Great update brother. I highly recommend the ported intake. Here’s the trick: port the upper and lowers to match (the real gains are in the lowers).Off-season update: November Edition
The 2022 autocross season has came and went, and the mustang is now officially in winter daily mode. That means snow tires, stock rear shocks, pedestrian ceramic brake pads, no more rear wing, and a boring 87 octane tune .
Reflecting this season, I have to say I'm proud of how far we've come. We rebuilt the car after an unfortunate end to the 2021 season, shook it down, tried out a few new mods, hit a couple national tour events, and somehow won the Finger Lake Champ Tour. We never made it to Solo Nats or the CAM challenge, but there is always next year...
That being said, we've got some plans to make the car even more competitive for 2023. Would love to get some feedback and suggestions from the TMO brain trust as we continue to develop the car and prove the viability of the slow pony
As the season progressed, it became evident we need to make a few more suspension adjustments to get the car setup for the Eaton rear end:
1) We need more front grip. The car is sitting with -2.9 degrees of camber, I want to try -3.2 and will slot the struts until I get there. Will continue running the 400lb front springs/Konis as I like the balance of this package for a street car
2) I'd like some more rotation from the rear end. We ran most of the season on Koni Yellows with Factory Boss 302 springs. As much as I liked this setup with the trac-lok rear, it was never consistently fast with the Eaton diff. I'll be reinstalling the freshened up Vi-King double adjustable shocks and playing with rebound/compression settings in the spring
3) In addition, I planning to finally install the Ground Control weight jackers/divorced coil-overs I've had on the shelf for 2 years. I want to try to lower the rear about a half inch to take some rake out of the car and try a heavier spring rate. Thinking 200lbs similar to the cortex setup (IIRC 400F/200R for the "street" setup), but considering 225lbs (also trying to preserve some ride quality). I like the 20mm rear bar so that'll stay for now
4) Might spring for a full corner balance this year to really try and get the car as dialed in as possible
Another issue that is becoming more and more apparent is the power differential between our essentially stock 3.7 and the big v8 cars. This is really on a big factor on extremely long courses like Pocono infield. The way I see it, there are 2 ways to remedy this: A) add more power or B) lose some weight. So we'll be doing both lol. I figure the car has maybe 260whp as it sits with 93 race tune and weighed in at 3457lbs last time I had it on the SCCA scales
Part 1 Power MODS:
1) I picked up a used set of BBK shorty headers locally for $175, and already installed them over a weekend. I know these offer minimal top end gains, but they do improve low-mid range torque (which is something we don't have with 227 cubic inches). Based solely on the seat of the pants, the torque is noticeable on the street, I'm hoping this will help with acceleration out of tighter corners on course
2) Considering the cost vs benefit ratio of having the 2 piece plastic intake manifolds ported. I've spoken to a few places, but $450-600 for a a few hp doesn't really fit the theme of this build. TBD
3) Retune. I love the basemap Ortiz Performance put together for the car, but I actually need to datalog it and get some revisions done to maximize the setup/changes. Might push the redline up past 7500rpm to get a few more MPH in 2nd gear
With a healthy motor and the right mods, these little 3.7's can make 300whp on 93 octane. I don't think my setup will be that strong, but any HP improvement has to help close the gap. Trying to avoid the expense of setting the car up E85 for the time being
Part 2 Weight Reduction Plan, looking to pull 75-100lbs out of the car:
- shorty headers saved -3lbs over the cast iron manifolds
- removed front strut bar -7lbs
- Picked up a set of Flowtech Axlebacks at the Holley garage sale, a steal at $180! The pair weigh 16lbs in total. I've read that the GT500 mufflers currently on the car are ~46lbs. So there's at least -25lbs
-Actually clean out the interior at events (remove F/R floor mats, take out SCT tuner from console, empty glovebox, etc) Has to be good for -5lbs
-Looking at a Deka or Odyssey lightweight battery to run only at National Tour events. Should be good for -15lbs
- Considering switching from a 315 Falken RT660 to a 295 Bridgeston RE71RS which says a 4lb difference per corner. So potentially 16lbs of unsprung weight savings
That alone should get the car below 3400lbs without sacrificing any streetability. Will continue to look for other options to add lightness without spending a ton of money
There's a lot to do and never enough time, but I'll keep amassing parts until spring arrives. In the meanwhile I'm going to attempt building a PC/SIM racing rig to keep sharp in the offseason.
-J
then get the GT throttle body machined to bolt into the intake, you’ll need a new coupler for your CAI to match to the throttle body. I have an airraid intake so it was the size of the GT throttle body already.
Make sure to get the s197 gen 1 coyote throttle body, the newer ones won’t work.
I can confirm this helps tremendously in the mid and high range. I have shorties too!
bmr motor mounts will save you about 10 lbs. remove the exhaust and axle weights.
I noticed I was running slower towards the end of the season and my clutch failed shortly after. The ram HDX only gave me 2 years of service and about 26k miles. You may feel slow due to a poorly performing clutch. It’s subtle, but it was slipping and slowing me down.