No doubt, the dyno graphs I've seen of them show massive low end, which was a lot of the reason I wanted one, the other part of that was that I was 17, heh.
That car was just a pig, the non-PI heads just killed any potential that motor had, not to mention that entirely too conservative cams.
I had big plans for her, basically your setup, P&P PI heads with the allen unit portmatched, LT headers, so on. But then my dad told me to get a newer car and since he was paying for it... Still, damn hard to part with your first car.
Dan
Marc, I was going to call/email you to see how the dyno tuning went last night. I hope my directions to the HP Ranch got you there OK. 291 rwhp on a Mustang Dyno is roughly 340 flywheel hp, so it sounds like you're making good power. Did John use a 91 octane premium fuel tune to get to the 291 rwhp, or is that set up for 87 or 89 octane?
I owned an '03 Mach 1 manual before my '07 GT and it put down 284 rwhp bone stock, so your '08 GT is doing well. Last time I was at the HP Ranch, I saw a lightly modded (full exhaust, CAI, pulleys, tb, etc) '04 Mach 1 manual put down 325 rwhp. With all of those mods, you'd be about the same - maybe a tad bit more. I truly believe that the 03/04 Mach 1 only held a very small power advantage over the S197 GT's, but the aftermarket is so much stronger for the S197 GT's than the Mach 1's. As much as I loved my '03 Mach 1, I have no regrets selling it to a friend to buy my '07 GT.
Brian, John set it up with a 91 octane tune, it took him about 1/2 hour to get the tune dialed in. He is a first class guy, I recommend him to anyone in the Seattle area. The drivability is so much better, night and day. The difference between the S197's and the Mach 1 are so little it would come down to the better driver and the list of mods per vehicle. If someone prefers one car over the other who really cares. There's always someone faster driving something that should be slower. HP claims at 50 paces are just for bragging rights anyway. I was talked into a race last weekend in my high-9 second backed halfed 69 Camaro and a guy with a AMC Gremlin on 10" ET Streets with a 401 stroker motor with a big fogger kit took me out by two+ car lengths. I shook his hand and thought it was cool. His car was faster, does that make it the better car? In his eyes, yes.
John is a great guy, and his tuning skills are great. It's more a hobby for him that turned into a great business. He spent over 4 hours fiddling with my tuning as I was so dang picky trying to get the transmission and stall converter settings just perfect. The supercharger tuning was quick and easy for him and he found 57 extra rwhp above and beyond what Vortech's tune for my supercharger provided.
You are so right that there is always someone faster out there, so I don't worry about other cars. I had a goal of running 12.30's @ 110 + in the 1/4 mile and and there now. I may readjust that goal to 11.90's as there is so much untapped potential in the blower.
I still love those 03/04 Mach 1's. I've owned two Mach 1's. I resisted the S197 for quite awhile, but saw how easily modded they are and their results at the track and finally gave in and bought my '07 GT. Sold the Mach 1 to a friend of mine, so I still get to see & drive my old Mach 1 periodically. Oh, how I wish I could have afforded to keep both cars.
Gotta tell you, Marc, I am really impressed with the 291 rwhp that John coaxed out of your GT with just the JLT II CAI and tuning. That's what I would have expected if you had dyno'd on a Dynojet, but on a Mustang Dyno that's quite stout. If you end up going with the STS Turbo that you're considering, I trust you could add a couple hundred more at the wheels with ease. Gotta love the easy power that's available for our cars!