Editor's Note:
When Jarret contacted us about his Mustang, he mentioned that if we were to run it, that he'd really like to write the story himself. After having put him through one of the most rigorous grammar and spelling tests known to man, with Jarret living through the ordeal, we thought, why not? So here's Jarret's story about his 1985 Mustang - drum roll please...
Jarret Ralton’s 1985 Mustang GT
I searched for a very a long time to find the "four eyed" Mustang I now own. The '85 Mustang's styling still reflects the era when the modified Fox bodied craze started. Recently, I bought my first home and I finally have a garage! With this newly acquired workspace, I will be improving the performance as much as I can, however, I love the '80s styling so I'm adamant on retaining the car's current look, which, is almost, factory stock.
My journey into the world of four-eyed Mustangs began in early in 2000. Back then, I was living right outside New York City and my everyday beater was a high mileage Mercury Capri. While this cat was parked on the street, it was broken into twice, constantly got scratched and the infamous potholes of New York's urban jungle took its toll on the chassis and suspension. Still, the 5.0 Mercury proved to be a great car. It was reliable and I loved it, but my life would soon be changing. I was making the move from bachelor pad to shacking up with my then girlfriend (now wife). Because of the type of apartment, moving meant selling the Capri and taking the train to work instead. So with the money I got from the sale and now being able to save on gas and tolls, I set out to find a nicer Fox chassis machine to use just on the weekends. Even though I didn't need a car, I convinced my girlfriend that I had to do this. She understood my passion for cars and knew that I had to have a Mustang.
Like many other Stang nuts, I ideally wanted the mother of all Foxes, a notchback. For the money I was going to spend, it couldn't be some backyard project either. It had to be moderately optioned, 5 speed, low mileage, unmolested... and if that criteria wasn't enough, it had to be owned by an adult. So after several months, I of course was unsuccessful in this hunt, but one day, came across an '85 GT in the local classifieds. The second owner was claiming it had 31k original miles and an extensive list of modifications. The mileage on the car was intriguing, but the add-on's made me wary of its true condition. Regardless, I loved the early '80s carbureted Stangs, and the guy didn't sound like some punk kid, so I felt, this was one pony worth checking out.