3V S197 Mustangs are in a weird place right now. Ever since the Coyote-powered Mustangs came out in the 2011 model year, the 3V cars have been overshadowed. We'll admit it, we're guilty of sensationalizing the newer cars too. [Our Hellion Turbocharged 2011 GT is almost ready to race!!] But at UPR Products, we still have love for the 3V cars. Our 2010 Convertible is a 9-second street-strip ride with all of the amenities. The 'vert proves that the 3Vs are worth a second look. Meanwhile, we're building up our 2006 Mustang GT as a well-rounded and budget-minded machine with an emphasis on cornering ability.
Wait, what's that you ask? UPR... is building a car to take corners...? *GASP* Take a minute to let that one soak in, and then we'll get started with the project.
Our '06 GT is your typical run of the mill S197 Mustang. You can pick these cars up all day long for $12k, and that puts them within reach of many budget-restrained individuals. The S197s are great vehicles in stock form, but of course there is certainly room for improvement.
We kicked things off with the most common S197 3V mods. First up was UPR's Cold Air Intake & Tuner package: http://www.uprproducts.com/mustang-black-cold-air-kit-sct-tuner.html The SCT X-cal 3 was loaded with UPR's Pro Series 93 octane tune and the rear O2 sensors were disabled in the tune to allow the installation of UPR's off-road x-pipe without throwing a check engine light: http://www.uprproducts.com/mustang-off-road-x-pipe-05.html
Installing the Cold Air Intake was very simple. The most complicated part of the process was transferring the Mass Air sensing element from the factory airbox to the Cold Air tubing. Piece of cake.
After installing the CAI, we moved under the vehicle to install the off-road x-pipe. This was another simple job. The only item worth noting here is that although the factory O2 sensor harnesses were long enough to reach their positions on the new pipe, on the front passenger side sensor the harness was disconnected from one of its brackets near the firewall in order to reach that particular sensor. No problem. While we were under there, we installed a pair of OEM GT500 mufflers which were given to us. Like we said, budget project!
With the CAI and exhaust installed, our last step was to load the new UPR Pro Series tune with our SCT X-calibrator 3. I'm embarrassed to admit that I've only ever tuned Fox Mustangs, so this whole SCT OBD tuning process was new to me. I'm pleased to report that it was SUPER easy. The SCT tuner guides you along every step of the process. Loading the tune may have been a five minute job, if that.
With the parts installed and the tune loaded, our next step was to take a test drive to see how it felt. The video below contains before & after clips of the exhaust and the test drives.
What sort of trickery is this?!? I was very surprised to feel such an improvement in power with such little effort. This combo of CAI, Tuner, and X-pipe is said to add 30-40hp. Although we didn't dyno the car before & after the installation, the perceived increase in power suggests that the 30-40hp number is probably accurate. The car was previously unable to spin its Nitto NT05s, but with the UPR upgrades the car spun going into second gear for the first time. Nice. We're havin' fun now!!
Stay tuned for more updates on our 2006 Mustang GT project.
Wait, what's that you ask? UPR... is building a car to take corners...? *GASP* Take a minute to let that one soak in, and then we'll get started with the project.
Our '06 GT is your typical run of the mill S197 Mustang. You can pick these cars up all day long for $12k, and that puts them within reach of many budget-restrained individuals. The S197s are great vehicles in stock form, but of course there is certainly room for improvement.
We kicked things off with the most common S197 3V mods. First up was UPR's Cold Air Intake & Tuner package: http://www.uprproducts.com/mustang-black-cold-air-kit-sct-tuner.html The SCT X-cal 3 was loaded with UPR's Pro Series 93 octane tune and the rear O2 sensors were disabled in the tune to allow the installation of UPR's off-road x-pipe without throwing a check engine light: http://www.uprproducts.com/mustang-off-road-x-pipe-05.html
Installing the Cold Air Intake was very simple. The most complicated part of the process was transferring the Mass Air sensing element from the factory airbox to the Cold Air tubing. Piece of cake.
After installing the CAI, we moved under the vehicle to install the off-road x-pipe. This was another simple job. The only item worth noting here is that although the factory O2 sensor harnesses were long enough to reach their positions on the new pipe, on the front passenger side sensor the harness was disconnected from one of its brackets near the firewall in order to reach that particular sensor. No problem. While we were under there, we installed a pair of OEM GT500 mufflers which were given to us. Like we said, budget project!
With the CAI and exhaust installed, our last step was to load the new UPR Pro Series tune with our SCT X-calibrator 3. I'm embarrassed to admit that I've only ever tuned Fox Mustangs, so this whole SCT OBD tuning process was new to me. I'm pleased to report that it was SUPER easy. The SCT tuner guides you along every step of the process. Loading the tune may have been a five minute job, if that.
With the parts installed and the tune loaded, our next step was to take a test drive to see how it felt. The video below contains before & after clips of the exhaust and the test drives.
What sort of trickery is this?!? I was very surprised to feel such an improvement in power with such little effort. This combo of CAI, Tuner, and X-pipe is said to add 30-40hp. Although we didn't dyno the car before & after the installation, the perceived increase in power suggests that the 30-40hp number is probably accurate. The car was previously unable to spin its Nitto NT05s, but with the UPR upgrades the car spun going into second gear for the first time. Nice. We're havin' fun now!!
Stay tuned for more updates on our 2006 Mustang GT project.