OK, well, my Mustang has been down for about a month....Id tell ya why but its a long story to type out...heres the post w/pics of the carnage from when it happened on my local F-Body clubs site...
http://www.kyfbodies.org/vb/showthread.php?t=16576

Anyways, went on and added/fixed a few minor things and upgraded while it was down. Finally got it running Wednesday (after replacing the dud starter) and began driving it back and forth to work. Anyways, heres where it gets good....

Its Friday evening and Im out cruising, enjoying driving my car once again and tkaing a break from an nightly garage work. Im rolling along and itching to find a reason to give this new lcutch/setup some hell.....well I found it. I rolled up behind a 85 Z28. It had some cheap knockoff Draglites with some super fat tires out back and skinnies on front. Dumped exhaust....it made my exhaust sound tame (which is a bold statement indeed). I roll up beside him on Preston and ask what he's running....

"383 man"

"Sweet, auto or manual?"

"Auto, only way to go"

"What size stall you running?"

"Wanna find out?"

I smirk and and excited as hell to finally thrash on my new ocmbo and hear what it sounds like above 3500RPM. He downshifts (he had to have been running some super high gears like 4.11's) and Im not downshifting, I want to go from a dig, not a roll. Ive always believed oging from a dig proves the better driver AND the better car, because no just anyone can launch, something Ive practiced time and time again because I always believe 75% or more of a race is the driver, not the car.....

We roll up to the light and I yell over "Ready to go?"

"Wait man, why aint we goin from a roll?"

I smile and say, "Rolls are for ricers......lets run from a dig and see who is the better driver!"

"OK man, but I think you'll regret it."

I throw a few revs and reposition myself for better shifting. I turn the song to "Enter the Sandman" and down a bit where I can somewhat hear it. I see the other lights go yellow and I rev up to about 3500 and pray I hook and it doesnt blow up (again)......Then it goes green...

I slip the clutch and punch it...the BFG's spin about 3 spins and hook pretty hard. Im at 5500RPM very fast and ****** 2nd like nobody's business and Bark the tires loud...the 2 chambers are ripping throughout the night as my mere 1 car lead extends even more and I slam into 3rd gear and pull a little more, around 2-2.5 cars total. At the top of 3rd, I slam into 4th and let out, knowing the victory wasm ine...and the fact I was trying to understand the fact that my little 228,000 mile, very mildly bolt-on's only 5.0/5 speed Mustang just took down a 383 stroker drag car-looking ThirdGen...he of course flies by and at the next light, I roll up beside him and he pulls up a little more.....I roll up al ittle more and he pulls up a little again, avoiding me.....I was gonna congratulate him on a good race. Light goes green and I hear his buddy yell out "Motherf'r you f'n cheated!"......I look over with a cocked eye and smile and proceed to do the customary Thumbs down me and my roommate always do to ricers or sore losers....in which the guy blasted off onto the Expressway....I turned around and headed back, to grab me some food before eventually heading home. I assumed it was the end of the night. Boy, was I wrong!

Get up to the huge intersection thats the crossroads for the cruising community. I roll up and stop, as I know its a long light to say the least (just turned red). I look over as I see a beautiful dark blue WS6 T/A go past and then catch this red LT1 Camaro right beside me. I wave my hand for him to roll up and he does so. T-tops are out and it has a damn nice rumble to it I ask him what hes got done to it....

"What you got done to that LT1 man?"

"Not alot, mainly exhaust and a couple bolt ons...howd you know it was an LT1?"

"Im an F-body guy myself too, I know my stuff haha."

"What you got done to the Stang?"

"Its bone stock."

"Bull**** man, I hear that damn exhaust, thats at least 2 chambers but it sounds odd..."

"Nah, its a Bassani X-pipe with 2 chambers......hey, you wanna run? Theres no cops around, lets go for it."

"Well, sure man, Id love to hear your car in action...just odnt cry when you lose to the better car."

I chuckle and prepare for the friendly matchup. I rev a couple times and forget about my "late night cravings" He revs up and then I finally remembered, he doesnt have tips, hes got dumps like me, thats why he's so loud! BOut that time, the turn lanes are yellow and I throw the RPM's up to 4000RPM then let them back down to 3500RPM cause itll take all Ive got to beat this guy and one mistake will leave me in the dust...light goes green...

BAM, I got a half car at max holeshot, cause my DR's hooked perfectly (bout damn time!) and he spun......The chance was there! I got into it and snatched 2nd.....no one is pulling, dead even...I slam 3rd and he pulls his nose to my mirror.....I slam into 4th and keep into it andits ded even, neither of us is pulling and I shut down and he obviously had the same idea as we shut down at the same time......We pulled into a gas station and chatted for a few and we both popped out hoods.....he had headers back exhaust, CAI, and thats all I could tell from udner his hood, maybe underdrives or something....He looked under mine and asked where my mods were...when I told him 3.73's and full exhaust was about it, he was quite stunned......I told him Id love to run him again, but next time in my Camaro, which he was up for...

All in all, Im highly impressed with the Stang. I cant wait to get some track times but itll have to wait as I cant afford to break it again while Im building the Camaro.....Im now putting my flamesuit on, so anti-Mustang folk go at it

 

good **** i love fox bodies.....u shuold see my brothers 93 cobra......its crazy 331 stroker, vortech supercharged, AFR heads no clue of all the specs besides that but its got like 515 rwhp a savage car i need to take pics to show

 

nice runs! but i seriously doubt that guy had a 383.... or else it was sooooo mildly built its not even funny. a mild LT1 will run high 13's all day long. i SURE hope a 383 in a thirdgen would crack 13's. i'm there with a stock L98

 

BZZZZZZZZZZT. I'm with TBI92, I killed my friends '73 camaro with a 383, l/t headers, dumps, nasty cam, edelbrock heads, intake and some wild carb running through his b&M equipted th-350 In my mustang. Mine's a little more hardcore than TBI92's though but still....

 

not for nothing but my 383 kills my friends 347 in his 89 stang. supposing he bought this car that was a "10 second car" best he could do is high 12's

 

Well.. a 383 isnt that much bigger than a 350... .. yes i know it can make more power, but it far from a rat motor. Im sure a decently built 383 could run high 13s EASY. Some bolt on L98s are alrady there... otherwise you need some def tuning if a 383 is running 14s..

 

That guy didn't have a 383.. either that or he was a total ******** in building it. Maybe it was running on 6 cylinders. Either way he's dumb. Probably a stock 305 with some dumps and he wanted to sound cool so he said he had a 383.

And the guy in the LT1 couldn't drive. No offence, but with those mods he should have trashed you. Good runs though!

 

The stroke difference alone, you can't compare a 350 to a 383. There in a completely different torque bracket.

You have a nice little 5.0 there, but no where close to competing with modifieds yet.

Good kill on the LT1

 

Well, the thing is, Im done modding it and it was never meant to be my "fun car", just my DD and I wanted a lil more from it, mainly a DD that oculd run 13's...or 8's (1/8th) and that way Id be content until I build my 383 for my Camaro. I dont odubt it was a 383 one bit. Thing about it is, people around here are stuck on the idea of 882's and "camel hump headS" as performance oriented heads. Some oflks I associate with know thats BS and we stick with modfied Vortecs, ported out 113 L98's or mainly aftermarket. I still laugh when this guy at the track was telling me about his combo...he's got a 84 Z28 with 5k in the motor, ported "camel humps" welded spider gears and ET streets and ran a best of 8.4 but usually 8.8's or so. Thing is, 5k in a 355 and thats all hes running??? Im sorry but for 5k I can build a nice 383 combo that could run 7's easily and Id be constantly worried about blowing trannies and rear ends more than that motor......I just dont get people around here, even my cousins are like that, they believe 882's are something worth a crap and I keep telling them they arecrappy smogger heads. They told me I wasted money buying my Sportsman 2 heads.....so next season my cousin is supposed to drop his 72 350 w/882's, TH350 with stall and its gonna smoke my 383/T56 combo....I told him, he'll need a helluva head start and tracks odnt usualy give those...he told me I might get the holeshot but then its all over.....I remember when I used to learn about cars from him but now its me trying to teach them...oh well, when I get the 383 combo lined out, I expect some high high 7's N/A thought Im worried my 10 wont make it that far before exploding....

In any case, I did say he couldnt drive...and it was the truth. If we would have went from a roll, he would have destroyed me but from a dig, I proved the much better driver and took him down....He was pulling ahead and had I continued into 4th gear, he probably would have passed me, though with that TH350/TH400 and whatever tall gears he had, I see his car becoming exhausted real quickly, whileI could have went to 5th and continued slowly making power......

Most stock T56 LT1 cars around here run 9.1's-8.9's and the 8.9's with good drivers. I say his exhaust made him more along the lines of a 8.7's or so car. Remembe,r he was running some normal street tires and spun out of the hole. Im running some 275/50 series BFG COmp T/A Drag Radials, so I havent hadm uch traction problems....well at least when it isnt raining

 

good runs! Any pics of your "stock" fox?

 

Bang for the buck I was quite pleased with my sportsman II's. The had awesome power and swirl. Try polishing the exhaust ports to get better hp. They have a weaker exhaust flow other than that they are awesome.

Doubt the guy had a 383. If he did it was like my first setup all engine and no drivetrain to put it to the ground. Changed a 14.8 to a 12.22 go figure.

 

My first spec 383 had mild port matched 882's, a .480" lift cam and a crappy Torker II and it made 401hp(crank). The 882's are a good head to work with, the large valve camel humps with work could out perform a set of out of box vortecs. Old school stuff is not crappy, but it does need work.

 

Good kill. I hear what you're saying about the older heads but they can be made to run. My brother had a full weight '79 Trans AM (which I have now) w/ a 406sbc, ported 2.02 dbl. humps, 11:1 c/r, 294S CC cam, Victor 4+4 intake, headers etc. With 3.42 gears, Hoosier QT's, and some suspension work he ran 1.79 60' time and 7.79 in the 1/8th. Not too shabby for a 3800lb. + bohemoth! His next step was to buy some AFR or TFS 23* aluminum heads however he bought an '03 Zo6 instead.

For the $$ people spend on reworking the older heads, they could invest in some modified Vortecs, IE's, etc. and be ahead of the game.

 

Thats what Im saying the whole time to them....I know of a guy who invested so much machine work in some 882's and he is dynoing some pretty **** poor power levels....Theres too much out there anymore in the aftermarket to worry about some old heads...Thats why I bought aftermarket. The only stock GM heads I work with are aluminum L98's or Vortecs....you can get decent results with the double humps but Im not willing to spend the money on them to make them flow.

 

89 LX notchback is definently my favorite mustang of all time.

But the thing about ricers running from a roll and only running from a dig becuase is shows who is the best drive is BS. First of all most ricers have a better chance from a dig because they don't have to worry about traction. Second, what it shows is who is running the best tire and who got in the lane without loose gravel. I drive 60 miles a day so there ain't know way I'm running drag radials on the street. So because you would rip me a new one from a dig on the street with my hard as hell Kuhmos makes you a better driver?

 

Yes it does, because an automatic car from a dig takes NO skill to drive whatsoever. My sister could beat me in your car from a dig, yet she cant launch it worth anything... If you race from a roll especially in an auto you take the driver out of the wquation.

4cyl, front wheel drive cars racing from a dig is NO advantage at all. They are at a disadvantage because believe it or not they spin as much if not more than we do, they have smaller tires, and the weight transfer working against them. Take a look at any racing circuit and see the 60' times. The imports cant touch the V8 rwd cars 60's at all, so telling anyone they have the advantage is plain wrong!

Having DRs and racing someone with street radials isnt saying he is a better driver per say, but two cars on equal tires will show the better driver. Racing from a roll compares top end pull of cars (peak power), racing from a dig compares all variables, power, torque, gearing, driver, conditions, etc...

 

I don't know what this misconception about L98 heads are?
L98's in any form are not worth touching. Unless you only have the money to port what you have and nothing else, I'd take a camel hump, or 882's over L98's any day, and make a helluva lot more power too.

 

383,s are very picky if you dont build it right its not wourth a dam.i mean most 383 stroker kits (DONE RIGHT) with no wild cam or anything puts you right with ls1.more then lickly you got a bolt on 305 with straight pipes.but who knows .alll end my post with good kill

 

aluminum L98s with mildp orting have been put into low 12's and I even know someone locally who has some ported and 2.02 valve 113 L98's and runs 11.7's N/A with a 355 and a very streetable cam. I havent seen anyone with 882's around here do anything better than 8.9's and thats with serious porting....Camel humps are allright but theres too much out there that iwll msokethem for the dollar....

As for running from a dig, yeah I am running DR's...but back when I had 2.73's and bald *** street tires I pulled consistant 2.1 60fts with ease and even a 2.09 60 ft......the DR's takem uch less effort to launch and I can launch much higher and more aggressive than the street tires Ive used before. From a dig proves who can launch well. I see plenty of drivers hwo think the accelerator pedal is an on/off switch and thats how Ive own a few crazy races...including an LS1 car....he psun so hard it was unbleieveable and I put 2cars on him out of the hole...I figured he would have let out but nooo, he was just sitting there psinning while I was snatching 2nd gear. He regained his losses but by then I was getting pretty deep into 4th gear and pretty high in speed and shut down...if he had done that at the local track, that would have been a for sure victory for me....woulda been a timeslip to keep for sure

Ill always say 75% of the race is the driver because experience will prove it. I let my cousin run my car back when it was stock. I ran consistant 9.4's and a couple 9.3's while he ran buttloads of 9.6's and very few 9.5's. Its amazing how much a differance a driver can make. I make it a point to learn my car and its limits first thing, it helps me decide my own shift points and what it does and doesnt like.

 

Aluminum L98 heads are roughly equivelent to aluminum LT1 heads. I have a set of "643" LT1 castings that flow 221/185 with some minor work done on the exhaust ports. I did that work with a hand drill and a round file They are bolted on top of my 355 right now that should hopefully be driving today.

Stock-headed LT1 cars run low 12s all day long with the right cam and bolt-ons.

I also agree about the running from a dig thing. While I don't mind runing from a roll, I much prefer running from a dig, being automatic. Auto is much easier to launch (when you aren't good at stick), and manual is much better from a roll, I think. Automatics don't always downshift into the gear you want them to, especially when running a modified engine behind a stock trans. With a manual, you can pick exactly what gear you want to downshift to, and exactly when you downshift.

 

dude just listening to that makes me so excited. I got me a 1990 25th anniversary mustang this week. just hearing these kills gets me excited to start working on it and taking it out and hopefully get a few myself. nice kills man.

 

My LB9 T5 could hold neck and neck with stock 5.0's, so just like Thirdgens, don't expect miracles in stock form.

 

oh i'm not. I said im excited to start working on it. she's got potential is all i meant.

 

5.0's have more go-fast-goodies than TPI'ers could dream of, so it shouldn't be too hard. forged from the factory and relatively cheap parts, they can go like hell.

Just don't ruin it with some ***-awful body kit or something, keep it clean and fearsome.

 

Ya thats what really makes me happy. they are light, little and more important than anything respond to mod's VERY well. I'll admit It'll never be as pretty as a camaro ( i like 3rd gen's looks alot more) but it'll be just as fast soon enough.

 

9-93 is the best years because of not only being Mass Air, they also have forged internals, therefore allowing a little spray or whatnot into the mix. I like Gt's and LX's but LX's appeal to me more, they still have stance but are a bit sleeperish because everyone thinks LX's are slow....well anti-Ford guys think all Stangs are slow lol.

 

LX's are also lighter than GT's. Well normal one's are, mines a vert so it kinda evens itself out.

 

LX notchs are ligher than anything....My LX hatch is only about 100lbs lighter at max than a GT...probably more aorund 50-75. Being a vert youll be ocnsiderably slower than me....And if auto, expect low 15's...if stick high 14's.

 

Ya It's An auto & I was expecting mid 15's. so It ain't the fastest thing in the world Quite yet, But i'm still optimistic.

 

YOu know just as well as I do the first mod.....5 speed

Seriously, start small with gears and exhaust. The autos are harder to make fast but it can be done. A stall and tranny cooler and that AOD will do what you want. since you are auto do 4.10's and headers back exhaust and you'll notice a HUGE differance.

 

YA I was thinking the first to come was shorty headers, bigger exhaust and then probably a chip. I wanted a chip first, but my brother said he had a friend that had a 5.0 and put a chip in first and just brurnt it up. so we're thinking exhaust and shorties first will prevent that.

 

Start with gears, no chip, exhaust, and lose the auto. I had one and put a converter and such in it, and was never happy. It took a 5 speed swap to wake the car up, and make it what it is today.

 

How much would ya guess a tranny swap is running $$ wise?

 

shouldnt be too much, can probably pull the parts out of a junkyard

 

Take A ball park guess for me.

 

You could probably get all things needed for the T5 swap for around $500.

 

I'll Def. have to look into that.

 

thats abit ridiculous. an auto car with high stall on the street does take some skill to launch it right. a stock stalled car takes even more skill to find that right amount of throttle off the line to produce the best results.

even with drag radials, you cant just stall it up and mash the gas. you still have to feather it abit to maintain traction. its easier than a stick but still not a NO skill thing

 

i agree with the above. 25th, i know how stick-biased you are, but to say that launching an auto takes absolutely NO skill is a bit out of line.

your telling me your sister (or even you) could have gotten 1.7 60fts out of my near stock 89 Vette like i could?

 

launching an auto car is more difficult than you'd think 25th.

 

not really. with the right stall and tires it's pretty dumby proof. I could launch a stock suspension 70 Monte with sticky MT consistent one after another 1.80's 60ft with between .500-.59 RT. It's all about the setup. stock auto's , on another hand is a little different when the motor is modded.

 

I agree that stick cars are alot harder to launch right, When I built my Vette, I chose to go with a Built 700r4 and a 2500 stall with 3.55 gears and shifts at 6300 rpm WOT. I have walked several cars that are stick and have over 25-50 more hp to the wheels than my combo(305 rwhp). I beat them in the hole shot and pull on them the rest of the way due perfectly placed automatic shifts. no short shifts or late shifts or bad clutching. I can race em blind if I didnt need to worry about steering. What I built is a deadly consistant car. Its all dialed in and works. All I got to do is know what to flash my stall at on launch and then just floor it the rest of the way. Easy. If one of these guys can actually drive their stick car right with the more power to the wheels then I am in trouble, But most just spin and smoke at launch.

 

i didnt debate the fact that a stick is difficult to launch and it's easy to screw up, and is just downright inconsistant...

no all I said was that it takes more than "no skill" to launch an auto.

 

your right, It did take alittle time for me to figure out what my car likes at launch but then it is smooth sailing from there.

 

yeah if your tranny is set right, it should shift at the right rpm. mine is abit too high for stock L98 tpi at 5000rpms but good once i get a superram.

before i adjusted my TV cable it shifted at 4200rpms, so i manually shifted at 4600

 

Your vette is the best C3 I've ever seen in my life!
Thats a sweet car.

 

Well thanks, Alot of blood sweat and tears are into the car, also my wallet is feather light. But Its all worth it once I go for a cruise, seeing the look on peoples faces when they see my car. Kids love it the most cause it reminds them of the batmobile or something.

 

HAHA dude that's so the first thought I had when i saw it! I'm like that 'vettes tight. lol it's like the batmobile or something. lol now you just need jet boosters man.

 

I got a 383 for that mustang.

oh wait. you blew up the mustang.

ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha

POS FORD

 

I just got my stang so I hope you ain't referring to me.