““We instantly hit it off talking cars to the point of me having to step away because I’ll end up keeping him from other customers””
If you’re a car guy/gal the one thing that always becomes this stress point is when you have to take your beloved to have it serviced. Much of what I’ve learned to accomplish as a mechanic is a result of me not wanting Johnny Joe Doe’s shop working on my pride and joy. At this point I can do most everything BUT mount and balance a tire. I’m sure most of those reading this are the same way unless you’re a mechanic with access to that machine at a shop or a friends shop.
The process of finding a trustworthy shop is almost like an interview. You’re polling your pool of friends asking about their experiences or where they recommend. THEN when you get to said shop suggested by others you start asking open ended questions knowing the proper answer to said questions to “interview” the trustworthiness of both front desk staff and technicians. Ultimately you’d find that guy/gal you connect with that is most likely another car guy/gal. Once you find that person you trust it’s a comforting feeling when you drop off your baby.
The above story is how I met the owner of this fine fox. Sean became a part of a local shop where I buy all my tires a few years ago. We instantly hit it off talking cars to the point of me having to step away because I’ll end up keeping him from other customers. We are both Fox Mustang owners and he’s been through the ringer like me owning them. So it is easy for us to get sidetracked when I take my daily driver in for tire service.
His car is an 89 convertible. He had fallen into the Fox arena when he traded his custom F150 for an 88 GT. His family was growing and he needed something to let his kids ride in and enjoy with him and his wife. The 88 GT wasn’t the fairest of trades and he eventually let go of it. This 89 showed up on craigslist and it was local to him. The car was all stock minus an H pipe, lowering springs, subframes, gears, and pony wheels. Sean comments that the previous owner didn’t even open the hood and was unaware that the fan clutch was locked up. You can take that either way but that would tell someone like me that the car was dead stone reliable. This 89 was a weekend cruiser and was well cared for along with always being a southern car.
Sean has owned the car about 10 years or so and as any project goes it has evolved in that time. He upgraded the interior… twice. The first round of material didn’t like the sun and faded. I think we’ve all been there and done that with something on our cars. Since owning it he’s also added caster camber plates, upgraded the cooling system, cold air intake, 70mm throttle body and EGR, a phenolic intake spacer, B 303 cam, and a chip to tune it. Let’s not forget the body color matching cobra R wheels too. Those give the car that sinister look along with the color matched calipers and drilled/slotted rotors. The car sounds healthy but Sean does comment that it needs to breathe more on the intake side.
We chatted at length about that during the photo shoot. There are some other details that the pictures speak to which are very subtle touches. These are ones you notice on a second trip around the car.
Meeting Sean is a testament to the bond created through cars. I’ve always said that the friendships are more important than the cars. The cars are just the conduit that brings us all together. I’m actually taking my daily driver to Sean this week to have the tires rotated and balanced. If you’re visiting his shop, I’ll do my best to let him take care of customers between conversations, so you’re not delayed. ;)
Until next time... Keep it Foxy Baby! – Peace, BG