i hope the look of the frs doesn't change too much throughout the years...

[White Shadow]

Originally Posted by ashtray

Big Mid-cycle refreshes:
3rd Gen Mustangs. '79-'93?
C3 and C4 Corvettes.
WRX changed front end a few times.
Acura TL reduced "the beak" but still looks ugly
Aztek did a facelift after the first year.
Civic is supposed to get an early mid cycle refreshening.

The '79 - '93 Mustangs are all know as "fox body" Mustangs. In '79, they have the "four eyes" look that remained until 1987, when the freshened Mustang GT got a styling refresh that looked sorta European, for lack of a better description. But you also have to keep in mind that the Mustang remained virtually unchanged from 1987 all the way until 1993, which was the end of the fox body run. I actually owned two fox body Mustangs and I really liked them both. I don't think I'd call the change from 1986 to 1987 a typical mid-cycle refresh simply because we're talking about a span of 14 years for the entire generation of cars.

BTW, Ford was strongly considering ending the Mustang as we know it in the late 80s. They were going to make a completely new Mustang that was front wheel drive and had no V8 engine available. When word got out, lots of people protested and sent letters to Ford begging them to keep the Mustang a RWD car with a V8 engine. Ford listened to the people and decided to keep the Mustang as it was, which is why the Mustang went unchanged from 1987 all the way until 1993. And a lot of people don't realize this, but the car that was supposed to be the new Mustang was too far along in development to be canceled. So Ford named it the Probe and started selling it in 1989.

[ashtray]

I think the fox body Mustang had lots of "refreshes" along the ways. Changes in hp, engines available, SVO, convertible, hatch, and notchback. If the FRS went through changes as often as the Mustang did, you'd have a lot of surprised people. Then again, most cars don't stick around for 14 years - though the C3 was around nearly as long. C4 was around for a while too.