I bought a fox body, now what?

    If you are new to the fox body game, you may be feeling understandably lost. There is so much information, and mis-information out there in the vast seas of the internet. While every single car is different, and has different needs, we will try and frame up the best first steps in getting going with your fox body. 

#1 Fix what is broken: Being that the newest of these cars is 24 years old, there is bound to be something that needs replaced. Could be a window motor, control arm bushing, cracked headlight, bad door lock actuator, etc. Grab a note pad and look over every inch of the car, making notes along the way. Obviously safety items like brakes need to be addressed first. Check your ball joints, tie rods, and wheel bearings closely; make certain the car is safe. Again, every car is different, so if it came to you with a broken T5, you already know your first step. 

#2 Maintenance items: Especially if you don't have any history on the car, start with the basic items. Do an oil change (5 quarts) with a name brand oil and use a Motorcraft FL1A filter. Next up, change the transmission fluid. The T5 holds 5.6 pints of ATF. We like either the Castrol or Valvoline Max Life synthetic ATF in them, with the same fluid being used for an AOD (12.3 quarts). DO NOT USE GEAR OIL. If your car has an AOD, have a competent shop perform a flush on the trans, to get all of the old fluid out. Moving back, change the rear differential fluid using 80W90 gear oil, and four ounces of friction modifier. Inspect the coolant, brake fluid, and power steering as well. Any one of these can be in poor shape, but can also be flushed. When in doubt, change it out. All of these fluid exchanges will help prolong the components they lubricate, giving you some peace of mind. 

#3 Tune up items: Now we are really getting somewhere. Time to get the old girl back in shape, and running tip top. Here is how we do a tune up on a newly acquired fox: spark plugs, spark plug wires, distributor cap, rotor button,  PCV valve (remove and clean the screen underneath it with brake clean), fuel filter, and air filter (or clean the K&N). 

#4 Other adjustments: The next steps go a bit deeper. First thing is to check the timing, just to see where it is at. For staying stock, set it at 10 degrees with the spout connector out, for some extra ponies, bump it to 12-14 degrees, but be prepared to run a higher octane fuel. Next up is the TPS (throttle position sensor). With the engine running, check the voltage using the green wire, and grounding on the engine/body somewhere. Set the voltage as close to .98 as possible for optimum performance, while it can be tough to lock it there exactly, make it a point to stay under one volt. To make the adjustments, loosen the two screws and move the sensor around to change the voltage, it may be necessary to enlarge the holes slightly on the TPS, to get the required voltage reading. 

    With all of the above completed, you will have a strong performing fox body, that is ready for some additional upgrades. Just don't go throwing speed parts at a car in dire need of routine maintenance, you will most certainly regret it. This will also give you a solid foundation for knowing what has been done to the car, should you run into problems down the road. Knowing what is new, helps shorten diagnostic time. 

     For part two, we will get into the first mods for a stock fox body (if there is such a thing). CR 

What are the rarest fox body Mustang colors by year?

    If you are into obscure and somewhat useless knowledge regarding these cars we so love, then this will be right up your alley. As the foxes get older, and harder to find in a nice example, the interest in knowing more about your own cars numbers is bound to surface. I remember as a kid, hearing the old guys spout off production numbers, and why their car was so rare and special. 

    While I was pouring over the Fox Body Recognition guide last week, my mind began to wonder about what colors were the rarest ever to grace the flanks of the '82-'93 Mustangs. Bear in mind there are limited resources to get these numbers, so we used the best ones we could find, these are not numbers gathered by us, rather several resources that have worked with Ford to collect data. We make no claims of 100% accuracy, as only Ford can make that claim. Because the details on the '79-'81 cars were a bit sketchy, they have been omitted (god forbid I make a mistake and get piles of hate mail). Being that these colors are so rare, locating accurate picture examples simply was not an option for all of them. So here they are, not the rarest cars; the rarest colors on specific body types:

1982: Color code 6Z Pastel Vanilla was only sprayed 57 times on a GT Hatchback for the entire 1982 model year. Based on the ford color charts, this is a cream color, looking somewhat off white. 

1983: Color Code 2G Bright Bittersweet GLX Notchback, there were only ten of these, making it the rarest color/body for 1983

1984: This year is a toss up, Color Code 35 Light Academy Blue GT Turbo convertible is a one of one, and one 9L Oxford White SVO was produced. This is rather odd, out of 4,507 SVOs made for 1984, one was painted oxford white. 

1985: For 1985, the rarest by color/body was a Color Code 4M Dark Slate GT hatchback. Only 29 of them were made, making it the winner for that year. 

1986: '86 is also a tie, with two body styles also thrown in the mix. Color code 4E Dark Sage on a LX notchback 5.0 was only done six times. Color code 4M Dark Slate (same as 1985) was done six times on a notchback 5.0, and GT hatchback. 

1987: For 1987, if you own a Color Code 8Y Dark Sable LX 5.0 convertible, that is one of 27, and the rarest fox body that year. I personally have never seen one in that color. 

1988: The winner for '88 is Color Code 8L Sand Beige, if you own a 5.0 notchback from that year, and color code, it is 1 of 23.

1989: For '89 another super rare color holds the crown, across all models. Color Code 66 Tropical Yellow, on a 5.0 notchback was done just 67 times. I have seen only one of these cars in person. According to our research, it was also called Mimosa (same color code). 

1990: For '90 Color Code YG Medium Titanium holds the title at 6 LX 5.0 convertibles. However, Color code  MM Ultra Blue was sprayed 7 times on LX 5.0 notchbacks. Color code EM Medium Red was also an ultra rare color for 1990

1991: For 1991, color code KA Light Crystal Blue takes the cake, with 65 being the low number on an LX 5.0 convertible. Color code K3 came in a close second with 67 LX 5.0 drop tops. 

1992: The hands down winner for 1992 is color code MM Ultra Blue, sprayed on a 5.0 notchback. Only two of these exist. I have never seen one. This color was mainly used on GT models. 

1993: The last and final year brings us to color code LA Royal blue, with the low number being LX 5.0 convertible coming in with just 132. 

    So there you have it, the rarest color/body combinations by year. Sure there are lots of rare colors and models, but these are the lowest numbers produced for each year. Check your color codes closely, you never know how rare your fox body might be.