We can hear it now, "Enough of all the accessories! Let's see you guys make some power!" In time friends, in time! We've been having a blast driving our '02 Mustang GT in every way possible. Whether it's a road trip or a NASA track day (of which we've hit two, check out www.nasaproracing.com), this yellow player is getting mileage as quickly as we can keep the wheels turning. Not to sound like a broken record to those that have followed this car closely, but here's where we sit right now: The complete Maximum Motorsports "Grip in a Box" kit, upgraded Cobra R wheels, Yokohama AVS Sport ES 100 tires, and a Brembo brake system with Hawk HPS pads have been covered editorially. However, beyond the install of a complete Auto Meter gauge package, and a set of Corbeau seats and belts that you'll find on these pages, we've already gotten after some performance mods that are coming in the next few issues.
We're driving around with a significant power gain at the rear wheels, thanks to BBK's underdrive pulley system, throttle body, and cold air system. Major gains were also found from a Granatelli mass air meter and a Magnaflow exhaust system. Not only does this thing sounds great, but also it produced well over a second of improvement in the quarter-mile and 0-60 testing on our new Stalker radar testing system! Where we were making up ground in the corners on the road course, but getting smoked down the straights, the Project PHR Mustang has gained back a little ground and can hold its own a little better overall. Don't get us wrong, it's going to take that ATI ProCharger system or the NOS kit to run with the Z06s at Willow Springs, but we've now have the brakes and grip to keep up. Again, check out the stories over the next few months and you'll be surprised at the significant gains from minor upgrades--we think you'll learn that all the parts help each other and that there's no "magic nut" to any of this.
PREPARING FOR THE FUTURE Getting the right gauges in a car that makes power is probably the smartest investment you could make, beyond the blower or nitrous kit itself! We're on record with our readers that it doesn't take much of a screw up, to do significant damage to your car's engine, so keeping tabs on temperatures, pressures, and mixtures are the key to having fun with cars. Plus, it looks cool and the "wow factor" from people walking by can't be denied. The gauge business is better than ever since companies like Auto Meter abandoned the mechanical instruments, and invested research and development into making electric versions more convenient and more accurate. Running hot fluid lines to the gauge behind the dash was never a good idea, and running standard automotive wire is a breeze compared to the complicated task of using steel-braided hose or fluid lines. Builders using the new designs of A-pillar pods and specialty mounting equipment may need to run electric gauges since only small gauge wire can fit behind the pods. In passenger cars, many electric gauges will work off the stock sending unit, making installation simple. The drawback is that, the gauges are only as reliable as your electrical system. If you are experiencing the effects of a bad battery of alternator, your gauge performance will suffer as well.
The install here involves most how we configured the gauges instead of where we hooked them up. What does that mean? We had all of this stuff and wanted to get it in, even though we were just planning for the future power improvements. We installed the latest "Lunar" look, Auto Meter's colored gauges that look especially cool in the dark. On the list included a boost gauge, air-fuel ratio meter, fuel pressure monitor, nitrous pressure gauge, and a pyrometer kit. Of all this stuff, the fuel pressure gauge is the only one that's hooked up right now! Our excuses are good, since we don't have the ProCharger blower kit in yet (doing all the normally-aspirated stuff first), the BBK headers aren't installed (so why bung the stock exhaust?), the NOS system is on the way, etc. But, damn, it looks good, and we're really happy to have figured out how to get the dash apart!
Why are these things so important? Monitoring boost pressure along with air-fuel ratio will help you super-tune a combination to achieve the optimum percentage of volumetric efficiency. As boost pressure increases, fuel delivery and pressure will need to increase correspondingly. The air-fuel ratio can tell a tuner quite a bit, as well, showing the mixture as it ranges from lean to rich. A series of color-coded LED lights will inform the driver if his charge is stoichiometric, lean, or rich at various throttle positions, extremely useful in ECM tuning. The gauge will respond to detonation, and become invaluable in the tuning process, an issue if manifold pressure is too high for the state of tuning on the car. These complications need to be identified and resolved before peak performance is reached, and before severe damage is done.
Although Auto Meter offers several different boost gauges for varying applications, we chose a gauge that reads vacuum in increments to 30 In. Hg and boost pressure to 20 PSI. Auto Meter offers several boost gauges, but this one was chosen because it is doubtful that this street-driven car will make more than 20 pounds of boost. A straight boost gauge without a vacuum reading is offered, but this is more popularly used for turbo diesel trucks, which never go into vacuum--the needle on the gauge we chose will read into the vacuum portion of the gauge when the throttle plates are completely or partially closed. By adding the boost and air-fuel ratio gauges in advance, it is now possible to determine the direction of the build, figure out which modifications are critical at each new stage, and assess the performance of new upgrades. As for the factory-replacement gauge cluster, it might be the most asked-about item on this car so far! What seems like a difficult install is really simple, once you get the dash apart. Remember, the power circus starts next month!
The TRS is a more aggressive seat than most, in that it has significant hip support on the bottom, kidney support, and tall shoulder support--it definitely fits like a race car seat! The harness holes up top make the belts fit better, in addition to being a styling item. Inflatable lumbar supports are also an option. This particular model seat is designed to fit up to a 36-inch waist, but they now offer it in a wider version that will accommodate big boys (and girls) up to size 42. Know that when you shop around for European seats (read "Italian"), they usually fit on the small and short side, so be careful what you buy. These seats are built in England by Corbeau, whose US offices are in Utah, so you know they understand the bigger sizes of the American marketplace. Scat also builds seats oriented for American customer, so they fit a little roomier.
The custom brackets from Corbeau, built for this particular vehicle, made the install really easy. Corbeau has one of the biggest selections of brackets in the business. Important since the brackets are a safety issue as much as than anything else! Either use factory brackets or aftermarket brackets specific to both your vehicle and the seats or don't do it at all! As for belts, Corbeau is one of the few companies that design the belts and seats together as an integrated system, however, you can buy the belts to work with the stock seats. In fact, we used all of the stock anchors, so there's no worry about the fitment. You will have to be patient with the adjustment, as it will take a few days to get the lap belts just perfect, especially if you have multiple drivers of different sizes in and out of the same seat. The single latch is even nicer than the expensive cam fasteners found in the race business, but going to a single system like this is a bit of a compromise in terms of comfort (since the belts don't come together from multiple directions as well as they're always attached).
Once you get used to the firm fit and the extra time to get in the belts, you'll have aftermarket seats in all of your performance vehicles.
