The Fox-body Mustang appeared in September 1978, and it represented a radical departure from the outgoing Mustang II, both above and below the skin. This third-generation platform would soldier on for the next 14 years, becoming a popular and beloved Mustang variant with tuners, racers, and consumers alike.
Work on what would become the Fox platform began even before the launch of the Mustang II for the 1974 model year. Looking to streamline production (and hence, cut costs) in factories across the globe, Ford’s goal was to create a common platform capable of underpinning a variety of vehicles, from sports cars to sedans, equipped with a range of powertrains. The first Fox-platform vehicles—the Ford Fairmont and the Mercury Zephyr—arrived in United States dealerships for the 1978 model year, with the Fox-body Mustang following one year later.
These illustrations from Ford dated February 24, 1976, show some early renderings of the “Fox” Mustang. They display proportions similar to the final car, though with significantly more elaborate detailing and side intakes.
The third-generation Mustang may have carried a similar squared-off appearance to the Fairmont and Zephyr, too, had it not been for the return of designer Jack Telnack to Ford North America. Fresh from a stint in Europe, Telnack brought with him Continental design sensibilities that helped to refine the Fox-body Mustang’s shape. Its low beltline gave it something of a Euro look, while its angled nose and raked windshield helped to reduce drag—enhancing fuel economy. When the third-generation Mustang debuted in 1979, the coefficient of drag was just 0.44 for the fastback and 0.46 for the notchback, making it among the most streamlined designs of its day.
Compared to the outgoing Mustang II, the Fox Mustang rode on a longer wheelbase—stretched from 96.2 inches to 100.4 inches—and measured 179.1 inches in length, 4.1 inches more than the car it replaced. Inside, this translated to a claimed 20-percent increase in interior space, yet changes in material and construction meant that the new Mustang still weighed roughly 200 pounds less than its predecessor.
This winning notchback design theme features the profile that would make it to production two years later. After hours in the wind tunnel, a bottom-breather air-inlet was added below the bumper and most of the eggcrate grille was blocked off for reduced aerodynamic drag.
The tailamps were just one of many areas where the third-generation Mustang deviated from tradition. Rather than three light elements used on previous Mustangs, a more contemporary grid pattern was used. The final production design tweaked this styling with narrower lamps that didn’t extend all the way to the license plate pocket.
Under the skin, the Fox-body Mustang received a new MacPherson strut front suspension, combined with a new four-link rear suspension that retained the traditional live axle, but did away with leaf springs in favor of coil springs. Engine choices mostly carried over from the Mustang II, including the 2.3-liter four-cylinder (rated at 88 horsepower), the 2.8-liter “Cologne” V-6 (built in Cologne, Germany, and rated at 90 horsepower), and the 5.0-liter V-8 (rated at 140 horsepower, one more than in the Mustang II), but two other choices joined the lineup by midyear.
When supply shortages disrupted deliveries of the 2.8-liter V-6, Ford substituted a 3.3-liter inline six, rated at 85 horsepower, instead. The big news came with Ford’s high-performance engine for the first Fox-body Mustangs: a turbocharged 2.3-liter four-cylinder, rated at 131 horsepower and billed as “the engine of the future.”
This full-scale mockup from 1975 carries over some Mustang II front-end styling elements in a squared-off, more formal body treatment that would appear on the Ford Fairmont Futura sports coupe.
This was the lone wagonback concept of the bunch. Designers were looking at every possibility for the Mustang, including making it even more practical for small families.
The redesign proved beneficial to Mustang sales. By 1977, its penultimate year on the market, the Mustang II had dropped to 153,173 units sold, and in 1978, the car’s final year, sales climbed to 192,410 units, perhaps based upon the unknowns surrounding the third-generation Mustang. In 1979, the Fox body’s first year on the market, sales reached 369,936 units, exceeding Ford’s own projections of 330,000 units. Its selection as the pace car for the 63rd Indianapolis 500 certainly helped its popularity, as did the broad range of Mustangs available, from the affordable base model to the performance-themed Cobra, which came standard with the forced-induction four (but could still be ordered with the V-8).
For performance-hungry Mustang shoppers, the Fox-body’s sophom*ore year was a disappointment. To reach Corporate Average Fuel Economy targets, Ford dropped the 5.0-liter V-8 from the Mustang’s 1980 lineup, offering the 4.2-liter V-8 (with its ground-shaking 119-hp output) in its place. The 2.3-liter turbo engine carried over as the performance option, but buyers were wary of this “new” technology and the problems associated with it. Complaints ranged from turbo lag to premature turbocharger failure resulting from insufficient lubrication to the compressor. The idea of letting a turbocharged engine cool at idle before shutting off was foreign to U.S. buyers, and perhaps even to Ford dealers selling the cars.
Although a bit plain, this model shows a front-end treatment using four sealed beam headlamps. Also of note, the return of the horse-head Mustang logo that had been considered in 1963 for the original Mustang.
This notchback proposal features a much more muscular treatment for the hood and front end reminiscent of earlier GT350 and GT500 cars. The slantback front end and rear quarter window treatment are also beginning to take shape here.
In 1981, the turbo four was pulled from the car’s lineup, leaving buyers to choose from the normally aspirated four, the 3.3-liter inline six, or the 4.2-liter V-8, which had dropped in rated output to 115 hp. A stalled U.S. economy didn’t help sales, either, and in 1981 Ford sold just 182,552 Mustangs, less than half the quantity it moved in the third-gen car’s first year on the market. The big news for 1982 was the introduction of the GT, which replaced the Cobra as the top performance model in the lineup and came with a 5.0-liter, high-output V-8 rated at 157 hp. Despite this, the year brought more bad news for Ford, as just 130,418 Mustangs went home with buyers in 1982.
For 1983, the big news was twofold: First, a convertible version of the Mustang hit the market for the first time since 1973, and second, the high-output 5.0-liter V-8 received a four-barrel Holley carburetor, bumping output to 175 hp. Mustang convertibles—built by Cars & Concepts in Brighton, Michigan—proved to be popular with buyers, who purchased 23,438 examples, the highest number of Mustang convertibles sold since 1968. For those seeking performance with less weight over the front wheels, an improved, turbocharged 2.3-liter four, rated at 145 hp, returned to the mix. Ford was doing what it could to lure prospective buyers, but overall sales fell even further, to 120,873 units, marking the then-lowest point in the model’s history.
The base 1979 Mustang two-door coupe had the entry-level powerplant, the 2.3-liter four paired with a four-speed manual transmission. This example has the Sport Option with blacked-out trim and body moldings as well as 14-inch styled steel wheels with trim rings.
A convertible joined the Mustang lineup in 1983.
The Fox-body Mustang’s sales turnaround began in 1984, aided by a dizzying array of models on the showroom floor. Not counting trim levels, buyers could choose from one of six different engines, including the 88-hp, 2.3-liter four; the 120-hp, 3.8-liter V-6; the 145-hp, turbocharged 2.3-liter four (available in Turbo GT models); the 165-hp, CFI 5.0-liter H.O. V-8 (standard with the automatic transmission GT); the 175-hp, turbocharged and intercooled 2.3-liter four (available in the Mustang SVO); and the 175-hp, high-output 5.0-liter V-8. One special model, available only in GT trim, commemorated the Mustang’s 20th anniversary, and, over the course of the model year, Mustang sales climbed to 141,480 units.
Ford consolidated Mustang offerings for 1985, dropping the unpopular Turbo GT. The 5.0-liter high-output V-8, available only with a manual transmission, increased to 210 hp, and the four-cylinder turbo SVO model climbed to 205 hp. Sales grew to 156,514 units and, in 1986, climbed again to 224,410 units, despite few modifications across the lineup. The 1986 high-output 5.0-liter engine received sequential-port electronic fuel injection, as well as a true dual exhaust (instead of a single catalyst feeding two mufflers and exhausts), but a change in heads for emission purposes lowered output to an even 200 hp.
The 1986 SVO was the last of that sophisticated variant’s run. Its turbocharged 2.3 four-cylinder engine was rated at 200 horsepower that year, and a federally mandated third brake light was added.
For 1987, the GT was given an aero front-end treatment and ground-effects styling with faux air scoops. Striking 16-spoke cast aluminum wheels were also part of the package, shod with 225/60VR-15 tires.
The 1987 model year brought with it a significant restyling, as well as a shuffling of the model lineup. Gone were the SVO and the V-6, leaving just the 2.3-liter four (now fuel injected and rated at 90 hp) and the 5.0-liter V-8, producing an enthusiast-satisfying 225 hp with either a manual or automatic transmission. The reduction in offerings was, perhaps, the beginning of Ford’s long-term strategy to do away with the Mustang and replace it with a fuel-efficient front-wheel-drive coupe (which would debut in 1989 as the Probe), and sales fell to 159,145 cars. They’d rebound again in 1988, reaching 211,225 Mustangs sold, the high point for the remainder of the Fox-body years.
Ultimately, the Mustang wasn’t eliminated, thanks largely to an outpouring of support from model fans. The Fox-body Mustang soldiered on with few major changes through the 1993 model year, and as a send-off to its longest-produced version, Ford’s Special Vehicle Team (SVT) created a fitting high-performance model: the 1993 Mustang SVT Cobra. With a unique V-8 rated at 235 horsepower, four-wheel disc brakes, a revised suspension, and turbine-style wheels shod with 245/45ZR-17 tires, the SVT Cobra was the highest-performance Fox-body Mustang ever offered by Ford—at least until the track-focused Cobra R (with less content for lighter weight, bigger brakes, and adjustable dampers) was announced.
The lower-cost 5.0 LX was (and is) popular with the performance set, particularly the notchback, which was slightly lighter than the hatchback. Pictured here is a 5.0 LX hatch in Bright Red.
The last model year for the original Fox Mustang was 1993. It was little changed from the previous year, though the 5.0’s rating dropped to 205 hp and an 80-watt compact disc player was optional.
The fourth-generation Mustang (often referred to as the SN-95) arrived for the 1994 model year, built atop the Fox-4 platform. Ford wasted no time in highlighting the difference between the third- and fourth-generation cars, pointing out that 1,330 of the 1,850 parts needed to build the SN-95 were new. Still, the fourth-generation cars retained their ties to the Fox platform, which further underpinned Ford’s Thunderbird, LTD, Granada, and Fairmont; Mercury’s Zephyr, Capri, and Marquis; and Lincoln’s Continental and Mark VII models of the period.
