I know where an '86 Tbird is, it's for sale...cheap...real cheap.
Now, I don't know exactly what shape the header panel and grille are in, but I'm thinking of taking a closer look this weekend.
I'm a little bored with the aero front, not to mention the piss-poor lighting from 24 year old lenses that quite frankly, I'm sick of polishing. (done it twice when they were on the white car).
The bird has right now, a generic TC header and stock TC lights, etc, and the original LX/Base style bumper.
What would y'all, if you were me?
4 eyed all the way! i'm still missing pieces, but it still looks better than the ugly 87 clip it had
(http://a5.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/s720x720/409379_10151077334110335_585700334_22418020_1393846912_n.jpg)
I'd say stay aero. Mainly because I don't think the 4 eyes flow with the rest of the car.
Personally, if you want a four eyed car, buy a four eyed car. If you want aero, buy an aero nose car. It just doesnt look right when the parts get mixed and matched.
i beg to differ with both of you.. fordguy545's auto-x bird is down right gorgeous.. the mixing and matching gives it a mean, unique look that i believe looks better than what ford put together in either version of the fox bird
I'd go 4 eye!
4 eyes for the win.
Well, I'd rock the '86...but...it's a six banger car, has bad rust in the rear quarters, and junk interior.
I dunno, we'll see....at the very least, it's little more than a "what if" thing for now, but seeing what the general consensus is/was... :)
Heh, everyone is ditching the aero nose lately.
Correct me if wrong, But;
Molding on the 4eye bumper is lower than 87-88 body molding, So you cant really use the side moldings (They wont match up front-to-back).
It really depends, but out of all of the cars on here, how many people do body work and keep the side mouldings? I doubt anyone would notice the 1nch differance from front to back without the lines drawn down the sides. No one noticed on the stock setup either.
there's also a lower-fender difference, which translates to the 4 eyed bumper.. solution = either 83-86 fenders or mold the bottom half (of the front) of the 4 eyed fender to the 87-88 fender.. since BJL supplied me with the lower fender pieces, i'll be blending them in, without the silly fender marker lights.. i'll make the corner lights flash when the blinker is on. so people approaching the car from the side can see that i'm turning
as for the body moldings, i haven't figured out how i'm going to conquer that yet.. i'm 1 of the few people who will be able to look at it and see the difference
The front of that car is quite a bit higher then the back of the car, as far as the mouldings go, stock.
The wider 83-86 xr7 and tc mouldings are the same size as the 87-88 lx birds. You could just line them up an inch higher or lower and call it a day.
....what do you think?
to each their own I guess. I personally don't like the tail end of a 83-86 but like the 87-88 rear. The four eye grew on me enough to swap it out originally, but the tail didn't. The added byproduct of the 4 eye swap is better cooling! Most people overlook the fact that I have a mismatched header/bumper to the car. That body line that isnt on the 87/88 is only about an 1/8" deep anyway and with no side mouldings and painted black, you just don't notice.
Like I said previously, the different front and rears don't flow well together.
This has nothing do do with the moulding lines, but more of an overall aesthetic.
Granted the average person couldn't point out a difference between a TBird and a Cougar, but for me it looks like you took two cars, threw them on the ground and pieced them back together however you picked them up.
some of the best cars are built that way.. can you tell, i'm not a purist? lol
I'm a bigger 4 eyed fan. I love the aero cars, but I think the 4eyes just look meaner.
Well then, I think you already have your answer.
Well, just called the guy, to see about looking at it later...it went to the sper this week...he said the grille was busted and the right side lights were as well.
Oh well, too dang cold to mess with it anyway :/
booooooo
I like the aero look a lot better, but in the end, as we all know, it all depends on your own personal taste. If you like the 4 eyed look better, then do it. If you like the Aero look, keep it. Easy.
To me, having a 4 eyed '88 would be the best of both...I LOVE the tails, and the c pillars/windows of the '88 cars....if the tails could be made to fit easily onto an '86....that's how I'd roll.
After owning 4 87 cars, it would be so cool to walk into wallmart and buy new headlights for less then $100...
And be able to see at night.
My 88 crownvic was almost hard to drive at night compared to my 87 bird it was so bright. I have polished the lenses several times, but always hated poping them apart the first time. I was always afraid to break lights you couldn't replace easy.
For me, its the 86 cars. I love everything about the 86 cougar. The headights, slightly lighter weight and the avalibility of the gs model, more head room in the rear and has everything the 87-88's do except for the front end. I might settle for an 85-86 thunderbird or cougar, but for me the 86 is it.
For me it's not just the front end that makes me prefer the four-eye. I like the non-flush glass with chrome trim and the availability of vent windows. The four-eye cars just look more like a "classic" car than the flush window cars do. And I know the two body styles are nearly identical in size but the four-eye to me looks smaller, more tidy. Flush glass cars have their merits too, of course - they do look sleeker and more modern, but sleeker and more modern is not what I'm wanting in a FoxBird. FoxCats, now, that's a different story - gimme a flush glass model over a four-eye Cat any day. I guess this goes with Ford's intentions for the car line - T-Birds were supposed to be more "sporty" or muscular, hence my preference for the four-eye, while the Cougar was meant to be more luxurious or elegant, and on this front the looks of the aero Cat deliver in spades...
i completely agree.. and i'm also partial to getting rid of the TC headers, as a car with these body lines and no grill makes me want to puke.. the rear c-pillars on the 4-eyed cars kind of make me iffy, i love the changes they made for 87-88.. the tail lights are 'ok' on the 4-eyed cars, but i like my 87-88 tail lights.. i DON'T, however, like the crescent bird, so i'm on the hunt for the 'square-ish' bird emblems, to match the grill
this, too, is a HUUUGE plus.. the visibility of the glass lights and the super availability.. mind you, there are nice headlights out there, like i recently sold to a member here, but they won't stay that way forever, without a little upkeep
I am surprised that there are no aftermarket headlights for the '87/'88 cars. They could sell them for $50.00 a piece all day. That one guy on Ebay sells the inner and outer front lights for super cheap, but no headlights.
I don't understand why people like the back side of the aero birds so much. The backside of the 4 eyes are nice and slippery. I like them as much or more than the backside of the areo birds. Cougars on the other hand I understand completely. Don't care for the backside of the 4 eye cats at all. The backside of the aero Cougars are just plain shagy. I like the aero look in the front myself. To each his own. The advantage of not having to polish the headlights would really make one consider 4 eye.
i have to agree 119% with the 4 eyed cat statement.. they make me cringe, among other things.. i also agree the 87 was a huge improvement, but i still don't like them.. i used to, until i owned my old 87.. walking out of the house everyday, looking at the back of that car, i lost interest in it quickly