Necessary mods?

Having my new 06 for just under two weeks I think the car is fine the way it is. It is to quiet for me so I will be adding an axleback exhaust system when I get the money to do so. I'll be adding mods as I go but none of them are necessary for you to enjoy owning the new stangs!!

my .02.

I think a lot of folks have gone this route, including me, and that is to install a CAI and use a tune in either a Predator of SCT X-calibrator. It'll cost a few bucks (like $6-700) but the result is well worth it. I don't know what the actual gain has been in my '05, but I think most dyno results have shown anywhere from 25-35 HP. It is very noticeable on the SOTP dyno.

Most of the CAIs out there (Steeda, C&L, K&N, etc.) are about equal. There was a shootout in one of the mags a while back (MM&FF or 5.0) and they all showed just about the same gains. And, the handheld tuners are probably equal as well. Everybody has their favorite. But, you need to get a good tune from a place that knows what they are doing. Check the posts for people's favorites. I'm happy with the tune I got from Paul's High Performance in Michigan. Of course, if you've got someone who can do a dyno tune nearby, that would be about the best you can do.

upgrade the stock suspention to get rid of the annoying wheel hop and then an intake/tuner

The springs are way too soft. The car lifts and dips like a speedboat and that may be good for weight transfer but it's terrible for brake fade.

One mod I wasn't expecting great things of is the Hurst manual shifter because the stock stubby shifter on the 5 speed is pretty good and I'd been used to GM clonkboxes. Needless to say, I was blown away by the Hurst which removes all the rubberiness from the shift and makes it way better with no selection or noise issues at all.