1986 Ford Mustang GT 302 5.0 liter from North America
Summary:
A performance icon from the '80s that will be a classic
Faults:
The ONLY problem that I have had is the heater core had to be replaced when the Mustang was 3 years old. This seem to be a design inherent characteristic of all Mustangs.
Excessive horsepower modifications would probably destroy the T5 transmission and require a upgrade to a Tremac 5 speed.
General Comments:
I have had my 1986 Mustang GT since 1988 and it will be part of my estate when I die. The car has been super reliable and becomes better with the additions of aftermarket performance items. The car is super easy to work on and the 302 has never had any problems.
The car runs 13.7 sec in the quarter mile and gets 23 MPG.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 5th February, 2001
21st Nov 2005, 13:56
1. It is Tremec... not Tremac.
2. The Mustang had a Borg-Warner T-5 transmission not a Tremec.
4th Mar 2006, 10:27
I also need to replace my heater core, however the car has 210,000 miles on it. Any thoughts of what could make the job easier?
4th Mar 2006, 16:58
The mileage is immaterial for replacing the heater core. Except for the fact that this would be a good time to flush out the whole cooling system and put in new fluid. I helped a buddy replace the heater core in his '84 5.0 many years ago. I have no idea if this can be made easier. We had the dashboard totally taken apart and tied to the roof to keep it out of the way. We had to take apart the whole damn interior to get at the heater core. It took all day and all night, and was a total bi***. But that at least proved that it is possible for a person to do it on their own.
24th Jun 2006, 03:53
There are newer versions of the T5 that will handle a high amount of horsepower without breaking. Such as the world class T5, it will put a nice hole in your wallet (around $1300 new) but is well worth the investment for some heavy duty track time.
8th Jul 2008, 08:48
I love my '86 GT Convertible. The '86 is the last of that body style and the 1st with EFI. Its got power to spare and looks to die for. Mine has a 140 mph speedo and I can peg it. That 5.0 bolted to the T5 is an awesome combination. I own two other convertibles and I know this '86 Stang will be part of my Estate, while the others will not. One other thing. Parts, it shares parts with another 20-Million Fords and there are several Mustang only aftermarket companies that support the cars where Ford doesn't.
11th Jan 2004, 21:31
The T5 in your mustang is a Tremac...