S550 2016 GT350 Build Thread Profile - S550 Mustangs

[ParmesanPrime1388]

This is the Build Thread for 2016 GT350. Reply below.

 

[CobaltFilly]

Now that is a beautiful GT350 color

 

[ParmesanPrime1388]

Owning this car has been an emotional roller coaster, to be sure. I'll spare you the details of the past, except to say I had issues with the car massively over-burning on oil (3-4 quarts in 1000 street miles). I tried to have the engine repaired or replaced while it was still under warranty. I'll never know for sure if the dealership failed to go to bat for me (eventually lost all trust/respect for them for other reasons I won't go into) or if Ford was playing hardball, but the only repair they authorized was new cylinder heads and head gaskets. Still burns too much oil to this day.

ANYWAY, the latest drama was during a recent track day when my UPR oil drain plug just... fell out... in the middle of a session. As you would expect, the all the oil came spraying out of the oil pan onto the hot exhaust and transmission, leaving a cloud of white smoke behind me. The oil plug had been on the car for about 4500 miles prior to this, most of which was a road trip from North Texas out to Tennessee/North Carolina to drive the Tail of the Dragon. The oil plug, as far as I can tell, was intact and undamaged before, during, and after this trip.

A friend gave me a ride to the closest local Ford dealership to buy a OEM drain plug. Got back to the track, installed the plug, refilled with 10 quarts of fresh oil. Did some low-speed lap around the paddock. Everything seemed fine. Went on track for the last session of the week with the intent to not push the car hard, but have one last bit of (slower) track fun and verify the car would survive the 4-hour highway drive home.

60 seconds into the first lap, the new oil drain plug fell out. Oil gone. Towed off the track. Much swearing came out of my helmet.

That was June 21, 2024 (less than 2 weeks ago from this post). As of today (July 3, 2024) the car is at a trusted local Mustang guru with the request that he inspect the oil pan for damage. If it is damaged in some way, I'm considering replacing it with the aluminum oil pan and pump kit sold by Ford.

The car is also getting a new Mishimoto radiator and Anderson Composites GT4 hood (bought long before any of this oil pan stuff happened, otherwise I would have waited, lol)

Future plans, the car seems a bit down on power. Could be a number of small things adding up but I'm using the opportunity to blame fouled up catalytic converters for the chance to maybe buy new headers with high-flow cats. They're not cheap but I'm considering the FabSpeed sport cats due to being able to keep stock headers, no o2 sensor shenanigans, and claimed no need to tune. (Link below, for anybody curious or with input. I'm open to ideas and not committed to any specific brand or part unless it's the radiator and hood I already paid for)

Fabspeed Shelby GT350 / GT350R Sport Catalytic Converters (2016-2020)

Fabspeed Motorsport has innovated and manufactured performance exhaust systems, air intakes, and ECU tuning solutions for exotic cars for over 30 years.

www.fabspeed.com

 

[ParmesanPrime1388]

Now that is a beautiful GT350 color

Thanks! I see you're also a person of good taste, haha. We've had a lot of great shades of blue since 2016 but Deep Impact is still by far my favorite!

 

[CobaltFilly]

Thanks! I see you're also a person of good taste, haha. We've had a lot of great shades of blue since 2016 but Deep Impact is still by far my favorite!

Couldn't agree more!!! Wish we were closer so we could get some photo opportunities!

Sorry to hear about those troubles, keep us updated!!!

 

[JAJ]

Owning this car has been an emotional roller coaster, to be sure. I'll spare you the details of the past, except to say I had issues with the car massively over-burning on oil (3-4 quarts in 1000 street miles). I tried to have the engine repaired or replaced while it was still under warranty. I'll never know for sure if the dealership failed to go to bat for me (eventually lost all trust/respect for them for other reasons I won't go into) or if Ford was playing hardball, but the only repair they authorized was new cylinder heads and head gaskets. Still burns too much oil to this day.

ANYWAY, the latest drama was during a recent track day when my UPR oil drain plug just... fell out... in the middle of a session. As you would expect, the all the oil came spraying out of the oil pan onto the hot exhaust and transmission, leaving a cloud of white smoke behind me. The oil plug had been on the car for about 4500 miles prior to this, most of which was a road trip from North Texas out to Tennessee/North Carolina to drive the Tail of the Dragon. The oil plug, as far as I can tell, was intact and undamaged before, during, and after this trip.

A friend gave me a ride to the closest local Ford dealership to buy a OEM drain plug. Got back to the track, installed the plug, refilled with 10 quarts of fresh oil. Did some low-speed lap around the paddock. Everything seemed fine. Went on track for the last session of the week with the intent to not push the car hard, but have one last bit of (slower) track fun and verify the car would survive the 4-hour highway drive home.

60 seconds into the first lap, the new oil drain plug fell out. Oil gone. Towed off the track. Much swearing came out of my helmet.

That was June 21, 2024 (less than 2 weeks ago from this post). As of today (July 3, 2024) the car is at a trusted local Mustang guru with the request that he inspect the oil pan for damage. If it is damaged in some way, I'm considering replacing it with the aluminum oil pan and pump kit sold by Ford.

The car is also getting a new Mishimoto radiator and Anderson Composites GT4 hood (bought long before any of this oil pan stuff happened, otherwise I would have waited, lol)

Future plans, the car seems a bit down on power. Could be a number of small things adding up but I'm using the opportunity to blame fouled up catalytic converters for the chance to maybe buy new headers with high-flow cats. They're not cheap but I'm considering the FabSpeed sport cats due to being able to keep stock headers, no o2 sensor shenanigans, and claimed no need to tune. (Link below, for anybody curious or with input. I'm open to ideas and not committed to any specific brand or part unless it's the radiator and hood I already paid for)

Fabspeed Shelby GT350 / GT350R Sport Catalytic Converters (2016-2020)

Fabspeed Motorsport has innovated and manufactured performance exhaust systems, air intakes, and ECU tuning solutions for exotic cars for over 30 years.

www.fabspeed.com

Sorry to hear about the problem with the dealer - sounds challenging.

As for the oil plug, there was a big thread over on M6G a couple of months back about UPR plugs on Voodoo engines. Consensus was "don't". They don't all fall out, but enough have failed that it's not worth the risk. So, from now on, use the OEM plug. Nobody knows why they fall out on Voodoo's, and UPR is adamant that they don't, but as you've seen, they do. Probably vibration related. The OEM plug is super-strong glass-fiber reinforced nylon - it weighs a bit over 1/2 an ounce - and vibration wouldn't bother it. If the pan's shaking, it just shakes along with the pan.

As for the oil pan, if the pan is damaged, install a new composite pan. The GT500 aluminum pan uses a different oil pump and pickup tube setup and metal fatigue from the Voodoo vibrations can break the pickup tube's support strap and leave the tube hanging loose and unsupported in the sump.