June Car Of The Month: Retfr8flyr
This month we have Earl's beautiful Mustang GT. Earl has done what most of us will end up doing....going with forced induction. Earl chose a turbocharger, no wait, two turbochargers, to get the job done. This we refer to affectionately as having "twins". Earl has spent a lot of time and effort on this awesome ride, lets take a closer look.....
What you are looking at is a modified twin turbo kit from THP. The twin 57mm ball bearing turbos are controlled by an EBoost2 boost controller. The exhaust setup was done by Mike at MAP, and tuning was done by Mid Atlantic Performance. Knowing that twin turbo kits are very efficient killers of stock shortblock 3Vs, Earl chose to avoid future carnage by upgrading the 4.6. A cobra crank, Manley billet rods, and JE pistons ensure the shortblock's survival when the boost gauge is pegged. Other goodies include ported heads, Manley stainless steel valves, a FRPP intake manifold, and a GT500 throttle body. And, of course, all of these modifications don't mean much if you do not have the fuel system to feed this beast. Twin Ford GT fuel pumps, flow matched 60lb injectors, Fore fuel rails, and an Abaco DBX 97 digital mass air meter make sure this beast does not go hungry.
Among other things, twin turbo kits will also happily destroy your stock 3V 5R55S transmission. Knowing this, Earl went with a PI multi-disc 3400 stall converter and a TCI 5R55S transmission with billet servos. A one piece driveshaft turns the 3.73 gears in the 8.8 rearend. J&M lower control arms and CHE relocation brackets, along with Mickey Thompson 305/45/18 ET Street radials get the power to the ground. Wilwood front and rear brakes reel this thing back under control after taking care of business.
As a former pilot, Earl feels right at home monitoring 11 gauges......
MOD LIST:
Engine
Stock bore and stroke 4.6l
JE -17 dish pistons, rings and spiral locks
Cobra crank
Manley billet rods
Manley SS valves
Heads mild port job
Miziere water pump
Frpp intake Manifold
GT500 throttle body
Dual Ford GT fuel pumps
Flow matched 60# injectors with Fore fuel rails
Abaco DBX 97 digital Mass air
Canton oil pan
Power adder
Modified THP twin turbo kit
57mm BB turbo’s
EBoost2 with dual solenoids boost controller
Tuning done by Mid Atlantic Performance
Awaiting final tune no numbers yet
Exhaust
Front custom pipes for the Wastgates made by Mike at MAP
Basanni X pipe
Zoomer catback
Drivetrain
PI multi-disk 3400 stall torque converter
5R55S built with TCI billet servos and overhaul kit
Driveshaft shop one piece driveshaft
Suspension
Steeda Ultra-lite springs
Tokico shocks and struts
Steeda Watts link
CHE LCA relocation brackets
Steeda upper control arm mount
J & M control arms
Wilwood front and rear brakes
Wheels and tires:
Summer months
18x9 and 18x10 ZE Boost wheels
BFGoodrich KDWII 255/45/18 front
Mickey Thompson ET street Radial II 305/45/18 rear
Winter months
Shelby Razors 18x9
BFGoodrich KDWII 255/45/18 front and rear
Miscellaneous
SOS pillar and dash pods
8 Autometer Nexus gauges
Roush front fascia
GT 500 rear fascia
Pioneer AVIC-F700BT
In Earl's own words:
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I am one of the older members here, both in age and membership time. I have been around a long time and have been racing and modifying cars since I was about 15. My first car was a 1949 Ford coupe with a flathead V8, Offenhauser heads and dual Stromberg 97 carbs. I lived the Muscle Car era that most of you have only read about. I went back to school when I got out of the Army and earned my flying licenses. I made a career flying and retired in 2005 from the airline that flew for Airborne Express. I have owned and raced many cars over the years, mostly Fords but I got mad at Ford when they brought out the Mustang II and built a Chevy Vega with a small block. I drove that on the street and raced it for several years but have had several Mustangs after that. I got my current Mustang when I retired and it’s been torn down so much it only has 8000 miles on the odometer. I would like to thank Mike and Vinnie from Mid Atlantic Performance, without them I would never have gotten the car back together. I hope that I finally have the car to the point I can just enjoy driving it but as all of us know “it’s never finished”.
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Congratulations Earl from the entire S197Forum team!