New 04 GT!

DocG

5th graders > me. They're not bant
Sep 25, 2005
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Cincinnati area
Hello. Just bought an 04' GT....and I've waited to have a car like this for 15 years! Sweet car...bone stock. Today I dropped in a KN air filter....but am looking for some other mods. Been researching the exhausts setups...headers...gears...intakes...etc. Any suggestions on the best first mod? Also, to my total disappointment, I noticed some small drops of fluid on my garage floor today. When I wipe it up, its almost yellowish, but leaking from about the point where the front sway bar is. Its a 5spd. Smells almost like oil, but doesn't look the same as what comes off the dipstick. Soooo....I'm totally psyched about my new GT....but hate to see it leaking fluid with only 22k miles already! I know some about cars, but am no Stang expert, but want to learn! Thanks!
 
Are the gears a "do it yourselfer"??? Usually I can add stuff to cars no problem, but when they have problems, especially on my new "baby", it scares me to death to mess something up!
 
first of all, welcome to the forums. second of all, find out what that leak is and make sure its nothing major, if it is make sure the dealer fixes it before you get balls deep into modding and void the warranty.

oh yeah, 4.10's, and have a pro do it
 
Yellow, 5spd....

I found the leak, yellowish fluid is brake fluid...leaking from either the master cylinder, or the box below and connected to the master cylinder, assume this is the distribution between front/back brakes. Anyways, I assume this is a warranty issue. Anyone else had any problems with brake fluid leaking from this point? Thanks again. I appreciate the friendly welcome and hope my Stang rocks on for years to come!
 
I agree....hope to hell I didn't buy a lemon....but I traced fluid straight to the distribution block directly connected and directly below the master cylinder. Wasn't easy getting under the car this far. I figure its a warranty issue. Definetely not a maintenance issue.
 
Welcome to the board and congrats on your new Mustang. My guess is that the fluid that you see dripping is just engine oil. I am sure whoever you bought it from recently did an oil change. The oil from the filter leaks all over the suspension components and drips out for a couple days. I use a large piece of aluminum foil to divert this oil into my oil pan. I also cleaned all the crusted oil residue from all the previous oil changes. I just blasted it all down with carb cleaner and the old oil came right off :nice:

That is why I always change my own oil, so that I can do it cleanly and not get it all over the place under there. Also, when I do it myself I make sure I get the exact oil and filter that I prefer. I use Motorcraft FL-820S filter and Motorcraft 5W-20 Synthetic blend motor oil.
 
First things first, WELCOME to a great group of people and to what most of us believe to be one of the best hobbies.

I'm sorry to hear about the brake thing. That sounds like a pretty unusual thing to have happen. I'd take it back to the dealer right away and ask them to look into it. I'm sure the warranty would cover it. But like someone said earlier, I would get that fixed first before you go mod'ing the crap out of your car.

But the first thing I would do is the first thing I did, 410's! They are the best SOTP improvement you can make for the money. I love them!
Next, I would do a short throw shifter. We all know with the stock shifters it can be hard to hit 3rd sometimes and that shifter makes it easier.
Then maybe I'd do some exhuast work because I personally love the mustang roar.
But there's lots of things you'll find along the way that you can ask questions about on here and get advice on.

Good luck and let's see some pictures!
 
DocG2828 said:
Sorry for being such a dork here. Yeah, exhaust I can do, and have done before on other cars. Anyone know a trustworthy shop in the Cincinnati area??
I had mine done @ Paul's Automotive Engineering about 8 months ago. They are a Mustang specialty shop in Blue Ash. Not the cheapest, but they know their stuff.

Agree that shifter is a good mod. Also, I would recommend the subframe connectors. They really improve handling.

Choice of mods kinda depends on what you want. Do you want a drag machine or an auto-crosser or just a fun daily driver? Do you want a q-ship or something that looks like "The Fast and the Furious"?
 
Highly recommend the short throw shifter! Also, LOWERING SPRINGS, or coil overs...get rid of the Off Road 4x4 package that came stock on the car. Exhaust is a great way to go too. 04GT is right, figure out what you want first, then plan out your mod's from there. Remember your warranty though, don't want to accidently void it. Speaking of...a good side note: It is the dealer's responsability to prove that the modification you have done is responsable for any problems you are having that is covered by warranty. Therefore, if your a/c goes out, the dealer can't void your warranty because you've put in lowering springs, unless they can prove that it was because of the springs your a/c failed.

Have fun, and welcome to the Mustang World...it's the best group of car owners around!