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SN95 Chris' 351w Swapped 1995 Build Thread Profile - SN95 Mustangs

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TMSBOSS

Spending my pension on car parts and track fees.
7,529
5,242
Exp. Type
HPDE
Exp. Level
10-20 Years
Illinois
The F-100 looks Very Clean!!

You are not the first to have issues with a FiTech system. My brother installed a few when they were the "New System" and has ripped out most of them. The promised "improved Drivability" just never came about.
 
Some videos from this weekend!

Car did pretty well. A few small issues, primarily the nut behind the wheel. On Sunday, I spun out on 3 runs at the end of a spot in the course where you're flat out. We were getting up to 75 MPH-ish, then having to brake, and I was braking too late and too hard and the back was coming around. And then I coned away two good runs (for me) in the morning, making it zero clean runs in the AM.

My cousin placed 18th in my car, the best it's ever done. Out of the people above him, there was only one Miata (codriven), which is always nice in AutoCross.

There was a guy in a 2004 Mach 1 that came in 7th place. He has the exact suspension setup (Maximum Motorsports) that I am planning to go with and 315s all the way around. We probably had 100 horsepower on him, but his suspension and skill level was way ahead of mine. He was a very nice guy and gave me a ride on Saturday. First time I have been in a car with the Maximum Motorsports setup. I was thoroughly impressed. He went into one hard turn and I puckered and thought, "He can't make that, he can't make that..." and bam, he took it like it was nothing. I'm feeling more sure about that setup now!
 
It's not a Mustang, but close enough! My dad added another car to the stable in the past couple weeks. Still needs some work, but after a few parts swapping, it should be driveable.

This is the closest I've ever been to one, and I have already added it to my list of favorite cars...and, as opposed to the new GT, I can actually fit in this one somewhat comfortably!

117955931_365822548149936_7873443653300952852_n.jpg
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PatientZero

@restless_performance
825
865
Exp. Type
Autocross
Exp. Level
10-20 Years
Kansas City, Missouri
Well that's freaking awesome. One of my favorite videos of all time was the GT-TT. I think it made like 1100hp to the wheels and the guys going for rides in it couldn't believe it. That was way back before Underground Racing starting making street cars with triple that much power.
 
Well that's freaking awesome. One of my favorite videos of all time was the GT-TT. I think it made like 1100hp to the wheels and the guys going for rides in it couldn't believe it. That was way back before Underground Racing starting making street cars with triple that much power.

I've always liked these cars. My dad actually ordered one new. When it arrived, the dealer tacked on a bunch of extra money that hadn't been discussed previously, and my dad basically said, "No, if you're gonna do that, you can keep it". They pretty much said, "Ok, that's fine, we have another buyer that wants it for this price." My dad kicks himself for that, because it probably still would've been worth it in the long run, he just didn't like being taken advantage of like that.

He got the 2020 in February. It has way less room inside and my fat bum struggles with that most of all lol. It's badass and fun to drive, but hard to focus because there's so little room. There's definitely no room for me to sit straight up with a helmet on (and I'm only 6'1").

I really like the clean simplicity of the 05-06 cars, too. Much more raw feeling just sitting in them and comparing. I haven't driven this one, yet, but I think it'll feel a lot like comparing a 2012 Boss 302 to the 2016 GT350. The Boss feels more raw and muscle car-y, the GT350 feels more refined and reassuring.

COTA should be much more...interesting, next year, if we make it. My dad and brother will be rocking Ford GTs and I'll be getting lapped in a 1995 Mustang GT. Better lose some weight and bring my A-Game.
 

PatientZero

@restless_performance
825
865
Exp. Type
Autocross
Exp. Level
10-20 Years
Kansas City, Missouri
I've always liked these cars. My dad actually ordered one new. When it arrived, the dealer tacked on a bunch of extra money that hadn't been discussed previously, and my dad basically said, "No, if you're gonna do that, you can keep it". They pretty much said, "Ok, that's fine, we have another buyer that wants it for this price." My dad kicks himself for that, because it probably still would've been worth it in the long run, he just didn't like being taken advantage of like that.

He got the 2020 in February. It has way less room inside and my fat bum struggles with that most of all lol. It's badass and fun to drive, but hard to focus because there's so little room. There's definitely no room for me to sit straight up with a helmet on (and I'm only 6'1").

I really like the clean simplicity of the 05-06 cars, too. Much more raw feeling just sitting in them and comparing. I haven't driven this one, yet, but I think it'll feel a lot like comparing a 2012 Boss 302 to the 2016 GT350. The Boss feels more raw and muscle car-y, the GT350 feels more refined and reassuring.

COTA should be much more...interesting, next year, if we make it. My dad and brother will be rocking Ford GTs and I'll be getting lapped in a 1995 Mustang GT. Better lose some weight and bring my A-Game.

I'm 40lbs down this year, you can do it. Do you ever go to any of the Ozark region autocross?
 
I'm 40lbs down this year, you can do it. Do you ever go to any of the Ozark region autocross?

I need to! I've started trying to cook at home more and things. College beer and Little Caesars diet while working full time at a desk just became a habit.

I don't. I only started AutoCrossing this year. My cousin tried to get me to go for a couple years and I was always busy or forgot about them. I've done some track days at Hallett, but that's the extent of it. I have some friends in NWA, Fayetteville/Springdale area, so I've thought about going up and doing it. Making a little weekend trip out of it.

IF plans go the way I want, I should have the truck and trailer finished up in the next 2 weeks (which is the main thing I need to do before thinking of traveling to other AutoX events).

Then, I'll be back on the Mustang. My budgeting looks like I'm gonna get to do some of it next month. Current plans are:

-MM Torque Arm
-MM Panhard Bar
-MM TA Springs
-MM Rear LCAs
-MM Race-2 or Koni DA Shocks/Struts (For use with front coilovers. The MM versions are non-adjustable, but designed to work with their coilovers in a specific spring rate range. I’m looking at 425 front rate COs and the TA Springs. I like the idea of having a lot of adjustment, but I also know me...I'll most likely set it and not mess with them like I should anyway.)
-MM Caster/Camber plates
-Fabricating/Modifying a front strut tower brace and lower K member brace. If I have the funds, I am also thinking of skipping straight to the MM K-Member, moving the engine back 1" and the wheels forward a total of 1.5". One of the "problems" my cousin and I have talked about is the roll center on the front. With the current springs, the control arms are aimed up. Steeda makes some "X2" balljoints to help fix that, but MM has a higher control arm mounting location that would do the same thing (and, of course, ride height adjustment on the COs). But that also requires me to go all the way on my coilover plans, so it'll really depend on the all-important $$$.
-Canton oil pan setup

If we go ahead and pull the engine to do the pan and K Member, I also need to run gauge lines through the firewall. Oil pressure, water temp, voltage, etc. And remove some of the old wiring/clean up my wiring on my Holley Sniper.

Lot's to do.
 

PatientZero

@restless_performance
825
865
Exp. Type
Autocross
Exp. Level
10-20 Years
Kansas City, Missouri
-MM Race-2 or Koni DA Shocks/Struts (For use with front coilovers. The MM versions are non-adjustable, but designed to work with their coilovers in a specific spring rate range. I’m looking at 425 front rate COs and the TA Springs. I like the idea of having a lot of adjustment, but I also know me...I'll most likely set it and not mess with them like I should anyway.)

I have the Koni's and if I were doing it again I would have bought the Bilsteins. The adjuster on the Koni's is not precise at all and likely doesn't even match from shock to shock. Just get the MM and call it a day, they are much cheaper and easier to revalve later if you want.
 
Some vids from this weekend!

We had another fast and fun course. I spun out once due to a problem I didn't know I had. The ragjoint is rubbing the header on the driver's side. In my very first run, it got caught, so I pulled on the steering wheel harder and it pulled free and sent me spinning to the right. My second run was clean, but a 38.318. By the end of the morning, I had improved to a 37.042. In the afternoon, I took a 35.804. I was pretty happy with that much gain on a fast course.

I didn't get videos in the afternoon, I was busy dealing with the car. I drove to the event and the new alternator I put on Friday night did perfect all the way there, but it blew the 20A alternator fuse after my very first run. I replaced it with another at lunch time, but it never started charging again. Once it got low on juice, the fan wasn't running full speed, and it started wanting to overheat. I was trying to get it to stay cool.

Yet another thing to investigate and fix.
 
Well, I got the Fays2 Watts Link ordered last week. Decided to go that route instead of the Panhard Bar after a lot of reading and talking to a lot of folks.

Fox rear straight 5733.jpg
Fox34 rearpass side5729.jpg

I had been a little worried about the Fays2 WL because I don’t really see many SN95 Mustang AutoX’ers or Road Race guys running it. Cortex, Griggs, MM PHB, sure, but never the Fays2. I was worried about durability in a hard-driven environment. What finally sold me on it is the fact that it’s the same Watts Link that my cousin has run on his all-out-AutoX 99 Firebird for the past 10+ years with no problems. For the little bit of extra money it’ll take, no reason to not give it a go. Fays2 even threw in some longer 11” bars to clear the MM Torque Arm.

The plan is to do the basic suspension setup correctly from the get-go, aside from a couple compromises I’m gonna need to make for financial reasons. One of the compromises is the rear coilovers. I am going to go with Torque Arm springs for now, until I have the money to go with the Competition Upper Shock Mount and coilover system. The other major compromise is K-Member and front control arms. The K and control arms add about $1200 to the build, and I need to dump some money into my Focus DD for now (4 new tires, AC compressor, and electric power steering rack).

I have an email in to Maximum Motorsports about some of the particulars, verifying spring rates, front spring length (8” or 10”), but here is the current plan (adapted from the email I have in to MM):

“FRONT AND REAR SUSPENSION:
MM Damper Package, Struts & Shocks (MAX-12)
-Race-RA-2 Valving
-Spherical Lower Shock Eyelet
-Rear Upper Shock Mount Kit: Non-coil-over (MMSM-20)
-Small Dust Cover for Coilover Installation (Please verify me here...since my long-term plan is to run coilovers in the rear, I'd like to get the small dust covers. Surely they work on stock location springs, too?)

FRONT SUSPENSION:
MM Caster Camber Plates (MMCC9994)
MM Front Coilover Kit (MMCO-24)
425 lb/in, 8" Springs (HYP42508250) (Please verify the length here, I am not sure whether to go with 8" or 10" free length springs on stock K-Member and control arms...I read somewhere that shorter is better for spring control, but I can't find where now...)

REAR SUSPENSION:
MM Torque Arm (MMTA-1)
MM Torque Arm Springs (42TA5 OR 43TA7...Not sure which to run with Watts Link, front coilovers and Torque Arm)

STEERING:
MM Steering Shaft (MMST-14)
MM Solid Rack Bushings (MMST-7)
MM Bumpsteer Kit (MMTR-3)

Current setup:
1995 Mustang GT, maybe 400rwhp with aluminum-headed 351w
No significant alterations (yet) for weight loss or improved distribution.
No Aero (yet)
Tremec TR-3550 Standard Ratios
8.8" with 3.73s
Steeda Ultralite 18x9" wheels
275/35/18 Falken Azenis RT615K+
Fays2 Watts Link
Stiffler FIT Full Length Subframe Connectors and Jacking Rails
Steeda Front 35mm and Rear 1" Swaybars
Steeda Rear Control Arms
Steeda Front Offset A-Arm Bushings (+3/4" forward from stock location)
Steeda Battery Relocation Kit (Trunk)
2000 Cobra R Brembo 13" Brakes
Raybestos ST47 Pads (Front)
Stock GT Rear Calipers/10.5" Rotors
Raybestos ST43 Pads (Rear)

I'll be fabbing up a front strut tower brace for use with the 351w (currently don't have one at all).”
[End of email to MM]

I exaggerated a little in my email to them. I actually don’t have the Fays2 installed yet or the Stiffler’s Fit system. I might actually just buy the MM Full Length Subframe Connectors, since they’re the exact same size and everything as the Stiffler’s ones. But either way, the Stifflers/MM connectors will be going on before the MM T/A, since the T/A crossmember welds to the subframes. My current setup has round-tube subframes, but they aren’t full length. I think the full-length are the better way to go as I start asking the car to go faster and do more.

Here's a picture of the FIT system. You can see the full length subframes at the top, the jacking rails that weld to the pinch weld at the bottom, and the cross bracing in between. They are on the agenda for down the line. They just don’t “FIT” (heh) into the current budget.

Stifflers.JPG
 
What swayed you toward the Watt's Link over the PHB?

Well, in theory, the principle of the Watts Link would be better than the PHB. I’ve spoken to a few guys running the Watts Link and PHB and read their opinions on the forums. It’s one of those deals where the guys that run the Panhard Bar are extremely happy, but the guys who actually run a Watts Link claim it’s better feel in fast transitions, which is helpful in AutoX. I’m not concerned with the added weight since it’s down low in the rear.

I’ve watched the MM video and read their opinions. I respect that in 98% of situations, the PHB is as good. But I want the car to be capable of that last 2% so it’s ready for when I’M capable of that last 2%.

As mentioned, my cousin has run it forever on his 99 Firebird TA and his car is a Top 5 contender at every local event. Everyone I talked to said it would be nicer than the PHB setup.

You have the PHB setup correct? When and where’s y’alls next event?
 
I'll add on to my previous comment now that I'm at a computer.

I like the adjustability of the Watts Link. My cousin says his was fairly easy to dial in on the AutoCross course and he's set it and forgot it ever since. Obviously, that's a point in the PHB favor, too, since you don't really have a way to adjust the roll center; you set it up how MM tells you and it ought to be good.

With the panhard bar, I can foresee the difference in right vs left cornering feeling kind of funky going through slaloms and other tight transitions. I would rather it be the same all the way through the turns that way it makes it easy to get used to. From everything I've read of other people's experience, the faster the transitions, the more noticeable the difference in the PHB and Watts Link is. Since I mainly do AutoCross, it sounded like the WL was the way to go.

Part of the longer term plan is going to the MM K Member and control arms to shave more weight off the nose. That will also move the wheels forward 1.5" and the engine back 1" (and the trans, etc, of course). Removing AC compressor and ABS unit, bumper bar replaced with tubular bar, stripping out excess wiring, etc will help some more. Lighter clutch is in the cards, too. Weight loss for the fatty driver. I found some wider fenders that will fit up to 315s with the right spacing and are half the weight of stock. Since my cousin is going to help me corner balance the car as much as possible down the line, it'll hopefully get closer and closer to neutral handling (though it'll never be 50% or anything...it's a Mustang).

Basically, the Watts Link was just one piece I wanted to fit in more with the long term goal. Sure, for a more novice driver like me with only a few track days and a year of AutoX in the belt, it may not get used to full potential right now, and the PHB would probably do just fine. But down the line, I think I'll want it, so it makes sense to do it now.

Hopefully I'll be able to get a good chunk of this stuff installed before the 26th, but that also depends on MM getting me answers and shipping the stuff in time. Assuming that happens, I'll have the Fays2 and shocks/front coilovers/struts installed this week/weekend. The TA may take a bit more time, though, since I have to grind off the old subframe connectors and get my cousin to weld the new ones in, then weld in the Torque Arm. I doubt I get that done before the 26th.

I also have to figure out an alternator charging issue. Might even end up needing some underdrive pulleys. From what I've read on the 3G alternators, you aren't supposed to spin them faster than 16,000 RPM, and I'm currently spinning mine to about 21,000 at 7000 engine RPM (my typical shift point, rev limiter at 7200 RPM) on 6.5" crank pulley and 2.125" alternator pulley. I have some broken windings and a spot where plastic is mangled on the inside of a brand new alternator. It's the second one I've messed up. Alternators charge right up until I do one AutoX run, then they quit charging and blow the alt fuse. Assuming I don't find mangled wiring anywhere, I'm gonna blame the RPMs and buy some UD pulleys.
 
I reached the conclusion that the alternator issue was RPM related. Two different alternators, both with internal damage, and not just electrical shorting or something. Grenaded internals. Fan blades mangled, funky and bad noises...pretty rough.

120048113_3121797831263907_6475090518720612634_n.jpg


I installed a smaller crankshaft pulley from a BBK 1554 underdrive pulley set. I left the stock water pump and alternator pulleys on there. This gives me about a 1:1 crank to water pump ratio and a little less than 2:1 alternator to crank ratio.

My suspension plan changed once again. I wasn't planning to buy rear coilovers right now. They end up adding about $300 to the build, and I was already cutting it a bit close in terms of budgeting. But Jack from MM said that I would never be able to get enough spring under the rear with stock location springs paired with front coilovers and the TA/Watts Link. He's the expert, so I deferred to him.

So my final build list for this time around:

FRONT:
MM Gen 3 Race-RA2 Valving (PN MAX-12-MT for the Front and Rear Strut/Shock Kit)
MM Coilover Kit (COP-24)
Hypercoil 2.5"/10"/425 lb/in Springs (HYP42510250)
MM Four Bolt Caster/Camber Plates (MMCC9994)

REAR:
MM Gen 3 Race-RA2 Valving (with Spherical Bearing Lower Shock Eyelet, Small Dustcovers (SERVICE-7))
MM Torque Arm (MMTA-1)
MM Standard Upper Mount Coil-Over Kit (MMCO-22)
Hypercoil 2.25"/9"/275 lb/in Springs (HYP27509225)
MM Lower Shock Mount Kit (MMSM-2)
Fays2 SN95 Watts Link w/11" bars (to clear the MM Torque Arm)

STEERING:
MM Solid Steering Rack Bushings (MMST-7)
MM Solid Steering Shaft (MMST14)

CHASSIS:
Stiffler's Full Length Subframe Connectors (SFC-M01)
Stiffler's Jacking Rails (SR-M01)
Stiffler's Web Bracing (WEB-M01)
SR Performance Front Strut Tower Brace (Will probably need to be modified to clear the taller 351w)

Oh, and a white Hurst ball shifter just because I like the look! (And because my massive bear paws don't hang on to the tiny stock plastic piece very well, especially when sweating. My cousin has a Hurst knob in his Trans Am and it feels really nice in my hand.)

I would like to find a manual seat track by this weekend. The factory electric seat doesn't work very well and we're gonna be moving it back and forth a lot with my short cousin codriving. My buddy said he's gonna give me one, which would be pretty dang cool.
 
Well, another AutoCross weekend down, another failure to video the entire weekend. I got all my runs from Sunday, but haven’t gotten them up on YouTube yet. I’ll add the link tonight or tomorrow to them.

This weekend was really tough. The course was fairly technical, lots of fast transitions needed. Plus, we really hurt the car with the halfway changes we made.

We got the quad shocks out and the Watts Link in Thursday and Friday night. Install was pretty straightforward, but drilling the frame rails was harder than anticipated, probably because of the slow air drill and the old bits we had laying around. The bars Jim sent appear to clear everything just fine. We did not get the Torque Arm installed though.

We got the Stiffler’s full length subframes installed, but not the jacking rails or the cross bracing. My pinch welds are pretty messed up, so we’re gonna have to straighten them a little before those go on.

We also put the new solid steering shaft in. I can’t tell if that made a difference in steering response BUT it wasn’t rubbing the header anymore, so that alone is a big improvement from last month.

The place where I think I messed up was removing one of the upper control arms in the rear. I had read about the Poor Mans 3 Link and thought eliminating some of the binding in the uppers might help. It did not. I think you typically have to raise the rear spring rate a lot when you improve from the 4 link, which I knew, but we didn’t have anything stiffer to put in. So I thought we might put a little understeer into the car….I was wrong. We put a LOT of understeer into the car. The rear end felt a LOT more hooked up, but the front end just sucked. Hard turns we were having to let off a lot to not push around. I never got it just right myself, so I didn’t have any great runs.

We tried adjusting the Watts Link a bit, raising it up hoping to loosen the car, and it made dramatic changes to the feel of the car, but no real improvement in times. I thought it got better, personally. I couldn’t control the car on day one. We lost all of the really good braking we’ve always relied on, so I was locking up wheels and pushing in the turns a lot the first day. Could not get the car to slalom worth a crap. The next morning was a little better, by raising it up one hole, then the afternoon was even more controllable with it up another hole. My slaloming improved greatly on Sunday afternoon. I had a S197 Mustang guy ride with me on a clean run, and he said he thought I was really composed and controlled in both slaloms, a marked change from the previous day. His advice was just to take it faster next time. I did, and it would’ve been a really good run, except I screwed up and entered one really slow spot too fast and the car pushed and took out some cones.

To give you an idea of how bad we made it…one of my friends drives a bone-stock 1995 Cobra, and he beat me by a full 2 seconds.

So, overall, Watts Link definitely made a huge improvement in the rear and the car felt more stable and less prone to sudden oversteer, but running the PM3L was a huge mistake with the 250# Steeda springs still back there. I think it would have been just as bad with the torque arm. After feeling it this weekend, I am reeeeeally hoping the coilover kits make it here soon…

I mean, just look at this body roll! 🤯🤯🤯

120313350_2461140830851902_8230225767687450656_n.jpg120299910_2461140600851925_969190285026799690_n.jpg
 
The last points event of the season was last weekend. I had tossed around whether or not to go ahead and put the parts I did have on the car and whether it would make it better or worse. I figured if I put the rear coilovers that I had on without putting the front coilovers on, it might loosen the car waaay up, which might be more desirable than the understeering pig we had driven at the last AutoX. So I put the rear coilovers on and took it for a drive and it was much looser. Jumped kind of hot on the interstate and it felt like the back end was going to come around on it.

Then we decided to put the new coilover struts (MM Race RA-2s) on the front without the new springs, since the front springs and coilover kits still hadn’t made it in yet. I’m glad we swapped the struts though...one of the old Tokico Illuminas had ZERO rebound. Pushed it down and it had very little resistance and never came back up on its own. The passenger side wasn’t quite as bad.

It definitely felt a whole lot better on the test drive, but was still locking up the right front wheel under braking. Will probably need to play with brake bias and improve the rear brakes a little once everything else is done. Taking away the one good aspect of the car (nosediving that gave us super good braking) will probably hurt still, but I figured with actual working front struts and the stiffened rear that loosened the car a bit, it would be better than last event. At least we might be able to get the car to turn in using some throttle.

So the final event rolled around and for the first time in…ever, it felt like we were driving a racecar! Car was much more composed this time around. Marginally faster, but waaaay more composed. Lateral transitions were quicker. Makes me wonder how much better we would’ve done all this season if I’d checked the struts earlier…I really should have. But, live and learn, I guess. The car did have some weird things going on because of the major mismatch in the front and rear. It alternated between tight and loose, depending on the spot on course. There were 4 spots, two lefts and two rights, where the car wanted to push, but you could get it to turn with the throttle when you needed. I did have one run at the end of the morning where I pretty much skated the whole way through. Not a fast time, but I did get a pretty good feel for the looseness of the car on that run. The key to going fast ended up being more throttle everywhere on course. That kept the rear loose and turned better times than trying to stay super composed the entire time.

One thing that is still just as bad as before is braking….it was really bad. A quick brake jab (not a particularly hard one either) locked them up. The same pattern every time, too, right front would lock and pull the car to the right, then the left would grab and it would jerk back to the left.

Final points event videos here.

My cousin’s opinion was that we should leave the 425 coilover springs out and just run the 650lb stock-location springs up front. His thought was that stiffer springs might make the braking worse than it is now. I posted that question in a Facebook group I’m in that’s geared toward AutoX/Road Racing. Obviously it’s my car, but he does have a lot of experience, so I wanted to get advice on how to fix that issue once we got there and whether it would get better or worse once we put the coilovers on. The general consensus was that the stiffer fronts would help the issue, not make it worse. I may still have to play with the brake bias once I have the rest of the car set up the way I plan to long term, but that the locking up issue shouldn't be as bad as it is now.

It's been a fun first year of AutoCrossing and a fairly successful year in general for getting my car setup dialed in. I definitely have improved my driving a lot. And the car should be much better on the track and autocross course than it was before. I got a trailer and a lot of work done on my truck for trailering my car to events.

122948484_872462076828885_5493298614254124590_n.jpg122893948_266838331404280_7774765418650958271_n.jpg
 
I still have plenty of work left to do to the car this winter:
  • I'll be switching from the PM3L to the torque arm, possibly this weekend
  • I still need to straighten the pinch welds out so that I can install the jacking rails and web bracing from Stiffler's
  • Need to modify the strut tower brace to fit with the 351w
  • Need the front coilover kits and springs to come in so that I can install them
  • Need to install an adjustable proportioning valve and gut the stock PV
  • Need to install the Raybestos ST43 rear brake pads
  • Delete the AC compressor
  • Delete the ABS block
  • Put in fresh diff oil
  • ANOTHER set of new tires
My cousin is wanting to pull the engine and check out rings and the valve job. He suspects we will find something amiss in there. He doesn't think the engine has as much power as it ought to. I think a cam made for a little more bottom end would help us out there immensely. Currently a .600/.584" valve lift, 106 LSA, 248/258 @.050...it's a pretty hot cam for trying to get a lot of low end torque. On really slow parts of the course, in 2nd gear, the engine wants to lug. If we lose momentum, it's hard to get it back. It's definitely not an "explosive" engine. I think an Ed Curtis/FlowTech induction cam would be a good direction to go. I know I have the valve springs and top end to support a good cam, so I think a cam and new set of solid lifters would give us more usable power out on course.

I could probably get the engine running more efficiently strapping to a dyno and tuning it there. I don't think I have the Acceleration Enrichment just right, it usually shoots pretty rich when you put your foot to the floor. I haven't played with that too much because the last time I did, I screwed the tune up a little. Now that it's wintertime and there's no danger of missing an event because I messed something up, I'll play with it some more. Try to get the firmware updated so that I can tune on my laptop.

I'm struggling with wanting to do the engine rebuild right now because I'm hoping to do another round of upgrades in early next year, including the K Member and front control arms. Also looking at a lighter flywheel and better clutch (I'm running a stock style $100 O'Reillys clutch right now).
 

PatientZero

@restless_performance
825
865
Exp. Type
Autocross
Exp. Level
10-20 Years
Kansas City, Missouri
That is a really big cam for what you're doing. I would recommend something in the 220-230 @ .050 range. I'd also back off on the lift just a little. If you want to use this car for road racing it will help keep the valvetrain together longer.
 
That's my thought as well. I bought this engine used, so that's what came in it. Not what I would have chosen. My attitude toward this engine has been "run it till it dies". I would love to build a stock block 408. If I go that route, I'll probably upgrade to a hyd roller and put AFR heads on it. I just have to consider it and analyze funds and things. I'm still young, so building a racecar is fun and all, but it's been suggested that I start planning for buying a house. Probably a good idea. Right now I'm relying on my cousin's shop to store trailer and car. And throwing money away by renting an apartment, though it is convenient.
 

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