T
he ’86 model year brought
many firsts and lasts, making
it one of today’s most
sought-after Fox-bodies.
After the highly successful
introduction of the Euro-styled
Fox in 1979 — 369,936 were
sold — Mustang sales began a
slow decline. Having benefited
from eight years of steady engineering improvements and minor cosmetic changes, the Mustang’s longoverdue major upgrade was
planned for 1987.
Industry watchers weren’t
expecting much street or showroom performance for the
’86 Mustang. There was, after all,
no visual distinction between the
’86 and the ’85 it replaced, other
than the new, federally mandated
center high-mounted stop lamp
(CHMSL). Traditionally, an eightyear-old chassis with a two-yearold facelift generates tepid sales,
no matter how clean and attractive
the car’s appearance.
While the ’86 Mustang body
was a carryover of a carryover,
Ford engineers put a lot of effort
into the line’s unseen mechanical
components, especially in the
GT model. The GT’s 5.0-liter V-8,
also available as an option on the
cheaper LX, now sported
a sophisticated
Sequential
Electronic Fuel Injection system.
In 1985, the 5.0-liter was available
in the Mustang line either with a
four-barrel Holley carburetor (on
manual transmission models) or
central fuel injection (with automatic
transmission). For 1986, the 5.0-liter
V-8’s sophisticated new Sequential
Electronic Fuel Injection system
replaced both earlier induction
systems and was standard on all
Mustang GTs, regardless of transmission choice. Further additions
to the ’86 V-8 included a speed
density management system and
feedback