at the seat mounts.

INTERIOR

Oh dear god! It's red. I will be changing it to a dark grey. I had a brand new carpet given to me, it's light grey. I saw some pictures on line of a dark grey interior with the light grey carpet, it looked good to me, so I'm going with it. I will be painting all of that plastic a dark grey, not sure of the new headliner I will get, maybe go light grey like the carpet? Like I think I mentioned, the car is completely gutted, so, while I have it all out I will disassemble the heater box and put a new heater core in it and clean and disinfect the box. I will put new foam seals on it too.
I want a new steering wheel, not sure exactly which one yet.
Oh how I would like to have a new Dakota Digital gauge cluster too, but at almost $800, it'll probably wait a year or two after it's a driver.
The stock seats are in freakishly good condition! I'm going to pull the covers off and wash them in the gentle cycle of my washing machine.
I want to put Dynamat or some such product at least on the floor, any opinions on this idea?
The door panels are pretty good, I may have to go with them for now, dang new ones are over $400.
I'll be getting all the little kits for the interior from LMR and others.

GASKETS AND SEALS

It's thirty years old, got to get a whole new set, another not cheap buy.

COOLING AND A/C

I'm going to go with an electric fan and a new radiator, any opinions on two or three row radiators? I consider this a must buy.

Not going to have air conditioning next summer, those 105 days next summer will be better with the t-tops off. Next year and I'll upgrade to a brand new system.

GLASS

WOOHOO again, who knew fox glass was cheap? Not me. New glass all around! I feel like a drunken sailor! No offense to you sailors out there, drunk or not.

CHASSIS

Got subframe connectors welded in already, that's it for right now. I like Maximum Motorsports stuff though, I'm bound to do more eventually.

WHEELS AND TIRES

Got scab wheels and tires on it right now. Still choosing this area. What do you all think of Scarollo drift-r wheels, I'm not sure I can get them in the backspacing I need. It would look really choice to me if they do. I sent them an email asking if they offer that.
Tires will be probably whatever I can get in a package deal.

STEREO

Hummmm, not real sure yet. Something modern would be nice. I had an eight track in my first mustang back in '78, maybe a little too retro?

Well, that's enough for now. I'm going to try to figure out how to post what pictures I have now.

I'm shooting for June for a driver. Next thing is paint this weekend. I'll post pictures of it then. It goes to my garage for the build on Sunday.

I plan on taking care of the interior in December, I'm going to order a new heater core for it tonight. I'll post stuff on the heater box clean up and replacing the heater core. Jeez! It's a nasty box right now. Dawn soap and Clorox will be my friend.

January has the new differential and gears and maybe the cheap trailing arms coming.

Okay, here's a few photos for now. You can see the hood is already painted. The GT decal is painted and sanded smooth. I will put on one more coat of clear this weekend to make it even with everything else.
Wish I had time to smooth the engine bay.

BTW, this is such a big rush for me because my youngest boy turns sixteen here in a couple months and I want to give him something to drive. NOT the mustang, my old truck!

Forgot to mention, c-clip eliminator kit from strange

I'll post all further updates to this thread, sorry for the clumsiness on starting this build thread.

A5literMan said:

Looking forward to this thread. I love 86 T top cars. Just don't see very many anymore. I contemplate putting the decals back on mine if/when I repaint.

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I love that hood decal.