Fox New Here! Need Help Choosing Radials.

Bobbydigital · Dec 9, 2016

Hi everybody. Just bought a 1990 Lx 5.0 Convertible 7UP edition and looking for some suggestions on radials as well as some other basic upgrades.

RaggedGT · Dec 9, 2016

Welcome to Stangnet,
That's a good looking convertible you have there.. Is it completely stock?

Bobbydigital · Dec 9, 2016

It's stock other than a full flowmaster exhaust system. Or at least that's what I gather, as that the car is mint with 57k miles.

RaggedGT · Dec 9, 2016

Bobbydigital said:
It's stock other than a full flowmaster exhaust system. Or at least that's what I gather, as that the car is mint with 57k miles.

Sweet-
Before people start making performance upgrade recommendations, what do you want from the car? driver? drag strip ?autocross etc?

Bobbydigital · Dec 9, 2016

It's a weekend car and only used on sunny days. I don't plan on taking it to the track but id like some more performance and def more traction off the line.

Adieu · Dec 10, 2016

For street tires, I recommend Nexen on the budget end of things (N5000s are pretty decent), and Bridgestone/Firestone on the more expensive end of things. I'm personally a HUGE fan of the Firestone Firehawk WideOval A/S, have them on my Mustang II and on my dad's 2013 Hyundai Accent hatch, they (surprisingly) perform equally well on a rear-wheel-drive musclecar and on a front-wheel-drive hot hatch. Other really good choices would include most of the Continental Contiprocontact line, almost anything Michelin/BF Goodrich makes (though they're very prone to dry-rotting long before the tread wears out), Hankook and Kumho's sport tires (the Ventus from Hankook in particular is excellent), and Pirelli's PZero line if you're not going to drive in wet weather often (they're HORRIBLE in rain though).

General karthief · Dec 10, 2016

Is it a stick car?
Congrats on a low mile stocker, they are hard to find. I ran kumos on my convrt, it was stock auto car, pretty good but got about 30k before they hit the wear bars. 300 treadwear

Bobbydigital · Dec 10, 2016

It's a 5 speed. I have Kumho which spin way more than I'd like in 1st and 2nd. I had mickey Thompson ET Street radials on my vette which hooked up real well. I'm not looking for anything that extreme but def something that is going to help me launch off the line.

Adieu · Dec 10, 2016

Bobbydigital said:
It's a 5 speed. I have Kumho which spin way more than I'd like in 1st and 2nd. I had mickey Thompson ET Street radials on my vette which hooked up real well. I'm not looking for anything that extreme but def something that is going to help me launch off the line.

Pirelli PZero Neros stuck like glue on my stick 2010 GT, the Firestone Firehawk WideOval A/S on my little II spin just the tiniest bit with 300rwhp, a really steep rear gear, and not nearly enough weight on the ass end, and they're really not wide enough (running 205/55/16 to match the biggest that clears in the front so I can just have one spare).

Bobbydigital · Dec 10, 2016

What do you guys think about the Nitto NT 555R?

mikestang63 · Dec 10, 2016

congratulations and welcome.. For tires, I like BFG Comp 2's.. but they are a 340 wear rating and are not for someone looking ot get 40,000 miles out of them. Nitto's are great but imo not for all season or in the rain.

I'd vote to keep the car as stock as possible. It's a slippery slope once you start doing mods.. Here is what I would do if it were my car

Maximum Motorsports subframe connectors- these cars twist like swiss cheese and yours being a convertable will rattle and squeak over every major bump or crack, These will tighten up your car and greatly improve the rigidity
130 amp 3G alternator- your stock 65 amp alternator is barely adequate for a stock mustang with no aftermarket stereo, or E fan. Plus the wiring is a known fire hazard
MGW or PRO 5.0 Shifter- this will eliminate the slop in your stock shifter and provide more positive shifts . They also have stops so you dont overhift and bend your shift forks
K&N Air filter- this will give you a little increase in hp and is reusable
3.73 rear end gears- this is going to be the best bang for the buck performance improvement. It will make the car feel totally different and give more out of the hole.

All of these with the exception of the subframe connectors are bolt in and reverseable should you decide to put the car back to 100% stock. Keep the old parts if you decide to do so.

I would also spend the $255 and get the Maximum Motorsports break upgrade kit. The stock Mustang brakes are terrible and this kit has better pads and shoes, Stainless steel brake hoses to replace teh 30 year od rubber ones, and stainless steel caliper bushings. This will provide you with greatly improved brakes on a budget.

If you really get the HP bug I would recommend a base V3 kit that is completely bolt on and you dont have to change much except your fuel pump. You'll see around 75 hp increase for about $3000.

General karthief · Dec 10, 2016

Mike's advice is spot on, be'n a 7up car gives it some status. Something most people don't think about is resale value, not what the car is worth sit'n at the curb but the value of it in the future. If you buy sticky tires it will stress other components, if you take it to the dragstrip, you will stress other components.
If you let your 'friend' teach you how to 'power' shift it, that trans will trash itself, t5's don't like power shifts, sticky tires and dragstrip launches without learning how to it.
It's a nice piece of automotive history, be nice to it.

Bobbydigital · Dec 10, 2016

I plan on keeping it nearly stock that's why I thought tires might be a nice lil way to get some more performance and keep its value.

The shifter is stock and definitely has long throws.

I definitely baby the car but on those rare occasions I'd like to line up at a stop light I'd like to have some grip.

General karthief · Dec 10, 2016

Glad to here you want to keep it close to stock.
I'm get kinda spunky with people that hack up a good car, throw some 'bolt on' stuff and upgrade the brakes like mike said, subframe connectors are almost a must do especially on verts, I had a few of them aand they develope a 'cowl shake' on bumpy surfaces, thats when the windshield and dash area flex from no support, a brace in the engine compartment will help with that,
Keep us posted on what you do with it, maybe a 'bobby's car' thread to keep it tied together and post pics, you get prizes for pics.
No really, but post em anyway.

90sickfox · Dec 10, 2016

Whatever you do keep your stock parts.

The next thing I'd do after tires is the subframe connector w/seat braces ( worth its weight in gold on a convertible ).

I enjoyed a set of Bridgestone Potenzas for a long time. They still have tread left but they are dry rotted. They were on my car for 4 years...burn outs and all. I had a set of Nitto 450 before that....they were good also. The Nittos would clean the asphalt during a burnout. Very good tire but didn't last as good as the Potenzas.

A set of 3.73 gears would wake your car up a bit. You've got to change the speedometer gear also.

You have one of the most recognized special editions out there. That car will be worth a decent amount in the future. All the classic convertibles are worth more....yours is a special edition on top of that.

Beautiful car man. Welcome to the forum !

Bobbydigital · Dec 11, 2016

Thanks for the help guys! I was driving earlier and I noticed how imprecise and lax the shifter can be at times. I'm definitely looking forward to putting in a short throw shifter for crisp shifts.

I'm also planning on upgrading the lights to HID. The stock lights are weaker than a jar of fireflys.

I also had a question about replacing the trunk. I love the clean look of a trunk with no luggage rack(I'll keep the original for resale purposes). I've seen some convertibles without the 3rd brake light. Is it legal to replace the trunk without that 3rd light?

mikestang63 · Dec 11, 2016

No on the HID's. Just get a good set of Sylvania Super White's. Not sure about the legality of removing the 3rd brake light but I have to believe the cars with no luggage rack didn't have them.

General karthief · Dec 11, 2016

I think my 85 notch had the 3 brake light in the back windscreen, I err, meant back window.

90sickfox · Dec 11, 2016

The third brake light can be removed legally in my state. On one of my mustangs I removed it to pass state inspection ( the wiring was screwed up ).

General karthief · Dec 11, 2016

I've found here in central Florida the police don't care too much about how you take care of your car, and most are not aware what vehicles are required to have 3rd brake lights, you can drive a flaming turd around as long as it's got current tags.

Fox New Here! Need Help Choosing Radials.

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Been here over a DECADE and still no CT

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Been here over a DECADE and still no CT

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Easy there, this ain't a dating site.

wonder how much it would cost to ship you a pair

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Easy there, this ain't a dating site.

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wonder how much it would cost to ship you a pair

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wonder how much it would cost to ship you a pair

Wasn't a pretty sight...and I've got big hands

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wonder how much it would cost to ship you a pair

Wasn't a pretty sight...and I've got big hands

wonder how much it would cost to ship you a pair

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