A Lil' Love For Us Reply #30 – January 21, 2012, 11:50:26 PM Actually, I think these cars were made to handle better then average. 1980's cars it wasn't uncommon to still have laef springs or a steering box rather then a rack and pinion. And all of my cars surprised other people with how quiet the car rode. Quote Selected
A Lil' Love For Us Reply #31 – January 22, 2012, 12:07:51 AM I've got this to say: I've replaced every bushing in the front with Energy Suspension poly bushings, replaced the rear control arms with CHE arms, and those too have poly bushings.The difference is beyond night and day. I've got Sn95 Stang front springs, front end parts, and struts. When I get the rear done, and possibly SFC put in later this summer, I expect it'll handle as well as any thing to come from the Big 3 in the last 20 years, excluding the beasts like Vipers, Vettes, newer Camaros and the '99 and up Stangs etcJust tonight I finally very carefully adjusted the tie rods and got my front wheels in pretty good alignment...took her for a spin down to the highway and back...absolutely not a twitch in it now. It will be even better once I put the Stang springs in the back, and get the right shocks for the rear (have Fox Stang shocks, they're extended to the point of being useless).I agree with Haystack...they handled pretty decent compared to most cars of the day, with a decent supple ride. Amazing what they can be like with a few new parts and good tires now. Quote Selected
A Lil' Love For Us Reply #32 – January 22, 2012, 12:20:03 AM Definitely can't wait to get it back together and test it out. It's always been so great to drive...but this kind of improvement will make the addiction far worse LOL. Quote Selected
A Lil' Love For Us Reply #33 – January 22, 2012, 09:37:01 AM Quote from: EricCoolCats;378246Via the Chicago Tribune:Where have all the 80s gone?Good find Eric, thanks for passing it along. I do agree with this. To be fair, 20-30 years have passed, so the good ones — and there were some — went 150,000 miles and were sped, a number in the "cash for clunkers" program.and sold well, but almost all are gone nowThink about it, out of all of the 83-88 TBirds/Cougars built, how many do you actually see anymore? They really were built well, despite what the writer says, so I think they were driven hard, used up and disappeared right before our eyes. Thanks in part to the high price of steel at one point.:mad:As far as collectibility, who know with the number of 'collectible' cars made from the 80's on, but I can tell you by the interest my car had when displayed at a show where TBirds were featured, people sure haven't forgotten them! Quote Selected
A Lil' Love For Us Reply #34 – January 22, 2012, 09:44:55 AM Its just not T-birds/Cougars that are rarely seen these days. I met a mid-80's Camaro on the road the other day and thought, "its been awhile since I've seen one of those on the road". Its like a cycle of life. Some successful person buys the car new (because our cars where not "cheap" back then). Then its gets sold to second owner who drives it past the 100k mark who then sells it to a kid or trashy person that proceeds to destroy it in a slow and agonizing fashion. Final step of course is the trip on the wrecker to the junkyard. Quote Selected
A Lil' Love For Us Reply #35 – January 22, 2012, 11:24:40 AM Quote from: 50tbrd88;378380Its just not T-birds/Cougars that are rarely seen these days. I met a mid-80's Camaro on the road the other day and thought, "its been awhile since I've seen one of those on the road". Its like a cycle of life. Some successful person buys the car new (because our cars where not "cheap" back then). Then its gets sold to second owner who drives it past the 100k mark who then sells it to a kid or trashy person that proceeds to destroy it in a slow and agonizing fashion. Final step of course is the trip on the wrecker to the junkyard.Exactly... You guys can stop the hand wringing, I've seen this a half dozen times now... By the late 50s the pre-WWII stuff was gone, by the late 60s, there wasn't even much early 50s stuff around(speaks of quality eh?)... By the late 70s the earlier 60s stuff was getting thin, and by the late 80s the 60s vehicles were all but gone(exceptions "Stangs, Vetts Camero, etc)... As time goes on the durability and length of service has increased, but thinking you're going to regularly see vehicles older than 25 years in daily service is mostly a dream... From Oct '61 till March '63, I lived directly behind a used car lot, 90% of the cars before '55 went straight to the back lot(other side of our fence) and most sat there till they were sold to the s yard... I'm not talking a large dealer but just a neighborhood used car lot that never had anything newer than two or three years old, the old stuff was mostly junk by the time it was a dozen years old... Except for rare exceptions now days salvage yards keep only vehicles newer than 15-18 years old... If you find something you need/want at your local yard, don't pass it up cause there probably won't be another one unless it here, ebay, etc... Quote Selected
A Lil' Love For Us Reply #37 – January 22, 2012, 06:58:03 PM Quote from: TurboCoupe50;378386Exactly... You guys can stop the hand wringing, I've seen this a half dozen times now... By the late 50s the pre-WWII stuff was gone, by the late 60s, there wasn't even much early 50s stuff around(speaks of quality eh?)... By the late 70s the earlier 60s stuff was getting thin, and by the late 80s the 60s vehicles were all but gone(exceptions "Stangs, Vetts Camero, etc)... As time goes on the durability and length of service has increased, but thinking you're going to regularly see vehicles older than 25 years in daily service is mostly a dream... From Oct '61 till March '63, I lived directly behind a used car lot, 90% of the cars before '55 went straight to the back lot(other side of our fence) and most sat there till they were sold to the s yard... I'm not talking a large dealer but just a neighborhood used car lot that never had anything newer than two or three years old, the old stuff was mostly junk by the time it was a dozen years old... Except for rare exceptions now days salvage yards keep only vehicles newer than 15-18 years old... If you find something you need/want at your local yard, don't pass it up cause there probably won't be another one unless it here, ebay, etc...As cars get old they usually just wear out. Up here they mostly rust out before they completely wear out but miles and time take there toll. I rarely see anything built before the year 2000 in my neighborhood, except old cars that people purposely keep nice. Most of the cars from the 90's are getting into the 15ish year old range, which means they usually are ready for the crusher... Quote Selected
A Lil' Love For Us Reply #39 – January 22, 2012, 09:27:05 PM The main issue with 80's cars was that they were in a lot of cases, ahead of their time in terms of technology, without proper knowledge of the technology the electrical systems are horrible, unorganised, pr0ne to issues and difficult to diagnose.polution systems just strangled the cars beyond ridiculous90's cars IMO, are the best balance of technology/mechanics.Wiring looms are near(er) and diagnosis tools started to become more available.Engines were still simple enough to play with but 80's cars have their own style, no one wants an 80's car because they are in that transition period between being junkers and collectable.the same discussion would have happened 10-15 years ago about 70's cars. Quote Selected
A Lil' Love For Us Reply #40 – January 22, 2012, 11:52:48 PM ^ EFF, you nailed it.Lots of car critics love to bash cars from the 1980s because, looking back, most of them weren't all that great.But at the time, nobody knew any better.But remember that the 80s was a period of sweeping change in the auto industry.We started the decade with carbs and ended it with EFI.We started the decade with rudimentary computers and ended it with ECMs that can still hold their own today.We also saw the birth of ABS braking, airbags, adjustable suspension, the inclusion of most of today's creature comforts, and aero design.Folks, a lot of things happened to autos between 1980 and 1989.We were truly lucky (blessed?) that our cars were amongst the best of the decade.Going through all of my paperwork and books and articles, Ford seemed to have spent an unusual amount of time and money getting our cars just right.And you know something? They pretty much did.The looks speak for themselves. But the proportions are still classically modern 30 years later.The suspension, adapted from so many other Fox cars, just plain worked well.The wheelbase was just right, slipping in oh-so-nicely between the Mustang and the Mark VII.We could have used better braking.We could have used better quality sheetmetal.Lord knows we could have had better support from Ford.And of course, more horsepower is a given.Still, given all the good and the bad, name for me another domestic car model or line that continuously improved over the decade like our cars.Corvette? Bah. Camaros were keeping up easily with the 'Vette.F-Bodies? They improved in looks but quality never got better.Mustang? Arguably, but the interior blew chunks and was more flimsy.GM G-Bodies? Same old same old, despite the Monte SS/GP 2+2 (I'll concede to the Grand National).Chrysler? LOLz.Ford's commitment to our cars is blatantly obvious now, but even I saw that when they were new. Else I'd have never bought my first one.I still cannot help but think that, had we been given even a mid-HO 200hp motor, that we'd have joined everyone's elite list of most desirable cars from the 1980s.Everyone loves the look of our cars, everyone remembers them fondly, but nobody remembers them for their power or being fast right out of the factory.Another 50hp or so would have changed that perception.I only linked to the article because, for once, someone recognized our cars for what they were: ed good. Not fast. But good.And I'll take that. :) Quote Selected
A Lil' Love For Us Reply #41 – January 23, 2012, 09:15:29 AM We could have used better braking. Easily fixed nowWe could have used better quality sheetmetal.Lord knows we could have had better support from Ford.And of course, more horsepower is a given. Easily fixed nowThose corrections lead to a very desireable car to me. Im glad I own one. Quote Selected
A Lil' Love For Us Reply #42 – January 23, 2012, 11:39:14 AM Quote from: TOM Renzo;378436I dont see collectible foreign jobs except Porsche and BMW or maybe a BENZ. Just my $.02You're kidding yourself. Nostalgia is a huge factor in collectibility, and today's 20-something's will look back on their first car with the same reverence we do. And like it or not, there are some very compelling cars coming out of foreign manufacturers. STI's, EVO's, RX8's and S2000's will almost certainly have collector value. So will the Genesis coupe, the upcoming FT86, and even more Plebian cars like Civic SI, Accord Coupe, Mazdaspeed 3, etc. Young people care more about these cars today than they do about Mustangs, Camaros and Challengers. I highly doubt that time will change their minds, so it only stands to reason that decades from now they'll seek out the cars of their youths... Quote Selected
A Lil' Love For Us Reply #43 – January 23, 2012, 01:06:43 PM I agree. Look at the Barrett-Jackson auction. There were cars like Ford Falcon's and Dodge Dart's bringing pretty good money this time around. Back in the day those were not as desirable as say a Chevelle, Charger, Torino, etc. Dad told me that Falcon's were "nerd cars" and were basically the Ford Escort of his youth.Eventually someone will look back and miss the Focus, Civic, etc they drove when they were young. Quote Selected
A Lil' Love For Us Reply #44 – January 23, 2012, 01:42:17 PM Eric, I agree 100% It is nice that are cars were mentioned for once. I just wish it had not been in a wrongfully negative light. Quote Selected
Topic: A Lil' Love For Us (Read 4482 times)
previous topic - next topic
