I am the proud owner of a 1985 Mustang GT. Yes this car is completely stock from front to back. I drove the car last summer stock to get the feel of it. Took it on the 1/4 mile etc etc. I love this car. Now what kinda performance mods can I do to this car? I am in Ontario Canada. I was thinking of course tire upgrade, exhaust..........intake.......carburetor......but not sure what would be a good combo/bang for the buck. And yes I am new to the 5.0L Mustangs. The car has 210,000km on it. So any help will be appreciated even though I am sure this subject has been bled to death. Calling all experts!
There are several MOD's you can do to your 85' GT. Like you, I also am quite proud to own the last of the carbureted Mustangs. Over the years I have been doing alot to my car (my baby).
The first MOD that I would suggest and is crucial with all the fox body Mustangs: Sub-frame Connectors.
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easy weekend job that you can do right at home with a good drilland a couple of wrenches. These connect the front frame to the rearframe, making your car much more stable and rigid and less prone toflex under high torque. Also, the "stock" 85' GT's exhaust is one of the biggest HP robbers on the car. Why Ford would not put a true dual exhaust is beyond me. You will have to purchase a dual cross member for your transmission so you can upgrade to a dual exhaust. A simple change in your exhaust configuration can easy give you an upward gain of 50+ HP.
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The other crucial MOD to make is in braking. The stock brakes were adequate at best. I would suggest spending the extra $$ and purchase a BAER brake package.
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Or, if you can find an SVOand convert to it's package. All wheel disc brakes is really the onlyway to go if you are considering uping the HP beyond the stock 210HP.Why favor the pedal when you know your brakes will stop what you have. Yet another MOD to consider, upper and lower control arms with poly. bushings for the rearend. Control arms will help control your car?s wheelhop, improving your launches. Handling is also improved by increasing body roll stiffness and sway bar performance.
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These are only but a few of the many MOD's you can do to increase the performance and enjoyment of your classic find. The only other suggestion I can make is, don't try to do all these at once, unless you have a very heavy wallet. Pick one area you would like to upgrade and do it over a season.
Good luck and happy building
On Wed, 28 Jan 2004 13:09:57 -0500, "Steph" wrote:
Ok.. I don't know whole lot about 5.0L Mustangs or anything... and I'm not putting your judgement down at all... but I am a tiny bit skeptical about the whole 50+HP gain by switching to a dual exhaust. I can see *maybe*
15-20hp increase... but I mean 50+? I'd hafta see some before&after dyno results.
-Mike
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An easy weekend job that you can do right at home with a good drill> and a couple of wrenches. These connect the front frame to the rear> frame, making your car much more stable and rigid and less prone to> flex under high torque.>
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