General => General Fox T-Bird/Cougar Discussion => Topic started by: bhazard on May 31, 2007, 01:35:04 PM
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: bhazard on May 31, 2007, 01:35:04 PM
Yeah... thats right, swapping my drivetrain into a Mustang...
I have a chance at an 82 mustang with a straight 6/auto with like 70k miles for about $700. Its extremely tempting to get it and drop my good running 88TC driveline in it and do away with the py body of my TC and have a 2600lb car with a 200hp engine.
But the TC is such a nice comfortable car, and even being almost being half a ton heavier it still scoots along nicely and gets better gas mileage than most newer cars. The body sucks, my back bumper cover is busted, front cover has a tear in it. Needs a new fender. The passenger side rocker in the back is gone. Theres other bits of rust here and there. But its structurally quite sound, it just needs some maintenance, and the strut towers are all good. And other than the rocker, theres no serious rust thats through.
Theres also the complications of having never swapped engines in such a way. Being that the mustangs an old carbed car and my TC's EFI and all the adapting the engine side of the harness to the interior side of the mustang. As well as the AC systems in the two cars and whatnot.
Im wondering how fast the Mustang would be with a fairly stock 88TC driveline. The mustang is a 3.3/auto with AC, and I think it weighs under 2700lbs. If I did do it I would of course be swapping in my entire driveline, T5 and 8.8.
Its all very tempting and all but I just like the TC so much, the downtime would suck being that its my only car. I could drive the mustang while pulling my TC apart. I have a spare K-member for it as well. But the Tbirds are getting rarer everyday. I see fox stangs every day, but Fox birds maybe once a month if that. Its also my first car, and of course Im trying to keep it as long as I can. My brother has been through 5 or 6 cars in the time Ive had mine.
I dunno though... It would be nice to have a car that has relatively low mileage and looks relatively decent... and is quick and cheap to drive at the same time. Its just hard to say goodbye to your first car when you know its capable of going for quite a while longer.
But for all I know this stang could already be gone.
Ive already had this posted at Turboford, but I figured I would get your opinions as well. Also wondering if any local members (20th anny, crystal) would be willing to help out if need be.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: 84 Fila on May 31, 2007, 01:45:56 PM
I'll help any way I can man
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: kingcars on May 31, 2007, 02:46:09 PM
If the car can go longer, I would wait and see if any Tbirds in good condition come around and maybe either swap the drivetrain into that or just keep it the way it is. We're losing people to the Mustangs now... :(
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: P71 on May 31, 2007, 03:23:18 PM
I will personally club you like a baby seal if you do this.
Go weigh your extremely RARE Mach 1 TC. Seriously, weigh it. It's a hell of a lot less then you think. I made a bet with the guys on TF and they ALL lost. You'll be moving from a rare, comfortable car, to the world's most notorious cowl shaker.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: kingcars on May 31, 2007, 04:15:20 PM
Wow, after all this time I never realized there was such a thing as a Mach 1 TC...time for some googling!
Now with this info, I will join Aerobird in the clubbing if needed.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: dudeman351 on May 31, 2007, 06:57:31 PM
if you did you would have to change the k member. the I-6 k member is an animal all its own.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: P71 on May 31, 2007, 07:49:07 PM
:beatyoass: :beatyoass: :beatyoass:
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: 88foxt on May 31, 2007, 08:36:10 PM
From that picture you have good looking TC. I've been looking for one down here in H-Town (Houston,Texas) and they either want alot of money or they are parts cars if you find one at all. It's your ride but I say hell no. Fix whatever needs to be done to your bird but don't strip it. Yeah it would be a unique car but your TC already is. I find all this wierd because I stripped my 86 GT down for my bird. If I could do all over again I would of done it sooner.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: ZondaC12 on May 31, 2007, 10:03:22 PM
Quote from: kingcars;150938
We're losing people to the Mustangs now... :(
haha yup seeing a lot of that lately!!! :giggle: :(
also went on NATO forums, yup Aerobird's right they made 500 of those things!!!!
geez!!! lucky you! hold onto that thing! save up for some bodywork and get that thing in tip-top shape! God forbid these cars get valuable at all, yours will be at the TOP!!! certainly above mine, just over 10x as many built!
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: 88turbo on May 31, 2007, 11:31:36 PM
:beatyoass: :beatyoass: :beatyoass: I am with Mike on this one...
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: Ifixyawata on June 01, 2007, 12:19:18 AM
Quote from: kingcars;150938
We're losing people to the Mustangs now... :(
Is this in reference to Shawn's (Tbird232ci) purchase of that '86? If so you must not've realized he's keeping his original 87 bird and only getting rid of his 'mega-rare' TC.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: daboss351 on June 01, 2007, 12:24:34 AM
dude dont bother, the time its gonna take you to swap it all, and what happens if you go and turn the key in the stang nothing happens. theres to many complications that you dont need
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: Ifixyawata on June 01, 2007, 12:32:09 AM
I guess if I understood the rarity of these so-called Mach 1 T-birds I guess I'd get angry and wanna beat the guy up too. But I hardly think the 'complications' of wiring etc would be any good reason not to do it.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: bhazard on June 01, 2007, 01:18:53 AM
I dont think im going to do it now. The mustang is starting to get rust in one of the strut towers, and has other small bits of rust in some spots I guess. And yeah, the TC is plenty good enough for me I guess.
Still gonna go look at the car tomorrow I think, my dad keeps talking about putting his 4.6 dohc in it which I totally dont see happening.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: Quietleaf on June 01, 2007, 01:27:20 AM
I couldn't find the NATO thread. What's the weight difference? Did Ford use aluminum parts or something? (e.g. driveshaft)
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: bhazard on June 01, 2007, 01:29:24 AM
Im pretty sure there were more than 500 Mach 1 cars.
And the ONLY thing special about them was the paint color. There were no fancy aluminum parts or anything like that.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: Ifixyawata on June 01, 2007, 02:53:34 AM
Paint color? Is that all? Meh. Sorry to hear the old-school fox was rusting out, but I guess you can keep the savages at bay now anyway, right?
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: daboss351 on June 01, 2007, 06:54:17 AM
i didnt mean just wiring he said he never done anything like that before, i mean the fuel system isnt set for a FI anyway, i mean its doable, but youd need lots of time to do it right
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: P71 on June 01, 2007, 09:56:19 AM
The TC runs! Why rip apart a 1 of 500 car for a project? I have plenty of 2.3T's to sell, you can have the TC AND the Stang! TBird232's TC is a rust bucket and I totally see why he can't stand it, I've done the same. But hazard's car is a straight, solid car with really very minor issues that can be taken care of a LOT easier then swapping it all into a stang.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: bhazard on June 01, 2007, 01:27:57 PM
Ill try get some pics of my car today.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: jncocowboyx on June 01, 2007, 04:49:06 PM
Quote from: ZondaC12;151029
haha yup seeing a lot of that lately!!! :giggle: :(
also went on NATO forums, yup Aerobird's right they made 500 of those things!!!!
geez!!! lucky you! hold onto that thing! save up for some bodywork and get that thing in tip-top shape! God forbid these cars get valuable at all, yours will be at the TOP!!! certainly above mine, just over 10x as many built!
+1
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: Sluggo on June 03, 2007, 11:13:26 AM
I had a 91 hatch I was going to do the swap with and changed my mind. When I go to the track I have the only TC there in a pool of thousands of Stangs. Most of the time it's the only Bird there. I don't even check out all the Stangs, they all look the same to me. It's your car, do what you want.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: Jim_Miller on June 03, 2007, 11:51:05 AM
They made a Mach 1 Thunderbird? Never heard of such a thing.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: daboss351 on June 03, 2007, 11:55:16 AM
man that one is clean!
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: Tbird232ci on June 03, 2007, 12:04:08 PM
Quote from: kingcars;150938
We're losing people to the Mustangs now... :(
My oh my, Im guessing this is a stab at me. I guess you havnt been around for too long, but the TC is only my driver. I have an 87 3.8L (why do you think i have the 232ci on my user name?) that is my project car. And what does it matter what you drive so much? probably 80% of the Thunderbirds on the road today are owned by people who could care less about them. Go preach to them about these cars rather than people who are at least enthusiasts and are taking a step up from some of the low output engines, squishy suspension, slow thunderbirds thats getting difficult to find parts for. I paid 1700 for a mustang to make a daily driver, and its more of a car than my 3.8L is, it handles better, makes more power, lighter, and the parts availability is there. Try to be angry or upset about that.
Quote from: Aerobird Motorsports;151118
TBird232's TC is a rust bucket and I totally see why he can't stand it
Sad thing is, its virtually rust free, but its twisted, and has all kinds of body work in it.
Quote from: daboss351;151107
i didnt mean just wiring he said he never done anything like that before, i mean the fuel system isnt set for a FI anyway, i mean its doable, but youd need lots of time to do it right
Itrs really not that difficult. Its easier to start with an 86 or so Tbird for the wiring harness, rather than an 88, and you just need to figure out which wires need power at what times, because the fuel injection needs different key on signals, and different constant power signals.
The only difficuly with the fuel system is the fuel tank, and for 100 bucks or so, you can get a brand new fuel tank for a fuel injected mustang, get a hanger from the junkyard, and a good fuel pump, its no problem. His donor TC would have all the lines. Run a good relay, and some 10G wire for power, and youll never have to worry about the fuel system again.
Point is, do what you want to do. I could care less about how rare these cars are, or what color or paint package. I stopped going to NATO mostly because they want to crucify you for wanting to take a TC off the road. It could be missing the floor boards and trunk floor, and theyll say "it was repairable, dont crush such a rare classic" To hell with that. You paid for the car with your money, you have it in your name, you dont have to listen to a word of anyone here.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: daboss351 on June 03, 2007, 12:07:04 PM
your right its his car, his choices.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: Ether947 on June 03, 2007, 12:09:27 PM
Quote from: Tbird232ci;151479
Point is, do what you want to do. I could care less about how rare these cars are, or what color or paint package. I stopped going to NATO mostly because they want to crucify you for wanting to take a TC off the road. It could be missing the floor boards and trunk floor, and theyll say "it was repairable, dont crush such a rare classic" To hell with that. You paid for the car with your money, you have it in your name, you dont have to listen to a word of anyone here.
x2
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: shame302 on June 03, 2007, 03:51:24 PM
Quote from: Tbird232ci;151479
Point is, do what you want to do. I could care less about how rare these cars are, or what color or paint package. To hell with that. You paid for the car with your money, you have it in your name, you dont have to listen to a word of anyone here.
X3
the car may be rare but if you dont care then what differance does it make. maybe aerobird would like to make an offer to "save" such a rare car. personally if it was me id be lookingfor a cleaner more solid car. i dont like to mess around with rust and with the rear quarter toast on that thing, i would have written it off. i hate the bright red and if thats all that makes it a mach then yahoo. maybe it will be worth something. maybe it wont. i wouldnt count on it as these cars were never realy sought after and this one allready needs saving. sure its fixable but look at the one on craigs list. the things mint and i have my doubts anyone will fork over the cash for that bad larry. on the other hand, maybe another 10-15-20 years from now they will actually have some value. how many of the oldtimers out there cry about the cars they had and how rich or lucky they would be to have those cars today.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: Sluggo on June 03, 2007, 06:40:54 PM
Quote from: Tbird232ci;151479
I stopped going to NATO mostly because they want to crucify you for wanting to take a TC off the road. It could be missing the floor boards and trunk floor, and theyll say "it was repairable, dont crush such a rare classic" To hell with that.
Imagine that, a model specific forum suggests you save that model car and you run off butt hurt. It was probably Pinto that said anything and he parts every TC he can get his hands on. It's not as if SVO BUD has a TC.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: kingcars on June 03, 2007, 07:19:48 PM
Quote from: Tbird232ci;151479
My oh my, Im guessing this is a stab at me. I guess you havnt been around for too long, but the TC is only my driver. I have an 87 3.8L (why do you think i have the 232ci on my user name?) that is my project car. And what does it matter what you drive so much? probably 80% of the Thunderbirds on the road today are owned by people who could care less about them. Go preach to them about these cars rather than people who are at least enthusiasts and are taking a step up from some of the low output engines, squishy suspension, slow thunderbirds thats getting difficult to find parts for. I paid 1700 for a mustang to make a daily driver, and its more of a car than my 3.8L is, it handles better, makes more power, lighter, and the parts availability is there. Try to be angry or upset about that.
Wow man, I didn't mean any harm by that statement. I was simply making a joke, and it wasn't specifically pointed in your direction. Why are you getting so defensive? Did I say you made the wrong choice? Did I say it's a bad car? Did I say your 3.8L is better? The only thing I have a problem with is not that you got defensive, but that you took a shot at me as a result, which is completely uncalled for.
I'm also assuming you ignored my comment in your thread about it when I said:
Quote from: kingcars
I guess there are worse cars you could have picked up :hick: .
Nah man, just do the Stang some justice! It looks to be a great cruiser. Have fun with it :D .
I dont see any hostility in that post or the post I made here; nor do I see any anger. I was simply joking. For the price, I wouldve been all over that Mustang myself (especially since it's a V8 'vert); it was only $200 more than my Tbird.
I think I'm just trying to tell you that you dont need to prove anything to me or get defensive over it, cause I'm already on your side. And dont take shots at other people just because you took something the wrong way. That can boil my blood pretty quickly, especially if I'm not in a good mood.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: Tbird232ci on June 03, 2007, 07:56:40 PM
Quote from: kingcars;151552
I think I'm just trying to tell you that you dont need to prove anything to me or get defensive over it, cause I'm already on your side. And dont take shots at other people just because you took something the wrong way. That can boil my blood pretty quickly, especially if I'm not in a good mood.
If you consider what i said to be taking a shot at you, you need to get out more. I generally keep my mouth shut when it comes to taking shots at people, which isnt hard around here as of lately.
I dont understand the reasoning why everyone gets so butt hurt when a person has a car thats not worth doing a real restoration on, and most likely wont be worth the money in our lifetime, and make something they can manage out of it. People making comments about mustangs gets me irritated, even before i even thought about buying one, because all in all, the thunderbird is just a shadow to the mustang. We buy mustang left overs, we use mustang engines and transmissions, we use all the mustang hand-me-downs. We just follow in the footsteps, and people act like our thunderbirds are gods gift. The only reason there are less thunderbirds is because no one cared about them.
Quote from: Sluggo
Imagine that, a model specific forum suggests you save that model car and you run off butt hurt. It was probably Pinto that said anything and he parts every TC he can get his hands on. It's not as if SVO BUD has a TC.
Run off butt hurt? hardly. Some of these people need to open their eyes sometimes. I was trying to find a TC, and i understand nice ones are getting harder to find, but these cars arnt worth the money people would have to sink into them to save them. I saw someone refer to a dangerously rotten TC as "a rare classic" when they said to save it. To strip the car, have the strut tower and frame rail repaired, then re-assemble it would have costed more than the car would be worth, especially since it wouldnt be nearly factory.
When these cars actually pull more than they costed new, somewhere other than on e-gay, maybe ill eat my words.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: Sluggo on June 03, 2007, 08:25:37 PM
You're right about fixing them up. Some people don't realize the $ and work that goes into fixing a POS car. That's why the truely nice ones deserve a higher price, as long as there is someone willing to pay (e-bay).
If you're still interested in one I have a friend that finds them all the time in decent shape and reasonable. He told me about an auto with real nice leather just yesterday.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: gumby on June 03, 2007, 08:26:06 PM
easy there, thunderbirds ARE God's gift! its not my fault FORD had to build the fairmont and the mustang first before they finally got it right and built the thunderbird :flip:
:birdsmily:
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: Tbird232ci on June 03, 2007, 08:45:18 PM
Quote from: Sluggo;151564
You're right about fixing them up. Some people don't realize the $ and work that goes into fixing a POS car. That's why the truely nice ones deserve a higher price, as long as there is someone willing to pay (e-bay).
If you're still interested in one I have a friend that finds them all the time in decent shape and reasonable. He told me about an auto with real nice leather just yesterday.
I understand the nice ones going for cash, and I completely agree hat a nice one is worth the money, but some people need to open their eyes, thats all.
I appreciate the heads up, but I ended up buying a mustang to take over the daily driver duty. Thanks anyways Doug.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: kingcars on June 03, 2007, 09:22:47 PM
How many times do I have to nail this into your head...I DIDNT DISAGREE WITH YOU PURCHASING A MUSTANG!!!!!!!!!!!!! Hell, even if I did, it doesnt make a difference; it's your hard earned money! Why do you keep ignoring me saying this, then turning around saying that I'm telling you to get a Tbird? SHOW ME WHERE I SAID THAT!!!!!!!!!!!! Show me where I acted like Tbird's are God's gift. Good luck searching.
I love how people blatantly ignore certain things. I'd love to see where I told you to keep the Tbird and that the Mustang sucks. I'd really love to see it.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: Ifixyawata on June 03, 2007, 09:25:47 PM
Yay! Let's fight about other people's car purchases & decisions! FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT!
IBTL, jerks.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: kingcars on June 03, 2007, 09:32:30 PM
Quote from: Ifixyawata;151587
Yay! Let's fight about other people's car purchases & decisions! FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT!
IBTL, jerks.
That's just it...I WASNT FIGHTING HIM! He's the one fighting me!! So now you're calling me a jerk because he's taking what I said and twisting it way out, and even adding a lot of things in that I never even hinted at!
Here check this out:
Quote from: kingcars;151552
For the price, I wouldve been all over that Mustang myself (especially since it's a V8 'vert); it was only $200 more than my Tbird.
I think I'm just trying to tell you that you dont need to prove anything to me or get defensive over it, cause I'm already on your side.
Quote from: kingcars;149954
Nah man, just do the Stang some justice! It looks to be a great cruiser. Have fun with it :D .
How am I getting made out to be the jerk here? HOOOOOOOWWWWWWW!!!!!!!!!????????????? This is complete and utter bullshiznit, cause I have been open minded with everyone on this board. I was one of the people to back up Sleeper's Mustang purchase, for example. Screw this shiznit. If people are just gonna warp what I say and make me out to be the jerk...
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: Tbird232ci on June 03, 2007, 09:49:49 PM
I was making a generalization of this forum as a whole. Your comment just opened up the gateway. I love how youre the one taking the defensive course now. Blood boiling yet?
If you read my post at the top of this page, youll see that i say "everyone" and "people" quite often. If i wanted it toward you 100%, i would say "kingcars".
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: daboss351 on June 03, 2007, 09:55:36 PM
now children stop fighting!!
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: kingcars on June 03, 2007, 10:06:28 PM
Quote from: Tbird232ci;151594
I was making a generalization of this forum as a whole. Your comment just opened up the gateway. I love how youre the one taking the defensive course now. Blood boiling yet?
If you read my post at the top of this page, youll see that i say "everyone" and "people" quite often. If i wanted it toward you 100%, i would say "kingcars".
You posted that right after my quote, as if in response to it.
And yes, my blood does get boiling when people completely say I'm doing something like that when I never did. I've always been a strong believer of freedom; for example, on a local forum I go to, there was a man who got back from Iraq and bought himself an 01 Tiburon and made it really nice and clean. People were tearing the car up left and right, but I fought for him because it was his hard earned cash; even though I personally wouldnt make my car that way, I respected the hard work he put into it, which is something many people forget about. I have done that sort of thing many times.
In fact, if you'd like to see that thread, go check it out:
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: ZondaC12 on June 03, 2007, 10:20:03 PM
yeh lets all calm down a little :giggle:
king,
yeah i dont think it was really directed at you. similarly, I don't think he understood you were'nt singling him out.
NATO seems to be essentially a parallel of where I go for my 38 buick--the AACA forums. Though thats focused to OLD cars and its reasonanble to get angry when someone sacrifices a 37 packard v12!
With these cars, it's just not worth getting too worked up about it, the more I think about it. I'll bet this is what happened with ANY era of cars that are desirable and seen as "classics" today. When they're 15-20 years old no one really cares about em that much, and some that do want to save them but most dont.
How much can we ACTUALLY DO? What happens with EVERY ebay link posted here to a 30K mile TC or something. "Dayum, I'd be on that if I had the money".
What do we have here, like 400 active members? So at BEST 400 cars in great shape, being garaged and pampered to last forever. (yeah right, we all know the guys with blowers or engine swaps who race em regularly)
How many were made between 83-88? Hundreds of thousands right? How much of "a difference" can we really make, as small as we are? In the end, there's probably gonna be few of these cars around in the future. We're unique, we can't make the masses be interested in them, and THATS what it would take to preserve something respectable like 75% of em or something like that.
We all know this guy well through this forum and thus would love to see him keep such a rare automobile. But if he wants to be practical, and, keeping that car isn't practical, or not enjoyable to him, then he's got to do...what he's got to do.
Save your car, if you can! If not, well, things generally don't get valuable when there's tons of em around (if anyone really wants that, and to be honest it seems most people here are like myself, wed actually like em to stay cheap, that way we can get parts and stuff easy! I know I'd rather not be having to look over my shoulder every other second to make sure someone wasn't trying to steal my top-dollar ride that is valuable to ME in ways FAR more powerful than just money)
NOW! bhazard you have heard the shouting, mudslinging and picketing from the angry mobs of protestors on either side of the fence. You must now use the new information, which contains SO MUCH useful thought and NO fluff or bs AT ALL and make a decision. Your entire future hinges on this point. Mess it up, and be shunned for life by several people you've likely never met before. Oh yes, be afraid BE VERY AFRAID!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: P71 on June 03, 2007, 10:27:58 PM
Quote from: Sluggo;151546
Imagine that, a model specific forum suggests you save that model car and you run off butt hurt. It was probably Pinto that said anything and he parts every TC he can get his hands on. It's not as if SVO BUD has a TC.
Excuse me? I have pics of EVERY car I've parted and not ONE person has EVER disagreed with my decision on them. All of them were wrapped around a pole/tree/truck or rusted so bad you could see right through from the drivers side to the passenger side.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: P71 on June 03, 2007, 10:45:46 PM
To bhazard - Hey man, it's your car, do what you want with it. I'm just pointing out that it's pretty rare and maybe you should try to sell it first. I saved my 87 Code 33 TC, 83 TC, 87 Cougar LS 5.0/moonroof, and got John to save a 84 TC that were all going to be sped. There's plenty of turbo motors, and parts sellers, to Turbo that Stang and make a cool DD for you, without sacrificing a TC. Just give it a fair shake before you dump on it.
To everybody else - Yes, they only made 500 Red Mach 1's. Yes, Mach 1 is ONLY the paint. bhazard's car is rare because it's a Mach AND a moonroof car. The statistics say "45" moonroof/Mach's SHOULD exist, but I bet the # is a LOT lower. Especially with how little # of other options he has (like no cornering lamps).
That one for sale - It's near me. If I had $5000 and a parking space it would have been mine 2 weeks ago. I already have a 87 TC, Layla, the Sport, the truck, and a Grand Prix to deal with. I'm actually going to look at it for a NATO member.
In closing, I think tbird232ci said it right. It's YOUR car, do what you want. Layla has every option under the sun and I've hacked and slashed to get the most power, so a purist would kill me.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: bhazard on June 03, 2007, 11:20:53 PM
Wow, I cant believe I stirred up such a turdnado here. Well anyway, its pretty much been decided that my car is not getting sacrificed any time soon... like last week.
Still went and checked out the stang. Its a nice car. The interior seemed pretty much immaculate, and the exterior is just some surface rust. Needs paint. The strut tower on the drivers side was rusty, but not quite through yet. It also had some rust starting in the floorpan under the drivers seat.
It would almost be a nice car to get as a DD the way it is. With a good tuneup and fix the rust, all it needs is an AC charge, I doubt the gas mileage would be too bad.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: Sluggo on June 04, 2007, 04:44:43 AM
Quote from: Aerobird Motorsports;151615
Excuse me? I have pics of EVERY car I've parted and not ONE person has EVER disagreed with my decision on them. All of them were wrapped around a pole/tree/truck or rusted so bad you could see right through from the drivers side to the passenger side.
I guess that was a cheap shot, sorry Mike.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: P71 on June 04, 2007, 09:43:32 AM
Sluggo, Apology accepted.
bhazard, Get it for a DD with the 6 for now, sounds nice!
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: shame302 on June 04, 2007, 05:37:49 PM
Quote
To everybody else - Yes, they only made 500 Red Mach 1's. Yes, Mach 1 is ONLY the paint. bhazard's car is rare because it's a Mach AND a moonroof car. The statistics say "45" moonroof/Mach's SHOULD exist, but I bet the # is a LOT lower. Especially with how little # of other options he has (like no cornering lamps).
just curious but do these have their own unique vin code/designation?
the color doesnt do it for me but i realy would be stoked to have an actual rare car thats set asside from the rest like that....
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: shame302 on June 04, 2007, 05:39:58 PM
Quote from: Tbird232ci;151557
I dont understand the reasoning why everyone gets so butt hurt when a person has a car thats not worth doing a real restoration on, and most likely wont be worth the money in our lifetime, and make something they can manage out of it. People making comments about mustangs gets me irritated, even before i even thought about buying one, because all in all, the thunderbird is just a shadow to the mustang. We buy mustang left overs, we use mustang engines and transmissions, we use all the mustang hand-me-downs. We just follow in the footsteps, and people act like our thunderbirds are gods gift. The only reason there are less thunderbirds is because no one cared about them.
Run off butt hurt? hardly. Some of these people need to open their eyes sometimes. I was trying to find a TC, and i understand nice ones are getting harder to find, but these cars arnt worth the money people would have to sink into them to save them. I saw someone refer to a dangerously rotten TC as "a rare classic" when they said to save it. To strip the car, have the strut tower and frame rail repaired, then re-assemble it would have costed more than the car would be worth, especially since it wouldnt be nearly factory.
When these cars actually pull more than they costed new, somewhere other than on e-gay, maybe ill eat my words.
good post....
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: bhazard on June 04, 2007, 07:55:39 PM
Just wondering, do you have any idea how rare the 83 TC we had was?
It had nothing, i mean NOTHING. Except power mirrors. And of course the AC and power steering/brakes. Other than that... I cant think of anything. It had manual seats, and the only thing on the console was the switch for the mirrors. Rollup windows. Manual locks. No sunroof. Manual lumbars. No vent windows either I dont think...
Very sad to see that car get picked up by that big claw and tossed into the big "to be cubed" pile...
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: thundr306 on June 04, 2007, 08:36:45 PM
WOW, this is why I keep most of my modifications to myself and don't ask too many questions or peoples opinions.
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: P71 on June 04, 2007, 09:23:18 PM
Mods are great! Your using the car and keeping it running ;)
83 TC's are going to be the seriously rare ones, especially fully-optioned or zero-optioned ones. It's too bad you couldn't have held onto that one...
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: bhazard on June 04, 2007, 09:57:52 PM
Yeah my dad got that car...ohhhh well over 10 years ago, I think it had detonated to death (I remember him saying something about a big ole hole in a piston) and he yanked the car apart and swapped a 351c/c6 with a 9" in the back. Well he of course never finished it and it just sat for years and years. And finally when we moved out here and the township started harassing us about our "junk" vehicles we got rid of it. Over the years it rusted out underneath and in the strut towers... sad sad sad. Car only had about 80,000 on it.
I wish I could go back in time and grab that car when he got it and bring it to now and swap in a good motor...
Title: Thinking of doing the unthinkable....
Post by: 88foxt on June 13, 2007, 12:36:32 AM
Stang people use bird parts too. They love those disc brake rears, and some of them even take the abs unit and make their car antilock. I never thaught of my car ever as being in any cars shadow. Hell I love my car ,I'm not working on my car for monetary value. The sounds the car makes the way it drives all it offers to me is all good to . Almost any car can be made fast, lightend and handle better. Besides it's cool to have something different than just another stang. As far as parts go I'd gladly take what I need from any stang, lincoln, or anyother ford product to keep her on the road. I'm not a stang basher, I like mustangs but they ain't gods gift to the car world either. To each his or her own. In the end be happy with choices you make. Because you are the one that has to drive it. Work on it whatever you get the point.