97GT 1st mods ?s

Rally · 02-28-2002, 06:02 AM

First post!... Anyway, I have a '97GT Convertible, right now it is stock (well, I have the typical K&N). I have been doing a fair amount of research as to the first real mods that I want to do. To start out, my goals are 270-300hp. Eventually, mid 300s to 400hp would be the target, but first I wanted to do the heads/intake swap to improve the major drawback of this engine.

I saw the Parkway Ford deal for the '01 intake/heads etc. for $1212, and the MustangWorks deal for $1500. It appears that the only difference is the MustangWorks package has the intake and heads ported (and polished?). This addition seems worth the $300 difference in price. True? I was interested in putting in the Bullit intake, but in the March issue of 5.0 that was priced at $1500 by itself, no heads! Is this typical for the Bullit parts? Obviously, the +10hp gain over stock with the Bullit intake is appealing, and having already suffered a cracked intake manifold (yes, Ford fixed it for free.) the aluminum intake is more and more attractive, but the price difference seems extravagant. Any thoughts?

Would anything else be smart to have done along with the heads? Cam regrind? I heard this was also worth an additional 15hp for, like $300. Eventually, I will reach my secondary performance goals with some sort of forced induction, so would piston modifications be smart with the head job to lower the compression? Am I in error, or missing anything else?

Beyond this, I am planning on changing the stock exhaust. I don't know very much about this, h-pipes, catbacks, etc. etc. I figured I would learn this stuff as I go. In addition to the afore-mentioned forced induction solution, I will probably change the gears to wake up the 4.6. I don't want to make this post too obnoxious, so I will understand if everyone ignores these last things, The header/intake information is the most important.

SLOW 97 · 02-28-2002, 11:33 AM

The cheapest way to make your car faster is to upgrade drivetrain parts. (Ring/Pinion, torque converter(or Clutch), axles. Is your car manual or auto??? If your car is an auto with just 4.10's (Go with 3.73's if you have a stick) and a high stall converter your E.T. will drop a full second (Maybe even more!) for under $1000!!! Engine bolt-ons don't do much by themself unless you add a blower. Like the Bullitt intake, it's $1500 dollars and on a relatively stock GT you'll only get about 5 RWHP. Definitley get PI heads though (I'm in the market for a set myself) because they've added 50+ RWHP to a bone stock Non-PI GT.

StoplightWarrior · 02-28-2002, 04:34 PM

Hey you're from Concord! Sweet. I'm originally from Martinez, but now I live up in Davis. There's a guy on here, Rebel79 who's also from Concord. You know him? He's got a sweet 94 cobra, supercharged.

I don't know what your budget is like, but if you've got the cash, you can reach 400 horses safely and easily. Get the P&P heads, bullit intake, some beefier internals, and then strap a blower on. Finish out the exhaust with some longtubes and an H pipe, and you're cruising to 400hp. Good luck!

Rally · 02-28-2002, 09:54 PM

Oops, I have a manual tranny. Sorry for the omission.

Am I right about the two intake/heads package deals? (That the MustangWorks deal ports and polishes the heads/ where the Parkway one doesn't?) I'm not sure that I could break up these deals and try to incorporate a Bullitt intake into either kit. Besides, has anyone seen a bargain on the Bullitt? Stock ported '01 intake/heads for $1500 or approx. $2400 for a Bullitt intake with '01 heads (nonported) seems to be a harder sell for my cash for 5 additional rhp, especially when I could get a good set of pullies and get that for, like $50.

Hey SLOW 97, how would your mods help? The axels imply the gearing change? What about the rings, and clutch? I figured that by improving the system (ala the intake and heads) I could really make HP gains easier both now and with later mods as a cumulative thing. Cost is something of an object, I don't have $4000 to blow, but I am getting together a couple of grand for the first round of additions.

Hopefully I will see you around, StoplightWarrior. Where do you get your work done on your pony? Any great local shops? I have a fine mechanic I use down in San Jose, but a local solution would be great too, especially if they specialize on the Mustang.

StoplightWarrior · 03-01-2002, 04:37 AM

Well, most of the mods I've done to my stang at this point I've been able to do myself. I've got:

Black 2000 GT Auto
Bassani X-pipe, Magnaflow After-cat, C&L CAI/ 80mm MAF, Mac 70mm Throttle Body, Steeda Underdrive Pulleys, Ford Motorsport 4.10 Gears, Custom Tuned Autologic Chip. Steeda Sport Springs, Caster Camber Plates, Subframe Connectors, Strut Tower Brace.

The gears were put in by Rear End Specialties in Santa Clara. They do awesome work. My exhaust stuff was put in by Tony at Mel and Sons Mufflers on Monument. Tony is the only mechanic I trust at the moment. The chip and throttle body were put in with help from Scott (Rebel79 ). Redline racing on Monument does great work, but they're a little pricey. They did my suspension stuff. Also, they quoted me 1200 to remove and reinstall my P&P'd heads and intake, but hopefully I can do that myself when funds allow. Also check out 98cobra.com when you get a chance. It's a messageboard for Norcal stangs, and they organize meets every now and then. They just had one last Sunday, as a matter of fact. Take it easy.

Jason

Rally · 03-01-2002, 03:22 PM

If I may ask a couple of quick things, StoplightWarrior, are the Steeda springs progressive rate springs, or just lowering springs (or are they the same?) Also, did you have to do the chamber plates with the springs? I've read mixed info on this. Finally, what is the deal with after-cats? What are they? I understand they are a catalytic converter device placed behind the transmission? What is their advantage?

I hope you folks don't mind these q's, It's a tremendous help to a newbie like myself to get ahead of the learning curve by asking questions directly. I'm reading as much as I can, but when getting started, every answer leads to two more questions. Eventually I'll catch up. Thanks.

I'll be sure to check out 98cobra.com, SLW.

StoplightWarrior · 03-01-2002, 03:49 PM

Rally : I believe the Steeda springs are progressive rate. I've also heard mixed arguments about whether caster/camber plates are essential with springs. I just figured for an additional $150 it wasnt worth risking a bad alignment without them. Redline suggested them also.

Mustang exhaust is divided into 3 parts. First are the headers. There is a fair amount of restriction here, but aftermarket headers for the 4.6 are expensive, and hard to install. Next up is the catpipe with the cataylitic converters. When I switched in the Bassani pipe for the stock catpipe, I felt a HUGE gain. After the catpipe is the catback system. This contains the mufflers and the tailpipes. By switching this system out, you won't gain much horsepower, but most people just do it because an aftermarket system will give the mustang that awesome rumble. If you're doing anything exhaust related, go see Tony at Mel's Mufflers and tell him Jason sent you. Good luck.

And don't worry about asking questions. If I had asked more questions before buying impulsively, I would have saved a lot of cash. If you set up a plan leading up to where you eventually want your stang to be, you'll save a lot of time and money. For example, pulleys will not work with a supercharger, so if you're going to supercharge it, do not put pulleys on in the meantime. Some parts clash, so always keep the greater goal in mind.

Last, when my intake blew on my 97 GT, I layed the guilt trip on Ford and traded it in on the 2000!

Rally · 03-01-2002, 09:35 PM

Oooh, good call about the pullies StoplightWarrior. I will have to decide for certain if I am going the supercharger route before buying them. I would assume that the same can't be said for, say a turbo, since it isn't belt driven? OR nitrus?

02-28-2002, 06:02 AM	#1
Rally Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Concord, CA Posts: 54	97GT 1st mods ?s First post!... Anyway, I have a '97GT Convertible, right now it is stock (well, I have the typical K&N). I have been doing a fair amount of research as to the first real mods that I want to do. To start out, my goals are 270-300hp. Eventually, mid 300s to 400hp would be the target, but first I wanted to do the heads/intake swap to improve the major drawback of this engine. I saw the Parkway Ford deal for the '01 intake/heads etc. for $1212, and the MustangWorks deal for $1500. It appears that the only difference is the MustangWorks package has the intake and heads ported (and polished?). This addition seems worth the $300 difference in price. True? I was interested in putting in the Bullit intake, but in the March issue of 5.0 that was priced at $1500 by itself, no heads! Is this typical for the Bullit parts? Obviously, the +10hp gain over stock with the Bullit intake is appealing, and having already suffered a cracked intake manifold (yes, Ford fixed it for free.) the aluminum intake is more and more attractive, but the price difference seems extravagant. Any thoughts? Would anything else be smart to have done along with the heads? Cam regrind? I heard this was also worth an additional 15hp for, like $300. Eventually, I will reach my secondary performance goals with some sort of forced induction, so would piston modifications be smart with the head job to lower the compression? Am I in error, or missing anything else? Beyond this, I am planning on changing the stock exhaust. I don't know very much about this, h-pipes, catbacks, etc. etc. I figured I would learn this stuff as I go. In addition to the afore-mentioned forced induction solution, I will probably change the gears to wake up the 4.6. I don't want to make this post too obnoxious, so I will understand if everyone ignores these last things, The header/intake information is the most important. __________________ __________________ '97 GT Convertible, 5-sp. K&N...Tri-ax...Steeda pullies...

02-28-2002, 11:33 AM	#2
SLOW 97 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Arlington Heights,IL Posts: 231	The cheapest way to make your car faster is to upgrade drivetrain parts. (Ring/Pinion, torque converter(or Clutch), axles. Is your car manual or auto??? If your car is an auto with just 4.10's (Go with 3.73's if you have a stick) and a high stall converter your E.T. will drop a full second (Maybe even more!) for under $1000!!! Engine bolt-ons don't do much by themself unless you add a blower. Like the Bullitt intake, it's $1500 dollars and on a relatively stock GT you'll only get about 5 RWHP. Definitley get PI heads though (I'm in the market for a set myself) because they've added 50+ RWHP to a bone stock Non-PI GT. __________________ '97 Laser Red GT Coupe Stock 2V (Pulled Silencer) 4R70W Automatic Ripped off a BLISTERING 15.37@90MPH With a 2.21 60ft Just Installed- K&N Air Filter Coming Soon...... -4.10's -Flowmaster A/T or Magnapack Cat-Back

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02-28-2002, 04:34 PM	#3
StoplightWarrior Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2000 Location: Nor-Cal Posts: 1,311	Hey you're from Concord! Sweet. I'm originally from Martinez, but now I live up in Davis. There's a guy on here, Rebel79 who's also from Concord. You know him? He's got a sweet 94 cobra, supercharged. I don't know what your budget is like, but if you've got the cash, you can reach 400 horses safely and easily. Get the P&P heads, bullit intake, some beefier internals, and then strap a blower on. Finish out the exhaust with some longtubes and an H pipe, and you're cruising to 400hp. Good luck!

02-28-2002, 09:54 PM	#4
Rally Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Concord, CA Posts: 54	Oops, I have a manual tranny. Sorry for the omission. Am I right about the two intake/heads package deals? (That the MustangWorks deal ports and polishes the heads/ where the Parkway one doesn't?) I'm not sure that I could break up these deals and try to incorporate a Bullitt intake into either kit. Besides, has anyone seen a bargain on the Bullitt? Stock ported '01 intake/heads for $1500 or approx. $2400 for a Bullitt intake with '01 heads (nonported) seems to be a harder sell for my cash for 5 additional rhp, especially when I could get a good set of pullies and get that for, like $50. Hey SLOW 97, how would your mods help? The axels imply the gearing change? What about the rings, and clutch? I figured that by improving the system (ala the intake and heads) I could really make HP gains easier both now and with later mods as a cumulative thing. Cost is something of an object, I don't have $4000 to blow, but I am getting together a couple of grand for the first round of additions. Hopefully I will see you around, StoplightWarrior. Where do you get your work done on your pony? Any great local shops? I have a fine mechanic I use down in San Jose, but a local solution would be great too, especially if they specialize on the Mustang.

03-01-2002, 04:37 AM	#5
StoplightWarrior Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2000 Location: Nor-Cal Posts: 1,311	Well, most of the mods I've done to my stang at this point I've been able to do myself. I've got: Black 2000 GT Auto Bassani X-pipe, Magnaflow After-cat, C&L CAI/ 80mm MAF, Mac 70mm Throttle Body, Steeda Underdrive Pulleys, Ford Motorsport 4.10 Gears, Custom Tuned Autologic Chip. Steeda Sport Springs, Caster Camber Plates, Subframe Connectors, Strut Tower Brace. The gears were put in by Rear End Specialties in Santa Clara. They do awesome work. My exhaust stuff was put in by Tony at Mel and Sons Mufflers on Monument. Tony is the only mechanic I trust at the moment. The chip and throttle body were put in with help from Scott (Rebel79 ). Redline racing on Monument does great work, but they're a little pricey. They did my suspension stuff. Also, they quoted me 1200 to remove and reinstall my P&P'd heads and intake, but hopefully I can do that myself when funds allow. Also check out 98cobra.com when you get a chance. It's a messageboard for Norcal stangs, and they organize meets every now and then. They just had one last Sunday, as a matter of fact. Take it easy. Jason

03-01-2002, 03:22 PM	#6
Rally Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Concord, CA Posts: 54	If I may ask a couple of quick things, StoplightWarrior, are the Steeda springs progressive rate springs, or just lowering springs (or are they the same?) Also, did you have to do the chamber plates with the springs? I've read mixed info on this. Finally, what is the deal with after-cats? What are they? I understand they are a catalytic converter device placed behind the transmission? What is their advantage? I hope you folks don't mind these q's, It's a tremendous help to a newbie like myself to get ahead of the learning curve by asking questions directly. I'm reading as much as I can, but when getting started, every answer leads to two more questions. Eventually I'll catch up. Thanks. I'll be sure to check out 98cobra.com, SLW.

03-01-2002, 03:49 PM	#7
StoplightWarrior Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2000 Location: Nor-Cal Posts: 1,311	Rally : I believe the Steeda springs are progressive rate. I've also heard mixed arguments about whether caster/camber plates are essential with springs. I just figured for an additional $150 it wasnt worth risking a bad alignment without them. Redline suggested them also. Mustang exhaust is divided into 3 parts. First are the headers. There is a fair amount of restriction here, but aftermarket headers for the 4.6 are expensive, and hard to install. Next up is the catpipe with the cataylitic converters. When I switched in the Bassani pipe for the stock catpipe, I felt a HUGE gain. After the catpipe is the catback system. This contains the mufflers and the tailpipes. By switching this system out, you won't gain much horsepower, but most people just do it because an aftermarket system will give the mustang that awesome rumble. If you're doing anything exhaust related, go see Tony at Mel's Mufflers and tell him Jason sent you. Good luck. And don't worry about asking questions. If I had asked more questions before buying impulsively, I would have saved a lot of cash. If you set up a plan leading up to where you eventually want your stang to be, you'll save a lot of time and money. For example, pulleys will not work with a supercharger, so if you're going to supercharge it, do not put pulleys on in the meantime. Some parts clash, so always keep the greater goal in mind. Last, when my intake blew on my 97 GT, I layed the guilt trip on Ford and traded it in on the 2000!

03-01-2002, 09:35 PM	#8
Rally Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Concord, CA Posts: 54	Oooh, good call about the pullies StoplightWarrior. I will have to decide for certain if I am going the supercharger route before buying them. I would assume that the same can't be said for, say a turbo, since it isn't belt driven? OR nitrus?