Most ponies for the buck
 

I'm a very proud owner of a '94 GT 5spd. And I couldn't be happier with it. But the only thing I need are a few extra ponies to give me peace of mind knowing I won't be embarassed by the Z28 owners in my home town. When all is said and done, the hp for me would be to end up with around 255-260+ hp. But being only 20 years old, the money to pay for the mods needed doesn't exactly come rolling in. So what I need from one of you knowledgeable folks here, is to give me ideas for the best bang for the buck. The only thing I will not put in the car is Nitrous Oxide. I don't mind the extra boost, but that would seem like the car is on steroids, I'm a big fan of "natural hp". So, I hope you guys have some ideas.

Well, NOS is the biggest bang per buck.. but I understand where you are coming from. A good set of heads is what you need, the stock heads are the biggest restriction. Then you will need a bigger maf, tb, intake, and exhaust. Ummm.. this stuff isn't cheap.

To go faster, a set of gears is almost the first thing purchased(there I said it). 3.55s or 3.73s are the most common for street cars. Usually 3.55s are recommends for stick street cars and 3.73s for auto.. but you can decide.

Give us an idea of your budget and we can help you with the parts..

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Rick
My 89lx(updated 11/5/2000)
My 97 Cobra

i have a 94 5 speed and thats not true go with 3.73 that is the best way to go quicker for cheap visit my website and email me with any ?'S http://hapygas.stangnet.com

Definetely start out with 373s or 410s. Then do other basic stuff like advancing the timing, and maybe a set of underdrive pulleys.

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1990 GT
Vortech S-trim 10-12psi 373s, fms upper and lower control arms
hurst shifter, mac offroad h pipe, warlock
catback exhaust,c&l 73mm mass air, 30lb injectors, mac unequal length headers,trex inline pump, msd btm

There seems to be as many opinions about gears as there are performance tuning guys.

I'm quite satisfied about stock 3.08's at the moment but I'm planning to get 3.55's in future after those basic motor breathning problems are solved (intake, heads, headers, cam). And those 3.55's mostly because of too long 5th gear, not because of too long gears from 1st to 4th.

I just really don't get the idea of putting "rice-gears" to a manual transmitted car that has torque but doesn't breathe over 4500rpm. Sure it will improve 1/4 mile times a couple of tenths even with stock motor, but it won't make it up to you because of the negative side which is dramatically increased fuel consumption (on 4.10's at least) and increased need of shifting. So I would solve those breathning problems first or at least settle for 3.55's. Call me stupid or lazy but that's just what I am. http://www.mustangworks.com/interact...oard/smile.gif

gears and nitrous.. http://www.mustangworks.com/interact...oard/smile.gif

i agree with hapygas and blown5.0
besides whats the point of putting 3.55's when you can put the 3.73's this is the best time, dont do the same job twice, learn from our mistakes. i have a 94 as well, obviously they are running on 3.73's and get rid of the stock exhaust and get some pulleys.

I have a 95 and Im telling you to get the gears first. Before ANYTHING. I waited and I was sorry. No matter what you do to your car its still wont perform in its powerband without some more gear. Especialy in third. Third gear just plain sucks with 308's I love my 355's and they are definitely the best mod I have done yet. As for hp for the buck, pulleys are only about 90 bucks and they will give you exactly what they advertise-10-15 hp.

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95GT B303 cam, 1.7 rockers, 65mm TB, 73mm MAF, milled heads, 355's K&N, off road pipes, pulleys, msd coil, 9mm wires, Tremec 3550, Pro5.0 shifter,10.5 Motorsport clutch, weld in subframe connectors

I have a 94 Cobra, and I swear by my 3.73's. Anyone asking what to do with their car first, I always answer with 3.73's. Pullies and cold air induction will help keep those pesky Brand X Mosquitos at bay. After that, you will need to start thinking about letting your ride breathe alittle. For a GT, I recommend an E cam, TFS or Edelbrock aluminium heads. Oh, and get your hands on a Cobra upper and lower intake. Barter with someone, this will help keep the price down.(not dramatically but enough to justify buying said parts)

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1989 GT- Vortech blown 306, Anderson 3" power pipe, Vortech S-Trim 14# boost, MSD-6BTM, black wrinkle finish Cobra valve covers(woohoo), world class T-5, 3.55 gears, custom sub-frame connectors, Cobra grille insert and rear valance, Saleen "whale" wing, 4 wheel disc conversion, est 1/4mile time of 10.5+/-
1994 Cobra- MAC cold air fender kit, Motorsport underdrive pulley's, MAC 21/2" off-road H pipe, SVO mufflers, 3.73 gears, E-303 cam, 13.417@101.335mph

1) Gears (3.73 are a good overall performer)
2) Offroad (non-emissions locations) or high-flow cat H-pipe (emissions areas). Stock H pipe is bigtime restrictive
3) Underdrive pulleys. Cheap, easy power.
That'll make a huge difference in overall straight line performance. A shifter and subframe connectors are also a good idea to plant the power and make the shifts.

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1991 LX Hatch 5.0L

Personally I don't think the underdrive pulleys are worth the hp. I don't have them, I have enough problems with charging as it is. Many have them and I've heard they really do give you the advertised hp but I just don't like cutting down on my water flow or the amps.

Get the gears. They are worht it. Don't waste your time with 3.55's. If you get them at least get 3.73, but I would get the 4.10's they kick major a$$.

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87 GT, 4 inch cowl hood,17x9 Cobra R's/255/45's,GT-40 heads,long tubes headers,h-pipe,Flows,BBK cold air, Mass air,70mm MAF, 1.7's, 1" spacer,underdrive pulleys,Pro 5.0, King Cobra, Adj. fuel Reg., Lakewood Lift Bars,50/50's,subframes, 4.10's.
Best time 13.012
Best MPH 104
Best 60' 1.816

Visit my site at:
http://www.geocities.com/cobrar93_2000/MyPage.html

Don't waste money on an aftercat before you get rid of the stock 4 cat H-pipe. That's a common mistake. Even a high-flow H-pipe is WAY better. The stock headers should be fine right now... any larger, and you'd loose some low end.

Get a K/N filter.

An underdrive crank pulley is a GREAT idea. I recommend keeping the other pulleys though.

Some 1.7 cobra roller rockers will help it breath a little, and it's not nearly as labour intensive as a cam. Plus, the cam should really be the last thing you change... once you do the heads etc... it'll make everything work together.

Don't waste money on a throttle body either... you need an intake and heads before you'd see any benefit. An MAF might give you a little more though.

Do all the "free stuff" first, ie. timing to 14 degrees, remove silencer, tune up, etc. Next, is gears, 3.73 if you want agressive or 3.55 for alot of highway. Pulleys and chassis stiffening would be next. Everything else will be more money, but you have to start somewhere...