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S197 Ken Build Thread Profile - S197 Mustangs

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44
56
Exp. Type
HPDE
Exp. Level
3-5 Years
Michigan
I wanted to take some time to create this build list as hopes to maybe help some others out as I did a ton of research on this site to answer many of my own questions as the process went on. I did my best to use vendors that support the site and I used quite a few of them.
The car started innocently enough as a 2005 GT with a stock 4.6L and a 5 speed trans. I thought about going with the newer 5.0 in the S197 chassis but after I saw NASA had a spec series with these cars I was set on the 3 valve. After a couple months of nationwide searches on auto sales sites I found one 15 minutes from my house and then the building began.
While the Spec Iron is the ultimate goal I figured I may as well have some fun with it for the time being and go a little outside their rules for now.
IMG_20201013_174721_01.jpgIMG_20201009_121122.jpg
From what I could tell no body issues with the car and the owner I bought from did a pretty thorough suspension job on it which helped. It was Eibach shocks/struts, springs, sway bars, GT500 strut mounts, and bump stops. Based on what I was reading from most people these cars were under-tired and under-braked so those were the first two items to get addressed.
StopTech ST40 calipers with their 2 piece aero rotor and stainless steel lines (Ordered from Maximum Motorsports) and some 18x11 Apex EC-7 wheels were underway. Since I went with the 18x11 wheels I needed Ford Racing hubs with APR studs along with some 25mm spacers from OP Mustang, I was originally going to go 18x10 wheels but after talking with Cory from Apex he recommended the wider wheel and I am very glad I went with them. It seemed tire choices were pretty up in the air so I figured I would give the RT660's a go as they were priced good and I was rather certain I would be limiting the tires more than they were limiting me.
IMG_20201230_131425.jpgIMG_20201230_133440.jpgIMG_20201230_181126.jpgIMG_20210107_174926.jpgSnapchat-383531712.jpgPXL_20210117_212550720.jpgPXL_20210117_212633592.jpg
After this I moved on to address the rear end, despite the previous owner doing a lot of suspension the lower control arms were not changed out so the angle was wrong and I got a good bit of wheel hop as the rear did not want to squat under acceleration, I went with Maximum Motorsports relocation brackets, control arms, and panhard bar to help really keep the rear planted. To help out the front I added some caster camber plates and went with the Vorshlag ones. To get full utilization of them I had to cut open the strut tower opening, a 2-3/4" hole saw gave plenty of room and I can get about 3 degrees of negative camber.
IMG_20201217_174459.jpg
IMG_20201219_123618.jpgIMG_20201219_130947.jpgIMG_20201202_194559_746.jpgIMG_20210503_224602_093.jpg
Lastly there is the hood, I was reading a lot about overheating issues and front end lift at high speeds due to lack of venting in the hood along with no under tray. I was going to hold off but Trackspec was running a good deal on their vents around the holidays last year so I decided to capitalize. Nothing like cutting holes in a perfectly good hood, it took myself and a buddy the better part of 2-3 evenings to measure and cut everything as we are both very particular but they came out great.
Screenshot_20210228-202615~2.pngScreenshot_20210228-202626~2.pngIMG_20210308_211842_779.jpgIMG_20210308_211843_782.jpg
Outside of this I added some GLOC R12 front and R10 rear pads from KNS Brakes and have been regularly changing/checking fluids and just working on getting as much seat time as I can. Michigan really limits the season but I have been thankful enough to get in 10 events at 5 different tracks so far this year and the car feels great, taking disturbances in the tracks at speed took some getting used to but it just takes time and I love it. I really wanted to make this build reasonably priced as possible and get as much seat time and I could have saved some money with cheaper calipers like the Brembos with single piece rotors and the narrower wheels but I am really happy with the choices I made and I think the next step is a trailer to get to some events further away and more track time!
XFS_3578.jpg0024_W7_3736.jpg0019_W7_9168.jpg
 
44
56
Exp. Type
HPDE
Exp. Level
3-5 Years
Michigan
Hopefully these experiences help others not make the same mistakes as I did.
I had one pretty big mess up on the car and it was installing the caster camber plates. I ordered the parts from Vorshlag per the spec of the Eibach OEM style strut I was running and after I installed them and got to the alignment shop, this is what I found.
PXL_20210509_205320941.jpg
As soon as I saw the top nut sitting on the spherical bearing and not inside I knew something was wrong and it was certainly not like that when I assembled it. Got the car back home got on the phone with Vorshlag and it was pretty quickly diagnosed, what had happened was while assembling the spring was compressed enough to get the old GT500 mounts off and get the new ones on but where I messed up at was not checking if it could go down further. What I missed was that the narrower shaft that has the threads did not have threads that ran all the way down to the shoulder where the plate should sit. So the plates were pushed up just enough by the spring that I couldn't tell the top nut was going to bottom out on the threads as it still sat inside the bearing so it looked like the threads ran the full length.PXL_20210511_213325449.jpg
So when the plate was sitting in the correct spot this is how it looked
IMG_20210512_215446_776.jpg
So when I was torquing the top nut down I was torquing to the bottom of the threads and not to the plate.
Vorshlag had mentioned that these struts run a little inconsistent and they were great in addressing the issue and sent over some spacers that filled up the bottom portion and raised the plate so that the top of it went to the threads. The extra fun part came trying to assemble them with the spacers, the threads got too mashed from driving the car with the first install and when trying to run a nut down to clean off the threads and make sure there were no burrs the nut galled up and seized on the threads and the top hex piece snapped off and the nut had to be cut off so the struts were toast and they were upgraded to Koni yellows.
All of this headache could have been saved by simply removing the spring from the strut placing the camber plate on the strut alone and it would have been very obvious that something was wrong. I am assuming most struts have threads the full length but again just hoping to maybe save someone else the headache
 
44
56
Exp. Type
HPDE
Exp. Level
3-5 Years
Michigan
Perhaps I should actually update the build thread.
Winter 2021/Spring 2022
Edit/Update: I can't believe I completely forgot to add this detail, when dropping the transmission obviously you need to remove the hydraulic clutch line which presses into place and then has a small metal retainer clip to lock. The metal retainer clip is very eager to come off and goes flying, from Ford they don't list the part as being able to be individually purchased, they make you buy the whole clutch line. This clip part is the same part number as a VW part which is 7M 072 1431 and is only about $5-$10 depending on where you get it from, whereas the whole clutch line is about $75 so that was a nice save. I also upgraded the clutch line to a stainless line since I was already this deep into the clutch job, I believe I went with the McLeod and put the OEM head shield back onto the stainless line for a little extra protection. Newbie error make sure the fightings are fully tight when installing on both ends otherwise you end up with a nice shower of brake fluid. Unfortunately I didn't get any pictures of that part of the process.
Tried to do some preventative maintenance and got decently burned. I decided I wanted to change the clutch as the pedal was getting longer and longer and engagement was getting shorter and shorter and ended up cracking one of the ears on the engine that the trans mounts to. It was really upsetting and in conjunction with grad school the car got put on the back burner.PXL_20211222_223604686.jpgPXL_20211231_201936105.jpg
eventually the crack/threads got filled, welded and retapped and got the clutch changed and just in time to make it to Pitt Race at the end of July (2022). I learned that four jackstands and a lowprofile trans just are not and enjoyable time for a garage clutch swap especially considering the car on the jack stands sat too low and I had to drag the trans out on a mat. My favorite part was removing the pilot bearing, bearing puller tool didn't work, some grease and a tight fitting rod with an o-ring didn't work, but a loaf of white bread and a wooden dowel rod worked wondersPXL_20220628_224509827.jpgPXL_20220628_224632735.jpg
So much to my surprise that I still have the bearing on the dowel in the garage as a trophy. Given the amount of headache I ended up going with new hardware, a new flywheel, and went with an OEM replacement clutch and most importantly an OEM throwout bearing, I couldn't find anything but horror stories about non-OEM throwout bearings that gave people issues, it seems many run inconsistent sizing some larger and some smaller so they can be shimmed and have no issue but if you don't catch it then the bearing ends up over extending and needs replacing early.

While I was sorting out the clutch a couple other small mods were made. One being a new upper rear control arm to retire the OEM one that was very tired and had very worn bushings. Opted for the Roush/GT500 rear upper as it still has a rubber bushing just a much denser rubber so it should still absorb some bumps but really help transfer power to the ground. Same design as the OEM one but a much thicker and more reinforced steel.

PXL_20211231_180255421.jpgPXL_20220426_000431840.jpg
Removing the hydrobushing that was in the diff housing was not entirely difficult but very annoying, took a hole saw to most of it, then switched to the torch to burn out some of it but got a little nervous as its right next to the gas tank, eventually ended with the Dremel and a wire wheel attachment. This one got a delrin insert with a healthy amount of marine grease to install it, ideally I would have liked a denser rubber like the control arm had but the only options I could find were delrin or spherical
PXL_20220426_000532375.jpgPXL_20220429_003253017.jpg
Another upgrade being a rear axle fluid reservoir, last season I kept finding the axle tube with a slight film of oil on it, decided to also swap the diff cover for the finned Ford Performance one to make fluid changes easier and help combat the high temps causing the vent to blow over onto the axle
PXL_20220504_225444397.jpgPXL_20220509_232316578.jpgPXL_20220509_230425729.jpg
Had to get a little creative with routing the hose for the diff reservoir to make sure it wasn't kinking when the car was sitting on the ground but also make sure it had enough length to stay intact during full suspension droop.
Last upgrade while I was getting the clutch figured out was to attempt some brake cooling, it's not news to anyone that they're heavy cars and while the brakes have been updated to StopTech ST-40's with the dual piece rotors I already smoked a pair of rotor rings and I really don't want to have to worry about if the car will stop or not.
IMG_20210728_163649_101.jpg
The first attempt were some homemade deflectors, I like the idea of not having to work with hoses especially considering I'm running a 315 so there isn't a ton a real estate in the wheel well. (The second revision along with more info of this coming in a build thread update soon)
PXL_20220511_231531657.jpgPXL_20220516_234044661.jpgPXL_20220516_234128933.jpg
I like the concept of the deflectors but I struggle with them a little bit as I am really not sure how much air is actually making it to the rotor, in addition I had to adjust them kind of awkwardly to avoid contacting the strut and tierod. I recently grabbed some rotor temps and caliper temps and I am going to make some changes and see what kind of difference in results I am able to accomplish and will report back the differences, I was hoping to implement the changes before the most recent TT event but I overlooked how much hose I had on hand and was about 2 feet short and discovered that the evening before we were heading out.

Given the late start to the season due to the crack in the mounting hole from changing the clutch it was a short mod list last year. First test was at Pitt Race which was my second time there, the car felt very confident and very planted, used all sorts of curbing and some grass and the rear stayed planted and didn't have any issues with the diff fluid overflowing so I'll take it! Only got to run 6 track days that year due in part to the wife getting sick since she was pregnant but for those track days the car held up well, really started pushing it as the season went on, more curb and some dirt at most tracks and t stayed confident and predictable. Changed fluid at the end of season, the outside of the axle tube was still dry and the fluid was not very discolored so I am drawing the conclusion the fluid was not burning and the changes did what I was expecting them to do. I think next I want to add a temp sensor as that was something I really like in my S550 when I was running laps with that, I know theres a temp sensor spot on the diff cover I just need to figure out what size the threads are.
 
Last edited:
4
1
Exp. Type
HPDE
Exp. Level
10-20 Years
Indianapolis
Perhaps I should actually update the build thread.
Winter 2021/Spring 2022
Tried to do some preventative maintenance and got decently burned. I decided I wanted to change the clutch as the pedal was getting longer and longer and engagement was getting shorter and shorter and ended up cracking one of the ears on the engine that the trans mounts to. It was really upsetting and in conjunction with grad school the car got put on the back burner.View attachment 87858View attachment 87859
eventually the crack/threads got filled, welded and retapped and got the clutch changed and just in time to make it to Pitt Race at the end of July (2022). I learned that four jackstands and a lowprofile trans just are not and enjoyable time for a garage clutch swap especially considering the car on the jack stands sat too low and I had to drag the trans out on a mat. My favorite part was removing the pilot bearing, bearing puller tool didn't work, some grease and a tight fitting rod with an o-ring didn't work, but a loaf of white bread and a wooden dowel rod worked wondersView attachment 87860View attachment 87861
So much to my surprise that I still have the bearing on the dowel in the garage as a trophy. Given the amount of headache I ended up going with new hardware, a new flywheel, and went with an OEM replacement clutch and most importantly an OEM throwout bearing, I couldn't find anything but horror stories about non-OEM throwout bearings that gave people issues, it seems many run inconsistent sizing some larger and some smaller so they can be shimmed and have no issue but if you don't catch it then the bearing ends up over extending and needs replacing early.

While I was sorting out the clutch a couple other small mods were made. One being a new upper rear control arm to retire the OEM one that was very tired and had very worn bushings. Opted for the Roush/GT500 rear upper as it still has a rubber bushing just a much denser rubber so it should still absorb some bumps but really help transfer power to the ground. Same design as the OEM one but a much thicker and more reinforced steel.

View attachment 87862View attachment 87863
Removing the hydrobushing that was in the diff housing was not entirely difficult but very annoying, took a hole saw to most of it, then switched to the torch to burn out some of it but got a little nervous as its right next to the gas tank, eventually ended with the Dremel and a wire wheel attachment. This one got a delrin insert with a healthy amount of marine grease to install it, ideally I would have liked a denser rubber like the control arm had but the only options I could find were delrin or spherical
View attachment 87864View attachment 87865
Another upgrade being a rear axle fluid reservoir, last season I kept finding the axle tube with a slight film of oil on it, decided to also swap the diff cover for the finned Ford Performance one to make fluid changes easier and help combat the high temps causing the vent to blow over onto the axle
View attachment 87868View attachment 87867View attachment 87866
Had to get a little creative with routing the hose for the diff reservoir to make sure it wasn't kinking when the car was sitting on the ground but also make sure it had enough length to stay intact during full suspension droop.
Last upgrade while I was getting the clutch figured out was to attempt some brake cooling, it's not news to anyone that they're heavy cars and while the brakes have been updated to StopTech ST-40's with the dual piece rotors I already smoke a pair of rotor rings and I really don't want to have to worry about if the car will stop or not. The first attempt were some homemade deflectors, I like the idea of not having to work with hoses especially considering I'm running a 315 so there isn't a ton a real estate in the wheel well. (The second revision along with more info of this coming in a build thread update soon)
View attachment 87869View attachment 87873View attachment 87872
I like the concept of the deflectors but I struggle with them a little bit as I am really not sure how much air is actually making it to the rotor, in addition I had to adjust them kind of awkwardly to avoid contacting the strut and tierod. I recently grabbed some rotor temps and caliper temps and I am going to make some changes and see what kind of difference in results I am able to accomplish and will report back the differences, I was hoping to implement the changes before the most recent TT event but I overlooked how much hose I had on hand and was about 2 feet short and discovered that the evening before we were heading out.

Given the late start to the season due to the crack in the mounting hole from changing the clutch it was a short mod list last year. First test was at Pitt Race which was my second time there, the car felt very confident and very planted, used all sorts of curbing and some grass and the rear stayed planted and didn't have any issues with the diff fluid overflowing so I'll take it! Only got to run 6 track days that year due in part to the wife getting sick since she was pregnant but for those track days the car held up well, really started pushing it as the season went on, more curb and some dirt at most tracks and t stayed confident and predictable. Changed fluid at the end of season, the outside of the axle tube was still dry and the fluid was not very discolored so I am drawing the conclusion the fluid was not burning and the changes did what I was expecting them to do. I think next I want to add a temp sensor as that was something I really like in my S550 when I was running laps with that, I know theres a temp sensor spot on the diff cover I just need to figure out what size the threads are.
I believe we pitted near one another last September at Gingerman. You (I think):
2022-09-15 16.51.02.jpg
Me:
2022-09-15 18.55.40.jpg
From our talk and how it did on track seemed you were well on your way to getting her sorted. Hope it's the case. Good luck with it. Seems she's a runner and a looker!
 
44
56
Exp. Type
HPDE
Exp. Level
3-5 Years
Michigan
I believe we pitted near one another last September at Gingerman. You (I think):
View attachment 87880
Me:
View attachment 87881
From our talk and how it did on track seemed you were well on your way to getting her sorted. Hope it's the case. Good luck with it. Seems she's a runner and a looker!
aye that is me! nice pics. if I remember right I believe you were fighting some higher than desired coolant temps?
 
4
1
Exp. Type
HPDE
Exp. Level
10-20 Years
Indianapolis
aye that is me! nice pics. if I remember right I believe you were fighting some higher than desired coolant temps?
Oil temp and I’m still losing the fight but a tad less badly. I may see if the Trackspec center vent like yours is the ticket. Thankfully the next two tracks (Blackhawk & Gingerman) are north.
 
44
56
Exp. Type
HPDE
Exp. Level
3-5 Years
Michigan
Oil temp and I’m still losing the fight but a tad less badly. I may see if the Trackspec center vent like yours is the ticket. Thankfully the next two tracks (Blackhawk & Gingerman) are north.
I wish I had some tips on helping out with oil temp but hopefully you can get it sorted out. The vents certainly may help, (knock on wood) I haven't had any issues with mine but then again I have about 100 less horsepower. If its a TNiA event I may see you at Gingerman!
 
44
56
Exp. Type
HPDE
Exp. Level
3-5 Years
Michigan
Some pictures from Pitt Race to prove that it actually makes it off jack stands and to the track.
IMG_20220730_201826.jpgIMG_20220730_201828.jpg
Also in 2021 I added a GPS booster to use with TrackAddict to help create a more representative line. I opted for the Haze Engineering booster since it had the highest frequency at 18Hz. The first picture is GingerMan Raceway (I promise that isn't where I actually drove) but just using the phone GPS which at best updates at about 1Hz, the second is from Pitt Race and the refinement is rather obvious. This was a cheap way to help find some speed and areas for improvement without going full data system, it is accurate down to a few feet so you can get an idea pretty close to exactly where you took a certain turn, braking patterns, and acceleration trends.
Screenshot_20210703-001412.pngScreenshot_20210707-191248.png
 
44
56
Exp. Type
HPDE
Exp. Level
3-5 Years
Michigan
Nice build, looks like it's coming along. Who makes that diff reservoir?
Thank you! It is made by Bob's Machine, I've been quite happy with it. If I remember install correctly the only thing I had to change was there was a fuel tank overflow/breather that was a hard tube which was in the way but I just cut it and added a 5/8's flex hose and made sure it was routed away from anything that might be hot.
 
44
56
Exp. Type
HPDE
Exp. Level
3-5 Years
Michigan
As the 2022 season went on I kept noticing at the end of the sessions I would be slouching in the seat and by the end of the day my lower back would be hurting. Didn't take long to figure out that it was due to how high I was sitting so I kept creeping down to try and get a better line of sight of the track. I'm about 6'4" add a couple more for a helmet and it takes up most of the space in the cabin. I was running a Corbeau seat which I did like but it was obviously compromising my seating position, since I was driving it to the track I had a slider on there and even the widest seat they had was still a little more snug than I really liked. So I capitalized on going to PRI and sat in a ton of different seats and landed on the Kirkey Series 65 seat, it had the best fit for me, the best price point, some adjustability, and it was still light weight.
PXL_20230411_190901117.jpg
The unfortunate part was this upgrade also had me justify a few others, one being a 4 point cage, the other being a removable steering wheel as the seat was going to come off the slider and be hard mounted to the floor. Granted both things I wanted to do regardless but now I had the reasoning.
While I was installing the seat I upgraded to a 6 point Schroth 3" harness, this harness had the clips (COTER PIN YOUR CLIPS IF YOU HAVEN'T) and I couldn't really reuse the factory mounting holes as one was on the seat bracket so I went for the Watson Racing Lap Harness Bracket (picture below if from the Watson Racing website). While I was installing this with the seat bracket I was really unsatisfied with the nut engagement onto the stud of the car as that stud captures both the seat bracket and the harness bracket both significantly thicker than the OEM seat only. What I found out was it was just a double ended stud so with a little bit of oil to loosen things I backed the stud out measured it and got a replacement bolt and just ran the bolt down through both and that felt much better, the one thing to watch with that is on the outer hole there is a piece of sheet metal under the hole so the bolt had to be sized to not run into that where it would not be fully securing the seat.
IMG_20230426_091758_01.jpgScreen Shot 2023-08-14 at 7.47.07 PM.png
PXL_20230513_002949276.jpg
Apparently I don't have any pictures but I went with the Fathouse Fabrications Kirkey seat bracket, the adjustability and the pricing while still being a solid piece are what drew me to that and there were several I was looking at. I will update the post with a picture of that along with the bolt into the seat bracket mounts when I get a chance to get out there.
So far I have been really happy with the seat and the new setup, no movement under braking like I would get with the slider. The seating position took some getting used to as it put me further back from the pedals than I was used to but a couple sessions with it and it feels normal now. The vision improvements that I got from lowering the seat are significantly more than I thought, less A pillar and roof line obstruction, I am more in line with the mirrors so I can set them up for a wider view. I thought I was doing a good job looking through a turn before but this makes it so much easier.
 

Fabman

Dances with Racecars
6,518
8,154
Exp. Type
W2W Racing
Exp. Level
20+ Years
Pleasanton: 1/2 way between Sonoma and Laguna Seca
As the 2022 season went on I kept noticing at the end of the sessions I would be slouching in the seat and by the end of the day my lower back would be hurting. Didn't take long to figure out that it was due to how high I was sitting so I kept creeping down to try and get a better line of sight of the track. I'm about 6'4" add a couple more for a helmet and it takes up most of the space in the cabin. I was running a Corbeau seat which I did like but it was obviously compromising my seating position, since I was driving it to the track I had a slider on there and even the widest seat they had was still a little more snug than I really liked. So I capitalized on going to PRI and sat in a ton of different seats and landed on the Kirkey Series 65 seat, it had the best fit for me, the best price point, some adjustability, and it was still light weight.
View attachment 88360
The unfortunate part was this upgrade also had me justify a few others, one being a 4 point cage, the other being a removable steering wheel as the seat was going to come off the slider and be hard mounted to the floor. Granted both things I wanted to do regardless but now I had the reasoning.
While I was installing the seat I upgraded to a 6 point Schroth 3" harness, this harness had the clips (COTER PIN YOUR CLIPS IF YOU HAVEN'T) and I couldn't really reuse the factory mounting holes as one was on the seat bracket so I went for the Watson Racing Lap Harness Bracket (picture below if from the Watson Racing website). While I was installing this with the seat bracket I was really unsatisfied with the nut engagement onto the stud of the car as that stud captures both the seat bracket and the harness bracket both significantly thicker than the OEM seat only. What I found out was it was just a double ended stud so with a little bit of oil to loosen things I backed the stud out measured it and got a replacement bolt and just ran the bolt down through both and that felt much better, the one thing to watch with that is on the outer hole there is a piece of sheet metal under the hole so the bolt had to be sized to not run into that where it would not be fully securing the seat.
View attachment 88359View attachment 88364
View attachment 88361
Apparently I don't have any pictures but I went with the Fathouse Fabrications Kirkey seat bracket, the adjustability and the pricing while still being a solid piece are what drew me to that and there were several I was looking at. I will update the post with a picture of that along with the bolt into the seat bracket mounts when I get a chance to get out there.
So far I have been really happy with the seat and the new setup, no movement under braking like I would get with the slider. The seating position took some getting used to as it put me further back from the pedals than I was used to but a couple sessions with it and it feels normal now. The vision improvements that I got from lowering the seat are significantly more than I thought, less A pillar and roof line obstruction, I am more in line with the mirrors so I can set them up for a wider view. I thought I was doing a good job looking through a turn before but this makes it so much easier.
Same seat I use, for all the same reasons.
 

Bill Pemberton

0ld Ford Automotive Racing Terror
8,422
8,347
Exp. Type
Time Attack
Exp. Level
20+ Years
Blair, Nebraska
Not sure why, Ken, but a bunch of your later threads do not show pictures on my computer, so if you have already done some things or I missed a post, I was wondering if you got rid of your driving lights or installed a new grill. I noticed a comment about running hot, and the hood vents help, but installing a race style grill or just losing the fog/driving lights is also a big help. Great build and fun read.
 
44
56
Exp. Type
HPDE
Exp. Level
3-5 Years
Michigan
Not sure why, Ken, but a bunch of your later threads do not show pictures on my computer, so if you have already done some things or I missed a post, I was wondering if you got rid of your driving lights or installed a new grill. I noticed a comment about running hot, and the hood vents help, but installing a race style grill or just losing the fog/driving lights is also a big help. Great build and fun read.
Hmm well that's odd, I'll double check it maybe I messed something up when attaching the images. Thanks for the heads up.
But as of now I am running the stock grill with the fog lights, I've been debating removing the lights but temps have been good with the vents so I figure I'll just leave it be for the moment. I have had thoughts of running a non-vented hood just to have less to worry about with rain.
I appreciate the feedback though! I need to make a few more posts to get it up to date with where things are at now
 

Bill Pemberton

0ld Ford Automotive Racing Terror
8,422
8,347
Exp. Type
Time Attack
Exp. Level
20+ Years
Blair, Nebraska
Don't worry about the rain, if you are at speed it will not go in and if you are sitting in the paddock just cover it. Funny, it seems we all worry about putting vents in or getting a heavily vented hood ( from chicane23.com or Anderson Composites ) and then it just never seems to rain , haha!
 
Last edited:
44
56
Exp. Type
HPDE
Exp. Level
3-5 Years
Michigan
I typically don't worry about the rain since like you say as long as your moving it's good. But I get some flashbacks to the NASA Autobahn event last year that dumped so much rain, we ended up with standing water on majority of the track to the point I couldn't get enough speed to be able to ignore it. Although due to that event I went out and got a set of GT500 wheels and put some 275 rain tires on (the 315 semi slick were veryyyy unhappy with me that day lol)
 

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