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PatientZero

@restless_performance
825
865
Exp. Type
Autocross
Exp. Level
10-20 Years
Kansas City, Missouri
About how many runs are you getting out of a set of A052's? The 295s definitely look happy on the 11 inch wheel. I'm considering taking the plunge but worried about how poorly they will hold up with the lack of rear camber..
My last set of A052's lasted two seasons. The current set went on the beginning of last season and I'll probably put fresh ones on before nationals. I can rotate mine front to back to help with the camber wear(lack of) a little bit. Justin Peachy just made a post on Facebook about how many events he has won on the same set of A052's and it's pretty damn impressive.
 

PatientZero

@restless_performance
825
865
Exp. Type
Autocross
Exp. Level
10-20 Years
Kansas City, Missouri
It's been a bit since I did any updates so lets get up to speed. LS Fest Texas is coming up in May and our first KC Region autocross was this past weekend so naturally it's time to start working on the car now after now touching it all winter.

First big thing on the agenda is LS Fest. I wanted to do better than last year (9th overall in Late Model class) and make all those guys in C7's, C8's, and 6th gen Camaros feel bad. Just as a refresher I'm running in the Grand Champion competition. It takes your score from multiple events(Autocross, TrackX, 3s challenge, and a drag race) and adds them all together to declare an overall champion. Last year there were timing problems on the TrackX so the event was cancelled. Out of the 3 events I did run my lowest score was the drag race in a 500whp car!!
After much deliberation, I came to a conclusion:
IMG_7005.JPG

Maybe not a popular choice around here but rebuilding the motor or adding boost aren't really options for me. The only added weight is the bottle and a couple solenoids and really only the solenoids once I pull the bottle out. I'm already using a Holley HP EFI system so I have really great control over the system. I'm going to use a 150hp progressive shot which should put me right in the ballpark of 650whp. The nitrous is definitely not for autocross or road course use. I just want to have fun with the car.

I found a NOS kit on Holley's website for a LS1 Camaro on clearance for nearly half price. It's not a direct bolt on kit but all the components are there for me to make it work. Holley also screwed up and sent a 15lb bottle instead of the 10lb bottle that was listed for the kit. I'm not complaining though.
2mR4d4DCR7CYWUQ91uhQpg.jpg
3asFi8DVSa+2m1KqO8lAHA.jpg

The first thing I tackled was getting the nozzle mounted. Yes, there are plate kits for me throttle body/intake but I'm doing this on the cheap. I ended up buying a 90 degree nozzle instead of using the straight nozzles from the kit. Surprisingly, I couldn't find a weld in bung for the nozzle so I went to work making one. I started with a piece of .75" 4043 aluminum round bar stock. I cut it to length, drilled and tapped it for the nozzle and then drilled a countersink on the back side for the nozzle to fit into.
IMG_7040.jpeg
IMG_7041.jpeg
IMG_7045.jpeg
IMG_7046.jpeg


And here it is installed in the intake pipe.
IMG_7049.jpeg
IMG_7052.jpeg
IMG_7053.jpeg
 

PatientZero

@restless_performance
825
865
Exp. Type
Autocross
Exp. Level
10-20 Years
Kansas City, Missouri
I wanted all the buttons cleanly mounted so I took this as an opportunity to make a new radio delete panel. I'm using ABS filament and a Creality CR-10 mini. From left to right; Horn, nitrous arm, purge, and bottle heater.
IMG_7086.jpeg
IMG_7090.jpeg
IMG_7088.jpeg

While wiring in the buttons and relays for the nitrous I went OCD on the wiring behind the dash and practically rebuilt and cleaned up the whole wiring harness. I drew up a simple diagram just to keep everything straight in my head of how it needed to be. The nitrous system is all controlled through the Holley. There is a TPS trigger, RPM trigger, Speed trigger, and a manual button to turn the system on. It's pretty important that the nitrous never be trigger when I don't want it to. The bottle pressure is also monitored through the Holley to control the bottle heater. When turned on it should keep the bottle between 900-950psi automatically.
Mustang Nitrous Wiring Diagram.jpeg
 

PatientZero

@restless_performance
825
865
Exp. Type
Autocross
Exp. Level
10-20 Years
Kansas City, Missouri
Really the most difficult aspect of this whole project has been figuring out where to put the bottle. I think ideally it would be on the passenger side of the trunk where it's flat and the weight would be best utilized but my battery is already taking up that real estate. The next best option seems to be in the spare tire well. Given I'm using a 15lb bottle it is a fairly tight fit. The bottle needs to be mounted in the correct orientation for the syphon tube to work properly and the bottom of the spare tire well isn't flat. I was making stuff up as I went along so I didn't get any in-progress pictures but this is the bracket I made to go between the bottle and the trunk floor.
IMG_7101.jpeg

To get the bracket bolted in I had to drop the fuel tank. While cleaning up the gas tank to put it back in I noticed some rust. I'm sure it would have been fine for likely years to come but it's not something I could look past considering how much track time this car sees.
IMG_7109.jpeg

I ordered a stock replacement tank and set about making a couple modifications and upgrades.
IMG_7128.jpeg

I had run into fuel starvation on long corners multiple times with 3/4 tank of fuel so I needed to address that. I think ideally a surge tank in the trunk or cutting the tank apart and adding baffles would be the best options. If I still have issues that is likely what I'll end up doing in the future. The next best thing I'm hoping is a piece of Holley Hydramat. If you haven't seen the videos for this stuff it's worth a look. I opted for a 3" x 15" piece to mount on the bottom of the pump.
5fa9d29a8517b356bf7cecad7b08e70c7d392b19.jpeg
I also decided to upgrade to a bigger pump. I picked an Aeromotive 340lph to help support the extra fuel requirements the nitrous was going to need. To make this work I needed to remove the stock fuel basket and make a traditional hanger for the new pump. I think I was actually running the fuel basket dry on long corners and it couldn't refill fast enough.
IMG_7123.jpeg

I had to drill the spot welds to remove the basket in the tank.
IMG_7129.jpeg
IMG_7130.jpeg
 

PatientZero

@restless_performance
825
865
Exp. Type
Autocross
Exp. Level
10-20 Years
Kansas City, Missouri
For the fuel pump hanger I used a couple pieces of stainless rod welded to each other and then to the stock fuel hat. I've seen OEM setups very similar to this.
IMG_7119.jpeg
IMG_7121.jpeg
IMG_7122.jpeg
IMG_7124.jpeg


I also wanted to add a better return. In the old tank I was using a simple 6an bulkhead fitting that just dumped into the top of the tank. I'm sure the foam this created didn't help my fuel starvation issues at all. This time I added a 6an fitting straight into the fuel hat with a tube that dumps right into the top of the hydramat.
IMG_7144.jpeg
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IMG_7152.jpeg
IMG_7155.jpeg
 

PatientZero

@restless_performance
825
865
Exp. Type
Autocross
Exp. Level
10-20 Years
Kansas City, Missouri
Next, the stock fuel level sender was mounted to the plastic fuel basket. With this gone I needed a new fuel level sender. I went with a universal 240ohm-33ohm sender and mounted it in the top of the tank where the old charcoal canister vent was. This required making a mounted plate and welding it onto the tank. After welding I went over the seam with a fuel resistant epoxy just for extra insurance in case there was a pinhole.
IMG_7131.jpeg
IMG_7134.jpeg
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IMG_7142.jpeg
 
267
283
Exp. Type
Autocross
Exp. Level
5-10 Years
Virginia
In that class are you allowed to make suspension adjustments between events? I'm assuming suspension setup for drag racing is quite different than for handling. I'm not sure what changes would need to be made, maybe just shock adjustments ?
 

PatientZero

@restless_performance
825
865
Exp. Type
Autocross
Exp. Level
10-20 Years
Kansas City, Missouri
In that class are you allowed to make suspension adjustments between events? I'm assuming suspension setup for drag racing is quite different than for handling. I'm not sure what changes would need to be made, maybe just shock adjustments?

You could make adjustments if you want. I have Koni yellows so there isn't much adjustment to be made. You really can't get too carried away with changing things though because sometimes you have to drive straight from one event to the next one with no time in between. You do have to stay on the same set of tires for the whole event. An extra set of rear shocks with softer springs would probably work wonders but just really not feasible to get them changed in the short amount of time I have with no pit crew to help.
 

PatientZero

@restless_performance
825
865
Exp. Type
Autocross
Exp. Level
10-20 Years
Kansas City, Missouri
On the opposite side of things I ordered some Centric C-TEK rotors for a 2010 GT500. I'm gonna get them mocked up and see what it will take to use them with my Alcon calipers. I'm pretty sure I can mill down the face of the mounting surface to correct the rotor offset issue. I just need to make sure there is enough meat there. Backup plan might be to design some new brackets with the correct offset and have them made.
 

PatientZero

@restless_performance
825
865
Exp. Type
Autocross
Exp. Level
10-20 Years
Kansas City, Missouri
Here are a couple pics of the fuel pump hanger with the Hydramat installed. Fuel pressure sits at a rock steady 58psi all the time now which I'm very happy with. I think my theory was correct that the plastic bucket the old pump was in was getting run dry and couldn't refill itself fast enough.
IMG_7211.jpg
IMG_7212.jpg

IMG_7210.jpg
 

PatientZero

@restless_performance
825
865
Exp. Type
Autocross
Exp. Level
10-20 Years
Kansas City, Missouri
And here is the video from the drag strip as promised. For those that didn't see my other thread, this was my first ever trip to the dragstrip. I made one pass on motor and ran 12.32 @ 121mph. The other 5 passes were with the 150 shot of nitrous. I expected the nitrous to make a much bigger difference but I think I'm loosing all my time in the 60'. It's very hard to get the car off the line without spinning, even babying it. My fastest pass was 11.77 @ 128mph and I even hit 130mph on one run.

My car was pretty out of place and got lots of looks.
IMG_0315.jpg

This picture was my very first pass at a drag strip. The truck in the other lane got a big jump on me but I ran past him on the other end. Kinda cool for my first pass.
IMG_7319 (1).jpg

Top left is all motor, the others are with the 150 shot. The second one I activated the nitrous manually when I got to 3rd gear, the rest were from the start. If my Hella relay works the way it should the nitrous will come in at 50mph (or whatever speed I set). Unfortunately the first relay I received was not functional so I couldn't get this setup in time.
EE3A68F0-DE31-4490-AC5D-7A232909956A.jpg
 

PatientZero

@restless_performance
825
865
Exp. Type
Autocross
Exp. Level
10-20 Years
Kansas City, Missouri
This weekend I've been working on tackling the brake upgrade/replacement. As a refresher I won a set of @EBC Brakes pads last year during their givaway here on TMO. I went with a set of the RP-1 pads for my front Roush/Alcon calipers. The problem is my rotors were past thier prime and I didn't want to put the new pads on the old rotors. A new set of rotors to fit the Alcon calipers is only sold by Baer and they're about $800 a set. I decided to modify my caliper brackets so I can use GT500 rotors instead.

To start I ordered a set of the Centric C-tek rotors for a 2010 GT500.
IMG_7388.jpg

Then I had to mock them up to check the difference in the centerline.
IMG_7339.jpg
IMG_7340.jpg

I measured .168" difference to the inner surface from the caliper bracket. I also had to take into account the difference in thickness. The GT500 rotors were .020" thicker. I don't know if this is just from wear or if my rotors had been turned at one point in time. Taking the thickness into account I came up with .178" for what I needed to machine off of my brackets.
IMG_7349.jpg
IMG_7350.jpg
IMG_7343.jpg
IMG_7347.jpg
If you follow Optima Ultimate Streetcar at all then you know who Nick Angell is. He drives a badass '68 C10 with a turbo LS. He's local here in KC and came through in the clutch to machine my brackets on a Saturday night. After a 3 hour drive roundtrip to meet Nick up at the KU campus I was able to verify the brackets fit of check it off the list.
IMG_7355.jpg
IMG_7359.jpg
IMG_7372.jpg

The EBC RP-1 pads do look pretty serious. It looks to have just a stainless backing plate without any crappy coating to flake off.
IMG_7373.jpg


With the rotor fitment squared away I decided to take the time and repack the wheel bearings before the season. These hubs are about 2 years old with 2 trackdays and probably 20 days of autocross and they're already crusty. I tore them apart, cleaned up the bearings with kerosene and then repacked them with some better grease.
IMG_7376.jpg
IMG_7378.jpg
IMG_7379.jpg
IMG_7380.jpg

I also picked up a set of EBC Blue's to pair with the RP-1's on the front. This will be the first time in 10 plus years I've used anything other than Hawk HP+.
IMG_7382.jpg

I got the rear passenger side done and had about 10 minutes to go to finish up the driver side but when I pulled the rear driver caliper off it has a noticeable leak around the seal. Luckily this is the 3rd or 4th new set of rear calipers I've put on this car so it's still under warranty form Oreilly's. I just have to wait a couple days for the replacement to come in.
IMG_7387.jpg
 

Fabman

Dances with Racecars
6,519
8,154
Exp. Type
W2W Racing
Exp. Level
20+ Years
Pleasanton: 1/2 way between Sonoma and Laguna Seca
This weekend I've been working on tackling the brake upgrade/replacement. As a refresher I won a set of @EBC Brakes pads last year during their givaway here on TMO. I went with a set of the RP-1 pads for my front Roush/Alcon calipers. The problem is my rotors were past thier prime and I didn't want to put the new pads on the old rotors. A new set of rotors to fit the Alcon calipers is only sold by Baer and they're about $800 a set. I decided to modify my caliper brackets so I can use GT500 rotors instead.

To start I ordered a set of the Centric C-tek rotors for a 2010 GT500.
View attachment 85879

Then I had to mock them up to check the difference in the centerline.
View attachment 85880
View attachment 85881

I measured .168" difference to the inner surface from the caliper bracket. I also had to take into account the difference in thickness. The GT500 rotors were .020" thicker. I don't know if this is just from wear or if my rotors had been turned at one point in time. Taking the thickness into account I came up with .178" for what I needed to machine off of my brackets.
View attachment 85885
View attachment 85886
View attachment 85883
View attachment 85884
If you follow Optima Ultimate Streetcar at all then you know who Nick Angell is. He drives a badass '68 C10 with a turbo LS. He's local here in KC and came through in the clutch to machine my brackets on a Saturday night. After a 3 hour drive roundtrip to meet Nick up at the KU campus I was able to verify the brackets fit of check it off the list.
View attachment 85887
View attachment 85888
View attachment 85889

The EBC RP-1 pads do look pretty serious. It looks to have just a stainless backing plate without any crappy coating to flake off.
View attachment 85896


With the rotor fitment squared away I decided to take the time and repack the wheel bearings before the season. These hubs are about 2 years old with 2 trackdays and probably 20 days of autocross and they're already crusty. I tore them apart, cleaned up the bearings with kerosene and then repacked them with some better grease.
View attachment 85890
View attachment 85891
View attachment 85892
View attachment 85893

I also picked up a set of EBC Blue's to pair with the RP-1's on the front. This will be the first time in 10 plus years I've used anything other than Hawk HP+.
View attachment 85894

I got the rear passenger side done and had about 10 minutes to go to finish up the driver side but when I pulled the rear driver caliper off it has a noticeable leak around the seal. Luckily this is the 3rd or 4th new set of rear calipers I've put on this car so it's still under warranty form Oreilly's. I just have to wait a couple days for the replacement to come in.
View attachment 85895
I like the radius cut on the caliper bracket. Nice Pro touch.
 

Fabman

Dances with Racecars
6,519
8,154
Exp. Type
W2W Racing
Exp. Level
20+ Years
Pleasanton: 1/2 way between Sonoma and Laguna Seca
I wanted to keep a radius there so we didn't create a stress riser especially with the slightly increased offset.
Thats why its a pro touch....most wouldn't have thought of that.
 
52
44
Exp. Type
Drag Strip
Exp. Level
Under 3 Years
Florida
And here is the video from the drag strip as promised. For those that didn't see my other thread, this was my first ever trip to the dragstrip. I made one pass on motor and ran 12.32 @ 121mph. The other 5 passes were with the 150 shot of nitrous. I expected the nitrous to make a much bigger difference but I think I'm loosing all my time in the 60'. It's very hard to get the car off the line without spinning, even babying it. My fastest pass was 11.77 @ 128mph and I even hit 130mph on one run.

My car was pretty out of place and got lots of looks.
View attachment 85731

This picture was my very first pass at a drag strip. The truck in the other lane got a big jump on me but I ran past him on the other end. Kinda cool for my first pass.
View attachment 85732

Top left is all motor, the others are with the 150 shot. The second one I activated the nitrous manually when I got to 3rd gear, the rest were from the start. If my Hella relay works the way it should the nitrous will come in at 50mph (or whatever speed I set). Unfortunately the first relay I received was not functional so I couldn't get this setup in time.
View attachment 85733
Very nice! Great job on the install and kudos on the 1/4 mile hits as well.
 

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