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My daughter found a 1979 Futura with low mileage that she is interested in. I do not remember ever hearing about them. I will leave it to her to research what is on the internet.
Do not know a lot about it except that it is a 2 door, 6 cyl. and her favorite color.
Any idea what kind of mileage they got?
Parts hard to find?
Safety a huge problem?
handling in snow?
On the plus side it looks in good shape. It is unique. It will not have all the mileage robbing emissions and safety equipment. It is reasonably roomy inside for lots of friends and has a big trunk for a college kids books junk and a couple of bodies.
The biggest negatives I see is finding parts, safety concerns, and handling in the snow.
The '79 would be a Fairmont Futura, not a Fairlane Futura (Fairlanes were primarily '60s models, unless you are in Australia). The Fairmont Futura is a Fox chassis car (same as the similar year mustangs), and reasonably simple compact coupes.
6 cyl and V8 models were available, and anything that can be done to a Fox era Mustang can be done to these.
They wil be as good in the snow as her tires permit. Safety? Gut a big brake kit and it'll stop decent (so long as you also get good tires). bUt it's got the crash protection of a '70s car, so don't expect it to be a cocoon (no airbags). I'd drive one, though.
It id defineilty the same as the first photo, but the sign on the car says Fairlane. I guess they are just incorrect.
Airbags are not a critical item to me. They are mostly added weight and added repair costs when they fail. We keep ours turned off on the passenger side most of the time. Many family members are short and airbags are dangerous to short people.
What I am worried about is some of the cars had bad designs that would dump the engine onto the drivers lap in even light accidents. I am not sure when they started designing in crumple zones and making the engine go underneath instead of through the driver. Some cars had seats that would collapse in an accident. Again not sure what years.
Wasn't the Fox series of Mustangs a bunch of POS? (PsOS)
On the plus side it looks in good shape. It is unique. It will not have all the mileage robbing emissions and safety equipment. It is reasonably roomy inside for lots of friends and has a big trunk for a college kids books junk and a couple of bodies. .
The 70's were a dismal time for autos. Horsepower ratings were all lies and mileage was not even considered.
Being a 79 it does have smog emission devices. Catalitic converter and air pump. Most of these old cars have had smog removed or tampered with and may fail smog checks in some states.
What I am worried about is some of the cars had bad designs that would dump the engine onto the drivers lap in even light accidents. I am not sure when they started designing in crumple zones and making the engine go underneath instead of through the driver. Some cars had seats that would collapse in an accident. Again not sure what years.
Not something I'd worry about with these. Seriously.
Quote:
Wasn't the Fox series of Mustangs a bunch of POS? (PsOS)
One of the biggest aftermarkets for speed and performance parts belongs to FOX Mustang fans. From improved braking to suspension modifications to engine modifications to interior and body upgrades. They are HUGELY popular cars for making fast and fun, and the Fairmonts benefit from being the same chassis, so you can do anything you want with them, cheaply and easily, as the pictures of the modified ones show. Body parts are a little harder to come by than for the immensely popular Mustangs, but not impossible.
i have had a few fairmonts over the years, 4, 6, and 8 cylinder engines, four doors sedans and a wagon. they all turned in decent fuel economy for what they were, the six and the V8 both turned in about 18-21 average, the four got about 21 city and about 27 hwy.
they were all solid reliable cars with decent comfort. as indicated just about everything that fits the fox body mustangs also fits the fairmonts, so parts are plentiful. the one drawback is that if you want larger front brakes, you need to pick up a set of 87-93 mustang V8 spindles, and swap to the same year front struts.
Fairmonts are good cars with decent room and are pretty reliable.. Id say its a good choice...
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