Mustang Round Up highlight – C1987 GT fastback

The 2024 Mustang Round Up celebrated the 60th birthday of Ford’s famous pony car, as well as the 50th birthday of the host club, the Victorian chapter of the Mustang Owner’s Club of Australia (MOCA Vic). This double celebration made what’s already a special day for Mustang owners and enthusiasts extra special.

Held at the Dandenong Showgrounds on Sunday, 27 October, the 2024 Round Up saw more than 370 Mustangs attend – from the oldest to the newest – including examples of rarely seen generations, like the Fox Body (Gen 3) cars that were on the market from 1979 to 1993.

From launch, the Fox Body was available as a base coupe and hatchback (fastback), with a plusher Ghia variant for both body styles. An Indy Pace Car replica hatchback was also available in 1979, along with a ‘Sport’ package and ‘Cobra’ package that featured a tuned exhaust, firmer suspension and several cosmetic enhancements. 

In 1982, after an absence of more than a decade, Ford brought a GT back to the Mustang range. This replaced the Cobra package and initially came as a hatchback only, with a ‘High Output’ version of the previously offered 5.0-litre (actually 4.9-litre) V8 as standard. Changes to the internals and a larger carburettor resulted in 117kW from the 5.0 HO, compared to 104kW in untuned form.

A four-speed manual with overdrive was the standard transmission for the GT, with the spec also including a Traction-Lok LSD, ‘handling’ suspension, power steering, power brakes, cosmetic changes and a restricted colour palette. At US$8,397, the GT’s list price was almost US$1,300 more than the next most expensive Mustang in 1982.

From 1983, the GT was also available as a convertible, with a ‘Turbo GT’ introduced that used a turbocharged version of the 2.3-litre four-cylinder engine offered in base Mustangs.

The Turbo GT was dopped after 1985, but the V8 GT soldiered on, gradually increasing in power until, by 1987, it was producing 168kW. In the same year, the GT adopted the aerodynamic front-end styling first seen on the Mustang SVO, as well as redesigned tail lights, a new-look interior and new wheels.

The ‘titanium’ lower body treatment seen on the GT featured is a factory option that was also available on the base Mustang LX coupe and convertible at the time.

Along with its model year (somewhere between 1987 and 1993), the history of this car is unknown, but it appears to be ex-California and was a member of the 1982-1993 Mustang GT Registry in the USA. 

To see JUST CARS’ report from the 2024 Mustang Round Up, click HERE.