PERSONAL SATISFACTION

JASEN RAMSEY SHOWS US THE FORMULA FOR THE PERFECT FOX RESTOMOD

- BARRY KLUCZYK

If you talk to any Fox-body fan, the car they're driving is almost certainly not their first of the infinitely adaptable platform. Born in the late '70s and driving its way into the 21st century, the Fox platform has had many return customers who have owned many over the years—and often have more than one in their garage. Jasen Ramsey is typical of the breed. He's a Gen Xer who was introduced to Fox Fords at an early age and has been sinking his time and money into them from pretty much the moment he could hold a driver's license and wrench at the same time. He's owned five Foxes so far, and yes, his garage houses three of them at the moment.

One is a very rare 1986 ASC McLaren Coupe. Only 115 of the Mercury Capri-based performance models were produced for the year, and it's that rarity that kept Jasen from tearing into the car. “Fox bodies are great, but they're even better with some more power,” he says. “The stock 200 horsepower just doesn't cut it any longer.”

With that ASC Coupe and its tepid 5.0-liter securely preserved in stock condition, Jasen searched for another Capri to scratch that performance itch. He found it in a Midwestern barn. That's where a 1983 Capri RS 5.0 had languished in storage for decades. Its owner had died, and his family was liquidating a collection of about half a dozen cars. The Capri got there when the owner moved in the '80s from Southern California to rural Minnesota. Once there, the car rolled into the barn and stayed, not seeing the light of day again for more than 35 years. The dust was thick, and it didn't run, but Jasen saw through that to the raw and rustfree material at its core.