By Dan Strohl

Hemmings

Of all the special edition Mustangs that Ford has been trotting out in the last several years and that recall earlier Mustang variants (California Special, Boss 302, all the Shelbys), I don’t think Ford’s ever going to come up with another SVO-type Mustang, even with all the talk nowadays of installing smaller turbocharged engines in place of larger naturally aspirated engines. So will that make the existing Mustang SVOs, such as this 1986 Ford Mustang SVO for sale on Hemmings.com, more desirable? From the seller’s description:

1986 Ford Mustang SVO 86, black ext, grey int., RARE car Comp, prep, 83 made. 39000 km, canadian one, very nice, new tire, origninal car.

By Jim Brennan

UDMan

Welcome to the year end wrap-up of the Obscure Muscle Car Parking Lot. If you recall, this series was all about uncovering obscure makes, and redefining what a Muscle Car could be. We have discovered that Muscle originated during the 1950s, blossomed during the 1960s, and continued on through the 70s and 80s in a somewhat de-tuned state only to find a re-birth we are enjoying today. My focus was not to highlight the already established Muscle Cars like the Chevelle SS, the Pontiac GTO, or the Hemi Chryslers, but to find hidden gems that you may not have known about.

So during this week, it is now up to you, the Car Domain reader, to vote on your favorites. There will be specific categories, like today’s example, the 1980′s, when Muscle Re-emerged. In the end, sometime after the New Years Holiday, there will be one car crowned as your favorite Obscure Muscle Car, and park it in the Parking Lot, with a few CarDomain Members rides highlighted.

So what are your favorite Obscure Muscle Cars from the Regan Era?
- The 1986 Pontiac Grand Prix 2+2, an Aerodynamic Coupe produced to dominate the NASCAR high speed tracks.
- The 1983-84 Ford LTD LX, a Mustang 5.0 with four doors!
- The 1984-86 Ford Mustang SVO, a new wave performance car
- The 1984-88 Ford Thunderbird Turbo Coupe, with a screaming four cylinder Turbocharged engine.
- The 1984-90 Lincoln Mark VII LSC, the return of the Hot Rod Lincoln!
- The 1986 Buick LeSabre Grand National, the OTHER, somewhat tamer Grand National.

By Jim Brennan

UDMan

Welcome to the CarDomain Obscure Muscle Car Parking Lot, a regular feature which aims to expand the notion of what a muscle car is, and to throw all conventional thinking out the window while we’re at it. This time, instead of highlighting one obscure piece of muscle, I thought it was time to review a new type of muscular performance car, offered in three distinct flavors, all from the Ford Motor Company during the 80s. Instead of using V8 power, these cars were equipped with a snorting, growling, turbocharged 4 cylinder engine, with outstanding handling, and monochromatic good looks. Let’s look at Ford’s attempt to re-invent the muscle car, with the Ford Mustang SVO, the Ford Thunderbird Turbo Coupe, and the Merkur XR4Ti.

Continue reading after the jump!

Continue reading "CarDomain Obscure Muscle Car Parking Lot: Ford Turbo Coupes, Mustang SVO, T-Bird Turbo and Merkur XR4Ti" »