I'm Back, New Project Underway

[Duc_Stang_95]

Some of you may remember a short-lived 1995 331 swap project from a couple months back that ended in a pile of snow and 2 steel signposts.

http://www.stangnet.com/mustang-forums/threads/new-member-project-underway.873279/

Well, I replaced my 'Stang with a 370z but it didn't take me long to get back into the Mustang game... only this time it's not for me at all. My sister will be 16 this coming February and I've been working on a 1998 GT for her first car. It needs a lot of cosmetic work, but the driveline is tip-top and I was able to salvage lots of my performance mods from the '95 to put into this one. The paint and body work will be entirely new and custom. Performance-wise, I'm giving it basically every chassis/handling mod I can and leaving the engine bone stock since she doesn't need more power as a new driver. I may even give it a "nanny" tune to limit it to 70mph and 4k rpm or so until she learns what she's doing...

She doesn't know anything about it, total surprise... I'm excited.

 

[Duc_Stang_95]

More pics...

 

[Duc_Stang_95]

So far it's got 17x8" Bullitt style rims (had to buy 1 new one after the wreck), 1" rear spacers, a Steeda Tri-ax, full Prothane poly bushing kit, MM steering shaft, custom sail panels and integrated trunk wing (will look similar to the Saleen wing when done), fully boxed rear control arms, welded-in shock tower brace, SR strut tower brace, all new rear dampers, new carpet, bedliner on the floorboards, lowering springs, leather shift knob and boot, Bullitt style pedal covers, rubber Ford floor mats, and probably a few more things I'm forgetting.

 

[89oem]

i do recall that story, glad you havent lost your mustang fever....

 

[Duc_Stang_95]

Thought I'd update this old thread now that it's getting down to the wire...

 

[elarm1]

I'm glad your back. Sorry to hear that you didn't get rid of that 370. What did you have left from the old stang. I remember seeing your cl add with some good stuff.

 

[Duc_Stang_95]

I'm glad your back. Sorry to hear that you didn't get rid of that 370. What did you have left from the old stang. I remember seeing your cl add with some good stuff.

I ended up reusing my brake rotors, pads, strut tower brace, shocks, springs, shifter, knob, boot, 3 of the wheels, steering shaft, Flowmaster system, RF speakers, billet fuel door, trunk lid and hood (mine were in better shape than the ones on this car). The bored 302 block and 8.8" rear I sold, and was sad to let those go.

Stuff I had to buy includes another wheel, new carpet, hood pins, 1" spacers (regretted selling those), complete poly bushing kit, and Bullitt pedal covers.

Fabricated stuff includes the sail panels, integrated deck wing, welded-in rear shock tower brace, and boxed upper and lower control arms.

I still need a tuner to squeeze out a few extra ponies and set a governor.

I only WISH I could afford to mod the 370... Mustangs are easy to work on and dirt cheap compared to imports that are even half decent. I'd love a 500+ RWHP twin turbo Z someday but it's probably never gonna happen.

 

[A5literMan]

Very cool you're doing this for your sister. And yeah keep it "low powered" she'll have her hands full in the first place. Plus most girls don't care about more power. They like the bling/style

 

[Duc_Stang_95]

Very cool you're doing this for your sister. And yeah keep it "low powered" she'll have her hands full in the first place. Plus most girls don't care about more power. They like the bling/style

If she were a boy I wouldn't be doing this because I remember how I was at 16...

As it is this car has more stock torque than my 370 (even with 120+ less hp) so it's gonna be a handful for a brand new driver who still doesn't know what a 5-speed is. All the mods I did are either for looks or to keep the car on the road if she goes into a corner too hot... guess who gets to teach her how to drive it?

 

[Duc_Stang_95]

More updates. Wet-sanding is a bitch...

 

[elarm1]

Nice, are you doing all the body work? look like it going to be a nice ride!

 

[Duc_Stang_95]

It's mostly a buddy of mine doing the car... he was just going to paint it and flip it until I had my wreck and decided to get it for my sister. Now I'm learning how to do all the body work, paint, panel alignment, etc. The suspension, interior, and most of the parts installation was me though.

 

[Duc_Stang_95]

Endgame in sight. The letters are actually for a 1970 Fastback but I like how it looks, especially with the "Mustang GT" on the bumper filled in. I think we're going to integrate the hood stops into the pins and put them where the stops go on the radiator support.

 

[Duc_Stang_95]

More updates, final assembly push is happening this weekend because next Saturday is the big unveiling. We modified the Ford Racing hood pin kit to make it replace the stock hood stop bumpers and incorporate the rubber parts into the actual posts. So now they serve 2 functions; keeping the hood down and making it line up with the fenders.

 

[Duc_Stang_95]

More glamor shots. Probably over 95% of the way there after today.

 

[Duc_Stang_95]

Wife and I spraying paint the other day. Just gotta clean everything up, install the radio, and take pics.

Oh, and get a tuner. No hits yet on that.

 

[Duc_Stang_95]

DONE!