Back when I was a wee lad in my mid-teens and was first getting into cars, I had to experience them vicariously through magazines. My folks weren't car people in particular, and I was too young to drive myself. At that time, Car and Driver was a particular favorite, and their 1985 road test compilation got read cover to cover many times. I still have it:
Just look at all the Radness!
That issue contained a review of the 1985 Ford Mustang GT, and it can only be described as a rave. C&D loved it and compared it favorably to the German cars of the time. And it had a great title page:
Since then I've owned a lot of Mustangs, including the black S197 I recently documented on this forum. But the early 4-eye Mustangs always called out to me, especially the 85-86 models with the cleaned up front end and gray interior with red piping.
Fast forward 40 years and I'm watching FB Marketplace for the right car. For me, the right car is stock or close to it, no stupid cowl induction hoods, no big-block swaps, no gutted interiors, no terrible repaints. These cars have been around a long time, have been cheap for a while, and lots of people have chosen to, uh... express their individuality with them, looks-wise.
This one was in north-central Minnesota, but claimed to be rust-free and low miles. It was moderately expensive, but if it was what it said, not overly so. Exchanged a few texts and phone calls, got a bunch of pictures, and I was sold. So, last weekend I hooked up the trailer and drove 700 miles to buy a car I hadn't seen in person. Fortunately, it was exactly as described, and the sellers couldn't have been nicer, they even gave me a care package of food for my drive home. It was a long tow, but it went great, the F-150 hybrid tows like a champ, and my homebuilt car hauler, which is almost as old as the car it was hauling, did wonderfully as it always has for the 20+ years I've had it. Here she is loaded up at the seller's house:
Next: The car itself.
