Weekend plans on new 1990 GT 5.0. Advice needed.

Been a while since I have been on the boards (since I sold my last 89LX a few years back. Well, got the bug and Monday bought a 90 GT in pretty nice shape. Engine and suspension need attention before I can start some upgrades as this will be my daily driver. Thanks for any advice up front, I know this post might be a bit long and I did search and review the boards.

These are the jobs I'll tackle, and some questions I have.

In general, what gaskets can I get locally that'll work best? I take it I should look for gaskets that have metal cores? Autozone, Kragen, or Pep Boys carry these? What type of gasket dressing should I use for the intake, valve covers, water pump & timing chain cover, oil pan, and misc...

Water pump. I'm going to change the pump, will a good OEM replacment from Autozone sufice? Even if it's only temporary? Should I change the timing chain cover gasket while I'm at it or is this a bunch of extra work? I know I'll have to pull the balancer.

Valve cover and Intake gaskets - any advice or tips I should consider?

Motor mounts - Think I'll jsut get replacments at Autozone for $21.00 unless they suck?

Also, should I consider buying a scanner to check engine codes and if so where could I find a decent 'affordable' scanner??

Spark plugs? Oil suggestions? Coolant??

Thinking about bluepoint rotor and cap.

Again, this is all temporary fixes until I build a new motor in the next 12 months. Thanks for any advice, I know this is a long thread but just want to get opinions before I rip everything down tomorrow. I'm going to try and get all these things done in 2 days, and then consider dropping the tranny and replacing the rear main seal and oil pan gasket Monday. Maybe. Thanks again.
 
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Dont bother with the timing chain gasket if it does not leak unless you want to upgrade the chain itself...that is a lot of work ....blue rtv sealant for the gaskets and maybe thread stuff for the bolts.....a manual would help.......keep track of all the bolts.... torque them in proper sequence and #'s. Unless they are leaking you are doing a lot of tough work I, myself plan on doing all the seals when the motor is rebuilt. Why tear into a good engine to return it to stock with new gaskets and take the risks associated with it. If engine components were swapped I would agree or a better clutch etc. There are much more practical things to do in my opinion.....relocate battery, kill switch, engine detailing, bolt on parts, fan and alt upgrades, pullies, the list could go on and on and on. But, it is your car and you do whatever you want of course, these are just suggestions.

Good luck with your new car and I hope you get as much enjoyment and satisfaction with it as I do with mine. I love fox body stangs.
 
How are you doing??? congradulations on your purchase!!!

fyi, i'm from the exact same part of town!! I work in anaheim, live in corona, you??

ok, since I'm local, i have some good suggestions.

go to fairway ford. they are in what I believe is the city of placentia (or maybe yorba linda) , and they are off of yorba linda street. take the 57 freeway, off yorba linda, go east on yorba linda, past placentia street, past kraemer, etc till you see a ford dealer on your right. Congradulations, you've just found a local frpp dealer. Pull in the lot in the right, I believe it may say rv shop and high performance or whatever. They've got a small shop adjacent to the dealer where they sell frpp parts.

I recommend this because the valve cover gaskets you need are the one piece all metal construction with rubber on the edges. they work like an absolute charm, and the frpp store sells them cheaper than anywhere else you can get them, $20 vs $30 or so. Also, if you ever need an oil pan gasket, they have them made of the same material.

also, i've been on a kragen auto parts water pump now for about 6 years without a problem, although my buddy with a motorsport engine has gone through 4 autozone pumps in the last 6 months till he finally splurged the cash for a real ford unit.

-autolite spark plugs

-motormounts,... get the convertible motor mounts, autozone whatever is fine. the vert mounts are stiffer, and a better mount.

I do a lot of work on my own car, and i'm always around for advice or maybe help good luck!! [email protected], Jeremy
 
Yeah, it is a bunch of work. I would rather spend my time doing as you suggested but since I really want to take my time (time and money) building a tip top engine outside of the car on a stand I bet I'll be more patient if the car is running good, with no leaks in the meantime. I think I'm somewhat of a perfectionist to some extint so having a car with oil leaks really gets to me. I want to detail the engine but not before I fix the few leaks and stuff. Plus, I want to switch to amsoil and know that'll only leak more if I don't fix them. Then I'll get really stupid crazy and spend an entire day or 2 washing the car with ph balanced soap, and detailing the paint with bunches of overpriced and over hyped german waxes and hand washed microfiber towels and stuff, then blowing it off with a leaf blower while my neighbors laugh at me and stuff.

I love the car though, and had buyers remorse for only an hour or so. Took the car out last night and listened to 'The Doors' and watch the sun go down over the Pacific ocean. It was nice, I really am glad I got another Mustang. It's bitchin!