1988 Ford Mustang LX 2.3L from North America
Summary:
Excellent daily driver
Faults:
My rear main seal started leaking. shortly after I purchases this car.
The heater-core also went at 110000.
Radiator went at 125000.
Replaces all tires at 125000.
Replaced all brakes at 125000.
Both transmission lines blew out at 127000.
At 127500 miles the transmission started to have shifting problems to the point you have have to manually shift between gears.
At 130000 the transmission started overheating and would blow fluid out of the front main seal.
At 135000 the car went on to a better place and is going to be converted into a drag car.
General Comments:
This was an awesome first car and to be honest it was beat and took the beatings with remarkable durability. This car was my baby and was a very reliable car until it hit its last days and even in its last days it still served me very well around town. My friends told me the way I drive they'd be surprised if I put 5000 miles on it before it got major damage and they were all wrong. The more this car was pushed the better it responded and it even adapted to my driving style and was an excellent handling car and fast for an automatic 4cyl. These cars have received many bad reviews, but I can assure you if you want a car that will last if you find one with low mileage and aren't looking for a sports car, but a sporty daily driver this is the perfect car. This car was also extremely easy to work on and the majority of the work I had done I was able to do myself. Also the problems I had were not the results of a poor built car, but the results of aging on a vehicle that was designed like most to last 10 years. The gas mileage was also poor with a heavy foot and automatic transmission.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 19th November, 2004
26th Oct 2006, 12:25
I have an 88 GT with a 93 cobra engine. Those GT40 heads make a huge difference, highly recommended.
Although the hyperteunic pistons cannot handle over a 75 shot of nitrous, that is OK. 11.3 quarter mile on an engine with 65,000 miles is not bad. The 14inch mickey Thompson's help quite a bit, and the QA1 coilovers work out real well too.