Just got my first mustang this month - 2008 Ford Mustang GT 4.6L.
I am totally new to the mustang scene so I am looking for advice on what would be most peoples first budget friendly ($500 ish) upgrade?
The car is a joy ride so will not be a daily driver, etc. I have already had it serviced - needed new ball joints so had those replaced. I also put new tires and replacement wheels on it. Otherwise it's totally stock other than it has some sort of aftermarket hood on it.
The first thing that comes to my mind is louder mufflers. That is assuming that you'd like to enjoy the sound of that wonderful V8 a little more.
Mufflers, also known as "axle back" are an easy do-it-yourself installation; and can be had anywhere from $200-$500 for the pair. The only hard part is choosing them because the sound clips that you can find on the net do not sound like they really sound in person.
One way to attack this: watch your local Craig's List for deals, and go for whatever comes up that sounds good and is cheap! People are modding these cars all the time so there is always a steady flow of stuff on Craig's List; you just have to be patient until the stuff you want comes up.
I should have mentioned that the car is an automatic. So I am thinking acceleration is my first focus. I did forget that the prior owner did change out the back end exhaust and looking at them it appears to be these Flowmaster Outlaw Cat-Back Exhaust.
If you want better acceleration, a rear end gear upgrade will give the best seat of the pants feel and knock a few tenths from your quarter mile times when paired with good tires. If you have 3.31s in the car, going to a 3.90 would be a nice upgrade. If you don't do a lot of highway driving, I would even consider 4.10s as they'll get the car moving even better.
If you insist on the intake & tune route, getting a tuner from Ebay is fine. You just need to make sure the tuner is unlocked AND unmarried as the custom tune files are specific to each car. If the previous owner did not unmarry the device from his car, you will not be able to use it and the cost to get that restored from SCT is $150. Oh and stick with a SCT X3, X4 or Bama tuner. Most tuners prefer SCT devices.
There are cheap intakes that don't require a tune but they don't yield much power, if at all. To stay within budget your best bet is to look around the forums and find a used one. I'm seeing lots of different brand name intakes in the $150 range.
I will mostly do highway driving.. etc. I can do simple work but to swap out gears I am not sure how to do that nor probably have the tools. What sorta cost do you think I will have to do the 3.90 (sounds like these are OK for highway driving)?
I am not hard set on the CAI/ Tuner as the first upgrade. If gears are a better option I would not rule them out.
I will mostly do highway driving.. etc. I can do simple work but to swap out gears I am not sure how to do that nor probably have the tools. What sorta cost do you think I will have to do the 3.90 (sounds like these are OK for highway driving)?
I am not hard set on the CAI/ Tuner as the first upgrade. If gears are a better option I would not rule them out.
It will be around $275 to get gears, bearings, installation kit and 3 quarts of synthetic fluid. Then figure another $350-400 for the labor from a competent shop. This will put you over budget but IMO it will be worth saving for.
edit: I just read your local GM dealer wants $550 for the job. I would shop around some more.
With 3.73s my car is revving 2200rpm at 70mph. It will be 100rpm higher with the 3.90s which still keeps you at a modest level at highway speeds.
Personally I would not buy a tuner off of e-bay because you don't really know what you are getting. There can be issues with the tuner being "locked" or "married" that will quickly eat up any potential savings. I think you are better off buying it from a company that also offers tunes -- such as Brenspeed or Bama -- to take advantage of their tuning programs; or if you have a local dyno tuner then talk to them about what tuner they use and what would be the best approach.
You can get good deals on the CAI on e-bay or your local Craig's List, if you are patient and have a good idea what you want. For example: my 2010 GT is pretty specific on the intake and it took me over a year of watching, but I finally picked up a Steeda intake for $100 which is exactly the one I wanted. I bought the tuner separately from Bama with "tunes for life" so I had them write me a new tune. (haven't installed it yet and I'm a little worried by what I have been hearing about Bama lately . . . )
Another low cost mod is underdrive pulleys, which will free up some horsepower but will not make a dramatic difference. Also Charge Motion Delete Plates.
If you drive a lot of highway miles, make sure you understand the change in cruising RPM before you go to steep gears like 3.90
Ok so I read up on the underdrive and the charge motion, etc.
So I am wondering.. for better acceleration yet keeping in mind it will be mostly highway miles... am I better off with gears or doing the underdrive/charge motion/CAI/Tune ?
Either way seems I'll be over the $500 mark but just trying to determine best plan for making the car a bit more responsive.
It's a dose of nitrous designed to produce a 150 horsepower increase. Personally I am not a big fan of nitrous; it is mostly useful on the drag strip and technically illegal on the street. I think the CAI/tune is probably the best-bang-for-buck first mod. The underdrive pulleys do have a little controversy around them and are a subtle change, not a big noticeable thing (BTW I have had no problems with them at all). For the gears, you should consider your highway driving and decide whether acceleration or cruising RPM are more important to you. You can do the math with available on-line calculators to find the RPM change for different gear ratios. To get a rough idea what an extreme gear change would be like, try driving on the highway with OD off on your automatic.
I should also ask.. with this BBK CAI. If I were to get a Tune what tuner do you suggest and for a person like me who is new to all of this what does a Tune mean and where do you get the tune from ? Are there any ill effects of a Tune?
I am on the fence today about buying one today and not sure which one I should go with.
I am not sure about that particular CAI, but pretty sure it is a "tune required" intake so yes you MUST install the correct tune to go with it.
A "tune" is adjustments to the parameters that the computer is using to control the car. Remember pretty much everything is monitored by the computer using various sensors, and then the computer figures out how to run the car based on what it is sensing. One common example is ignition timing -- most performance tunes are more agressive with timing advance than the factory tune.
The intake is another common example. The computer measures the amount of incoming air using the Mass Air Flow (MAF) sensor which is located in the tube downstream of the filter. The MAF basically measures velocity, and the computer (basically) multiplies by area of the tube to get volume and then converts to mass of incoming air; then commands the corresponding amount of fuel to give the desired air/fuel ratio. If you install an intake that has a larger diameter tube than the stock one, then that math has to be adjusted for the larger tube; otherwise the computer will calculate less air than is really coming in, it will command fuel for that smaller amount of air which is not enough for what is really coming in, and the car will run lean.
Tunes do two basic things:
1) adjust for changes in the system; such as the intake example above
2) adjust to more agressive settings; for example advancing the timing to take advantage of higher octane fuel
#1 is "safe" and is needed for the car to run right if you change things; #2 is taking away some of the safety factor that is built in at the factory. And of course no tune is safe if it is done wrong; like if the person writing the tune does not know what they are doing, or makes a mistake.
Many of these adjustments are known/standard things and that's why some companies, such as Bama and Brenspeed among others, can offer "remote tuning" without actually seeing or testing your car; you have to tell them exactly what modifications you have on the car. Or you can go to a local dyno tuner; which offers the advantage that they customize the adjustments and test if for your exact car. But they can still make mistakes . . .
For any of this you need a "tuner" which is a hand-held reprogramming device that plugs in to the ODBII port in the car. Many vendors sell the tuner with tunes written for your car.
I called and talked with Bama Performance and I ordered the Bama X4/SF4 Power Flash Tuner w/ 2 Custom Tunes - So I will wait to add the CAI until I have the Tuner in hand.
Try some searches, if you're lucky with the search engine you'll find quite a few threads where people have had problems with their tunes.
But also quite a few where people have had good results. Personally I have been using their tunes for years with no problems. My local dyno tuner said he could not do any better without spending a LOT of time on the dyno, and even then probably only a hair better. But then again I have not loaded the most recent tune that I got from them yet.
Go to your local hardware store or big box store, get some foam tubing, slit one side, slip it on for fit, get some adhesive and stick it on. Back to your original question, best performance bang for little $$. From someone who's tried just about all the upgrade mods there are for the S197's, the best mod we did to wifes 2006 mustang GT convertible automatic was changing the rear gearing. We tried 3.55, 3.73 and 4.10. The 4.10's really woke the car up and are still in her car today. Adding CAI's, performance tunes, UDP's, electric water pumps, headers, NOS, etc. will all help, but the gear change made the best and biggest improvement for her car.
For what it's worth, a friend of mine ended up buying my old 2008 GT from the dealership that I traded it into. When I traded it in, it had Ford Racing FR500 axle-back mufflers and otherwise was stock. The car was very quick for what it was, and would pretty much run fender to fender with bolt-on cars.
Since he bought it, he's done full exhaust from the manifolds back, gears, BAMA tune, CAI, and maybe pullies. The car is now able to absolutely stomp me, and it runs with another buddy's supercharged 2V Mustang very close. It's amazing how that car woke up with just basic mods. If I had known there was that much power bottled up in those cars, I probably would have kept it. :laugh2:
I live in a really small town and the only place that I can get decent work done is at the GM dealership... they estimate the labor at $550
Other than the gears what else is needed... they said I can supply the parts.
Also, does it have to go back to ford or do I just ask for an updated tune from Bama indicating a gear change? I.e. so my speedo is correct, etc?
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