This 1989 Ford Mustang GT is a low-mileage example that remains in highly original condition. It has some very minor cosmetic flaws, and the seller has proactively addressed some of the must-do maintenance before using a long-idled car with any frequency. The odometer shows just 23,000 miles and the seller claims it’s been in the same family since bought new (he doesn’t clarify if it’s his family or if he’s selling as the second owner). Regardless, it’s always nice to find a GT Mustang in stock condition, and this one has likely remained as nice as it has owing to the automatic transmission. Find the Mustang here on craigslist for $23,000 near Palmer Lake, Colorado.
The interior is a familiar site for Fox-body fans, but you may not be accustomed to seeing cloth in as nice of condition as this. The seller describes the interior as being in mint condition, and there’s little reason to doubt that claim. The automatic gearbox may be a downer to some (myself included) but it also likely played a role in this car surviving to such a high standard. It’s simple math that the less fun it is to flog a car, the more gently it will be used. That’s not to say an automatic V8 muscle car isn’t a fun driver, but you at least cut down on the likelihood of shenanigans behind the wheel. The center console and armrest similarly show no flaws.
The seller reports that the engine bay could use detailing, and this is really the only area I see that could have been prepped slightly better before listing the Mustang for sale. Even so, it’s not bad – we’re really nitpicking at this point if we’re going to ding the seller on a car this nice simply because the engine bay could use some Armor All. The big news under the hood is zero signs of modifications, not even a cold air intake. The seller, unlike many discoverers of barn finds and low-mileage specimens, has actually proactively replaced the water pump and battery and indicates some other components were freshened up at the same time (hopefully, some receipts are included).
This shot of the headlights offers you a great clue as to how clean this Mustang is. Headlamps and foot pedals are clear indicators as to whether a car was used as sparingly as the seller promises, and also offer strong supporting evidence for the odometer reading. Seeing crystal clear lenses like these with no evidence of road rash is impressive, and leaves me with little doubt that the recorded mileage is accurate. The seller notes he has some wiggle room on the asking price, and while I don’t fault him for swinging for the fences, I suspect he’s going to have to come down a touch for a non-Cobra example – even one as nice as this. Thanks to Barn Finds reader T.J. for the find.
I bought an ’89 LX 5.0 coupe with the automatic transmission new. Ten months later, I traded it for a 5-speed example. The automatic sucks all the fun out of the car, being tuned solely for fuel economy. When taking off from a traffic signal, it seemed to be in overdrive before it crossed the intersection. And downshifting? Forget it. It took so much pressure on the accelerator that once it finally downshifted, it would rocket forward, causing me to lift off the accelerator, which, in turn, caused the transmission to upshift again. Automatic Fox-bodies are a hard pass for me.
Blah, automatic.
Nice car, but being auto will no way bring that money. In my opinion. But for what cars are selling for now, I might be the crazy one.
I had a ’91 almost exactly like this but 5-speed with a stiffer clutch in it and no mufflers. Fun car. One of the cars I most wish I hadn’t sold.
The aod equipped mustangs are really best served as nice cruisers. The trans was not that well designed, and would not take much abuse.
Check out Lentech. He is the AOD guru and turns these into solid units and performers bigtime.
This GT is REALLY nice, not knocking it one bit, but the numbers on the odometer look hinky to me. The P.S. pump housing has more sludge on it than it should at 23k miles and the brake fluid looks too dirty. Even if it has 123k miles, it’s been taken care of very well. Maybe they’ll get close to their asking, like Chris said, who knows where prices might go these days? How hard would it be to convert this to a 4 or 5-speed? Great find.
The Ford AOD transmission really took a lot of the fun out of owning a 5.0 Mustang. In fact, you would need a 3000 stall torque converter and 4.10 gears to run neck and neck with the 5 speed car.