Good article regarding the S197 as a track car

BillyJRacing

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Hey guys,

Part 8 is now live:

Project Budget 400WHP S197 Mustang Track Car: Part 8 – Aero with Steeda and Ford

" For the S197 Mustang platform, proven aero does not have to be expensive. We install a wind tunnel-tested Steeda wing and a BOSS 302 splitter to improve the downforce of our car."

36%202014%20Mustang%20GT%20with%20Boss%20302%20Splitter%20and%20Steeda%20Wing-X2.jpg

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In the article:

-Remove factory decklid spoiler
-Install Steeda wing
-Install BOSS 302 splitter and undertray

-Billy
 

Jack F

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The aero for a street car thing isn't going to go over well with the older demographic of this board. I dig it though. Looks great.
 

BillyJRacing

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All of it is cosmetic on a street car and extremely negligible on a track car. I get it though. We all have to make money.
Not really since it will make a car a couple seconds faster on most tracks and greatly improve tire wear, confidence, and stability.
 

Jack F

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Not really since it will make a car a couple seconds faster on most tracks and greatly improve tire wear, confidence, and stability.

No it won't. The base Boss splitter is strictly cosmetic. You know this of couse. The Boss LS splitter is actually somewhat effective. That Steeda wing is also cosmetic. We both know what an effective S197 spoiler looks like.
 

BillyJRacing

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No it won't. The base Boss splitter is strictly cosmetic. You know this of couse. The Boss LS splitter is actually somewhat effective. That Steeda wing is also cosmetic. We both know what an effective S197 spoiler looks like.
You might want to consider giving the article a read. You'll find out that we had these components (on the Roush Performance BOSS 302R car that I raced) in the full-scale Lockheed Martin 150mph+ wind tunnel. They do work and are far more than cosmetic.
 

GlassTop09

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The 2005-2010 Roush 3rd link fits 2011-14 cars. That's what's in "Project Budget 400whp S197 Track Car" (which is a 2014). It's just a little shorter in length than the OEM 2011-14.

The 2005-10 Roush 3rd link works great on all 2005-2014 cars with OEM and 1-pc AL (or CF) drive shafts. I've won a lot of pro races with this 3rd link on 2014 BOSS 302Rs.

Pinion angle is the angle of the pinion relative to the driveshaft, which has nothing to do with the instant center of the car, which is determined by the geometry of the 3rd link & lower control arms. They are NOT the same thing or interchangeable since it's possible to change one without affecting the other. There are a lot of misconceptions when it comes to this.

For a car that's driven on the street, it's a no-brainer. I'd just run the Roush 3rd link. Even for racing, in most cases I would still run the Roush link (as explained in the article on the 3rd link).
FYI..........
I ordered this Roush 3rd Link shortly after your posting here thru CJ Pony Parts.
At the time Roush was having supply chain issues getting the raw materials needed to make this part so it has been delayed for quite some time but finally CJ informed me that it has been shipped & should be hitting my doorstep tomorrow so I'll be installing this part very soon to see how it all works out in tandem w\ my 13-14 GT500 rear UCA diff bushing I installed some 2 yrs back......
 

crjackson

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FYI..........
I ordered this Roush 3rd Link shortly after your posting here thru CJ Pony Parts.
At the time Roush was having supply chain issues getting the raw materials needed to make this part so it has been delayed for quite some time but finally CJ informed me that it has been shipped & should be hitting my doorstep tomorrow so I'll be installing this part very soon to see how it all works out in tandem w\ my 13-14 GT500 rear UCA diff bushing I installed some 2 yrs back......

I look forward to your report. I’ve been stalled due to the discontinuation of the 2011-2014 specific part. Thanks for testing this.
 
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GlassTop09

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I look forward to your report. I’ve been stalled due to the discontinuation of the 2011-2014 specific part. Thanks for test this.
No problem......I'll do that but know it may be a while in coming as I've also just recently got my Eaton Tru-Trac diff & Richmond 3.89 gears installed thus am currently going thru the recommended 500 mi break in process so no spirited driving until after this is done.

FYI.........
 

GlassTop09

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FYI........

Roush 3rd Link UCA.JPG

I have the Roush 3rd Link in hand now & I see what Roush did to improve this part.

1st off, this is the OEM 05-09 UCA arm\mount assembly that Roush modified by removing the OEM 05-09 UCA bushing\retainer section from the UCA then welded on a metal sleeve w\ reinforcement welded to the OEM UCA that is sized to allow the use of the 05-09 OEM UCA diff bushing rotated in it to align the articulation slots to allow the UCA to deflect laterally in conjunction to the UCA rear axle diff bushing's vertical deflection during articulation but since the OEM rear UCA diff bushing is much smaller (most likely better durometer rubber materials as well) in dia as opposed to the OEM front UCA bushing it naturally reduces deflection movement (pinion rise) under load more thus you get a 2-fer.....less deflection for improved wheel hop control (but allow just enough deflection to better maintain tire grip under acceleration---not shock the tires as Billy laid out) while allowing full axle UCA articulation movement to help maintain the rear wheel contact to the road surface thru body roll while turning to improve cornering performance\control.

After seeing this for real I am very confident this is gonna improve my setup quite well by reducing the last part of axle articulation resistance on my rear axle's suspension (the front poly bushing in the 05-09 BMR adj UCA) along w\ the addition of the Eaton Tru-Trac diff's 3.5 TBR should improve overall handling for mostly spirited street use. This also may well have another improving effect......reducing rear axle resonance transfer into unibody (w\ this part all rear axle bushings attachments to unibody will be OEM Ford design......both LCA's are OEM 13-14 GT500 so better bushing materials than OEM 05-09, UCA diff bushing is OEM 13-14 GT500 so better bushing materials & inner core sleeve design than OEM 05-09).

I'll find out very soon.

Since this part is using the OEM 05-09 rear UCA diff bushing in the Roush modified UCA, this can also be upgraded in the future to use the OEM 13-14 GT500 rear UCA diff bushing which is much better materials\design but retains all the axle articulation......that is if it is desired\needed.

I do have 1 question for Billy:

I see that this part comes w\ the front UCA bushing already set in mounting bracket & assumed torqued to 129 ft\lbs (nut is align-marked to bolt by Roush) so is this set by Roush to coincide w\ their spring package's S197 ride height or is this set to coincide w\ the OEM 05-09 S197 spring package's ride height? I ask as from my read 1 should break this bolt loose when installing then load the axle & torque both front\axle bushing bolts to 129 ft\lbs to ensure both front\axle bushings are in the neutral position to coincide w\ the car's ride height it is being installed on.......or am I over thinking this?
To me it makes sense to loosen\retorque it along w\ the axle bushing under load...........

Not worried about it either way as I'm not gonna return it & if I do loosen\retighten it it's gonna be done properly anyway (Roush is using the OEM 05-09 FoMoCo UCA mounting hardware) so no issue but am curious so want to know just to know......

PS--Never mind.......just downloaded the Roush instructions & read them.
 
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GlassTop09

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FYI.............

Got 1st half done. Pulled the BMR 05-09 adj UCA & mount bracket & installed the Roush 3rd Link. All went very well this time around since I've been here before but this time I got out my old trusty bottle jack to support the snout so I could use my floor jack to work the fuel tank......I gotta love my Pypes M80 mufflers as they're just the right size so when I unstrapped the tank & lowered it onto the exhaust it sit just right & held the tank itself so all I had to do was pull it down 1\4" more to clear the front mount lug. Install went very quick from there.

1st thing to note.....I measured both UCA's center to center & both measured exactly 8 1\2" so Billy was right, this Roush part didn't change the pinion angle at all (the BMR UCA was adjusted when I installed it to set -2* pinion angle but when I replaced the BMR LCA's w\ the OEM 13-14 GT500 LCA's later on the hole centers in the GT500's were 1\4" closer than in the BMR LCA's so this moved the pinion angle up from my earlier set) so I stopped after installing this Roush 3rd Link to wait until AM to check actual pinion angle before I pull the FP 1-piece DS (already have the car up on 4 jack stands w\ rear axle loaded & car level.....was getting pretty nippy & dark outside anyway......had to stop to go pick up wife's Linc from body shop--repairs from her hitting a big dog then later hitting a deer which tore up the front of it, bent the hood & scratched up the paint then took it to the Ford dealership after pickup for full service so car will be done so we can take the rental car back--insurance paying for it all--or I would've finished it all on my Stang today.....started late in the day) & reinstall my OEM 2-piece DS.

Getting closer..................
 

GlassTop09

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FYI...........

Got finished up today. 1st off, I totally spaced out on getting my angle finder & small framing square out to check the pinion angle on the FP 1-piece DS w\ this Roush 3rd Link installed......didn't remember this until I was 1\2 way thru pulling the 1-piece out so no info on this.

I did run car in 5th gear engine idling on jack stands w\ 1-piece DS & Roush 3rd Link installed before shutting down last night. Noticed DS was rotating a little noisy w\ engine idle oscillating (PCM blipping my FP 62mm TB trying to maintain idle speed due to load% varying) so PCM was reacting to some rotational drag somewhere in the drive train.

Ran same test after finishing OEM 2-piece DS install today & noted that engine idle RPM's were a lot smoother w\ PCM being able to maintain a far more consistent idle speed w\o oscillation while turning drive train in 5th gear so it appears that the 1-piece DS pinion angle was actually off a little (slight U-joint bind) judging from these results.

Put car on the ground to take it on a test drive & I immediately noticed a big difference when engaging clutch to driveline under full weight of car......engagement was much smoother w\ engine RPM's not dipping down as much before car started rolling & acceleration was also smoother. I noticed this upon every gear shift how much smoother the clutch engagement was. Some of this may be due to the OEM 2-piece DS's 2 CV joints reducing some driveline rotational drag but I think the majority of this is due to this Roush 3rd Link's front bushing in tandem w\ the 13-14 GT500 UCA axle bushing allowing just enough deflection to better control the rate of engine TQ application to the rear axle (softer). Car felt better, drove better.......all this just driving normally. I have an Exedy HP CM Flywheel, Exedy Mach 500 Stage 3 Grooved PP\Clutch kit installed which can be a little aggressive on engagement & it appears that this Roush 3rd Link is taming this package very well & also verifies the 05-09 BMR adj UCA's small poly bushing was too aggressive promoting accelerated engine TQ application rate into rear axle which would cause engine RPM's to dip down faster causing PCM to blip TB angle which tended to make roll offs a little jerky at times & made roll offs on inclines a little touchy. This Roush 3rd Link essentially resolves this w\ my car as currently configured.

Note: The reason why I am feeling this difference is that I essentially use my engine's TQ output at idle to move car from a standing start before applying throttle due to my FP 62mm TB's tip-in rate w\ these Lunati VooDoo cams at 0* or full advance (engine response can be fairly sudden from the amount of low end TQ output off TB tip in rate) w\ this Exedy flywheel\clutch\PP package.

Will have to wait until I get these gears broken in to then see how well she'll handle being pushed under load but from what I've experienced so far it's gonna be fun!

This is what I believe Billy was referring to when applying power coming out of turns w\ too stiff of a UCA.....the TQ application rate into the rear axle can be too high, too fast for the tire's traction causing them to break loose. I didn't have any breaking of traction but the dynamics are the same......this part provides better TQ application rate control into the rear axle making clutch application much smoother, PCM response much smoother thus acceleration much smoother but crisp so more controllable to maintain traction or grip if you prefer.

I never would've thought this would show up at this low of TQ application rate but it did & I like this.

I'm sold.
 

BillyJRacing

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Hey guys,

Part 9 is now live:

Project Budget 400WHP S197 Mustang Track Car: Part 9 - Apex Wheels and Nitto Tires

"Choosing wheels and tires are some of the most important decisions you can make for a car. For this project’s theme of using the best bang-for-your-buck components possible, there really was only one decision to go with: Apex EC-7 wheels wrapped in Nitto NT01 tires."

0%20Cover%20Project%20Budget%20400whp%20Track%20Car%20Apex%20Wheels%20Nitto%20NT01%20Tires-X2.jpg

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In the article:
-Apex EC-7
-Nitto NT-01
-Wheel & Tire weight comparisons vs the 19" setup
-Wheel spacer tech and clearances

-Billy
 

Juice

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Love them NT01 tires. Ordered a new set yesterday!
 

Mach2burnout

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Hey guys,

Part 9 is now live:

Project Budget 400WHP S197 Mustang Track Car: Part 9 - Apex Wheels and Nitto Tires

"Choosing wheels and tires are some of the most important decisions you can make for a car. For this project’s theme of using the best bang-for-your-buck components possible, there really was only one decision to go with: Apex EC-7 wheels wrapped in Nitto NT01 tires."

0%20Cover%20Project%20Budget%20400whp%20Track%20Car%20Apex%20Wheels%20Nitto%20NT01%20Tires-X2.jpg

[/URL]


In the article:
-Apex EC-7
-Nitto NT-01
-Wheel & Tire weight comparisons vs the 19" setup
-Wheel spacer tech and clearances

-Billy

NT-01s are definitely a great tire.

There is no such thing as cheap tire wheel set up for racing.

And the combo you chose at $700/corner can’t really be called cheap, now can it?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Juice

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I think NT01 tires are cost effective for what you get. And they last the longest of the tires I have tried for track use. Not cheap, but a good price point for value. And you can run them till the two lines completely disappear. I posted photos in corner carver's of my last set, I think I got something like 20+ trackdays out of that set.
 

Mach2burnout

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I think NT01 tires are cost effective for what you get. And they last the longest of the tires I have tried for track use. Not cheap, but a good price point for value. And you can run them till the two lines completely disappear. I posted photos in corner carver's of my last set, I think I got something like 20+ trackdays out of that set.

Oh there is no doubt about that. They are great! You can actually run them until the little holes(wear indicators) are completely gone.

I ran them auto xing for some time, but they harden up from time before they wear out. Last few runs I made on mine I had to soak them to soften them up.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

BillyJRacing

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