advice on the goals i would like to achieve plz.

Welcome to the lighter side

First, you'll need some full length sub frame connectors and probably some lower control arms. Depending on what else you want from your suspension, it'll go from there.

No, the T5 won't take it if you intend to drive it like it's meant to be driven. So, you can either get an upgrade from someone like Liberty Gears or G-Force transmissions and pay someone/do it yourself, or you can just dump some money into a TTC 3550 or TKO, either of which will handle it no problem.

First of all, the 331 and 347 are both 302 based. Either one will get you into the low 12's with the right H/C/I combo and good driving, with the afforementioned parts and good tires. The advantage to these are that they look just like a 5.0, use all the same parts, and don't weigh any more while providing more displacement. A 351 is basically a boat anchor, but they can still be made to run hard with the right parts. They can also be stroked to fantastic proportions like 408 cubes, which should give you low 12's with no trouble. Downside to 351 based powerplants is the Fox never came with one, so there is a lot of additional stuff that needs to be converted. Do a search, there are many, many people on here who've done it with stupid fast results; and there are complete conversion kits available from places like Holcomb Motorsports. Are you thinking to get a crate engine, or stroke the one you have? the advantage to the crate approach is less downtime. However, sometimes it can be cheaper to have a local shop stroke the one you have if you can get around without your ride for awhile. Saves lots on shipping that way too. Whichever you choose, get your crate/kit from a respected place like CHP or DSS, and get their opinions on what combo will get you the timeslips you want.

The first thing you need to do is get the car. For $5K you should be able to afford a pretty good clean decent one (if you can find any). You won't know what else you need until you have one though, who knows- you may find one that already has a 347 in it. Good luck