Edit: Sorry about the formatting 
... Copy/pasted wrong somehow, I dunno.
I'm normally more of a private person so wouldn't typically share things. I don't own a facebook or anything like that.... but I'm in love with this car and this forum section has been instrumental in that, so here's my thank you.
I started asking questions about how to fix specific things, and ended up with a list to fix everything from will hop and excessive roll, to bump steer, and lack of steering angle. Yes, I drift, but I started as, and will always spend half my weekends at the road courses.
Those being, Thunderhill and Buttonwillow, or Laguna/Sonoma if I'm feeling flush.
I've owned 18 cars between age 15 and 25. Some Miatas, swapped RX7s, BMWs, and Fords. I've driven hundreds of cars, racking up 1.1 million miles and counting. I'm definitely not the best racing driver, but I do chassis engineering, so I am quite familiar with chassis geometry, and also know as much as anyone I've heard say things on the internet about chassis or aero, the majority of what I've heard online, being outright wrong, or at least right for the wrong reasons.
Cars... roadsters, coupes, race cars, all tend to blend together for me, because I don't see them as stock. I just look at the weight, and imagine them all with proper suspension and r compounds.
The S197:
There ARE cars that handle way better, but safety was high on my list of priorities, so I bought something as new as I could. Ford likes to make awesome chassis, which is why I think they are so popular for racing, but they then throw cheap crap on the bottom... suspension... The engines are fine, average, but well engineered to the extent that they don't starve themselves or have any big failure points like BMW always seems to miss... (or engineer in on purpose for after the warranty expires hahaah)
I was looking at ...
Elise/Exige
Cayman
E30 BMW
Miata
Wanting something newer/ safer that didn't need a roll cage like the older BMW route, and not having the budget to start with a Porsche, I figured it better to buy something cheaper, and tune and tweak it the way I wanted.
So I'm starting at $15, and adding another $15.... I might have been happy with a stock Lotus Elise for the same $30, but as this is my only car, except for the e250, I wanted some level of comfort.
EDIT: The color coding on the parts list didn't post... so I'm editing some things to say "FUTURE:" now... EDIT: Done.
2011
Ford Mustang
V6 Base Model
Black/Black
60k miles
$14500.00
From Amazon
From Vorshlag: $595.36
From American Muscle: $5,549.78 after s197forum.com 6% discount
From Tire Rack: $3298.95
Total: $9444.09 + Exterior Mods + Amazon(interior) + SubeSports + Drift Specific
Labor: $2500+500 overchage +1000 at another shop fixing first shop's mistakes
Engine
BAMA iTSX
Royal Purple 5w20 Synthetic
Royal Purple Filter
STOCK EXHAUST
Suspension
Vorshlag Camber Caster Plates
Energy Suspension Bushings
Whiteline Watts Link
Whiteline LCA
Whiteline LCA Relocation Brackets
BMR UCA
BMR UCA Relocation Bracket
Steeda Ball Joints X11
Steeda Bump Steer Kit
Eibach Pro R2 Coilovers
Brakes/Wheels/Tires
Motul 600 Brake Fluid
14" GT500 Brembo BBK on front comes with 4 stainless lines / backing plates
20 Locking Lug Nuts
5 18x9.5 ET 35 Enkei PF01 5x114.3 From Tire Rack
5 Dunlop ZII 275/35/18 tires From Tire Rack
Driveline/Other
Ford Racing Carbon Clutch Diff
Whiteline Positive Shift Kit
FUTURE: stage II lightweight flywheel and clutch
Drift Specific: $400
Spindle mods from Derrick Rogers: gripangle (at) gmail (dot) com
Rack spacer removal
2.5" Wheel spacers (for above wheels or 1.25" with +15mm 9.5 wheels) from motor-sport tech
FUTURE: M2353CA Boss 302SR ABS ReMap and Traction Control Delete
FUTURE: ASD 16" Pull Back Hydraulic 3/4 Pass Through Hydraulic Ebrake
Interior Performance From SubeSports $1300
Cobra Evolution Pro Fit Seats
Cobra PLANTED Seat 05+ Mustang Brackets
Cobra Seat brackets
Interior/Exterior Not-Performance From Amazon
V1
Lukas 7900 ACE
Griffin Phone Mount
USB Cable
Aux Cable
Bug Out Bag
Rayban Aviators
Local Police Support Beanie
2x Fog lights 18w amber covers
Vinyl Wrap from Vinyl Styles
Aluminum Black Billet Grill
That's the complete list of modifications.
I also keep a leather folder with my registration/insurance and scrap paper in the car, it's great for taking notes, and a leatherman. The bug out bag isn't really complete yet, and these will be part of it.
I placed the order, and started waiting.
EDIT: This list is updated as changes to the plan are made. Expect total cost as of 5/23 to be $32k almost exactly.EDIT + 1000 for second shop fixing first shop's mistakes.
Some notes on the process.
I've had the BAMA tuner a while now. It sucked at first, then I called to complain/return it, and ended up on the phone with an excellent tech who sent me his personal tune he uses on his personal car. Love it, and the car is a lot louder. I don't really like loud cars, I'll keep the OEM exhaust forever, but I do enjoy the little extra rumble from the tune.
I haven't adjusted the eibachs yet, but damping seems balanced. The springs could be a bit stiffer, and of course they'll sell me just about any spring rate, but I'm happy for now. The spindles modded are great. The steering is about as fast as an S2000.
I do get rubbing now, because of the spindles. I have the giant custom spacers waiting for when my 3d printer arrives to make myself some flares. I could've gotten custom offset wheels, but I prefer spacers, they are cheaper than wheels and I can always take them out. Steering angle goes from 45 to 65 degrees. Drift time!
The carbon clutch pack diff, only $240 at American Muscle, is as good as anything. I hated the stock 2.9x gears in my v6, until I got 275/35/18s which are some 1.5 inches smaller in diameter. Now its faster than stock.
I'm running 8.5 degrees caster due to the smaller tire size, to give me back some mechanical trail. The increased scrub radius has basically zero self-centering properties. Toe is 0,0 and camber is -2-2.
The front is as low as it gets, and the rear could be an inch lower, though I'd probably want to reroute the ebrake cables, as they go under the sus. arms, and that's weird/close. I clear speed bumps, if I go the speed limit. The air dam under the bumper will scrape lightly on some of the longer shaped speed bumps.
Brakes are perfect, now that they have bolts in the calipers.
Vinyl is awesome, it will go on every car I ever own ever again. Never seems to get dirty, and I had someone open their door hard into mine, with no visible damage.
The next mods are bolting on the LED fog lights and vents in the hood.
At some point, if the engine seems still healthy, I'll do a stage 2 clutch, flywheel, and driveshaft.
A supercharger may arrive if I feel like wasting 5k on power adders, which I probably never will... I live in the mountains, so 300hp is already too much. On some of the narrowest, crappiest paved roads you've never seen, you could probably easily tap 100 in a 25, not that I've tried. It does take the local jumps better though; smooth landings.
My threads are worth reading, I think, if you're in a similar position:
http://www.s197forum.com/forum/search.php?searchid=6800174
I also added a pic of me in the 4th Miata I owned, and rolled, plus a pick of the mustang grazing in its natural habitat, because why not?
... Copy/pasted wrong somehow, I dunno.I'm normally more of a private person so wouldn't typically share things. I don't own a facebook or anything like that.... but I'm in love with this car and this forum section has been instrumental in that, so here's my thank you.
I started asking questions about how to fix specific things, and ended up with a list to fix everything from will hop and excessive roll, to bump steer, and lack of steering angle. Yes, I drift, but I started as, and will always spend half my weekends at the road courses.
Those being, Thunderhill and Buttonwillow, or Laguna/Sonoma if I'm feeling flush.
I've owned 18 cars between age 15 and 25. Some Miatas, swapped RX7s, BMWs, and Fords. I've driven hundreds of cars, racking up 1.1 million miles and counting. I'm definitely not the best racing driver, but I do chassis engineering, so I am quite familiar with chassis geometry, and also know as much as anyone I've heard say things on the internet about chassis or aero, the majority of what I've heard online, being outright wrong, or at least right for the wrong reasons.
Cars... roadsters, coupes, race cars, all tend to blend together for me, because I don't see them as stock. I just look at the weight, and imagine them all with proper suspension and r compounds.
The S197:
There ARE cars that handle way better, but safety was high on my list of priorities, so I bought something as new as I could. Ford likes to make awesome chassis, which is why I think they are so popular for racing, but they then throw cheap crap on the bottom... suspension... The engines are fine, average, but well engineered to the extent that they don't starve themselves or have any big failure points like BMW always seems to miss... (or engineer in on purpose for after the warranty expires hahaah)
I was looking at ...
Elise/Exige
Cayman
E30 BMW
Miata
Wanting something newer/ safer that didn't need a roll cage like the older BMW route, and not having the budget to start with a Porsche, I figured it better to buy something cheaper, and tune and tweak it the way I wanted.
So I'm starting at $15, and adding another $15.... I might have been happy with a stock Lotus Elise for the same $30, but as this is my only car, except for the e250, I wanted some level of comfort.
EDIT: The color coding on the parts list didn't post... so I'm editing some things to say "FUTURE:" now... EDIT: Done.
2011
Ford Mustang
V6 Base Model
Black/Black
60k miles
$14500.00
From Amazon
From Vorshlag: $595.36
From American Muscle: $5,549.78 after s197forum.com 6% discount
From Tire Rack: $3298.95
Total: $9444.09 + Exterior Mods + Amazon(interior) + SubeSports + Drift Specific
Labor: $2500+500 overchage +1000 at another shop fixing first shop's mistakes
Engine
BAMA iTSX
Royal Purple 5w20 Synthetic
Royal Purple Filter
STOCK EXHAUST
Suspension
Vorshlag Camber Caster Plates
Energy Suspension Bushings
Whiteline Watts Link
Whiteline LCA
Whiteline LCA Relocation Brackets
BMR UCA
BMR UCA Relocation Bracket
Steeda Ball Joints X11
Steeda Bump Steer Kit
Eibach Pro R2 Coilovers
Brakes/Wheels/Tires
Motul 600 Brake Fluid
14" GT500 Brembo BBK on front comes with 4 stainless lines / backing plates
20 Locking Lug Nuts
5 18x9.5 ET 35 Enkei PF01 5x114.3 From Tire Rack
5 Dunlop ZII 275/35/18 tires From Tire Rack
Driveline/Other
Ford Racing Carbon Clutch Diff
Whiteline Positive Shift Kit
FUTURE: stage II lightweight flywheel and clutch
Drift Specific: $400
Spindle mods from Derrick Rogers: gripangle (at) gmail (dot) com
Rack spacer removal
2.5" Wheel spacers (for above wheels or 1.25" with +15mm 9.5 wheels) from motor-sport tech
FUTURE: M2353CA Boss 302SR ABS ReMap and Traction Control Delete
FUTURE: ASD 16" Pull Back Hydraulic 3/4 Pass Through Hydraulic Ebrake
Interior Performance From SubeSports $1300
Cobra Evolution Pro Fit Seats
Cobra PLANTED Seat 05+ Mustang Brackets
Cobra Seat brackets
Interior/Exterior Not-Performance From Amazon
V1
Lukas 7900 ACE
Griffin Phone Mount
USB Cable
Aux Cable
Bug Out Bag
Rayban Aviators
Local Police Support Beanie
2x Fog lights 18w amber covers
Vinyl Wrap from Vinyl Styles
Aluminum Black Billet Grill
That's the complete list of modifications.
I also keep a leather folder with my registration/insurance and scrap paper in the car, it's great for taking notes, and a leatherman. The bug out bag isn't really complete yet, and these will be part of it.
I placed the order, and started waiting.
EDIT: This list is updated as changes to the plan are made. Expect total cost as of 5/23 to be $32k almost exactly.EDIT + 1000 for second shop fixing first shop's mistakes.
Some notes on the process.
I've had the BAMA tuner a while now. It sucked at first, then I called to complain/return it, and ended up on the phone with an excellent tech who sent me his personal tune he uses on his personal car. Love it, and the car is a lot louder. I don't really like loud cars, I'll keep the OEM exhaust forever, but I do enjoy the little extra rumble from the tune.
I haven't adjusted the eibachs yet, but damping seems balanced. The springs could be a bit stiffer, and of course they'll sell me just about any spring rate, but I'm happy for now. The spindles modded are great. The steering is about as fast as an S2000.
I do get rubbing now, because of the spindles. I have the giant custom spacers waiting for when my 3d printer arrives to make myself some flares. I could've gotten custom offset wheels, but I prefer spacers, they are cheaper than wheels and I can always take them out. Steering angle goes from 45 to 65 degrees. Drift time!
The carbon clutch pack diff, only $240 at American Muscle, is as good as anything. I hated the stock 2.9x gears in my v6, until I got 275/35/18s which are some 1.5 inches smaller in diameter. Now its faster than stock.
I'm running 8.5 degrees caster due to the smaller tire size, to give me back some mechanical trail. The increased scrub radius has basically zero self-centering properties. Toe is 0,0 and camber is -2-2.
The front is as low as it gets, and the rear could be an inch lower, though I'd probably want to reroute the ebrake cables, as they go under the sus. arms, and that's weird/close. I clear speed bumps, if I go the speed limit. The air dam under the bumper will scrape lightly on some of the longer shaped speed bumps.
Brakes are perfect, now that they have bolts in the calipers.
Vinyl is awesome, it will go on every car I ever own ever again. Never seems to get dirty, and I had someone open their door hard into mine, with no visible damage.
The next mods are bolting on the LED fog lights and vents in the hood.
At some point, if the engine seems still healthy, I'll do a stage 2 clutch, flywheel, and driveshaft.
A supercharger may arrive if I feel like wasting 5k on power adders, which I probably never will... I live in the mountains, so 300hp is already too much. On some of the narrowest, crappiest paved roads you've never seen, you could probably easily tap 100 in a 25, not that I've tried. It does take the local jumps better though; smooth landings.
My threads are worth reading, I think, if you're in a similar position:
http://www.s197forum.com/forum/search.php?searchid=6800174
I also added a pic of me in the 4th Miata I owned, and rolled, plus a pick of the mustang grazing in its natural habitat, because why not?
Attachments
Last edited:
