Should I trade my P71 for a 91 Mustang GT?

Maybe this thread should be named, "Why I shouldn't trade my P71 for a 1991 GT."

So this Mustang pops up on the local CL, and I'm pretty intrigued. It has basically all the mods I'd like to have on a Mustang, and I've never owned a foxbody before...despite being a huge Mustang fanboy.

This car seemingly does it all for me. I could commute to work, it'd be fairly reliable, it even gets better gas mileage than my current DD P71, AND I could do the occasional track day or autocross without really breaking a sweat...well...once I replace those old seats. If I go through with this, I also wanna sell my Probe and get a cheap winter beater, since the Probe needs too much attention to pass MD inspection.

I love the extra space and relative comfort afforded by the Vic, but I don't really NEED it. Plus, right now most of my commuting is on fun mountain roads, and will be until I start school in January. (At which point it'll turn to a 30 mile slog everyday down the Interstate.)

So why haven't I moved on it yet? For some reason, I perceive this car as being less reliable than my Vic. I know that a 21 year old Mustang has probably seen the same amount of abuse as a 6 year old ex-cop car has, but I'm still leery of the fox for whatever reason. I'm also only going to be attending school for a few months, then hopefully getting my CDL, so part of me says to just wait until the job is secured and then go find a play car.

I may go check it out this weekend, if for no other reason than to come back hating it, or have the owner decide the P71 just won't do it for him at all.

What say you, oh wise GRM forum denizens?

i'd get it, but going by some of the prices he listed ($3k for stock Cobra brakes? really?) i'd say he thinks he's sitting on a gold mine. he's asking $6500 for what is realistically a $5k car.

i'd go for it, but don't seem too excited about the stuff that he's done to it when you are looking at it..

I would look at it, check which; springs, shocks, frame rail connecters, condition of brakes, how well it was installed, any other frame strengthening (it's needed), check for rust in fenders and check floors for cracks under seat mounts.

Otherwise go for it, they are a blast

I'd get it...that's a sweet GT.

Torque boxes, check em twice.

Looks like a good setup to me. The MM suspension is a real plus if it was done right.

I have had 7 Mustangs. The later Fox body Mustang were my favorites, especially the '91-'93 GT. I had a '88 GT that was only half as built as that car, and it went scary fast. Safety in the Fox body is marginal at best. When they are going fast and hit something, they sort of explode. But, if its not rusty, you can't get much more reliable than a 5.0 with a manual for the most part. Wiring is getting rather brittle on the Fox body cars though, so take a look at the wiring around the engine. I had two engine fires from alternator harness wires arcing together.

Mod your P71. I drive a modified Panther that handles like a big Mustang, and I don't get all those annoying tickets that modded Mustangs collect anymore. With not a lot of work, you P71 can be out doing track days and Autocrossing.

That right there is my dream Fox...well except for the staggered tires, not a fan of that.

A stock engine with everything else cranked up to 11!

Do eeet!

I love fox bodys, but I love p71s as well. Off you really want to go for it, check what their suggesting. If he's like me, he mentioned everything before over-pricing it. I'll let them talk me down.

Good luck.

Fired off the email last night and got a positive reply.

Guess we'll do a test drive this weekend. Also found a guy through a friend of a friend who has a very similar setup on his track car Fox body to compare...and who also has a new Boss that I'm hoping to get some seat time in.

Looking forward to it!

Get rid of the darn cowl hood and it will be good to go.

Lol, I share the sentiments regarding the hood. At least its not the stereotypical stormin' Norman nostril hood that so many of these cars have.

Come to think of it, I think my folks still have the stock hood off my brother's old 4 banger fox...

Nope, next question.

The satisfying conclusion is here, there's not gonna be a deal. Actually, I haven't heard back from the guy since I last emailed and asked a ton of specific questions on the car.

At any rate, a friend of mine introduced me to a buddy of his who had several really nice Mustangs. (I'm a Ford fanboy, so I was kinda awestruck.) In exchange for 4 six-packs of National Bohemian beer, I got a test drive in his track prepped notchback, and his new Boss 302.

I was impressed with the notch, since it had the same Maximum Motorsports suspension kit the GT I was looking at had. This thing handles, and while the ride isn't exactly luxury car smooth, it's worlds better than the 1994 GT track car I used to have.

But the real impressive car here was the Boss. A 2013 model in grabber blue, with the Recaros and Torsen diff. I...AM...IN...LOVE with this car now. You could probably hang with my old track car running at full tilt while the Boss is at half-throttle with the AC on and blasting your favorite tunes.

The best part of the drive involved us blasting about a half-mile up a pretty steep hill, braking hard into a hairpin, and the car gently stepping out under throttle, only to tuck its tail right back in and roar down the mountain.

I have to get one of these cars in a couple years. I don't care how much faster another car could be, or what's more trackworthy. There's always gonna be someone else who is faster, but at least I'd always enjoy ripping around in that Mustang.