New to fun V8's. 2004 GT Denver CO

[terrapinjake]

Hello all!
I recently made a fast decision and picked up a 2004 GT "40th Anniversary Edition." I am totally new to the world of fuel injected mod engines. I have owned a couple of boosted imports and never expected to own a Mustang.

So far, I'm digging the immediate onset of power and torque. Not waiting for boost to kick in is a very nice change. I have been reading around (definitely not new to the wealth of knowledge that is internet forums) and am both encouraged and worried to be staring a build with this platform. It seems as though we are cursed by an inferior set of heads, when compared to the 4V engines.

With all of that being said, I have no idea what I want to do with this car. I'd love to ready it for scca runs, but am worried about the handling characteristics. I do know that I need a bit more power out of this reasonably displaced V8.

So far I have a flowmaster catback and k&n drop in with no fender inlet on the air box. I'm thinking My next mod will be gears, but I'm perplexed with what I should do next. I'm thinking suspension might be a good idea, but the lust for more power is pretty strong!

I look forward to learning from you all, I've seen some nice builds, numbers and all around pretty cars on this forum and can't wait to contribute in any way.

I will post a pic of tonight after a quick wash, no need to clutter the intro with extra pictures!

Jake
Denver 5280

 

[Burninriverdiver]

Great looking car, and welcome to the site!

 

[CC'S95GT]

Welcome to the madness.
IMO gears will benifit you the most in the begining. Then a HCI swap for your pwr goals

 

[ElrodKTPQ_89]

Welcome aboard!

 

[Orange 94]

Welcome to the forum!

 

[terrapinjake]

Welcome to the madness.
IMO gears will benifit you the most in the begining. Then a HCI swap for your pwr goals

How have the 4:10s improved response? How much economy did you lose?

Thanks for the welcome, y'all!!

 

[CC'S95GT]

I don't have a before and after because the car came with the gears when I got it..
I usually average about 18.5 mpgs with mostly hwy driving at 75-80 mph. At that the tch is over 2500rpm's

 

[Evilgt]

Welcome.
I am in Loveland and we have a few members from all over the front range.

Ever thought about running open track days with that car?

Several of us run with the National autosport association.

Check the road racing forum for some cool builds.

BTW the SCCA Colorado region has gone down the toilet. The only thing they are good for is autoX. Boring.

Post up some of your suspension concerns in the road racing forum.

We can help.

kyle

 

[D3VST8R96GT]

Welcome! Gears and nitrous!!!!

 

[terrapinjake]

Welcome.
I am in Loveland and we have a few members from all over the front range.

Ever thought about running open track days with that car?

Several of us run with the National autosport association.

Check the road racing forum for some cool builds.

BTW the SCCA Colorado region has gone down the toilet. The only thing they are good for is autoX. Boring.

Post up some of your suspension concerns in the road racing forum.

We can help.

kyle

Hi Kyle,
I did not know that the local chapter had such a sad rep! My only scca experience was when I lived in Tennessee and ran with a great group down there. What a shame.
Where do you guys run open track days? I'm interested in checking out high planes, I know they run year round and aren't too far away.

I will definitely check in to the road racing forum.

Thanks for the informative welcome!!
Jake

 

[mcglsr2]

Welcome aboard! If you plan on running your car on the twisties, my suggestion is don't worry about power yet. There's a lot that needs to be done (well, "can be done" - depending on your goals, some of it may not "need" to be done right away) to the suspension and brakes before power is a concern. As suggested, look at the Road Race section, there are some good, knowledgeable people here. For starters, I would suggest sub frame connectors, and then at a minimum an upgrade to a better brake pad, then drive it and fix the next issue. Power will become an issue after some suspension/braking items are sorted. The upside is that there are many, many good parts available for you to throw your hard-earned money at.

 

[Evilgt]

Hi Kyle,
I did not know that the local chapter had such a sad rep! My only scca experience was when I lived in Tennessee and ran with a great group down there. What a shame.
Where do you guys run open track days? I'm interested in checking out high planes, I know they run year round and aren't too far away.

I will definitely check in to the road racing forum.

Thanks for the informative welcome!!
Jake

We run at High plains, Pueblo motor sport park, Pikes peak international race way, and Hastings Motor sports park.

Here is the 2015 schedule.

2015 Schedule

4/18-19 HPR
5/16 - 17 PPIR
6/7 HPR
7/4-5 PMP
8/15-16 Hastings
9/19-20 PMP
10/17-18 HPR

Special Events
6/13-14 Annual Summer Shootout @ Hallett
7/31 - 8/2 Western States Championships @ Laguna Seca
9/4-6 Eastern States Championships @ VIR

We also have a program where you can get on track for FREE. You can work corners for credit for free track time.

Link to the RM region.

http://www.nasarockymountain.com/

This year the SCCA couldnt fill all of the spots at any track in the RM region. They actually cancelled a few dates for lack of participation. The autoX program seems to be doing ok. Most SCCA road racers have made the switch to NASA or just given up.

kyle

 

[lsmustangx]

HELL YEA!!! Another person from Colorado. Now just to find some Pueblo people. lol All of us Colorado guys need to meet up and cruise.....

 

[1997GT4.6]

Welcome to Mustangs! I've gone for ride alongs in turbo integras and civics, it really does suck waiting for the power to hit. Most import guys knock the mustang until they try one.

 

[g36 monkey]

Welcome aboard! And your fear of mileage really depends on how you drive (ie Highway or city) more than anything

 

[RichV]

Elizabeth, CO here!

Welcome! As Kyle stated NASA locally is a great bunch, lots of events and a great entry level program.

For mods, gears would be good but don't go too tall or you'll sacrifice top end. Pueblo and HPR both have some high speed straights you'll want to hit triple digit speeds. Focus on some springs, shocks, rear control arms, larger sway bars, and better brake pads/fluid. Oh, and tires, the softer the better.
[MENTION=20446]lsmustangx[/MENTION] we make it to pueblo a few times in the season. Great track to hang out and have beers when the driving is done, and spectating is free. I know since Judy Faas took the track over it's not exactly popular with the drag crowd. But it's a track, and if we don't run it, it will get shut down.

 

[punched281]

Welcome, from down the street in the springs. Gears would be an awese start them ported heads and some cams topped with a nice intake!

 

[chris91]

Welcome! Definitely go with some gears to start with. My 3.73's made the world of difference. I couldn't tell you difference in MPG though because honestly I pay no attention to that because well, MUSTANG. Ported Heads and Cams will REALLY wake the car up. No need for upgrading the Intake Manifold as the stock PI is plenty for most NA setups. Go with a decent upper plenum and TB and you'll be fine.