mustang newbie looking for feedback before purchase

krillr · Jan 5, 2013

hogasswild said:
Actually you'd be surprised how many other springs are simply re-branded Eibachs. It really depends on how low you want to go, what kind of handling you want. I wanted a very mild drop that didn't mess with the geometry too much. That's how I ended up with the Eibachs. Sportlines are another good option.

Hmm, good to know. I don't want to drop much, I don't like the look of a road-hugger, but a bit lower would be nice for handling I /think/.

hogasswild said:
I was very skeptical on the TB, but decided to buy one on sale over the Holidays. I haven't put my car back on the dyno, but I've noticed more power from 2-4000rpm which is what te 3.7 needs.

I'd love to know what you get off the dyno with the TB, for the sake of some hard data

hogasswild said:
I'm guessing you're looking for a boulevard cruiser. 20s look cool, but I don't think will handle or ride as well as 18s. I went with 19s which give you more of that aggressive look without sacrificing response. Also, you're basically replacing rubber with metal, so having a lot more unsprung weight to lug around hurts your acceleration.

That's a good point -- I'll have to keep researching wheels. I'm very big on a comfy ride and good handling, and if 20s are going to cut into that too much then nevermind... ;-)

hogasswild said:
Just keeping looking into it, there are volumes of info and ideas in here and other forums. If you can't find it, just ask. Chances are someone knows the answer or knows where it is, even if they might razz you for not finding it yourself.

Don't forget to take advantage of vendor forum discounts so you don't pay list prices on the web. Usually it's anywhere from 5-10% off their advertised prices.

I didn't know about the discounts, that's great to know

Thanks so much for all the info!

Boll58 · Jan 5, 2013

If you can find a car with the performance package, you get the better brakes, slightly lower suspension, bigger sway bars, and 19's.

If you go with the rear lower control arms and panhard get an upper control arm too. I did the lowers and still had wheel hop, upper control arm almost completely eliminated it.

Good luck with the build!

05Nlstang · Jan 6, 2013

Ok don't get me wrong I drove a v6 for awhile and loved it but damn id your looking to spend 50k get a new 5.0 with their six speed they will do better on gas then a geared and aggressively tuned v6 not to mention if you add a blower and it will have just as much power stock then that still gives you 10k+ to play with!!! And personally if you want something that turns heads you need a beastly exhaust note and don't get me wrong you can get a v6 to sound nice but it will never sound like a v8.......another thing to think about is that mod for mod the v8 will make more power!

Na306Fox · Jan 6, 2013

All that weight from the stereo system, huge wheels are going to kill your mpg dramatically. Your acceleration is going to suck hauling all that crap around (ask me how I know)

Honestly I'd just get a prem 5.0 GT with the 6spd do some mods and call it a day.

If you want a huge stereo, lambo doors, glass roof an what not, go buy a damn civic an stop ruining beautiful mustangs:banghead::banghead:

05Nlstang · Jan 7, 2013

solidhadriel · Jan 7, 2013

Na306Fox said:
All that weight from the stereo system, huge wheels are going to kill your mpg dramatically. Your acceleration is going to suck hauling all that crap around (ask me how I know)

Honestly I'd just get a prem 5.0 GT with the 6spd do some mods and call it a day.

If you want a huge stereo, lambo doors, glass roof an what not, go buy a damn civic an stop ruining beautiful mustangs:banghead::banghead:

I have a sweet stereo system. It may not be no competition set-up, but its worlds better than stock, everyone who rides in my car thinks it sounds great and it added hardly any weight to my vehicle.

In any case, this guy has quite the budget. Absolutely do NOT get 4.10s if you plan on procharging your vehicle.

Stick to 3.31s or 3.55s. Any taller, and you won't get to make use of the power that procharger will be putting out for very long.

BHD · Jan 7, 2013

bsap0941 said:
If you got that kind of money buy a Shelby

Welcome to MM, you got good money to pay in there.. ^ like he said, or a used boss 302

got all the power you need and handles amazing.

Na306Fox · Jan 7, 2013

solidhadriel said:
I have a sweet stereo system. It may not be no competition set-up, but its worlds better than stock, everyone who rides in my car thinks it sounds great and it added hardly any weight to my vehicle.

In any case, this guy has quite the budget. Absolutely do NOT get 4.10s if you plan on procharging your vehicle.

Stick to 3.31s or 3.55s. Any taller, and you won't get to make use of the power that procharger will be putting out for very long.

He's not talking about a new head unit and door speakers upgrade. He's talking a full on system. My brother & I competed and built stereo systems for a shop ( me 5yrs & my brother 15yrs) stereos weigh more than you think. One of my 15 inch subs itself weighed 50 lbs. So two would be 100 plus another 75-100lbs for the box built for them. That's 200lbs right there. That's having another person always riding in your car. Don't think weight matters, go run your car by yourself and then put 1 other people in it with you or 200lbs of weight in the car an tell me it runs the same acceleration & handling. Let alone the your mpg will drop also

solidhadriel · Jan 7, 2013

Na306Fox said:
He's not talking about a new head unit and door speakers upgrade. He's talking a full on system. My brother & I competed and built stereo systems for a shop ( me 5yrs & my brother 15yrs) stereos weigh more than you think. One of my 15 inch subs itself weighed 50 lbs. So two would be 100 plus another 75-100lbs for the box built for them. That's 200lbs right there. That's having another person always riding in your car. Don't think weight matters, go run your car by yourself and then put 1 other people in it with you or 200lbs of weight in the car an tell me it runs the same acceleration & handling. Let alone the your mpg will drop also

I'm not stupid. I know heavy things add weight. I have a full stereo system that I installed myself:

- JL Cleasweep
- Alpine PDX5
- Kenwood 4x 6x8s
- 1x 12" Pioneer Shallowmount Sub

Off the top of my head, my sub weighs like maybe 30ish pounds, and my little PDX5 probably weights no more than 10-15 pounds (big things come in small packages with this amp. Though I'm sure your familiar with it, if you have the experience you say you do...)

The mods to my car have offset the added weight. I have plenty of bass without destroying my ears, and crisp, clean mids/highs with my set up.

Na306Fox · Jan 7, 2013

solidhadriel said:
I'm not stupid. I know heavy things add weight. I have a full stereo system that I installed myself:

- JL Cleasweep
- Alpine PDX5
- Kenwood 4x 6x8s
- 1x 12" Pioneer Shallowmount Sub

Off the top of my head, my sub weighs like maybe 30ish pounds, and my little PDX5 probably weights no more than 10-15 pounds (big things come in small packages with this amp. Though I'm sure your familiar with it, if you have the experience you say you do...)

The mods to my car have offset the added weight. I have plenty of bass without destroying my ears, and crisp, clean mids/highs with my set up.

Still added weight and you're not doing pretty much all out like he is. 50lbs is easy to offset, 200lbs is a little bit harder.

Regardless there's cheap ways to do everything. To offset the weight like stated I'd just go with the 5.0 and a forced injection option

solidhadriel · Jan 7, 2013

Na306Fox said:
Still added weight and you're not doing pretty much all out like he is. 50lbs is easy to offset, 200lbs is a little bit harder.

Regardless there's cheap ways to do everything. To offset the weight like stated I'd just go with the 5.0 and a forced injection option

What do you mean? I have quite a lot done to my car, sub suspension/driveshaft/turbo. Those are coming this year or next.

Na306Fox · Jan 7, 2013

solidhadriel said:
What do you mean? I have quite a lot done to my car, sub suspension/driveshaft/turbo. Those are coming this year or next.

As in stereo an what not. His stereo is gonna be a couple hundred pounds, the lambo doors an what not.

Wasn't saying performance wise

krillr · Jan 8, 2013

you all should keep in mind i'm trying to go for best-of-both-worlds here -- lots of power while retaining good gas economy, great sound, interior comfort, and handling. i'm not a racer, so what i'm more aiming to do is increase engine output to offset increased weight from interior, exterior, and suspension mods.

Na306Fox · Jan 8, 2013

Your best bet would be go with a 5.0 for the power and mpg they already get an go from there. All the modding to a v6 to counter the weight is going to drop the mpg down to what the 5.0 has already an is going to run you more $$ in the end

Durr4456 · Jan 8, 2013

I am going to address your points one by one in the quote below. Just an fyi[/COLOR]

krillr said:
howdy folks,

im new to the mustang world (actually, the beyond-consumer car world in general) and would like some feedback on my plans before I run out and start my project this summer

First, I should explain what I'm looking for in a mustang:

- A daily driver that turns heads - Okay, this can be done no matter the trim. Nothing to really add on this one.
- A good amount of power for those times nobody is watching, or some dork in a high-end BMW decides to taunt me (hilarious story if anyone is interested)-Same thing applies
- Something to play with and learn about working on cars, how to tune them, etc Any car can be tweaked and figured out, just takes time and patience. As for the tuning, you'd already have to be extremely dedicated in order to do that. Like, it isn't like the older cars. It's much more complicated. :lol
- Something gorgeous ;-) - Again, available with any trim.

So I've pretty much decided on the 2011+ V6, given its low $/HP -- a friend just picked up a mint 2011 for $15k. Question is, what do I do with it once I've got it ;-) These are my planned mods, in order of first thing to last thing:

- Cold air intake (any feedback on which brand I should be looking at?) - No matter which car you end up getting, a cai is worthless if you get a supercharger.
- Full exhaust (headers, everything -- see magnaflow's offerings, but intersted in others) - Make sure that your state doesn't do emission checks. That can make or break it for you.
- Tune (Is there a specific company that makes a better tuner setup than th rest?) Highly depends on the amount of modifications, what type they are, etc.
- Lowering (1" front, 1.5" rear, struts, mounts, camber plates) Should go all out and replace the shocks and struts
- ProCharger I'm saying this because you said you are not the most familiar with aftermarker. Do you know why you specifically want a procharger over a differrent brand/ type supercharger?
- 4.10 gears (is this nuts? i'm basing this off an article I read somewhere where this performed well) Agreed with everyone else. 3.73 is perfect for a 6 speed.
- Lighter-weight steel flywheel, carbon-fiber driveshaft (picked CF over aluminum due to decreased cabin noise) Check out shaftmasters
- Aluminum wheels + toyo proxes 1 tires TIRES IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PART.

Miscellaneous things I'm considering to improve look and "cool" factor, and overall long-distance driving experience
- Rear seat removal with full Pioneer stage 4 audio installation, with the subs where the rear seats used to be ;-)
- Full window tinting
- Aftermarket glass roof
- Lambo-style vertical doors Just no, simply no. It'll turn heads yes. But the muscle crowd will laugh. That's just me being honest.

Things I'm just not sure about:
- Brake upgrades -If you upgrade the ability to go, upgrade the ability to stop.
- Strut tower brace
- Other suspension upgrades?! Non adjustable Lower control arms, upper control arms, adjustable panhard bar.

Is there anything here I shouldn't do? Should do? Should do differently, or in a different order?

Thanks so much

Cheers,
Aaron

Aaron, this is how I feel personally about the build. It'll sound like everyone else, but it is my opinion.

Just get the GT. And here is why.

You can say the mpg's and such about the environment. But figure this. Superchargers and turbochargers do not like catayltic converters. If you do not know what those do, they take out the extreme parts of the exhaust from the atmosphere. If you go supercharged, you'll either have to remove them or replace them multiple times (assuming you keep the car for a while). That is much worse than getting the GT, having the same amount of horsepower (With more torque!) and being friendlier to the environment.

Example: My brothers honda accord has a blown cat and we removed it. A little 4 cylinder engine (that is fuel efficient) is more toxic to the environment than my mothers toyota sequoia with the V8. It's not simply miles per gallon that directly equates to eco friendly.

Also, all that money and power and you will be at just a tad above stock gt power levels. In my personal opinion, if I hear a new v6 mustang rolling around with exhaust and such on my left, and there is a gt with exhaust and such on the right, I am turning my head to the right. Damn near every time it is going to the right.

That's simply how I feel about it. But honestly, why not get a used gt500? It allows you money to play with, and you can use the money saved to offset the gas if you are so concerned about it. The gt500 sounds better, performs better, looks better (Yes, I know that is opinion). It will get better mpg than a built v6. A heavily modded v6 will probably get worse mpg than a lightly modded 5.0 for that matter.

That's how I feel about it. Just remember that mpg does not equate to eco friendly. Prius's are terrible, no scratch that, beyond terrible for the environment, but they get good gas mileage.

Just a heads up buddy!

solidhadriel · Jan 8, 2013

/\ That's because the Sequioa has larger cats...

Durr4456 · Jan 8, 2013

solidhadriel said:
/\ That's because the Sequioa has larger cats...

It's still catted vs catless. If he going fi, he'll ditch the cats. And just like that. It's not very friendly towards the environment.

Side note: The sequoia is either an lev or a ulev, I can't remember. But that's just a fun fact.

mustang newbie looking for feedback before purchase

krillr

Boll58

05Nlstang

Na306Fox

05Nlstang

solidhadriel

BHD

Na306Fox

solidhadriel

Na306Fox

solidhadriel

Na306Fox

krillr

Na306Fox

Durr4456

solidhadriel

Durr4456

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