2006 Mustang GT Manual Convertible FBO Dyno Results

[MustangMark]

Hi ya’ll! I have lurked these forums for years and appreciate all the great info!

Last fall I bought my dream Mustang, 2006 GT manual convertible, black on red, 53,000 kms. I flew to Ottawa to pick it up and drove it back to Toronto. The 2005 concept car had me drooling when I was a teenager, fast forward 20 or so years and I have the money lol.

I’ve been following Four Eyes on YouTube and his awesome 3V build series and just had essentially his stage 2 mods installed (

)
I may end up supercharging the thing down the road, but for now I want to go Max N/A with all the bolt-ons (minus cams, not ready for that chop and fuel economy).

My mods are as follows:

• JLT Series 3 CAI
• BBK long-tube headers
• BBK high-flow catted X-pipe
• Stock mufflers
• Steeda underdrive pulleys
• 94 octane dyno tune

I’m somewhat disappointed with the results of the dyno tune. Not just peak numbers as I know there can be some variability (I asked for a stock pull for a baseline, but they said the dyno guy was sick day of installing bolt-ons), but also the shape of the curve. It makes peak HP at 5,200 rpm, but then starts dropping off where as it seems like other dyno’s I’ve seen it stays flat to redline. Also, torque seems low at 3,000 rpm (other dyno’s seem to record power starting at 1,500-2,000 rpm).

I asked them about this, and they said this was just what my car makes essentially. I’m attaching my dyno results (peak 309 hp and 330 tq), and the four eyes dyno that was my benchmark. Also, I had AI create a graph that shows his and mine overlayed.

Do you guys have any thoughts or feedback? Is this really a limitation of my car or is this just not an optimum tune? I’m in the greater Toronto area. Is there a place you recommend? Appreciate any help greatly!

 

[bigmace]

Seems pretty decent for bolt ons. Stock the 05-09 GT makes about 270hp to the wheels. You picked up an aditional 40 hp. A cam uprade like the detroit rockers or ford hot rod cams could probably get you another 10~15hp at peak.

Beyond that you are either going to need do forced induction or build the bottom end of the engine.

 

[whitmanink]

is it a lito tune?
hes good at pulling good numbers because he knows the engines.
if its a makeshift tune (bama) thats the problem.
the CAI will net you the most gains off the bolt ons you have,
the catted x -pipe is junk , its catted (hp loss) compared to non catt

the underdrive pulley frees up lost hp (1-4 )

so its kinda on par hp wise,, like i said ,, if thats a bama tune lito can get you like 5-9 more hp..

if it is a lito tune ,,, its conservative

 

[Dino Dino Bambino]

Hi ya’ll! I have lurked these forums for years and appreciate all the great info!

Last fall I bought my dream Mustang, 2006 GT manual convertible, black on red, 53,000 kms. I flew to Ottawa to pick it up and drove it back to Toronto. The 2005 concept car had me drooling when I was a teenager, fast forward 20 or so years and I have the money lol.

I’ve been following Four Eyes on YouTube and his awesome 3V build series and just had essentially his stage 2 mods installed (

)
I may end up supercharging the thing down the road, but for now I want to go Max N/A with all the bolt-ons (minus cams, not ready for that chop and fuel economy).

My mods are as follows:

• JLT Series 3 CAI
• BBK long-tube headers
• BBK high-flow catted X-pipe
• Stock mufflers
• Steeda underdrive pulleys
• 94 octane dyno tune

I’m somewhat disappointed with the results of the dyno tune. Not just peak numbers as I know there can be some variability (I asked for a stock pull for a baseline, but they said the dyno guy was sick day of installing bolt-ons), but also the shape of the curve. It makes peak HP at 5,200 rpm, but then starts dropping off where as it seems like other dyno’s I’ve seen it stays flat to redline. Also, torque seems low at 3,000 rpm (other dyno’s seem to record power starting at 1,500-2,000 rpm).

I asked them about this, and they said this was just what my car makes essentially. I’m attaching my dyno results (peak 309 hp and 330 tq), and the four eyes dyno that was my benchmark. Also, I had AI create a graph that shows his and mine overlayed.

Do you guys have any thoughts or feedback? Is this really a limitation of my car or is this just not an optimum tune? I’m in the greater Toronto area. Is there a place you recommend? Appreciate any help greatly!

View attachment 116898

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View attachment 116901

Honestly your dyno numbers aren't bad at all. Indeed the peak torque is exactly where it should be.
The reason why your torque seems low at 3000rpm is because the dyno run only started at that point where the dyno operator probably rolled into the throttle and only went wide open at 3500rpm, hence the steep rise in the torque curve.
As for the HP curve tapering off above 5200rpm there are probably two reasons. Firstly, the factory ECU tune closes the throttle slightly as the engine nears the rev limiter. It's possible the tuner didn't disable that feature. Secondly, the BBK headers are full length and they tend to beef up the middle of the torque curve from about 2700-5200rpm. At higher rpm the longer tube length becomes more restrictive. You might have gotten even closer to Four Eyes' numbers if you had also done a CMCV delete.
For comparison I've attached my own dyno sheet. I have similar mods to you but my numbers are slightly higher since I've also done a DIY CMCV delete, DIY ported stock throttle body, JBA style shorty headers (better than stock manifolds at the bottom and top end of the rpm range, not so much in the middle), and I have a 19lb lighter aluminium driveshaft (adds ~3-4rwhp & tq).
Once I eventually get around to performing the 07-10 GT cooling system conversion (I have all the parts), the front of the engine will be decluttered and there'll be enough room for a turbo!

 

[whitmanink]

Honestly your dyno numbers aren't bad at all. Indeed the peak torque is exactly where it should be.
The reason why your torque seems low at 3000rpm is because the dyno run only started at that point where the dyno operator probably rolled into the throttle and only went wide open at 3500rpm, hence the steep rise in the torque curve.
As for the HP curve tapering off above 5200rpm there are probably two reasons. Firstly, the factory ECU tune closes the throttle slightly as the engine nears the rev limiter. It's possible the tuner didn't disable that feature. Secondly, the BBK headers are full length and they tend to beef up the middle of the torque curve from about 2700-5200rpm. At higher rpm the longer tube length becomes more restrictive. You might have gotten even closer to Four Eyes' numbers if you had also done a CMCV delete.
For comparison I've attached my own dyno sheet. I have similar mods to you but my numbers are slightly higher since I've also done a DIY CMCV delete, DIY ported stock throttle body, JBA style shorty headers (better than stock manifolds at the bottom and top end of the rpm range, not so much in the middle), and I have a 19lb lighter aluminium driveshaft (adds ~3-4rwhp & tq).
Once I eventually get around to performing the 07-10 GT cooling system conversion (I have all the parts), the front of the engine will be decluttered and there'll be enough room for a turbo!
View attachment 116912

I still think the tune is leaving some on the table?

 

[Dino Dino Bambino]

I still think the tune is leaving some on the table?

There's definitely more HP/TQ to be gained above 5200rpm. I would have expected the HP to peak at about 313-315 @ 5700-5800 but as I mentioned earlier, the tuner may not have adjusted the tune to keep the throttle wide open right up until the rev limiter hits. The rev limiter can also be increased to the same 6500rpm as the 2008 Bullitt and 2010 GT. A tweak of the cam timing retard above 5200rpm might also yield a small HP gain.
It's difficult to comment on the lower end of the torque curve because the dyno run was started at 3000rpm but it's definitely all there at 3100rpm (295rwtq).

 

[JC SSP]

Those are decent numbers. Is the car auto or stick?

Some dynos are + or - on HP/TQ so they are not always 100% accurate.

Post some pics of your car.

 

[StockishS197]

congrats on the car!

is it a lito tune?
hes good at pulling good numbers because he knows the engines.
if its a makeshift tune (bama) thats the problem.
the CAI will net you the most gains off the bolt ons you have,
the catted x -pipe is junk , its catted (hp loss) compared to non catt

the underdrive pulley frees up lost hp (1-4 )

so its kinda on par hp wise,, like i said ,, if thats a bama tune lito can get you like 5-9 more hp..

if it is a lito tune ,,, its conservative

Litos tunes are pretty much always the best of all worlds, but also tend to make about as much power as you can.

His spark is fairly aggressive as mine maxes out around 34 degrees at WOT.

 

[StockishS197]

OP, also don’t get caught up in dyno numbers. It’s a tool, but the numbers can be manipulated and vary from dyno to dyno. All that matters is gains on the same dyno.

 

[MustangMark]

Honestly your dyno numbers aren't bad at all. Indeed the peak torque is exactly where it should be.
The reason why your torque seems low at 3000rpm is because the dyno run only started at that point where the dyno operator probably rolled into the throttle and only went wide open at 3500rpm, hence the steep rise in the torque curve.
As for the HP curve tapering off above 5200rpm there are probably two reasons. Firstly, the factory ECU tune closes the throttle slightly as the engine nears the rev limiter. It's possible the tuner didn't disable that feature. Secondly, the BBK headers are full length and they tend to beef up the middle of the torque curve from about 2700-5200rpm. At higher rpm the longer tube length becomes more restrictive. You might have gotten even closer to Four Eyes' numbers if you had also done a CMCV delete.
For comparison I've attached my own dyno sheet. I have similar mods to you but my numbers are slightly higher since I've also done a DIY CMCV delete, DIY ported stock throttle body, JBA style shorty headers (better than stock manifolds at the bottom and top end of the rpm range, not so much in the middle), and I have a 19lb lighter aluminium driveshaft (adds ~3-4rwhp & tq).
Once I eventually get around to performing the 07-10 GT cooling system conversion (I have all the parts), the front of the engine will be decluttered and there'll be enough room for a turbo!
View attachment 116912

Nice numbers! I had no idea the 07-10 had a different cooling system, I’ll have to look into that. The ECU closing throttle as it approaches redline I also did not know, seems like it would explain it perfectly, seems odd the tuner would not catch that.

Interested in your dyi ported throttle body. Sounds like a nice setup you have dude, turbo would be sick lol.

 

[MustangMark]

OP, also don’t get caught up in dyno numbers. It’s a tool, but the numbers can be manipulated and vary from dyno to dyno. All that matters is gains on the same dyno.

That’s fair, also what matters is I drove it again this morning and loved it! Feels great! I usually shift before redline anyway.

 

[MustangMark]

Those are decent numbers. Is the car auto or stick?

Some dynos are + or - on HP/TQ so they are not always 100% accurate.

Post some pics of your car.

It’s manual, and yeah if I don’t obsess about the numbers it’s feels great, midrange pull is night and day from stock.

Took some pics this morning, bit of rain haha

is it a lito tune?
hes good at pulling good numbers because he knows the engines.
if its a makeshift tune (bama) thats the problem.
the CAI will net you the most gains off the bolt ons you have,
the catted x -pipe is junk , its catted (hp loss) compared to non catt

the underdrive pulley frees up lost hp (1-4 )

so its kinda on par hp wise,, like i said ,, if thats a bama tune lito can get you like 5-9 more hp..

if it is a lito tune ,,, its conservative

its a dyno tune for 93/94 octane done at a well regarded shop in Toronto area

 

[JC SSP]

Just like Henry Ford said… you can have any color you want, as long as it’s black!

 

[MustangMark]

congrats on the car!

Litos tunes are pretty much always the best of all worlds, but also tend to make about as much power as you can.

His spark is fairly aggressive as mine maxes out around 34 degrees at WOT.

I think it’s a fairly conservative tune, which is fine, torque is good. I was a little bummed about the hp dropping off past 5,200 rpm, but I think it may be this ECU closing throttle on redline approach. Need to look into that. I wonder if I can turn that off myself with Forscan. Already have the cable for my F150

 

[JC SSP]

Consider some rear end gears (3:73 or 4:10) you might be surprised how well that moves that Convt GT.

 

[Dino Dino Bambino]

Interested in your dyi ported throttle body. Sounds like a nice setup you have dude, turbo would be sick lol.

Here it is. Top picture is stock, bottom picture is ported.



Notice how I feathered the top edges of the bores and blended them with the center divider to streamline airflow. The result was an even sharper part throttle response and the car's a lot of fun to drive.
An On3 turbo would be an obvious next performance upgrade but I'm already more than happy with the engine N/A.

His spark is fairly aggressive as mine maxes out around 34 degrees at WOT.

My WOT spark timing advance maxes out at 30 degrees but my Brenspeed tune is for 91 octane. On 93 it would have been 32 degrees.

 

[StockishS197]

Here it is. Top picture is stock, bottom picture is ported.

View attachment 116931

Notice how I feathered the top edges of the bores and blended them with the center divider to streamline airflow. The result was an even sharper part throttle response and the car's a lot of fun to drive.
An On3 turbo would be an obvious next performance upgrade but I'm already more than happy with the engine N/A.



My WOT spark timing advance maxes out at 30 degrees but my Brenspeed tune is for 91 octane. On 93 it would have been 32 degrees.

Yeah, I think commanded BKT spark is 32, then MBT is up to 34/36, as the knock sensors add a few degrees up top above 32 when conditions allow.

Also with aftermarket cams with wider LSA, a few more degrees can be tolerated too

32 degrees at WOT is about what makes the most power N.A. on 3vs

 

[StockishS197]

I think it’s a fairly conservative tune, which is fine, torque is good. I was a little bummed about the hp dropping off past 5,200 rpm, but I think it may be this ECU closing throttle on redline approach. Need to look into that. I wonder if I can turn that off myself with Forscan. Already have the cable for my F150

TB will start closing only 2-300 RPM away from redline, not at 5200. You should peak around 6000 and plateau a bit.

Peaking at 5200 seems low

 

[MustangMark]

It’s manual, and yeah if I don’t obsess about the numbers it’s feels great, midrange pull is night and day from stock.

Took some pics this morning, bit of rain haha

its a dyno tune for 93/94 octane done at a well regarded shop in Toronto area

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Black with red interior, I think my favourite combo

 

[MustangMark]

TB will start closing only 2-300 RPM away from redline, not at 5200. You should peak around 6000 and plateau a bit.

Peaking at 5200 seems low

I thought so too. Not sure what would cause that. Seems like other graphs I’ve seen remain flat to redline. Otherwise it seems like a good result.