Project: Swapping 94 Gt drivetrain to 1999 V6 Vert chassis

99FiveOh · Jul 26, 2011

urban96 said:
sweet project!! i would swap out the headlights for the 01+ tinted ones and get a grille delete

All in good time. I'm planning a complete Saleen kit as soon as money allows.

99FiveOh · Aug 4, 2011

Found a couple cool videos on Youtube while searching for this same swap.

This one here is a way to do it, but it looks like he made way more work for himself than necessary, still cool though:

‪1999 mustang 302 FRANKENSTANG ...ITS ALIVE‬&rlm; - YouTube

‪1999 mustang 5.0‬&rlm; - YouTube

Here's another one I found too:

‪2001 mustang 5.0‬&rlm; - YouTube

I'll definitely be putting up a video or 2 of mine, I think my swap is completely seamless! It looks like it came from the factory this way. I wouldn't even dream of trying to make a Fox setup work in one of these cars! From the first guys screen name I think he works at a salvage yard and probably had to work with what he had available.. not sure. I'd like talk to him about his build though.

99FiveOh · Aug 15, 2011

I figured I'd update this thread with the final pics of the car and vids (even though I posted them in another spot, this will be easier for people who find this thread through searches and such)

Here's a couple vids. They would have been better if I had kept my yap shut! lol

1999 Mustang converted to 302 5.0 drivetrain - YouTube

Short run through the gear 1999 Mustang 5.0 302 - YouTube

BlownFiveLiter · Aug 15, 2011

That car would look amazing with a Saleen body kit. I can't wait to see when you do get it, once the funds allow for it. Here's some pics for inspiration:

99FiveOh · Aug 15, 2011

Dang, that is sweet! And I even like it in white, so I wouldn't have to do a color change on my car if I made it like that!

BlownFiveLiter · Aug 15, 2011

That's what I'm saying! If I ever got a new edge, I want a white convertible that I could make into a Saleen clone. That, or a black coupe.

Husky44 · Aug 16, 2011

NotA4.6 said:
Dang, that is sweet! And I even like it in white, so I wouldn't have to do a color change on my car if I made it like that!

Go for it!

jruppert · Aug 23, 2011

I must say, very inspiring. I own a 94 GT but have swapped in a 351w. I have owned it since 98. My wife would like a convertible and I have contemplated doing this swap. I know I can do it. My wife had a 93 SHO that she rolled and I just couldnt let it go so I found a 94 Taurus (same color) for $400. I did the swap so I know EXACTLY what you went through. Hindsight being 20/20, I should have just bought another SHO. However, you cant get a pushrod 99-04. So this is very cool. I noticed you said you had to buy a passenger door harness to mate with the 94 wiring. I thought you said that you were going to get door harnesses for a 94-95 vert. Also, what is the difference from that harness in passenger door and driver? What I mean is did you use factory 94-95 driver side harness? Sorry, I was a little confused there. I love your polish job on intake and valve covers. I tried to do valve covers once and they looked good but not as good as what you have. What made you want to reuse factory K-member other than the fact that you already had it to use? My thoughts in my project would be to use an aftermarket k-member for a 94-95. I have also thought about going with megasquirt instead of factory eec. This may change by the time I get around to do this though. Great write up! Thanks for the insight

99FiveOh · Aug 24, 2011

Thanks for the kind words!

On the door harnesses: I knew both harnesses would need to be replaced. I knew a coupe driver door harness would not work for a vert because it lacked the wiring for the rear quarter windows so indeed I did get a 94/95 Vert driver door harness. But I was surprised when my 94's passenger harness wouldn't fit, so I had to buy a passenger side harness from a vert car as well. The difference was dictated by the body harness. I had to get door harnesses that mated to the body harness or it would have created a wiring mess.

As for the K member, I used the stock 94 K member because I didn't have the spare cash to buy a tubular K member. And most K members require you to buy their A arms, which also require new coil over setups which would have quickly added to the cost of this swap. Eventually I plan to swap it out but it's doing it's job at the moment.

I don't see any need to change out the factory EEC until I have enough power to justify it. For a stock 5.0 it would be WAY overkill and would have added a completely new variable in the swap. I wanted the least amount of things that could go wrong as possible. My goal was a reliable, almost stock 99 5.0 Mustang. I've now put almost 2k miles on it and it's running great!

If you do the swap I'll be here to help any way I can!

jruppert · Aug 24, 2011

Ok, now I understand regarding the harness. Last night when reading this I forgot that the driver side had the quarter window controls and not passenger. I can see where you were thrown off. The k-member would add cost. Did you ever have any issues with the keyless entry? Did you end up using your key fob from the 94-95? When I do this swap I will probably end up going with a 4r70w instead of my tremec tko. I love the stick but I have been driving a stick since 98 and sometimes it just gets old.

MysteryMachine · Aug 24, 2011

That looks awesome. Glad to see you finished it up. Nice work

99FiveOh · Aug 24, 2011

jruppert said:
Ok, now I understand regarding the harness. Last night when reading this I forgot that the driver side had the quarter window controls and not passenger. I can see where you were thrown off. The k-member would add cost. Did you ever have any issues with the keyless entry? Did you end up using your key fob from the 94-95? When I do this swap I will probably end up going with a 4r70w instead of my tremec tko. I love the stick but I have been driving a stick since 98 and sometimes it just gets old.

No, the keyless entry is a no go. The body harness I got doesn't seem to have an optional plug for the keyless entry system to plug into. I will likely go with an aftermarket setup because I'm tired of only being able to unlock the car from the driver side only. I don't know why Ford saw fit to remove the key lock on the passenger side!!

And on top of that, my trunk lock cylinder won't turn so I have to use the trunk release button in the glove box. And since I can't enter the locked car from the passenger side, I have to unlock the driver door with the key, push the "unlock" button, go over to the passenger side and then push the trunk release. You might ask "why not just lean over and pop the trunk from the driver's side". Well, for starters that's too much work for my lazy butt! Second, crawling over my seats all the time won't be good for them.

So I'll just pick up a descent alarm system and use it's keyless entry functions.

99FiveOh · Sep 8, 2011

Another update:

I recently took the car on a long road trip and it did well. I think the trip was roughly 700 miles round trip. The cut factory springs really beat you up while on less than perfect road surfaces. I will be getting a set of the Ford Racing C springs as soon as I can.

I also got around to swapping the RPM upper for a Performer upper and it made a huge difference. I now have that "put you in your seat" feeling when I mat the pedal! Very nice indeed.

All in all, this conversion was a success! The A/C will truly freeze you out even in 100 degree weather, which is very nice. I have a couple blemishes on the body I will focus on now. I want to do a color change but the sensible adult in me (funny how that happens when you eclipse age 30 lol) says to be economical about this and settle on the white. The pics posted in this thread of the white Saleen looked awesome anyway.

That's it for now. A turbo and a 351 are planned for the distant future.

stanger9410 · Sep 14, 2011

Where are more pics of this?.

wheelyman19 · Sep 15, 2011

Ya I wonder how the 351 will fit, can u even imagine havin one in that car! That'd be awesome!

revhead347 · Sep 15, 2011

wheelyman19 said:
Ya I wonder how the 351 will fit, can u even imagine havin one in that car! That'd be awesome!

It would fit the same as in an SN95, where it was a factory option for one year.

Kurt

99FiveOh · Sep 15, 2011

stanger9410 said:
Where are more pics of this?.

What kind of pics would you like to see? There were many times during the conversion that I wished I could get some picks but being under the car working by myself it was hard to snap pics at the same time

S351Saleen77 · Sep 18, 2011

Looks good Mark!

For anyone who needs some polishing done Mark is the guy to send it to! He recently did the TFS R intake on my 93 Saleen.

99FiveOh · Sep 18, 2011

Thanks, I appreciate that. Here's a pic of the TFS R I did for him:

larrybb90 · Feb 12, 2012

I have been looking into doing this swap for a long time now. This is a great write up and has a lot of good info. Thank you. I got a good deal on a 5.0 about a year ago and just finished doing a mild build of the engine. In your opinion is it worth the time and effort to do this swap? I also have a question, what is your opinion on using a painless wiring harness to control the engine and leaving the 99's body harness alone? I know i would still have to modify the fuel system for the 5.0 but is it necessary to modify the chassis harness?

Project: Swapping 94 Gt drivetrain to 1999 V6 Vert chassis

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