FROM THE
EDITOR
IN THIS ISSUE
T
by Tom Shaw
he excitement begins to build while
you’re still miles away. On the
interstate you see the enclosed trailers
being pulled by big Ford dualie trucks, and
you know where they’re going. You just don’t
know what’s in the trailer.
They’re all heading for the National
Mustang Club of America show at the
Crowne Plaza Hotel and Resort in Concord,
California. You know you’re in the right place
because the parking lot is
full of choice Mustangs
and Shelbys. The event has
booked a great host hotel,
with plenty of parking
space, rooms, banquet
facilities, and hospitality in
one of the most picturesque
regions of the country. There are multiple car
displays prior to the big show, and plenty of
socializing opportunities to get reacquainted
with old friends and make new ones. Stick
with the crowd or strike out on your own to
explore Northern California’s scenic jackpot
at your own pace.
If you missed the event, Nelson Cardadeiro
has coverage beginning on page 20.
We’re very big on restoration at FOX
Mustang Magazine, and we’ve got plenty
this issue. Barry Kluczyk is a Fox Mustang
fan from Motor City, with many years of
automotive writing under his belt. This
month Barry tackles installing carpet,
something we’ll all do sooner or later.
Elsewhere, your humble editor has the
story of repainting the black exterior trim
that loves to fade and make your Mustang
look old before its time. The crew at Orlando
Mustang walks us through the steps and
shows you how to turn the old and faded into
nice and semi-glossy.
Since we dealt with record heat last
summer, Huw Evans takes you on a guided
tour through the Fox Mustang cooling
system to illustrate how to maintain it in
proper working order. While he’s under the
hood, he touches on how to make some
key upgrades to keep the leaks and boilovers away.
You’ve probably noticed the ’85 GT
convertible on the cover. We found it at
Carlisle, recommended by the writer of
our Originality column, Terry McCoy. The
nearly mint ’85, owned by Ron D’Agostino,
is a time capsule. I doubt you’ll find a more
original example.
Nelson Cardadeiro, a key contributor from
Northern California, weighs in with a ’91
GT. We like the action shots of it running
hard down the California
highway in the late
afternoon sun. Sure beats
taking the bus across town
to work digging ditches.
We’ve also got a new
department
for
you,
too. From The Archives
reprints insider literature that was not
intended for consumers. Dealers had a steady
flow of material from Ford, pointing out all
sorts of information about the cars, how
they were built, and how to sell them. We’re
taking two pages per issue and sharing these
seldom-seen pages with you, starting with
the “Mustang” section of the 1985 Ford Car
Facts Book, a thick binder full of information
from Ford to the dealer about what’s new and
exciting in the upcoming model year. We’re
going to give you every page of it, and not just
cherry pick the best few, so you can research
the cars yourself. You’ll have the facts at your
fingertips when discussions arise about what
was available from the factory.
As always, I’m here to serve you, F