1980 FORD FAIRMONT WAGON - “DESPAIRMONT”
In early 2023, I bought a 1981 Mercury Zephyr Wagon sight-unseen and drove it from Portland, OR to Yakima, WA and ultimately back to central Ohio. Although that car left a lot to the imagination, I learned just how awesome the Fox-platform cars really are. About a month after the trip, my buddy Derek sent me a message jokingly asking if I wanted another wagon… only this time the Zephyr’s less-refined, mullet-wearing, identical-twin-brother: Ford Fairmont.
There was one issue (okay, maybe two); Derek lives in Yakima, WA and the Fairmont lived about 20 minutes from him… or about FORTY HOURS from me. And it didn’t run and hadn’t for quite some time.
Our plan was to send the Fairmont’s new drivetrain across the country, swap it in three days and drive it 40 hours home with a fresh V8 swap. Seems easy enough, right?
We quickly put together a plan that seemed easy on paper, at least… since this wagon is basically a Foxbody mustang, let’s treat it like one. Of course, that starts with a H.O. 5.0 V8 engine — or in this case a dingleball-rebuilt ‘94 F-150 long block with a H.O. camshaft, carb intake, the wrong Holley carburetor and the cheapest HEI distributor JEGS sells. Amongst other things like an SN95 5.0 accessory drive, 3.8 ‘New Edge’ T5 converted to Fox-fitment with an eBay input shaft and original Fox bell housing and a super cheap set of JEGS long-tube headers.
