We love to complain about rising prices for cars we’d like to own, but if any car deserves its emerging collectible status, it is the Fox body Ford Mustang. These cars are overachievers in nearly every category. Want to race? No problem. Want to hot rod it? Easy enough with hundreds of options to boost its already competent performance. Want a nice convertible for Sunday drives? Got your back. Commuter? At your service. No wonder Fox body prices have been creeping up for the last few years. Here on eBay is a 1990 Ford Mustang LX convertible, bid to $8,100 with no reserve. The stated mileage is 22,250. This car is located in Marietta, Georgia. As the seller tells it, this car was first sold in California, then traded in at a dealership. The dealership owner loved the car and kept it for himself for twenty years. The car’s AutoCheck seems to confirm this. The seller acquired it two years ago from the dealer. The car comes with its original window sticker.
The LX offered two engine options in 1990 – this car has the 5.0-liter fuel-injected V8 putting out 225 bhp, paired with an automatic. The LX stands for luxury trim, but in fact, it’s very similar to the GT. The primary differences are the GT’s fog lights and ground effects, which add several pounds to the weight of the car. Thanks to the extra weight, the GT is a hair slower than the LX. This car will hustle from zero to sixty in about 6.4 seconds. Given the low mileage claimed here, this engine bay could be cleaner. But all the stickers are present and the bumper rubber and rear hood seal look good. A decent detailing is probably all this one needs. The seller does indicate that the speedometer makes a noise once in a while, and the oil drain plug is leaking.
The interior is handsome and looks almost unused. The seller reports that the top is fine for now and doesn’t leak, but is aging and will need replacement at some point. The radio has been replaced with an aftermarket item.
Verifying mileage can be tricky. This car’s AutoCheck matches the mileage reading. But the car itself can also tell you about its life. This trunk lid photo was a clever inclusion on the seller’s part – it’s as clean as can be in an area that isn’t always kept tidy. The seat bolsters are decent, though there’s no clear shot of the driver’s side in its entirety. The seller notes that the paint is generally good but has a few minor flaws and some exterior trim is faded; these are all consistent with age and modest use. Let’s believe the mileage and move on to the fact that this car is an automatic. Some enthusiasts simply won’t consider an automatic. What do you think: do this car’s virtues make up for missing the stick shift?
A beautiful car in extraordinary original condition. If the mileage is as claimed, there are a lot of pleasurable miles ahead with this little gem. It will be interesting to see what the winning bid will be. Michelle brings up an interesting point about the auto trans; will it turn off potential bidders or are there enough vintage Mustang enthusiasts who don’t care or prefer an auto trans Fox body Mustang? I’ve always had an auto trans in the muscle cars I’ve had. C6s and Turbo 400s were in most of them and if you could get a good hole shot, they were hard to beat especially if you put a shift kit in them. I won more than my fair share of stop light drag racing with an auto trans and usually it took a really good car to beat mine. I have a ’97 Chevy Camaro z28 convertible with a 4-speed auto trans and you can either leave it in “drive” or shift it through the gears yourself manually. With an auto trans, you don’t miss a gear and risk damaging the engine, a chance that’s always present with a standard shift. Of course, there is the macho image associated with a stick shift and they are fun to use, no doubt. I’ve driven all types of trucks in my driving career with almost all of them being stick shifts. Maybe I felt that I did enough shifting at work and for pleasure driving, an auto trans was the way to go in all of my fun cars. Anyway, that’s my take on the matter.
Good write-up Michelle. Very nice Fox Body convertible. Clean, in great original shape.
After reading FordGuy1972’s comments, here’s my take on an automatic transmission in a car like this: I drove manual transmissions in daily drivers for many years. I have collector cars with manual transmissions. I generally prefer manual transmissions. I like them for the sportiness, a quick trip through the gears, and the enhanced connection to the car, if you get my drift. That said, I’m not interested in beating anyone in the quarter mile or even in a stoplight run. I’m not worried about what you think of my macho image, or lack thereof.
So, maybe you live in a crowded metro area, or just prefer a low-stress cruiser. A great example would be a convertible Mustang… with an automatic. There’s certainly a place for a car like this.
I like driving a stick too, which I do every day in my daily driver ’95 F150 5-speed. For just cruising, I’ll take out my ’72 Ford Galaxie with a 351 Windsor (with performance upgrades) and a 3-speed FMX auto trans. For some fast fun, I’ll take out my ’97 z28 Camaro convertible with a 4-speed auto. I’m getting up there in age too like a lot of commenters here on Barnfinds, but I’m not too old to enjoy a little stop light action or a high-speed run on the highway. I first learned how to drive in stick shift cars (in right hand drive cars) and had a long career driving standard shift heavy trucks plus I have a good bit of experience in high-powered muscle cars with automatic transmissions. I like both auto trans and manual shift vehicles, it doesn’t matter to me what is in a car when I slid behind the wheel. The main thing I like about cars, new and old, is driving them. Whether it’s with my foot to the floor or not, driving anything with wheels is the thing I enjoy most. I’m sure a lot of Barnfinders will agree with me.
It’s been my experience that the manual Foxes carry a decent premium, especially on an LX, so IMO it will hold the price down a bit.
I’m with Bob. If it is a car I am buying for fun, it will ALWAYS be a manual. That greater connectedness is a big part of my fun.
I had a manual LX 5.0 coupe as a demo back in my dealership service manager days. Once the tires bit it was a rocket. The 5.0 Cougar I had after it was about as good. Both nice cars.
I own a 1991 LX convertible with auto and what I always heard was to avoid the manual shift Mustangs because chances were they got beat on.
My favorite car was a White 1986 Ford Escort Hatchback with no radio, but a small block 1.9 and 4sp.
That’s your “favorite” Charles?
Really?
Nothing wrong with them, and I had a New 84 Escort manual that I did 2 tours around the perimeter of Michigan’s Upper and Lower Penninsulas in but “favorite”?
I have to ask why it was your favorite Charles?
I had a 87 Ford Escort. It was my favorite also!
I must chime in on this topic, auto vs manual. It depends on the vehicle. And I drove big trucks for 45 years so I should be sick of shifting. If the Thunderbird Turbo Coupe I bought 10 years ago would have been an automatic, I would NOT have bought it. It has a 5-speed and it’s a blast to drive. I want to tell the tranny what gear to be in, not the other way around. And I don’t care if the auto Challenger next to me at a stop lite is faster, let him go! This Mustang LX looks like a nice car, but not for me.
Hey a Fox Mustang that hasn’t had the wheels drove off of it. This is a nice one. The automatic transmission kills it for me. BIG difference in acceleration between the 5 speed and the automatic.
I have had 2 automatic mustangs 5.0s 86 lx and 88 lx vert- unless you did gears or dropped the cats, I would get the 5 spds everytime. Stock that is.
BF: “This car will hustle from zero to sixty in about 6.4 seconds.”
No, it won’t. The automatics weren’t that quick. You would need the 5-speed manual to get into the 6s. Also, the car mags typically didn’t test the verts so any performance figures that can be found today would be for the lighter hatchback that they did test.
I’m in the “prefer a manual transmission” in a car like this. That said the automatic in this car would not be a deal breaker for me. This checks a lot of boxes on the desirable list for me. I’m usually lusting over vehicles much older but I’m thinking that this would make a sweet daily driver. If I didn’t already have my daily; I’d be following up on this.
When I worked for Ford Motor back in 1990, I bought a 1990 Mustang GT convertible with a manual trans. It was very fun to drive. Perhaps not the fastest machine on the road, but I never felt the need to prove anything to anyone. For me, this car was for pleasure driving and to “experience” the road. Although not driven much anymore, I still own this vehicle and it continues to look and feel like a new car to me.