Well, here I am! My name's John, and I live in upstate NY. I just bought a '94 Mustang GT roller, and I just sold my '92 Camaro roller... The Mustang is just a better all around car to mess with! Better looking, stronger rear axle, more comfortable to drive, and well, to be frank, I'm planning something that hasn't been done yet (Not that I'm aware of, anyway.)
I have a 383 LT1 engine, brand new, built with about 550 horsepower in mind... Let's say a conservative 425 at the wheels, through the T56. I had it in my Camaro, with a stock 350ci bottom end, and spun the motor apart and rebuilt it with all forged goodies, but decided to sell the car, because I felt like building something a bit more unique.
The LT1/T56 are going into the Mustang. That's happening, and no, I'm not doing an LS motor / 408W / Big block ford / BBC / coyote / 302W etc... There are plenty of awesome engine platforms to mess with, but I have a garage full of parts for what I have, including standalone ECU, plenty of optispark parts (which I may need), accessories, etc...
My roller so far includes Hotchkis rear upper and lower control arms, a TREX pump (Car had a Vortec blown 331 in it before I got it), H&R springs, Bilstein shocks, bolt-in subframe connectors, 13" cobra brakes, 18" saleen wheels, Fluidyne radiator, and some other things I'm sure I'm forgetting...
The Cobra brakes were picked up by me recently from PA, along with a 2004 Mustang black dash that needs airbags.
I'll be getting an AJE tubular K-member with SBC mounts, Tubular Lower control arms to use my springs and struts (unless I decide to go coilover up front), Dynatech 79-04 SBC swap headers, a T56 crossmember, a Thunderbird turbocoupe pedal assembly to run the hydraulic clutch of my T56, probably fabbing up an X-pipe from one of those universal kits, a Qwik-stik shifter to relocate my shifter into the stock location (or close enough to it to maintain the factory look), a 2004 Mustang GT interior including dash, seats and carpet, a custom driveshaft, and lots of random parts...
The LT1 engine uses exhaust ports that are raised, so I might need to modify the headers a slight bit.
Once I dyno the car, I will upgrade the rear differential ratio according to expected trap speed in 4th gear. I'm thinking the car should go high 10s, at 125-130mph. A 3.90:1 gear should do fine, keep in mind the 2.66:1 first gear of my GM T56, and 6500 - 7000 RPM expected shift point.
My goal is to have a car capable of turning heads, occasional street use, strip use, going into the 10-second range at over 125mph, piss off some chevy and ford purists, a top speed of 175MPH, and have fun busting balls while spending time and money I'd otherwise piss away on worse things.
The big money is already spent (Motor, transmission, suspension, the car itself). I am also looking to spend under 5 grand completing this pile of blasphemy. I will use Craigslist at every opportunity to scrounge for used and usable parts. Figuring as follows:
K member: $300
Motor mounts: $80
Driveshaft: $200 (I know a guy)
Xmember: $200
Gears: $300
X pipe and mufflers: $400
Headers: $600
Tires: $1000 (Unless Craigslist comes through)
Clutch: $500
Turbocoupe pedals: $200
Fluidampr for my motor: $400
Tubular LCAs: $300
Shifter: $300
Misc. parts like fuel fittings, hoses, bolts, band-aids: $800
...and the parts I expect to sell, like the stock wheels, k-member, old interior, etc...
Well, I'm sure I'll get lots of hate for putting a Chevy motor into a Ford, but I think it'll be lots of fun to do the project, and even more fun to piss off the purists. Don't get me wrong, I like a proper Ford motor just the same as a proper Chevy, but why not turn the butthurt switch on!!!
I have a 383 LT1 engine, brand new, built with about 550 horsepower in mind... Let's say a conservative 425 at the wheels, through the T56. I had it in my Camaro, with a stock 350ci bottom end, and spun the motor apart and rebuilt it with all forged goodies, but decided to sell the car, because I felt like building something a bit more unique.
The LT1/T56 are going into the Mustang. That's happening, and no, I'm not doing an LS motor / 408W / Big block ford / BBC / coyote / 302W etc... There are plenty of awesome engine platforms to mess with, but I have a garage full of parts for what I have, including standalone ECU, plenty of optispark parts (which I may need), accessories, etc...
My roller so far includes Hotchkis rear upper and lower control arms, a TREX pump (Car had a Vortec blown 331 in it before I got it), H&R springs, Bilstein shocks, bolt-in subframe connectors, 13" cobra brakes, 18" saleen wheels, Fluidyne radiator, and some other things I'm sure I'm forgetting...
The Cobra brakes were picked up by me recently from PA, along with a 2004 Mustang black dash that needs airbags.
I'll be getting an AJE tubular K-member with SBC mounts, Tubular Lower control arms to use my springs and struts (unless I decide to go coilover up front), Dynatech 79-04 SBC swap headers, a T56 crossmember, a Thunderbird turbocoupe pedal assembly to run the hydraulic clutch of my T56, probably fabbing up an X-pipe from one of those universal kits, a Qwik-stik shifter to relocate my shifter into the stock location (or close enough to it to maintain the factory look), a 2004 Mustang GT interior including dash, seats and carpet, a custom driveshaft, and lots of random parts...
The LT1 engine uses exhaust ports that are raised, so I might need to modify the headers a slight bit.
Once I dyno the car, I will upgrade the rear differential ratio according to expected trap speed in 4th gear. I'm thinking the car should go high 10s, at 125-130mph. A 3.90:1 gear should do fine, keep in mind the 2.66:1 first gear of my GM T56, and 6500 - 7000 RPM expected shift point.
My goal is to have a car capable of turning heads, occasional street use, strip use, going into the 10-second range at over 125mph, piss off some chevy and ford purists, a top speed of 175MPH, and have fun busting balls while spending time and money I'd otherwise piss away on worse things.
The big money is already spent (Motor, transmission, suspension, the car itself). I am also looking to spend under 5 grand completing this pile of blasphemy. I will use Craigslist at every opportunity to scrounge for used and usable parts. Figuring as follows:
K member: $300
Motor mounts: $80
Driveshaft: $200 (I know a guy)
Xmember: $200
Gears: $300
X pipe and mufflers: $400
Headers: $600
Tires: $1000 (Unless Craigslist comes through)
Clutch: $500
Turbocoupe pedals: $200
Fluidampr for my motor: $400
Tubular LCAs: $300
Shifter: $300
Misc. parts like fuel fittings, hoses, bolts, band-aids: $800
...and the parts I expect to sell, like the stock wheels, k-member, old interior, etc...
Well, I'm sure I'll get lots of hate for putting a Chevy motor into a Ford, but I think it'll be lots of fun to do the project, and even more fun to piss off the purists. Don't get me wrong, I like a proper Ford motor just the same as a proper Chevy, but why not turn the butthurt switch on!!!