When it comes to Fox bodies, you have to start getting into color codes and other seemingly minor options to set your car apart from the herd. Sure, there are low mileage time-warp specimens and the occasional Saleen, but if you’ve got a garden variety GT, the color combo and stock condition are two major forces behind assigning value. This 1989 Ford Mustang LX 5.0 convertible features the rarely seen gray leather interior with the Recaro-style front buckets. The seller notes that according to the Marti Report, this is just one of 58 cars built in 1989 with these colors and options. Find it here on craigslist for $9,900 in Jupiter, Florida.
The specific options the seller notes as setting this Mustang apart relate to the gray interior; sport articulating bucket seats; black paint; 5.0L V8; and manual transmission. It doesn’t seem all that exotic when you spell it out like that, but when you consider how many Fox bodies you’ve seen with tan fabric upholstery, it becomes clear most shoppers didn’t choose these options. The engine bay is pleasingly stock, with not even a cold air intake installed to disrupt the stock appearance. The seller lists it as having 83,000 miles on the clock and that the Mustang runs well with no apparent issues.
Photos show the Mustang with the top up and down, and the description claims it is newly installed – so no worries here about having to swallow that expense the second you bring it home. The interior still shows plenty of signs of wear and tear, which in some ways negates the significance of the rare colors given the next owner will likely have to replace the driver and passenger seat leather if they want it to be perfect. The bolster on the driver’s side appears to be torn as well, so fresh leather is likely the only option to have it present as well as the rest of the car does. Tired interiors are fairly typical of convertibles, especially if parked with the top down on a daily basis.
The Mustang comes with plenty of documentation, from the original window sticker to the factory brochure. This photo also shows what looks like the original purchase and sale agreement, along with the keys handed to the first owner when they drove it off the lot. The seller notes the front brakes are fresh and the Mustang comes with new tires, and there’s a vague reference to a “fresh service” in the last 500 miles. The rarity factor isn’t overwhelming, but it may be enough if you’ve been hunting for an LX convertible with the 5.0 and a gray interior – they certainly don’t come up for sale all that often. Thanks to Barn Finds reader Rex M. for the find.
This car looks like a ton of fun. Enjoy it and deal with the seats whenever you feel like it.
This is a good price on what appears to be a really nice looking and desirable 5.0 5spd Mustang LX convertible. The complaints about the seat and air intake border on nit picking, it’s a 30+ year old car, what else is to be expected. If the car checks out, the price will be considered a steal in a couple of years.
Steve R
I have this car 1 year older and almost 3x the mileage… Still love it…
The Sport interior isn’t rare. It was actually made standard on the LX 5.0 Sport for 1989 to justify a pretty big increase in price, as the LX 5.0 was more popular than anticipated so they wanted to cash in. Leather for 1989 might be rare, but I’ll guess that’s more because of late availability. Leather interiors are not at all uncommon in the 1990 and up models.
Nice car. I have these seats in my ’86, they are a nice option. Not sure if I see a 1 out of 58 statistic though, or am I not reading this correctly
JCA, I was wondering the same thing, I don’t see how the 1 out of 58 is calculated. In any case, for this car, I don’t think it matters whether it is 1 of 58 or 1 of 5800. It’s all about the overall desirability and condition and such. For me at least, rarity on a typical Fox Body doesn’t really influence value (excluding a few specific models).
The gray interior is not rare at all, these numbers would need to be verified as accurate. Contrary to the write up, the tan interior is much more rare as you could only get that tan in a few colors like black, white and the dark red, not in the bright red color for example.
Would need to do a close inspection, black pint is so unforgiving.
It’s not the color that’s supposedly rare, it’s the seat option
I lucked out on getting an 89 LX 5.0 convertible black with beige interior cloth sport seats tan top.
If these items matter:
“25 years” emblem on dash
140 MPH speedometer.
California car.
Automatic.
The parking brake handle pulled up to the max is indicative of the rear brakes (drum) need some attention.
Rick, you are 100% correct. I’ve had a 1988 GT convertible (black) since 1998 and have practically went through everything on it and had the engine rebuilt in 2010. All Fox Mustangs that I see online for sale has the parking brake handle pulled way too far up. Mine only goes up two clicks. Other than that-the good about this car is that it has tilt steering-(once airbags came along in 1990-1991, the steering wheel is a PITA-stuck in the up position). The Factory seats, even when reupholstered, are terrible-and the upholstery on this one is thrashed. The tops on these 1987-1989 do not retract completely behind the back seat-restricting the rear view over the trunk lid. Buying sight unseen, it is difficult to evaluate the door alignment-the doors on these cars are heavy and hinge pins and rollers probably need replaced due to age. I don’t know why Ford put a luggage rack and fin-spoiler on the rear deck of these cars because both are totally useless.
At least it is a 5-speed and not automatic.
That’s a case of user error. When you get the top down about 3/4 of the way, you’re supposed to get out of the car and pull the top material out of the frame. Then continue going down and so will see the top retracts a lot more. That’s the only way the boot cover will fit. Also, the luggage rack and spoiler are a design element to make the 3rd brake light look better. Otherwise you just have a pod light on the trunk. You need the light somewhere when the top is down.
A car with tore up/cracked leather seats is NOT in “Excellent condition” as the description says.