1987 Ford Mustang GT Starts Up for the First Time in 25 Years, Well Worth the Effort

You may wonder how on Earth did someone "forget" about his car for two and a half decades? That question can have a lot of different answers, as life isn't always going to unfold the way you hoped it would.

The bottom line is that this 1987 Ford Mustang GT Targa Top has been rotting away for all that time, waiting to be rescued. The young man who decided to take on the task is admittedly a glutton for punishment, as he is aware of the implications. The T-top roof option for the hatchback was discontinued in 1988, which should add to the special factor of this car.

With this being a "5.0" version, it should deliver about 225 horsepower and 300 lb-ft (406 Nm) of torque if it starts up. Of course, you can't just fire up an engine after so many years. There are plenty of procedures to follow if you don't want to spend any more money on an engine swap.

Draining and replacing all the fluids is a must, although it's not going to be a pleasant operation. In fact, with a car this old, you should expect to get dirty by the end of the day. Just make sure you don't make a mess of your driveway or, in this case, the parking lot where the operation is being carried out.

But that's what you should expect if you're going to pay $2,500 for a classic car like this. Buying one that is in running order can set you back $30,000 or more, so you might be able to save some cash if you can work on it yourself. Overall, the project looks promising, even though this has been driven for 143,000 miles (230,136 km).

It takes the guys at LegitStreetCars quite a bit until they manage to start it up, and you can learn a thing or two by watching them at work. If you're going to replicate this with a car you've found sitting around for years, try not to burn it down in the process.