'14 GT Automatic - drag racing results from a few simple mods

Five Oh Brian

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My daily driver is a '14 GT Automatic, but it's also my weekend warrior for drag racing. I've been drag racing for 32 years, and learned that putting together the right combination of parts is much more effective than simply throwing away money on every bolt on available.

My goal with this car is to run the 1/4 mile in the 11's every pass, yet not go under 11.49 (as I don't want to install a cage to pass tech since it's a daily driver).

I'm pretty much done modding now and wanted to share the simple path I took to get the ET's I was after. I've posted averages for various mods below (I have a spreadsheet built for all of my runs). I chose to compare averages instead of best/peak #'s to give a better feel for what improvements there really are. Also, our weather (i.e. Density Altitude) has been incredibly similar for most of the passes I've made in this car as I tend to stay away from the track on sweltering hot/humid days. DA has been in the -100' to +1000' most of the time I've run the car, so the numbers below are very comparable, IMO. I've made dozens and dozens of passes on this car, so follow along to see if any of my info helps with your own car's progress.

Keep in mind, my car is very heavy with most factory options (automatic, glass roof, shaker audio, dual power/heated seats, etc.). It weighs 3800 lbs with me in it. I never ran the car stock, but Coyote automatics tend to run about 13.0 @ 109 in the 1/4 mile from those I've seen at our local tracks.

First mod was an SCT canned tune with drag radials (M&H 275/45/18 DR's). Those two basic items were worth about 3 tenths and 1-2 mph in the 1/4 mile versus stock. Time slips averaged....

1.969 = 60'
5.405 = 330'
8.206 @ 87.53 = 1/8 mile
10.624 = 1000'
12.664 @ 110.66 = 1/4 mile

Next up, I switched to a Bama tune with a Circle-D stall converter (4E that flashes to 5,000 rpm's). While the converter was out, I decided to put a 1-piece aluminum driveshaft in. Big improvement of about 6 tenths and 2 mph! Time slips averaged....

1.669 = 60'
4.938 = 330'
7.699 @ 88.73 = 1/8 mile
10.083 = 1000'
12.087 @ 112.74 = 1/4 mile

Next up, I went with 4.10 gears and a Mike Rousch tune. Dropped 6 hundredths and another 1 mph. Most people seem to agree that the gears did nothing (and may have slowed the car), so credit this round to Mike's tuning, albeit I didn't have him datalog, so there should be more gains to be had. Time slips averaged....

1.685 = 60'
4.944 = 330'
7.675 @ 90.00 = 1/8 mile
10.028 = 1000'
12.02 @ 113.81 = 1/4 mile

Current setup: Mike Rousch encouraged me to lose the factory cats so he could tune a little more aggressively. So, I bought a Pypes Off-Road H-Pipe, and Mike altered the tune accordingly (still not datalogged, so there should be more improvements coming soon). Improved nearly 2 tenths in the 1/4! Time slips currently averaging....

1.677 = 60'
4.855 = 330'
7.547 @ 91.09 = 1/8 mile
9.874 = 1000'
11.853 @ 113.84 = 1/4 mile

So, with just a tune, converter, 1-pc, d/s, OR H-pipe, 4.10's, and drag radials, the car has improved by an average of about 1.15 seconds and more than 4 mph in the 1/4 mile versus a typical stock Coyote Automatic.

Best 1/4 mile ET so far has been an 11.786 and best 1/4 mile trap speed so far has been 116.06 mph. So, those best figures are about 1.2 seconds and 7 mph better than a typical stock Coyote Automatic.

100% stock engine (including factory airbox with paper air filter from the factory!), 100% stock suspension, factory wheels at all four corners, no weight reduction, stock headers/mufflers, and it's a heavy daily driver.

Here's what my '14 looks like when it's race ready. The only clue that something is different is the drag radials. To say it's a bit of a sleeper at our local tracks is an understatement....

09D11AB4-2D6C-44E0-A520-BC8652ABFF89_zps5jfk3xpq.jpg
 
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moostang09

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This is an awesome post. I love that you have averages and not the typical best numbers.

That is scootin for how heavy the car is and being a daily. It's gotta be cool knowing you have an eleven second ride with all of the creature comforts to boot. Thanks for sharing, your car looks clean!

One question, how do you like the glass roof?
 

FIVE-OH

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Good write up. I had no idea Pypes made an off road H pipe for these cars. How was the quality and fit? Lethal's welds are pretty crappy on theirs...
 

5.0 Probie

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Brian,

How is the daily driving (Stop and go, HWY) with the Circle-D stall converter?

And from the looks of it... If I was to walk this path I would be setting up my car for low to mid 12's with just a Circle-D stall converter and Mike Rousch tune.

I just do not see the need for a new shaft and H-pipe.

As an FYI... We are around 8500 miles on this one already. Everything in my sig is installed... Next up new struts and shocks with a touch of window tint. :hi:
 

Five Oh Brian

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This is an awesome post. I love that you have averages and not the typical best numbers.

That is scootin for how heavy the car is and being a daily. It's gotta be cool knowing you have an eleven second ride with all of the creature comforts to boot. Thanks for sharing, your car looks clean!

One question, how do you like the glass roof?

Thanks! The glass roof is a must-have for me. Wanted one really bad for my '07 GT and '11 GT, but didn't like the retrofit ones available. So, I made sure to find a '14 with a factory installed glass roof.
 

Five Oh Brian

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Good write up. I had no idea Pypes made an off road H pipe for these cars. How was the quality and fit? Lethal's welds are pretty crappy on theirs...

The Pypes H-pipe is much better quality than I was expecting. Only one issue; the driver's side rear 02 bung is pointed downward a bit too much, so it was a stretch to get the wiring for that 02 sensor. 02 sensors are turned off, of course, for the off roads in the tune, but I wanted to keep them inserted so they didn't dangle.

I went with an H-pipe so I could keep the deeper musclecar sound. I've had X-pipes on prior cars and they sounded raspy. However, this H-pipe sounds much like an X-pipe, IMO.
 

Five Oh Brian

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Brian,

How is the daily driving (Stop and go, HWY) with the Circle-D stall converter?

And from the looks of it... If I was to walk this path I would be setting up my car for low to mid 12's with just a Circle-D stall converter and Mike Rousch tune.

I just do not see the need for a new shaft and H-pipe.

As an FYI... We are around 8500 miles on this one already. Everything in my sig is installed... Next up new struts and shocks with a touch of window tint. :hi:

Recognize the wheels in the pic of my car above? Yep, straight off your car. Thanks again for swapping wheels with me! The 18's made drag radial choices easier than my factory 19" wheels.

The Circle-D converter is very streetable. And, Mike Rousch writes awesome tunes for them! Aside from good performance, the street manors are awesome with Mike's tuning. Bama could never get the streetability done correctly for me. The car feels so much lighter and more nimble on the street with the converter. You absolutely want to get one!

The shaft and H-pipe aren't requirements, of course, but would definitely put you in the high 11's with the converter and tune.

I raced at Pacific Raceways two nights ago. My worst pass was an 11.88. Also ran an 11.87, 11.86, and 11.78 (only got 4 passes as it was crazy busy there). It's a great feeling to beat some dedicated racecars that were trailered in with my mildly modded daily driver!
 

808muscle

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Brian that is so cool and damn dude she is fast!! I love that you race your car so much. There are not very many of us around that do. How many passes do you make a year. I average about 75 passes a year. We have a 3 day event coming this weekend. Best weekend of the year IMO. LOL
 

cm581978

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There's hope! Guy on this forum has the glass roof as well and I think he ran 11.2, before he went turbo.
 

5.0 Probie

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Recognize the wheels in the pic of my car above? Yep, straight off your car. Thanks again for swapping wheels with me! The 18's made drag radial choices easier than my factory 19" wheels.

The Circle-D converter is very streetable. And, Mike Rousch writes awesome tunes for them! Aside from good performance, the street manors are awesome with Mike's tuning. Bama could never get the streetability done correctly for me. The car feels so much lighter and more nimble on the street with the converter. You absolutely want to get one!

The shaft and H-pipe aren't requirements, of course, but would definitely put you in the high 11's with the converter and tune.

I raced at Pacific Raceways two nights ago. My worst pass was an 11.88. Also ran an 11.87, 11.86, and 11.78 (only got 4 passes as it was crazy busy there). It's a great feeling to beat some dedicated racecars that were trailered in with my mildly modded daily driver!

Excellent. Thanks for the info. Did the dealership do the install and purchase of the converter? And where did you get the tune?

And... Do you do your runs with a 1/4 to 1/2 of a tank of fuel or what? What about the spare in the trunk?

Is the car at full operating temps or semi cold, hammer down?

As for the trailered racecars. A buddy of mine looked at me sideways when I told him these run the high 12's an low 13's depending on the driver and setup from the factory. It is interesting to see in a small window of time, a factory offering under $40k can run with $60-70k drag specific cars on the track.

Thank you Brian!
 

Five Oh Brian

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Nice work! So the Mike Rousch Tune Is night and day different from the Bama?

Mike Rousch's tune is a bit quicker at the dragstrip, but the really big improvement is in streetability. Bama could never get the shifting and converter lock up dialed in, while Mike is a hero with the 6R80 trans.
 

Five Oh Brian

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Brian that is so cool and damn dude she is fast!! I love that you race your car so much. There are not very many of us around that do. How many passes do you make a year. I average about 75 passes a year. We have a 3 day event coming this weekend. Best weekend of the year IMO. LOL

Thanks, Patrick! I get to our local tracks as much as I can. I probably make about 100 passes per year between our two tracks. I only get to do "test n tune" events anymore, so no competition like you've been doing. Would love to compete again; I miss bringing home trophies and cash from racing!
 

Five Oh Brian

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There's hope! Guy on this forum has the glass roof as well and I think he ran 11.2, before he went turbo.

I sure am glad the race tracks don't view the glass roof like a convertible for tech inspection so I don't have to install a cage. I've been seeing the local tracks get more lenient on requiring cages for late model cars running below 11.49. Maybe the new 9.99 rule rumor is true, after all.
 

Five Oh Brian

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Excellent. Thanks for the info. Did the dealership do the install and purchase of the converter? And where did you get the tune?

And... Do you do your runs with a 1/4 to 1/2 of a tank of fuel or what? What about the spare in the trunk?

Is the car at full operating temps or semi cold, hammer down?

As for the trailered racecars. A buddy of mine looked at me sideways when I told him these run the high 12's an low 13's depending on the driver and setup from the factory. It is interesting to see in a small window of time, a factory offering under $40k can run with $60-70k drag specific cars on the track.

Thank you Brian!

I've found that the car runs better with 1/2 tank of fuel. A little more weight than running a 1/4 tank., but I think with low fuel there may be a little fuel starvation momentarily. There's a thread here in the forums about this topic and I think the consensus is to run a 1/2 tank and my car seems to follow the logic.

I pull out the spare/jack most of the time. I try to run at full operating temps, and often hotlap making multiple passes within minutes of each other (Bremerton Raceway makes hotlapping possible). Long cool downs do help with ET's, though, but I hate hammering on a cold engine.

Our dealership did all my installs. I supplied the parts, they supply the labor. The converter is the absolute best mod (short of forced induction) for our cars! It got the Mike Rousch tune via email directly from Mike at Mid Atlantic Performance (in Virginia). Money very well spent!
 

daveyboy

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Mike Rousch's tune is a bit quicker at the dragstrip, but the really big improvement is in streetability. Bama could never get the shifting and converter lock up dialed in, while Mike is a hero with the 6R80 trans.

good to know, The streetability in my tune sure needs work
 

KrisR

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Give Mike Rousch a call at Mid Atlantic Performance. You'll be so happy you did!

This.

Another happy Circle D (5C) and Mike Rousch customer here. Zero complaints, and Mike is a super nice guy that will take great care of you.

Also, nice writeup Brian!
 

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