In recent years, the Fox Body Mustang has become one of the most sought-after vehicles on the road. Check out LMR's 10 reasons why the value is increasing.
None can argue that the 1979-93 Fox Body Mustang has become one of the most highly sought-after cars on the road today! Collectors looking for exceptional low-mile examples while others may be looking to relive the glory days from their high school years. Regardless of the reason, it is no secret that Ford’s Pony has galloped to the top and relatively quickly! Our What Is A Fox Body Mustang article covers everything you need to know about this iconic Mustang generation.
LMR examines some of the main reasons that the Fox Body value has skyrocketed, whether valid or obscene. Though these are not the most expensive hot rods within the collector car world, the Fox Body Mustangs are already becoming classic cars and their value will only be on the rise over the coming years.
For those who grew up in the ‘80s and ‘90s, the Fox Mustang was the car to get! As a kid, you see Ford Mustang GT’s, Fox Body Notchback LX’s and fall for the sound of that naturally aspirated “5-point Oh” ripping around country roads. If you had one of these cars in high school, you knew you had one of the coolest cars around! Whether it is a 4-eye or an aero nose, the Fox Mustang will always hold a special place in the hearts of ‘80s and ‘90s kids!
The Fox platform from 1979-1993, had seen an estimated 2,603,339 Ford Mustangs roll off of the assembly line. With that said, though they may be relatively easy to find, not all of them are the sought-after V8 models. Many of the earlier 4-eyed Fox cars were with the less desirable 4-cyl and v6 engines so that reduces the amount of the V8 options that were on the road. As a result, V8 engine models have driven the prices into the clouds and the days of the inexpensive fox are all but gone… unless you want a roller!
No other American car seems to have the level of aftermarket parts available to almost fully restore or totally customize than the Fox Body Mustang! LMR.com offers as many parts as possible to help restore the beloved Mustang back to its glory days in the hot sun or to build them up into budget-friendly race cars that dominate the track! Whatever your flavor, the love for this body style Mustang fuels the aftermarket to continue pumping out new restoration and performance parts!
The racing reputation is real with entire racing leagues being dedicated to Fox Mustangs! Since their inception, these legendary Mustangs have developed a reputation for being the ideal drag racing platform. So much so that racers that want to go fast with a Chevy engine, tend to put them into the Fox! With its lightweight frame and engine bay that takes multiple different engines, the 1979-93 Mustang is viewed as one of, if not, the best ‘80s and ‘90s vehicle for drag racing.
The Fox Body was such a brave and unique step from Ford because not only was it a modern-looking vehicle at its time, but it was also the first Mustang that was both European-styled and aerodynamically efficient. The European style of the hatchback with a sloped front end became one of the most uniquely recognizable coupes of the late 70s, entire 80s, and early 90s. Even the collab that Ford had done with McLaren produced a similar style with the ASC McLaren Coupe. The Fox Body had so many unique looking models and if you check out our Rare Fox Body Mustangs article we explore these more in-depth.
With many of the classic Mustangs being built for performance, they don’t always come to mind as an ideal daily driver. With the Fox Body Mustang though, it blends between performance and comfortability. This is due to its comfortable front seats & usable rear seats, substantial trunk space, working air conditioning (not a standard feature on all Fox Body Mustangs), and the ability to have the kind of performance that can handle modern traffic conditions. Even though airbags weren’t added to the Fox Body until 1990, they still had great gas mileage ranging from the high teens to the mid to high 20s.
What many people don’t realize is that the Fox Body Mustang actually saved the termination of the Mustang lineup. The oil crisis of the 70s brought about a lot of changes to the V8 vehicles of its time and the Mustang was no exception. This resulted in the Gen 2 Mustang from 1974-78 losing a ton of popularity. Arguably the biggest reason why the Fox Body saved the Mustang was due to its variety of body styles and options. If you take into account all of the body changes across the years, plus 3 body configurations as well as variations on models such as Cobra, GT, LX, SVO, etc., there's a Fox for everyone.
In the late 80s, Ford actually had planned to do something similar to the Fox Body V8 rear wheel drive model and replace it with a front wheel drive coupe. This was due to the popularity of the Mazda 626, but car enthusiasts wouldn’t go for it due to the previous history of Ford making this change to the Gen 2 Mustang. So Ford eventually caved in and made a complete body redesign and power increase for the 1987 model year and sales drastically increased to make the Fox Body the best selling muscle car of its time.
Back around 2015, a clean 1990 LX with fresh paint and 140,000 miles could be had for next to nothing. Today, that very same car from 1990 would be valued 2-3 times the previous amount! What happened and why are Fox Body Mustangs so expensive? According to Motor Trend, a beautiful Red 1993 Cobra from Ford’s SVT program broke records at the Barrett-Jackson auto auction and sold for a mind-blowing six figures! All of a sudden, people began to want a piece of this investment gold mine.
Prices started to increase and, today, the average price that people are willing to pay for a clean, low mile Fox Body, especially if it is a Notchback Mustang, is increasing more and more with each passing year! While prices have dramatically increased for the Fox Body over the last few years, we believe the popularity will continue to grow which will only lead to these vehicles continually increasing in value.
Motor swaps have been done by performance car enthusiasts since the beginning. More displacement is one of the simplest ways to increase strength. The 351W swaps were among the first motor swaps for Fox Body Mustangs. As we previously mentioned, Chevy engine swaps and Coyote engine swaps are among the most popular engine swaps. The Fox Body Platform's large engine bay makes for all sorts of swap options - we've seen anything from a Coyote to Diesel to 2JZ and even Cadillac swaps. We've even seen an electric fox!
The Coyote engine has proven to be a good mix of fuel economy and dependability while still producing a lot of power. This engine's excellent balance has made it one of the most common engine swaps. Furthermore, the Fox Body is a very compact vehicle, weighing about 3,000 pounds, which is far less than today's Mustangs. As a result, the Fox will gain significantly more control. Check out our Fox Body Coyote Swap Guide that gives you a full parts list of everything you may need.
At the end of the day, the main factor in which the Fox Body has continued to increase in popularity and value is its extremely passionate following. Not only is this following strong from the Gen X crowd from the mid-60s to early 80s, but with the newer generation as well. This is due to its timeless design and high variety of aftermarket customization options.
We at LMR pride ourselves on being the go-to source for all things Fox Body Mustang and although prices are on the rise, the cars still make for a great value in a collector car. This is a dream that we have had for over 20 years and we are so excited that the public has started to see this vision of why we love the Fox Body platform so much. Late Model Restoration continues to push the limits of this iconic vehicle by releasing industry-exclusive solutions to give you the best bang for your buck.
Check out our YouTube channel for even more tech tips, installation videos, how-tos, and more. The best place to go for anything Mustang related!