What to do with a 2002 Mustang GT?

tonybolton · Nov 8, 2017

This comes off the random picture thread....

I've got this 2002 Mustang GT. It's nothing rare or unique....it's white with black interior and 5speed. It was my first and only new car purchase....had 4.6 miles on it at the time(I remember that because that's what the motor is and being a numbers guy....thought that was funny. I'm weird. ) I also drove off from getting married in the car.

I used the car to open track / HPDE and autocross all over the southeast, back then I'd actually drive far away to go do car stuff.

I got into 4wheeling I guess like 5 or 6 years ago? That's when the dust started to settle on the GT and it began its new life as a garage shelf.

So I'm wondering.....what can I do with this car to get it up to modern HP? The 4.6 SOHC / 2valve is a weak **** motor....even with a blower these cars only make 400whp before exploding. That's pretty much what a stockish modern Mustang 5.0 makes, but with no power adder. The last time I drove this car "for fun", I remember just being like, "HOLY ****, this thing is SOOO SLOOOW!!!" The car dyno'd 231whp bone stock and I've only added long tube headers(mainly for weight savings) and the always popular air intake....so maybe it's making 240-something now.

Also to note, the TR3650 trans in this car is junk. I abused it the last year I drove it as it was grinding 3rd gear any shift above 4k rpms. This is the 3rd trans I've had in the car. First one it was 2nd gear....2nd was 3rd gear as well. It's a shitty trans and I wish nothing but a fire death to the person that created the TR 3650. Granted, the trans in this car all lived a rough life with 4.10 gears, so I was shifting it a lot. Not REAL optimal, but the car makes no power and the lower gearing / weight of car hid a lot of the missing horsepower and kept it in the powerband.

Besides the motor / trans, the car is pretty much a race car. It has a full tubular front suspension / coilovers all around and the rear ****-suspension has been converted over to a 3 link torque arm style. Torsen diff, 31 spline moser axles, alum. driveshaft, 4 point roll bar, fixed back race seats. Full interior / stereo.

Things I know:
Won't ever sell the car
Cost conscious
Not brand loyal
Must stay manual shift

Things I don't know:
Build the 2v motor?
Motor swap?
Boost stock motor?
Replace / repair trans with?

I'm more of a suspension person.... I don't do, or rather feel comfortable doing trans/motor work. Its not fun...I don't like...and I'm not confident i'll get some 5$ part torqued correctly and not cause 5grand worth of damage because of it.

Any idea's are appreciated.....funny / good / bad..... I miss driving the car, but its like a chick with a **** right now. Looks good / wanna ride it, till that big ol' dong flops out under the short skirt.

ForMud · Nov 8, 2017

LS......First in

creepycrawly · Nov 8, 2017

Drop a coyote motor in it. They can be had cheap. They make good power N/A. I am slapping a TVS blower on mine this week. I scored a sweet deal on a Brenspeed Roush 710R kit. It will make 625 or so to the tires and the only supporting mod it needed extraneous to the kit is a set of billet oil pump gears.

84mallcrawl · Nov 8, 2017

boosted 2jz with an adapter to a 350z 6speed

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Xtr-BiQK0E

Throttleout · Nov 8, 2017

Coyote with 6 speed. Turbo, or blower when you need more power. Working on same project now in a fox body

tonybolton · Nov 8, 2017

I am leaning toward a 15> Coyote motor.....but not real impressed with the fragile MT82 that normally backs those cars. I looked into the TKO500/600's, but everyone tells me they are terrible to shift and you hafta force it every gear. T56 seems the better choice but those things are terribly expensive.

The car doesn't hafta rip the asphalt off the ground....just needs to be fun to drive. I've never been a huge HP person.

The only problem with that Coyote swap is the price of install. I 100% do not want some hack job. If it gets done, I want it done right and look the part. I don't want to be chasing electrical gremlins the remainder of the cars life and end up making it a shelf again.

I was leaning towards an LS3 swap at one time....but Patrick wouldn't allow me. I'll respect the dudes wishes.

tonybolton · Nov 8, 2017

In a way, I kind of hate to mess with the car. Everything is 100% balanced. I spent about a year working on dialing in the suspension / spring rates / valving. The car will do whatever you want it to.....when you want it to. The good thing of the lack of HP was you basically just drove the car flat footed around a race track, to an extent.

Nothing like passing talentless Vettes in the curvy sections, only to have your doors blown off half way down the straight a ways by same said Vettes.

But driving the car on the street....you can make a nice sandwich watching the tach needle swing up to 6grand.

creepycrawly · Nov 8, 2017

The mt82 is garbage stock. The Ben Calimer upgrades should hold you though. Especially since you aren't drag racing it. TR6060 would be a great upgrade. Or a t56.

toreadorranger · Nov 8, 2017

I vote 5.3L LM7 with a small cam and a decent set of OEM heads. attach a T56 with the money you saved buying a iron 5.3L. The 5.3L appears per google to be very similar in weight to your 4.6L so that will help with your suspension setup.

tonybolton · Nov 8, 2017

creepycrawly said:
The mt82 is garbage stock. The Ben Calimer upgrades should hold you though. Especially since you aren't drag racing it. TR6060 would be a great upgrade. Or a t56.

I really want "bulletproof / overkill" trans. With me doing that Calimer MT82.......I just keep thinking that's the same as trussing/sleeving/RCV'ing a D30.

tonybolton · Nov 8, 2017

toreadorranger said:
I vote 5.3L LM7 with a small cam and a decent set of OEM heads. attach a T56 with the money you saved buying a iron 5.3L. The 5.3L appears per google to be very similar in weight to your 4.6L so that will help with your suspension setup.

I really don't want to go with an iron block. Although the weight is more down low on an LS vs. a ModMotor, I really want to go with some form of aluminum up front for weight / balance.

toreadorranger · Nov 8, 2017

tonybolton said:
In a way, I kind of hate to mess with the car. Everything is 100% balanced. I spent about a year working on dialing in the suspension / spring rates / valving. The car will do whatever you want it to.....when you want it to. The good thing of the lack of HP was you basically just drove the car flat footed around a race track, to an extent.

I mentioned the LM7 purely off this comment as it would possibly alleviate the need to rework the suspension. LM4's (aluminum 5.3L) are available as well. My DD (Saab 9-7x SUV) has one, trailblazers and Envoys also had them, L33s are available as well but more expensive and harder to find, and if your going to swap cam and heads no reason to spend money on the "HO" motor when your going to swap it.

tonybolton · Nov 8, 2017

I don't think the suspension will be a huge issue. It's got a modular / tubular K-member in it so its just a quick motor mount swap away from whatever.

Zjman · Nov 8, 2017

I'm a firm believer in doing it right if ya can afford it, when I upgrade parts I go for the best **** I can afford, seems like ur attached to this car so do it right and be happy, coyote engine t56 and be done, should be a easy swap vs a ls swap

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

tonybolton · Nov 8, 2017

Yup....nail on the head, but I just sooooo dread the cost to get a Coyote motor up and running in that car. I'd prolly hafta regear the damn thing to. Prolly a 3.55 or 3.73.

Bebop · Nov 8, 2017

aluminum LS and T56.

Can't go wrong with that and it will make all the brand loyalists cry :smoke:

tonybolton · Nov 8, 2017

Bebop said:
aluminum LS and T56.

Can't go wrong with that and it will make all the brand loyalists cry :smoke:

I almost think that it would be cheaper to get another brand motor up and running than all the gayness Ford puts on the Coyote motors. Love the motors, just hate the fact you need all that ****.

Thinkin all that makes my head and wallet hurt. Then I think, all I really need is 350-375whp to be MORE fun realistically. So just put a 4grand blower on it and be done, then just "fix" the Trans.

FWIW, the car also has an N20 kit on it. It was a "shut the **** up" move on my part back when all my friends were drag and street racing. I probably put about 15 bottles through it. It made 392/488 on a 150 wet shot.

creepycrawly · Nov 8, 2017

tonybolton said:
I almost think that it would be cheaper to get another brand motor up and running than all the gayness Ford puts on the Coyote motors. Love the motors, just hate the fact you need all that ****.

Thinkin all that makes my head and wallet hurt. Then I think, all I really need is 350-375whp to be MORE fun realistically. So just put a 4grand blower on it and be done, then just "fix" the Trans.

FWIW, the car also has an N20 kit on it. It was a "shut the **** up" move on my part back when all my friends were drag and street racing. I probably put about 15 bottles through it. It made 392/488 on a 150 wet shot.

A stock coyote motor will get you where you want to be for now and leaves tons of room for upward mobility the next time you get bored with it. People are always selling blower kits used for cheap for the coyotes.