what to look for in a used mustang.

booster · 10-11-2001, 05:52 PM

i previously owned an 87 buick grand national that got stolen,well i got 12,300 dollars from the insurance for it and now i wanna turn v8,i really only want an 87-93 5.0,i wanna spend 7000 total with mods,can i get a nice reliable good looking 5.0 for about 4000-5000?what are some problem areas to look out for?what kind of times can i run with a 5.0 with 2000 dollars worth of mods?everyone tells me not to get a mustang because it will leave me stranded,but these are people that own hondas and stuff and never had qa mustang,are they reliable?i really want one.

Unit 5302 · 10-11-2001, 07:05 PM

Honda drivers know nothing about domestic vehicles quite frankly. They don't know, they don't care to know, and they would rather believe that all domestic cars are junk.

The Mustang 5.0 from 1987-1993 consistantly had a 5 star reliability record.

It sounds like you want to save about $5000 of the $12000 you got and use it somewhere else. That's okay, but you can do much more for $3000 than you can for $2000. For 2 grand, here is what I would do.

Things to look for become sore thumbs easy to spot on the fox bodies now. The most important thing to look for is RUST. Take a look at the bottom of the doors, the rim around the quarter panel, the decklid on the inside too, and the underbody. A good look over will tell you either somebody has an attention to detail, or not. Check the inside of the fenders for wrinkles, the radiator support for kinks or bends and the alignment of the hood to fenders, doors to A pillars and the hood to the nose (should only be very small gap). In the back, where the rear lower control arms attach to the frame, look at the torque boxes, make sure there isn't any evidence of them being loose. Dripping oil from the rear main seal. Fogging up when you turn on the heater or defroster (heater core nightmare). Check the front floor pans underneath for cracking. Coolant shouldn't have any brown stop leak, or rust coloration. Oil should be clean, there shouldn't be any leakage from the valve covers. Look at the exhaust, there should not be muffler clamps at the end of the H pipe. If there are, the guy was a hack. Also flip all the switches inside that thing. Make sure the electrical system doesn't have any gremlins. Run the windows up and down to check for proper function. Grab the door and pick up on it while it's open, there shouldn't be much play if any. If it has a bunch, chances are it has a bunch of miles to go along with it. Look at the seats, is the drivers side way more worn? If it looks good, and everything lines up chances are it's been taken care of. Make sure it's a stick if you want it to go.

NewAge 5.0 · 10-11-2001, 08:35 PM

Could not have said it any better.. well done my freind.. Unit5302 is exactly right this is my second fox body, my first was my learner car, what to look for in the second and how to fix it when it breaks. If you get a hatchback make sure yo ucheck for rust around the edges of the hatch. If you plan on a fixer upper then just look for the obvious you either want sound mechanical or Great Inside.. Either good on outside or good on insie costs way to much to fix Everything you know

------------------
SOLD THE 87GT, .. GT40, 70mmTB, 75mmBullet, 24lbinjectors, cold air induction, Edelbrok 6025 Rpm's, Inch phonolic spacer, tall FMSvalve covers, an SFI balancer, Canton 7quart, the shortblock... Lunati 51025 (224/232 .535/. 544 @112 deg) Ross lightweight pistons (10:1) Eagle H-Beams, Total Seal plasma Moly Rings, Clevite bearings, ARP throughout, FMS main Girdle&Studs, Forged Crank, of course HV-OilPump and hardened FMS shaft, Dual Friction centerforce, T5, and 4.10's Longtubes and 2.25 tail pi

10-12-2001, 01:36 PM

With that said.......once you find one you like, run the VIN and see if it's been totalled or if there were any serious front end crashes - it'll give you peace of mind.

------------------
'90 LX 5.0;12K original miles;FMS 3.55 gears; March pulleys;Edelbrock Performer Heads;BBK 1 5/8" equal length shorties;MSD 6AL ignition w/ blaster 2 coil;FMS E303 cam;Pro-M 75mm MAF;BBK 70mm TB; Eibach drag-launch spring kit;Southside weld-on subs;9" K&N cone filter charger;Hurst shifter;Cervini 3" turbo hood;A/C delete;gutted cats;2 chamber Flomasters;Corbeau racing seats;FMS 30# injectors;JMS custom chip;Holley 190lb fp;TFS track heat intake (12.299 @ 113mph w/ a 1.78 60')
....soon to be b

booster · 10-12-2001, 02:45 PM

omg,you are so right about alot of import guys not knowing much about american cars,no matter what it is my brother and his import friends say that if it is american,its junk,i had a buick grand national for 1 year,when i bought it it had 130000 miles,i paid 5000 but i used to beat this thing alot,and driving around new york didnt help either,my brother gave me a 92 civic for work and both axles are already broke and click on the highway,his 90 civic had way more rattles than my 87 gn,i also broke the axle on my 96 civic when i had it and never broke anything on my gn,i know that american cars arent junk.they got alot to learn i guess.

Mr 5 0 · 10-12-2001, 06:28 PM

booster:

Unit addressed the logical things to look for in a used Mustang; I would only add that an unmodified Mustang is your best bet but are getting hard to find as they age, and of course, the lower the mileage the better (duh).

Import owners are clueless about American cars and most of what they claim comes from an unjustified sense of elitism.

Back in the '70's, American automobile quality was rapidly going downhill and most American cars were getting rather junky.
Added to that were two national gas shortage crises in '73 and '79 at a time when American cars were famous for gas-guzzling (huge and heavy).

The Japanese jumped into the breech with real quality control and excellent gas mileage to boot. Buyers flocked to the imports, Chrysler almost went bankrupt and GM went from a 48% share of the domestic car market to 28% today. Ford didn't do too well either (think 1975 Mustang II).
As we all know, the Japanese (and the Germans) built a reputation for manfacturing quality, reliable cars and even today, imports are still benefiting from this reputation, even though they don't always deserve it.

Meanwhile, American car quality has soared to levels sometimes above the vaunted Japanese.
To be specific; Ford's have done very well and the Mustang is especially reliable.

Case in point:
I bought a 1990 LX in March of 1990. Changed the oil every 2,000 and did careful maintainance but also ran it hard on a semi-regular basis. Few mods: (3.55 gears, PRO 5.0 shifter, sub-frame connectors, HD axles, exhaust, ignition tweaks, cold-air induction, stuff like that). No garage (in the Northeast) and I drive it all year, except in snow and ice.

112,000 miles later and only routine items have been replaced. Never stranded or screwed by a faulty part in 11 years. My 'Stang starts and runs great; very low 14's...high 13's on a good day when the air is cool, I'm 100% alert and the et gods are smiling.

Yeah, I'm biased toward Mustangs - especially the 5.0 - but I have the positive experience to back that confidence up. Some folks will buy a beat-on or wrecked and repaired 'Stang and have a lot of grief so they'll say 'All Mustangs are junk'. Wrong. Your Mustang was junk. Sure, a few lemons come out of Dearborn, but on the whole, Mustangs are well made and reliable.

I wish you well with your future Mustang purchase. We'll be here to help you out with mods, tuning or whatever else you need, just ask.

------------------
Mr. 5.0
Messageboard Administrator

10-11-2001, 05:52 PM	#1
booster Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: staten island,ny Posts: 13	what to look for in a used mustang. i previously owned an 87 buick grand national that got stolen,well i got 12,300 dollars from the insurance for it and now i wanna turn v8,i really only want an 87-93 5.0,i wanna spend 7000 total with mods,can i get a nice reliable good looking 5.0 for about 4000-5000?what are some problem areas to look out for?what kind of times can i run with a 5.0 with 2000 dollars worth of mods?everyone tells me not to get a mustang because it will leave me stranded,but these are people that own hondas and stuff and never had qa mustang,are they reliable?i really want one.

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10-11-2001, 07:05 PM	#2
Unit 5302 Registered Member Join Date: May 1999 Posts: 5,246	Honda drivers know nothing about domestic vehicles quite frankly. They don't know, they don't care to know, and they would rather believe that all domestic cars are junk. The Mustang 5.0 from 1987-1993 consistantly had a 5 star reliability record. It sounds like you want to save about $5000 of the $12000 you got and use it somewhere else. That's okay, but you can do much more for $3000 than you can for $2000. For 2 grand, here is what I would do. Things to look for become sore thumbs easy to spot on the fox bodies now. The most important thing to look for is RUST. Take a look at the bottom of the doors, the rim around the quarter panel, the decklid on the inside too, and the underbody. A good look over will tell you either somebody has an attention to detail, or not. Check the inside of the fenders for wrinkles, the radiator support for kinks or bends and the alignment of the hood to fenders, doors to A pillars and the hood to the nose (should only be very small gap). In the back, where the rear lower control arms attach to the frame, look at the torque boxes, make sure there isn't any evidence of them being loose. Dripping oil from the rear main seal. Fogging up when you turn on the heater or defroster (heater core nightmare). Check the front floor pans underneath for cracking. Coolant shouldn't have any brown stop leak, or rust coloration. Oil should be clean, there shouldn't be any leakage from the valve covers. Look at the exhaust, there should not be muffler clamps at the end of the H pipe. If there are, the guy was a hack. Also flip all the switches inside that thing. Make sure the electrical system doesn't have any gremlins. Run the windows up and down to check for proper function. Grab the door and pick up on it while it's open, there shouldn't be much play if any. If it has a bunch, chances are it has a bunch of miles to go along with it. Look at the seats, is the drivers side way more worn? If it looks good, and everything lines up chances are it's been taken care of. Make sure it's a stick if you want it to go.

10-11-2001, 08:35 PM	#3
NewAge 5.0 Registered Member Join Date: Mar 1999 Location: Sanford NC USA Posts: 155	Could not have said it any better.. well done my freind.. Unit5302 is exactly right this is my second fox body, my first was my learner car, what to look for in the second and how to fix it when it breaks. If you get a hatchback make sure yo ucheck for rust around the edges of the hatch. If you plan on a fixer upper then just look for the obvious you either want sound mechanical or Great Inside.. Either good on outside or good on insie costs way to much to fix Everything you know ------------------ SOLD THE 87GT, .. GT40, 70mmTB, 75mmBullet, 24lbinjectors, cold air induction, Edelbrok 6025 Rpm's, Inch phonolic spacer, tall FMSvalve covers, an SFI balancer, Canton 7quart, the shortblock... Lunati 51025 (224/232 .535/. 544 @112 deg) Ross lightweight pistons (10:1) Eagle H-Beams, Total Seal plasma Moly Rings, Clevite bearings, ARP throughout, FMS main Girdle&Studs, Forged Crank, of course HV-OilPump and hardened FMS shaft, Dual Friction centerforce, T5, and 4.10's Longtubes and 2.25 tail pi

10-12-2001, 01:36 PM	#4
bada$$lx Guest Posts: n/a	With that said.......once you find one you like, run the VIN and see if it's been totalled or if there were any serious front end crashes - it'll give you peace of mind. ------------------ '90 LX 5.0;12K original miles;FMS 3.55 gears; March pulleys;Edelbrock Performer Heads;BBK 1 5/8" equal length shorties;MSD 6AL ignition w/ blaster 2 coil;FMS E303 cam;Pro-M 75mm MAF;BBK 70mm TB; Eibach drag-launch spring kit;Southside weld-on subs;9" K&N cone filter charger;Hurst shifter;Cervini 3" turbo hood;A/C delete;gutted cats;2 chamber Flomasters;Corbeau racing seats;FMS 30# injectors;JMS custom chip;Holley 190lb fp;TFS track heat intake (12.299 @ 113mph w/ a 1.78 60') ....soon to be b

10-12-2001, 02:45 PM	#5
booster Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: staten island,ny Posts: 13	omg,you are so right about alot of import guys not knowing much about american cars,no matter what it is my brother and his import friends say that if it is american,its junk,i had a buick grand national for 1 year,when i bought it it had 130000 miles,i paid 5000 but i used to beat this thing alot,and driving around new york didnt help either,my brother gave me a 92 civic for work and both axles are already broke and click on the highway,his 90 civic had way more rattles than my 87 gn,i also broke the axle on my 96 civic when i had it and never broke anything on my gn,i know that american cars arent junk.they got alot to learn i guess.

10-12-2001, 06:28 PM	#6
Mr 5 0 Conservative Individualist Join Date: May 1997 Location: Wherever I need to be Posts: 7,487	booster: Unit addressed the logical things to look for in a used Mustang; I would only add that an unmodified Mustang is your best bet but are getting hard to find as they age, and of course, the lower the mileage the better (duh). Import owners are clueless about American cars and most of what they claim comes from an unjustified sense of elitism. Back in the '70's, American automobile quality was rapidly going downhill and most American cars were getting rather junky. Added to that were two national gas shortage crises in '73 and '79 at a time when American cars were famous for gas-guzzling (huge and heavy). The Japanese jumped into the breech with real quality control and excellent gas mileage to boot. Buyers flocked to the imports, Chrysler almost went bankrupt and GM went from a 48% share of the domestic car market to 28% today. Ford didn't do too well either (think 1975 Mustang II). As we all know, the Japanese (and the Germans) built a reputation for manfacturing quality, reliable cars and even today, imports are still benefiting from this reputation, even though they don't always deserve it. Meanwhile, American car quality has soared to levels sometimes above the vaunted Japanese. To be specific; Ford's have done very well and the Mustang is especially reliable. Case in point: I bought a 1990 LX in March of 1990. Changed the oil every 2,000 and did careful maintainance but also ran it hard on a semi-regular basis. Few mods: (3.55 gears, PRO 5.0 shifter, sub-frame connectors, HD axles, exhaust, ignition tweaks, cold-air induction, stuff like that). No garage (in the Northeast) and I drive it all year, except in snow and ice. 112,000 miles later and only routine items have been replaced. Never stranded or screwed by a faulty part in 11 years. My 'Stang starts and runs great; very low 14's...high 13's on a good day when the air is cool, I'm 100% alert and the et gods are smiling. Yeah, I'm biased toward Mustangs - especially the 5.0 - but I have the positive experience to back that confidence up. Some folks will buy a beat-on or wrecked and repaired 'Stang and have a lot of grief so they'll say 'All Mustangs are junk'. Wrong. Your Mustang was junk. Sure, a few lemons come out of Dearborn, but on the whole, Mustangs are well made and reliable. I wish you well with your future Mustang purchase. We'll be here to help you out with mods, tuning or whatever else you need, just ask. ------------------ Mr. 5.0 Messageboard Administrator