. I really love my Tbird. It drives wonderfully, it's got all the comforts, the ride is silky smooth, and gets lots of power for very little money.
Thanks for telling me on the SN95 thing. I wasn't sure when that started, so guessed it was when they dropped to the (modular?) 4.6 V8.5.0s get great gas mileage. My Tbird gets ~24mpg all day long (hwy and city combined), even with my sometimes heavy footed driving and maybe a couple of track passes. My best mileage was 33mpg on a 280 mile straight highway trip. My 20 year old V8 gets better mileage than plenty of new 4 and 6 cylinders.
Example: On Saturday, I took my Tbird to a track that's 127 miles from my house; about a 2 hour trip. I used about 12 gallons of fuel both ways (probably less than that; im being conservative), including the 3 1/4mile track runs. That's almost 22mpg, even after I put a lower rear end gear in.
Oh, and 94-95 Mustangs are not foxes. They are built on the SN95 platform. However, they are the last 2 years with the 5.0L. 96 on up had the 4.6. 93 was the last year for the Fox platform for the Mustang. Tbirds and Cougars moved to the MN12 platform in '89.
Not tryin to come off as an a-hole, just straightening some things out
Thanks for telling me on the SN95 thing. I wasn't sure when that started, so guessed it was when they dropped to the (modular?) 4.6 V8.
The mpg's are just okay for the mustangs, the T-Birds get better mileage due to different gearing. And I'm gonna tell you right now you didn't use 12 gallons for 127 miles. That comes out to be 10.5 miles per gallon, AKA you put ole' leadfoot back there in the Cherokee SRT-8 to shame
I love them T-birds too! I've looked at them, but I'm just more a Mustang guy
127 miles each way, is what I meant. Thats 254 miles round trip. Sorry for the mix up.
As far as I know, Tbirds and Stangs came with the same gears; the rear end ratios were probably different since most Tbirds came with 2.73s, like mine. However, I've changed mine to 3.27s, which is what Mustangs normally had. I've heard that Stangs get a little better mileage due to the weight difference; I'm sure theres no big difference though. It's also worthy to note that I got BETTER gas mileage after I put the Mustang H/C/I in. 75 more hp, 45 more ftlbs, and better gas mileage? Sign me up!
The thing I love about my Tbird is that even though it's mechanically identical to the Mustang, it's never viewed as a threat on the street or at the track like the Mustang is. It's got a whole sleeper effect goin, and I love that. That's why I've left my exterior stock lookin.
With that you're gettin' 21 mpg. The rear end comes out being the Final Drive Ratio, right? I'm sure Mustangs got better fuel economy because of the weight difference and those gears. Getting more power and horsepower? No brainer!
EPA stuff
'88 5.0 T-bird 16/24
'88 5.0 Mustang 15/22
That's interesting...I was wrong. I guess the longer gears do help the stock T-Bird. But with what you've done it looks like you are equaling the Stang, so moot point.
Either way, sweet car! And I'm liking your video. Too bad your rice hunting didn't go as well as you thought
That vid was taken before I had the rear gears changed, so those 2.73s were really bogging it down.
13 year old on helium? I wouldn't go that far. Maybe a 14 year oldAlso note that I have the AOD transmission, which has a really nice overdrive. That's a huge mpg saver, and minimizes the mpg decrease due to rear end gear change.
Yep, my first long term goal with the car was to bring it to pretty much Mustang spec and enjoy it for a year or two. Now that's complete, and it's time to move into phase 2 of my long term goal...low 13s hehe.
Haha, glad you like the video. Well keep watching, our patience pays off in the end...and I talk like a 13 year old on helium.
Again, no.
I looked at a 92 GT too, but it had some body damage so that was a nono....
I wouldn't trust the person driving that.
