Best Sleeper Ideas?
 

My cousin and I are planning on building a new racer for the upcoming season. But we want it to look all show and no go.

The drivetrain will consist of a 351, forged pistons, good heads, a carb, and a plate system. Probably a c-4 or c-6.

The question is what body style is the most overlooked?

We want to put 17's on it and sneak up to the street races with a car that doesnt look like ****. But if we do this in a coupe.... well, you know they will suspect something.

Ideas?

It's pretty hard to make a carbed 351 look THAT sleeper. Especially with a plate.

I'm doing a fairmont sleeper real soon.:D

Re: Best Sleeper Ideas?
 

GM, we wont open the hood LOL

I see your point. We might go a little further with the NOS system and do an under the manifold system.

Are you talking the most sleeper for a Mustang? That's easy. 1974-1978 Mustang II. They get absolutely no respect or credit by anybody. They came from the factory with a 302 from 1975-1978 (dutuned with 139hp), so the 351 could probably be wedged in there, the hood would need some help though. Another advantage of the II is they are light as hell. Talking like 2700lbs.

Stepping up to a 1979-1982 will give you a lot better suspension, and less of a sleeper look.

Well, almost nobody respects them. I like them just fine. 1977 Mustang II 302V8 fastback with a C-4 was my first car.

hmm?
 

how about a mid 80's LTD2 wagon? NO ONE would expect that! i dig wagons. most of them are just stock. some arent. some you cant tell. wanna be the next one? i figured that because its on fox body platform and parts a interchangeable and ill bet you there is a bunch of them in junkyard! tell me what you think!

Any Mustang that looks 100% stock including rims is a sleeper.
http://www.mustangworks.com/cgi-bin/...dia.cgi?1855+3
This is my 10 second stock looking Stang. If it only sounded stock it would be the ultimate sleeper

I agree....I like Unit's idea. I gave it to him so I know that it is a good idea even though he doesn't want to go through with a sleeper project like that........

I mentioned this in another thread, but i saw a fox gt on pony rims, and dragradials, the idle didnt even sound like much, and the guy driving looked like he was about 16-18 yrs old, anyway i stood behind when he staged, thinking a bolton 13 sec stang, omg! this think clicked off a 11.3 he had a 200 shot, maybe a stroker, not sure, but much n20, now that imo a sleeper.

Were thinking allot of juice and a little cam. Want it to sound almost stock.

I like the 79-82 idea. But the LTD is sweet ****.

Maybe i will build the LTD for myself and swap MY drivetrain in from the LX.

:) that would suprise a few of the "regulars"

Stock wheels (10 holes do great), stock hood, no window tint, quiet (aka cheap turbo) mufflers. paint the aluminum heads and intake. run a bunch of fake hoses in the engine compartment (to look like emissions stuff). keep a stock looking interior. aka no hurst quarter stick with the sheetmetal housing.. stock shift knob, no monster tach, hide the shift light in the a/c vent.

if you want to make it sound like it's not going to run good, create a few exhaust leaks like at the header/h pipe. i dunno.. anyone else?

If you are using it for street use only, go with a convertible. I get no respect with mine. It is actually lighter than a SN-95. Nobody expects a convertable to go fast. You could also get an older Lincoln Mark VII. Kinda heavy, but real cool. How about a '90 or below Crown Vic?

I like the convertible idea, you are right, they get NO respect.

I would just have to put some SERIOUS Sub-Frames on it!

Maybe even an OLDER convertibel, like an 84 or 85... LMAO

351, painted heads, and i once saw this slick 150 shot that mounts under the air cleaner.

i think high 11's should be enough to suprise some people. But when it is done, i will not take it to the track.... i will just dyno it to have an idea where it sits. :) when someone challenges me, i wan to be like " never been to the track" :D :p :p :p

anything with a carb is hard to pass off as a sleeper. specially a car with an intake that has 351 stamped on it like some intakes do. then to grind that off most would notice.and at the point where you say your not opening your hood. boom they just assume your spraying and what you have is to scary to show.
any mustang can be a sleeper it's just a matter of how represent the car.
how about fuel inject it with HPM drop mounts to fit under the stock hood. a plain jane gt40 intake, full accessories,a 150 shot of nitrous hidden using a 5115 nos kit. an aod trans with a lentech valvebody. 15 inch 10 holes with a set of mcreary's or drag radials. no cage, no gauges, shorty headers, and so on.
you may say all this stuff kills the big motor. but when you have the element of surprize, you don't need all that motor. alittle less horsepower is a small price to pay for more money in your pocket.

STREETRACING: where cheating is a way of life

grocery getter?
 

why use a Stang as a sleeper? people see Stangs and they think 5.0. even though it would be quite and probably have those 4cyl wheels, but people know the reputation of a Stang. yeah you will fool some, but not as many as the LTD2 wagon! people just assume your going to the store, going to get the kids, or they wont think nothing at all besides you can do more with the wagon than you can with the Stang. e.g. more room, haul your buddies to the track, and a cruiser.

Re: grocery getter?
 

Ok, the street scene up here is a little different. Stangs are the bottom of the food chain. We have many many 12/11second DSM (talon/eclipse) and a couple 12 or 11 second hondas. and of course the LS-1 Boys. these are the guys who talk MAD **** about Mildly modified stangs. And they can, they wax them weekly.

I have my car, and no one will race it unless they KNOW they have it covered. THe only races i get are from the hardcore street racers, and i usually decline because they are in the 9's now. That takes all the fun out of it. The whole reason i want a sleeper stang is to take care of the faster than rice crowd, and sneak up there in an unsuspecting stang and take out some of the 12 and 11 second players in the 4 cylinder camp. A wagon just wont cut it. Gotta be a stang to add insult to injury.

srv1: maybe your right. if it's light to light racing. but i was talking about money racing. nobody in new york city area falls for the kind of car anymore. if your out trying to make money with it , it's got to be something. so rather then let them think "look at this guy trying to build a sleeper". let them think "ohh just another 12 second stang". they tend not to look at them as hard. i speak from many years of experience. sleepers are really hard to build these days. the majority of mustangs are stuck in the 14 to 12 second zone so why not try to look like that's where you belong.

hence the saying " a wolf in sheeps clothing"
:D

smallblock has a good point.....if you get something too far out, people will guess right away that some major work is done. I suggest getting a T-bird. Yeah they are a little heavy, but no one would expect a T-bird to be running faster than 13's(I haven't personally seen any run faster although I know there are faster ones out there).

AHH-HA!
 

i get your point now. you wanna b**chslap them in the face showing who's BOSS around town and not let them forget what a Stang is! ok. your talking about racing for money. i thought you just want to go out there and beat some a**! ok, i see your point. but, building 351 fox body wouldnt be much of a sleeper, it just would be another Stang. i mean if you plan on making it look and sound(quiet) like a 4cyl Stang, then i see your point. but just think, kickin the sh*t out of those 4bangers with a wagon that does low 11's or high 10's would REALLY PISS THEM OFF! im assuming your going to put a little more than you mentioned under the hood. you know how addicting that can be! besides, how much does it cost to make a 4banger go 11/12's compared to a Stang? im assuming those boys have ALOT of money tied up into their turbos and motors. and dont forget about transmissions they break! good luck with you idea!:cool:

I have a friend that had a 1981 Mustang LX that was primered out gray. It had a 347 with CNC ported world product heads with the name ground off, 250 Hp shot of spray under the intake, old of quadrajet that had been moded for more cfm, extude honed stock exhaust manafolds, and a bunch of other crap. He would spray the whole thing down with WD-40 and drive it to the track. He'd pop the hood and it looked like crap, grease and grime everywhere, but it would flat out haul but!!!!!

My car has a pretty neat sleeper feature.


My plate reads "12SECGT".

It lets them know you are playing without showing your hand.

Sheet, it LOOKS like I am bragging up a 12 second car!

ok just thought i'd post to tell you guyz i almost got had by an import sleeper.
i went to see a toyota supra (3rd gen) run last night thinking i was going to race him tonight. my boyz amd i were saying how fast? maybe low 11's with 10 second mph on that drag radial. lining up with an 10.80 rx7 we thought this supra was taking on to much. wow were we ever wrong. looking as stock as off the showroom floor with only a coffee can tail pipe. this supra got gated out the hole, the rx7 was pulling 3 cars buy mid track where we were standing. then hole s##t that supra woke up reeled down the rx7 and beat him by 1and1/2 .
sleeper hell yeah had me fooled try it 's mph is probaly over 135. now thats flying. lesson hear: know what your looking at or anything can be a sleeper.

Hehe...and the 2nd gen is lighter with the same motor possibilities:D :D

heck try a 4 door maverick? just a thought.

Swap a 331 twin turbo into a grey Volvo 240 DL wagon. A little pealing paint, some cheap hub caps and you are golden. That Has been my plan for years now. As soon as i finish Marbles i start on "the Swedish bikini team" Look out Grandma!!!!

I like the tbird idea, i got smoked by a 12 sec bird before, it looked stock, but had a nice s-trim underneath, i haerd it though, a guy over here has a 76 dautsun 280z, with a 383 chevy motor, and a 200 shot, it goes 9's @ 140??, but from the sound of it, you know it aint slow, he also has a fast a$$ volvo.

I would go with an 84 to 85 vert the engine in and paint the engine and heads black and drive it without the hood for a while. This will make the engine look a little used. Put all the usual c4, aluminum drive line, 4.30 gears ets... Then get some steel 15in rims and put hub caps on and some BFG drag radials on the rear. The worse the interior the better. Put on a couple of Dynomax mufflers to keep it quiet and go honda hunting.:D :p

87-93 Coupe with Pony or 10-hole wheels.

Coupes are the best Mustang sleepers. They are the lightest and don't have all of the ground effects/spoilers.

Ahh, NoSlow5.0 beat me to it. I've seen a 5.0 in a Volvo (I think it was a 740). Put one in a 240 wagon with "Diesel" emblems on it & you have a real sleeper ;) .

The 5.0 also fits nicely into a 2nd gen RX7. I think that the 351 would too.

Relatively affordable sleeper recipe
 

This is a basic idea of what I'd build if I had the money for another car...

89 white coupe, 10 holes - BFG DR's, black trim, red interior w/ cheap seats
Lentech'd AOD w/ converter - stock shifter
351 w/ junkyard twin turbo system
3.27 gears
Small(er) camshaft
Bigger heads like AFR 205s or Vic Jrs
Sheet metal upper w/ TFS 351 lower
Dynomax Muffs w/ tailpipes
Through the floor subframe connectors
Stock ride height w/ adjustable struts and Wolfe-like rear anti-sway bar
Big fuel system
If money allowed, DFI

Pro's:
1. Big motor that is stronger than roller 302 w/o the expense of going to an A4/R based stroker.
2. Turbo - a) the most efficient power adder w/ the added benefit of helping to eliminate the exhaust noise b) they like the small cams, ie no rumpity rump
3. Gears - 3.27's don't shout, "hey, I have lower gears than stock", yet work well at allowing for 130+ mph trap speeds w/o spinning the engine to the moon
4. Outward appearance could look and sound factory stock
5. 550+ rwhp capable

Con's:
1. One may not have access to the tools necessary to fab the turbo system and upper intake
2. May be able to see intercooler from outside the car
3. To be most effective, the chassis would need to be stiffened further
4. Underhood would hardly look stock
5. Emissions compliance
6. The converter would give a hint the car wasn't stock
7. Hooking it up :D

It could all be done for less than $10k, maybe as low as $8k if one had hookups.