My first stang!

Zeal69

Member
Oct 31, 2019
24
3
13
Mass
So here is my dilemma, I never owned one but I just bought a 1986 Mustang 5.0 lx convertible as a project for me and my 9 years old son. I would like to do some upgrades, motor wise but don't know where to start. Should I start with a general tune-up? oil, plugs, wires, cold air intake. ideally would like it to roar a little deeper, would that be headers and if so what would be a good choice?
 
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Welcome to Stangnet!
General tune-ups never hurt. But to just change the tone or volume level of the exhaust you could start with just the mufflers. There are a million and one choices out there. If you want to get more in depth you could go with a full exhaust which, again, there are a bunch of choices. How deep do you want to dig into the engine and how deep is your wallet? :rlaugh: And how much mechanical experience do you have? That will also dictate how much you'll want to dive into it.
 
Basic tune up sounds like a great place to start. Mufflers as suggested would be a good way to change the sound without costing a lot of money. You said this is a project. What are your plans? What kind of condition is the car in? Drive the car a little bit and it will decide for you what you are going to work on next.
 
So here is my dilemma, I never owned one but I just bought a 1986 Mustang 5.0 lx convertible as a project for me and my 9 years old son. I would like to do some upgrades, motor wise but don't know where to start. Should I start with a general tune-up? oil, plugs, wires, cold air intake. ideally would like it to roar a little deeper, would that be headers and if so what would be a good choice?
Lots of really good information on this site and a lot of good guys who are happy to help.
 
So here is my dilemma, I never owned one but I just bought a 1986 Mustang 5.0 lx convertible as a project for me and my 9 years old son. I would like to do some upgrades, motor wise but don't know where to start. Should I start with a general tune-up? oil, plugs, wires, cold air intake. ideally would like it to roar a little deeper, would that be headers and if so what would be a good choice?
IMG_2796.jpg
 
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update, here is a pic. today I decided to pull apart the upper intake manifold and broke a bolt, but I will assume that it's an easy drill out. My question is that I can not get the top plate screws out to get to the final two bolts as they are stripped. should I drill those out as well? Anyone in Worcester,MA?lol
 
Nice looking car!! Looking forward to seeing you’re progress.

I try to not do things on a whim. I’ve learned (the hard way) to try and plan my attacks, and make sure I PB blast the nuts and bolts for a day or so before I go after them.
 
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