I understand ... believe me besides That 6 grand limit It makes folks be a bit focused about what is really most important to them Nobody wants to hear what I'd do cause I done did strange stuff like: Spend $1400 on tuning equipment to find a handful of hp on a simple ported E7 combo or Run an RPM upper on a Street Car when everybody else was running Performers, Street Heats, and Cobra intakes or Put together an AFR, FTI, Edel combo and run oem tb, maf, catback, & full emissions equip with it Plenty of examples to show my plans are not always popular Grady
doing a lot of this trying to get my turbo installed. going through the usual range of emotions from: this is gonna be awsome--man this isn't as easy at it looked--what the ****--i'm gonna sell my stang--oh its all right, i really like my car. i've come to the conclusion that i am an all motor guy
The plan A daily-driven, automagic convertible that is built strong and built in such a way that you stay ahead of parts breaking. Because let's face it, a car that always breaks because of too much power is just not fun. I'd rather have a slower car that I can happily flog the **** out of than a fast car that I am scared to nail the throttle. The ultimate goal for this car is high 12s (remember, daily-driven automatic convertible -- one your mom can drive -- not a race car). The parts below get you well on your way and set you up for adding power without fear - I will know for sure shortly, I'll be installing the S-trim onto nearly this exact combo when I find a free weekend. The canvas Buy a clean GT for $5,000. Props to you and go for it if you can find a Cobra - just swap automatic parts below for a built manual. Start off with as nice of a car as you can afford. Don't get a crappy car and think you will fix it up to better than new having never attempted something like that. That is stuff you see on TV. Start with something great, you'll save yourself a TON of headaches and $$$. Again, don't settle. I looked for a bit over a YEAR to find the car I currently have. It was well worth it. I'd do it again. I tried to be very generous on the pricing below and tried to include the little things that never get mentioned in the prices -- things like gaskets, shipping etc -- you can find things much cheaper if you do a little searching on the classifieds/eBay and get non-wear items used. Tuneup/Routine Maintenance - $350 Seafoam Autolite 25 Plugs @ 0.055 Air filter PCV/Screen MSD Cap/Rotor Taylor Wires - $50 Fuel Filter Clean MAF Timing to 14* Lose 25lb weight, air silencer 255 LPH fuel pump - $125 180 degree thermostat Professional Products Balancer/spacer - $100 Tuning - $550 twEECer - $550 Learning how to work the thing - PRICELESS Suspension/Handling - $595 MM Full-length Subframes - $100 Subframe install - $100 Front Cobra Brakes/rotors/ss lines - $375 Brake fluid - $20 Exhaust - $700 Mac LT, Prochamber, Produmps - $700 - MAC Seller on Corral Classifieds Tranny - $1,700 Upgraded 4R70W (jmod it yourself) - $1,000 Tranny cooler, lines and misc - $100 Mercon V - $100 3k-ish stall Edge Convertor - $500 Tires - $550 2x Nitto 555R 275/40/17 - $300 Sumitmo HTRZII+ 245/45/17 front - $200 Mounting/balancing 4 tires - $50Differential/Axles - $1,025 Dallas Mustng Speedcal - $105 Cobra 31-spline Differential - $250 Superior 31 Spline Axles - $300 Gears (4.10) - $150 Gear Install Labor/misc - $300 Royal Purple Gear Lube - $25 Beyond $6k... Vortech S-trim + misc - $3,500 TF Street Heat Kit + misc - $3,000 Bullit Suspension - $600 Rebuild to 347 - $3,000
I didn't forget the brakes but my car is a cobra. All though they are not the absolute best brakes they're better than GT brakes. I did forget subframe connectors though.
HEhe, we are with yu man. It'll be ROCKIN when you get it going but that is the reason I went BIG n/a.
I'd do the sig combo again today as I did back in 2002 with Minor changes like more aggressive gears and cam Using the same Stang now as then ........ So ... the starting point I'd be working with would be ........ 95 GT t-5 trans 40K miles no mods of any kind I did it back then for less than 6K but I did try and update the prices to get more close to todays prices. Some might be a bit high and some a bit low. I listed all main parts, supporting parts, and even the minor ones but I did not include prices for gaskets, fluids, and the like Feel free to ask why or Tell me I'm crazy but I think its the most bang for the buck considering The focus is on after market parts on a NA combo and Having total control with the self tuning equipment No labor involved as I do my own wrench turning I picked the order of mods based upon things like ........... Gears first for big gain so I'd not easily get frustrated while saving Having the tuning equipment early in the plan ......... allows me to learn while saving Not tearing down the motor numerous times doing single mods at a time saves on buying gaskets, fluids and the like more than once. Saving small gain mods until last for a quicker time frame to have the money available for large/expensive mods like heads, etc sooner. The chart lays it all out I guess Grady
