S550 A Pale Horse Build Thread Profile - S550 Mustangs

[navseng]

Sorry man, meant to get back to you last night. The -12 fittings bind after about a turn AFTER running a tap through them after running a tap through them. Before, they'd catch almost immediately, maybe 1/3 of a turn. The adapter pictured is the same one with the issue. The fix has been to grind the threads down, seat the fittings, then weld them in place.

My request to Parts Badger was very specific. I told them it had to accept an AN12 fitting, which I verified in my design, in the request through their site, and again via e-mail. What you said about hard anodizing is something one of the shops brought up as well. They mentioned they had seen other issues similar to this where the part would normally fit but it wasn't designed with anodizing in mind. Considering anodizing is one of Parts Badger's options and they confirmed the fittings would fit, I didn't even consider this would be an issue.

I've certainly learned the hard way on this one. This is the first and last time I'll use an online CNC service for something like this.

Ahh, its definitely due to the hard ano.. Regular anodizing is usually fine, but in industry, hard ano most of the time we mask the threads before plating.

 

[Ewheels]

Ahh, its definitely due to the hard ano.. Regular anodizing is usually fine, but in industry, hard ano most of the time we mask the threads before plating.

We do the same at our work. Body of the parts get anodized while the threads get chem film'ed.
I work in commercial aerospace though, not sure if the same practices transfer over.

 

[5.2 liters of democracy]

Man, it's been a while since I've updated this. There's a lot to cover for the car and for myself. Here we go.

I've been largely absent other than instructing for the new drivers and the continued scope creep this car has brought. Since that last update, all of my immediate family passed which left me navigating the wild world of being an estate executor. Not my favorite job in the world for sure. I could write paragraphs alone on how insane the process is even if there are clear outlines on what happens to someone's belongings after they die.

As a result of all that, on two weeks' notice, my fiancé of 8 years (15 total years together) and I got married in Vegas the day before SEMA kicked off to seal the deal that should I do anything absurd that puts me six feet under she'd get everything. Several of you already know Victoria since she's always been with me to tear this dumb car apart, run the dogs around the paddock, or even her year in the timing booth. The best story that came from her involvement was @PaddyPrix and I having to ask her for cash to do a fun run in Pat's Fun Police and the mobility van I had at the time. She was up in a tower at Auto Club Speedway and her instructions for us to get to her were "Leave the infield, go past the second tower, take the elevator to the top, and enter the first door of your left after you see the dead bird in the rat trap." Great times. @67GTA was also there and rode along in the fun police. There was also a horrendous downpour that day which just cemented this as a core memory of one of the most fun track days despite not even driving. Here's a few pics from that day as well as our spontaneous marriage:



And then there's the car...
I got the thing put back together and unfortunately it running flawlessly just wasn't in the cards. It became immediately apparent there was coolant burning off and smoke was coming through the breather. When I drained the oil there was probably 30 ounces of coolant in the oil. Delightful. I wrote to RPG who built the engine and they said they'd look at it. Well that was 14 months ago. They diagnosed a cracked head and said they'd get it fixed. It's still there. Normally I would have been a little more impatient but I was trying to get everything I mentioned above in order so it went onto the back burner.

Well all that's handled now and I want to drive fast again. I did what any logical person would do and pulled money out of my 401k to buy a new MPR engine. It's going to be a 9,000 RPM dry sump monster because I want zero oiling issues this time around and I just want sh*t to work. The car is also caged now since my wife wants me to be safe or something. Also coil overs. Basically, I need to provide a ton of individual updates on what I've done, what has been added, and where we're going. Actually that last one is easy, it's going to be an ST2 car with a max effort tune to maybe do some Gridlife time attack shenanigans. But ST2 comes first since I've always wanted to do W2W.

Up next:
1. Fun aero stuff
2. Is suspension really needed to keep you on the ground? (spoiler: yes, obviously)
3. How many times can one man hit his head on a roll cage before forgetting his social security number?
4. Rowdy engine make fun noises. Brain happy.
5. Two seats, too furious.

 

[PaddyPrix]

I have issue with this codebase limiting my options to just a thumbs up. Saying goodbye to ACS with you nutjobs is definitely one of my happiest memories.

I forgot the answer to #3, but WSIR turn 8 is ridiculously rough past 140 or so, low grade concussion on every bump. Hopefully the new ownership uses that influx of cash to better balance that turn, considering it's fatality rate is probably the highest in the region. As for padding, the SFI 45.1 stuff is much better than the pool noodle stuff, as it's slightly shorter/skinnier which helps when we're fighting for inches (giggity), and while it's not as spongy, much rather hit that, than the bar behind it especially in a crash/flip scenario.

Edit - illustrating my point, you're as tall as I. At least I could see out of the Stripper.

 

[67GTA]

I have issue with this codebase limiting my options to just a thumbs up. Saying goodbye to ACS with you nutjobs is definitely one of my happiest memories.

I forgot the answer to #3, but WSIR turn 8 is ridiculously rough past 140 or so, low grade concussion on every bump. Hopefully the new ownership uses that influx of cash to better balance that turn, considering it's fatality rate is probably the highest in the region. As for padding, the SFI 45.1 stuff is much better than the pool noodle stuff, as it's slightly shorter/skinnier which helps when we're fighting for inches (giggity), and while it's not as spongy, much rather hit that, than the bar behind it especially in a crash/flip scenario.

Edit - illustrating my point, you're as tall as I. At least I could see out of the Stripper.
View attachment 106895

I need to find one of those Cookie Monster fire suits!!

 

[PaddyPrix]

I need to find one of those Cookie Monster fire suits!!

Can't legally call it a fire suit since SFI refuses to pass it, some crap about doing extensive damage to their mannequins. Perhaps they're scared of innovation, because this stuff catches on fire up to 1176% faster than anything else currently available on the market today.

 

[Bill Pemberton]

Congrats on the marriage, she looks like the best accessory you have added and since she enjoys hanging with a bunch of wacked out gear heads she also must be damn near perfect. Now that 50% of your possessions are hers isn't is about time she tracked the car too, ha!!

 

[5.2 liters of democracy]

Congrats on the marriage, she looks like the best accessory you have added and since she enjoys hanging with a bunch of wacked out gear heads she also must be damn near perfect. Now that 50% of your possessions are hers isn't is about time she tracked the car too, ha!!

Alright let's try this again, this time in my own thread instead of Pat's! Not sure I messed that one up.

I tried to get her into something to get out on track but she wasn't having it. We looked at the Hyundai Veloster N because I actually thought they were pretty neat little cars, but she ultimately just wants something she can tote our two dogs around in. I'm gonna keep at her about it though lol

 

[k4show]

Congrats on the marriage!

 

[Voodoo Stoned]

Congratulations on honestly the best decision a person can make! Someone who loves you and just rolls their eyes when the man in the brown truck shows up with box after box after box…amazing.
May there be Many, many happy years to come!

 

[Bill Pemberton]

I told my wife I really needed another set of Apex Forged wheels as they were on " Sale " and likely were left over before the tariffs. She simply said, " Well you better get them then." I have a sneaky suspicion you will have the same racing luck with you new bride from your comments. I just wanted to alert you to the future promise with a partner who understands your need for speed as I have been married 48 years next June and she still never complains when the Amazon, UPS or FedEx trucks arrive --- we are two lucky guys!!!

 

[bnight]

Congratulations on you getting Married !

 

[5.2 liters of democracy]

My bulleted list above is in no particular order. That actually wasn't by design, I wanted to start with the aero but realized I didn't have any good pictures of the wing mounted up prior to me ripping the car apart again. More on that soon. But to be honest, this is my favorite update. I love suspension stuff so much.

The whole time I was in TT3 I was still running the stock dampers and stock rear end. I had camber plates and SPL arms up front but hadn't really done much else. I know a lot of road warriors say the S550 rear end was sloppy because it wouldn't hook up with a 7k clutch dump, but I found it to be pretty decent on track. My initial plan was to just start with coilovers so I spent a lot of time weighing my options. I had always been impressed with the level of adjustability of the Penskes so I was already leaning that way.

Fast forward to SEMA 2024 and I bugged the poor Penske guys for so long that my wife pulled one of them aside to ask if they had any lanyards because she wanted something out of this deal. I basically shared that I tend to be pretty aggressive with curbs and that the CA track pavement tends to be about the same quality as a dollar store ribeye. Looking at you and your knee-deep holes Willow Springs. In the end, I ended up going with two-way inverted strut coilovers from Penske. For those that may be wondering what the hell that means, MotoIQ has a great breakdown, but here's an image from that article that shows how different the bodies are:


The inverted strut design takes almost all of the bending forces off of the internal piston and transfers that to the larger diameter shock body. Short of going to an SLA, this seemed to be the best option for me, plus it looks cool. I figure if the GT4 cars are using inverted struts from Multimatic, why not try to apply their logic to a car driven by an over-sized desert rat? The only real downside is the adjustment knobs are on the bottom. Eagle eyed viewers will also notice there's no remote canister. What gives? Well I had that chat with Penske and they said while I can upgrade in the future, they've seen no benefit unless I'm running enduros longer than 12 hours. The volume of fluid in the strut body is great enough that they aren't seeing the benefit.



I'm also a big fan of the mounts being CNC milled rather than welded. Again, mostly because the cool factor. I won't pretend that I'm a good enough driver to blindly pick out whether a car is inverted or traditional. I'll leave that for the aforementioned clutch dumpers. Ignore me, I've been locked in my garage for three years overthinking this dumb car.

So you're probably thinking: Wow Shane, I love this for you. Maybe you should drive your damn car and get off the internet. Guess again my dear reader who likely has a running car. I've been running on caffeine, credit cards, and a fricken' dream. There's no more logic, only car parts.

So what does one do when you're waiting entirely too long on an engine that just has a cracked head (cough, 13 months)? What any logical person would do. Rip the rear end out of their car:


Honestly there wasn't going to be a better time. If the heart has failed, taking off the shoes isn't going to matter. I tossed in solid IRS bushings, poly diff bushings, and the full SPL kit. Since everything was going to be solid (spoiler for engine numero tres), I wanted to give the driveline shock somewhere to go which is why I went with the poly diff bushings. It makes sense in my head and I know of a BMW gent running sub-150 at Buttonwillow with that same configuration. Also by "tossed in those bushings" I mean immediately regret signing myself up for this, buy $300 in tools, and swear & sweat in a 110 degree garage. Cutting bushings out is a level of hell I'd reserve for open-mouth sneezers and people who think Doodles are purebreds. I have two and they're just mutts with better marketing. I'll fight anyone on that but I'll almost surely lose because I'm still tired from the bushings.

For anyone in the future that stumbles across this thread because the AI overview sent you here, here's what you need to do:

How to remove S550 Mustang Half-Shafts/Axles/Differential and how to install IRS/differential bushings:
1. Don't remove both half-shafts. I got way too task focused and removed both. Prepare to remove only one and then snake the other out attached to the diff.
2. DO NOT buy the largest pry bar (the Burglar-b-gone 9000) you can find. I bought a six-foot pry bar and was literally bending it while my wife also used a three-foot pry bar on the same location. It won't budge.
3. Absolutely do buy this axle removal tool for $36 dollars and be completely done with the ONE half-shaft you need to remove.
3.5. Get really annoyed at how easy the half-shaft comes out with the new tool. It took me maybe 5 seconds and two whacks with a mallet.
4. Realize there's no way to get the bushings out practically other than a sawzall. It's going to be a pain. You're going to tell yourself that you're afraid of messing up the subframe because you have to cut through the bushing but not into the subframe itself. I just used a fine cut blade and took my time.
5. Somehow realize you regret not buying an air hammer before and then air hammer the bushings out once the cuts are made. If the bushing doesn't immediately move at least a little bit when you hammer it, you're not through the bushing wall yet.
6. Rejoice because putting the new bushings and in is actually really simple. I used a rubber mallet and three beers. Three beers is important. Do not skip.
7. Realize you'd be a terrible project manager because you love scope creep. Additional beers help with this.
8. Post it on social media so everyone thinks the job was super simple and you're a good mechanic because you didn't share that you wrecked one of your two half-shafts with a redwood-sized pry bar and had to fork over $400 to papa Ford for a new one. Also don't use run-on sentences unless there's a good joke to be had.

So yeah. Suspension is fun.