You know that it’s about time to let a car go when the rust is so bad that the door won’t close when you are sitting in the seat. But in some cases, it can be very hard to admit that it’s time to end the suffering of a beater, especially when it’d be a damn good car if it wasn’t for the tin worm infestation. Luke, a.k.a. Thunderhead289, recently had to make the decision to finally put down the “Rotstang”, a 1984 Mustang that might have been one of the rare dealer package Dominator GTs, if the fender badging is any indication. It may not be either, and really that doesn’t matter. What matters is what the Rotstang stood for in it’s last years of life. I’ve often brought up the 1973 Mercury Comet that I learned to drive sideways in as a youth and have mentioned a “beater Ford” build numerous times when talking about Mustang IIs and Mavericks for this reason. A couple of years ago, I nearly made a play on a 1989 Ford Mustang to start a thrasher build, which didn’t happen when the owner of the car decided that there was too much good stuff left on a car that’d been sitting for years to let go. Ah, well…maybe later on down the road.

The Rotstang wasn’t just thrashed on for the hell of it, either. It was taken rallycrossing and did Power Tour in 2017 in addition to taking just about every ounce of abuse thrown at it. It autocrossed against cars ten times as nice as it was and did well for itself. Truth be told, if it wasn’t for the terminal rot, the car was worthy of a visual restoration and some speed parts. But nothing lasts forever and sooner or later, the Swiss cheese Fox had to find the end of the road. Some will wonder why beat on a car like this and will say that it’s only done to destroy. Here’s our take: the Rotstang, much like the Caddy limo, has crossed a threshold where saving it isn’t worth the expenditure. Instead, they have died with their boots on, and there is no shame in that whatsoever.

I hope he kept the running gear. We can find him a roller Fox body for a few hundred bucks…