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Help me pick a divorce present!!

2K views 23 replies 15 participants last post by  5.0 Candy REDCS 
#1 ·
Hey everyone! So yeah, sadly I'm recently divorced. Whatever. It is what it is. I loved her but you can't make a daughter a housewife. Now that the mutual hogwash is over, I'm totally torn what to buy myself now that I don't have to ask permission or forgiveness. :grin:

So, my budget is basically $750, but probably $1k MAX. My mustang is an extra/fun/play car. Mods are in my signature. I've got a beater daily driver. I went to the drag strip once early this past summer, and had an absolute blast. I plan to be back to the strip way more than once next year. I also love the twisty turny roads that Michigan has to offer, and honestly wouldn't rule out the possibility of road course/autoX racing next year either. All this being said, I still have to get my own place, so I know I won't be able to afford too many major mods in the foreseeable future, at least until I find a house and get re-established.

Note- pretty much anything will be personally installed by myself and friends. I'm a machinist with a fair amount of years working on my own vehicles. Between common sense, google, youtube, and no stress of "having to have it done to get to work in the morning" I'm not concerned by doing anything myself other than tuning

Ideas in my head so far would be as follows, and in no particular order.

DSS one peice aluminum driveshaft : I've heard good things about this mod, allegedly picks up acceleration but I've heard contrary. Also read a couple threads about slight vibration at certain speeds. But, no other mods would be needed to support this out of the box.

Headers : Depending on the setup/brand, could pass well over budget. Even with a less expensive, but fairly well fitting brand like the BBK's, Still going to need to tune it, which will definitely put me beyond budget.

lowering/suspension : A good set of springs and dampers could be had for right around my budget, but there would still need to be a panhard bar, probably rear UCA mount, and depending on the drop, caster/camber plates, LCA relo's etc. So I know this topic is very "iffy" and dependent on what I actually do regarding suspension.

Nitrous kit : Obviously I've read ad nauseum about the dangers of poor tuning, need for re-filling, and "cheating" aspect of N2O. But under the right circumstances with the right safeties, it can be one of the absolute best dollar per HP upgrades, depending on how it's used. But also, since it's not a strictly drag car, how much will I really make use of the money spent here, since I don't street race or act a fool on public roads 99% of the time?

Sorry for the long winded post everyone. But you know my budget, goals, what I'm working with already, and kind of direction I'm heading. I'm not saying choose one of the options I listed, maybe someone else has an idea I haven't thought over yet. So give me your thoughts, comments, opinions, whatever you got.

Thank you very much brothers and sisters, your advice and opinions are appreaciated!!
 
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#2 ·
I loved her but you can't make a daughter a housewife.
What do you mean by this? They saying goes you cant turn a hoe into a house wife.

What do you mean cant turn a daughter into a house wife? You married your daughter or something lol? huh.gif

For a grand you could get a variety of things...a proper oil cooler... a driveshaft, watts link system instead of pan hard bar, intake and tune, new gears, x pipe, a more serious sounding exhaust etc etc

Should save your more and get the full brembo big brake kit from the shelby gt 500 for $1.8k off american muscle.
 
#3 ·
What do you mean by this? They saying goes you cant turn a hoe into a house wife.

What do you mean cant turn a daughter into a house wife? You married your daughter or something lol? huh.gif

...
My thoughts exactly I read that a few times and am still confused.

Also T3RM1N8R what is your pic? Looks like a Honda with smoke maybe?


Anyway on to the topic at hand. I would recommend a short throw shifter like MGW and a get the part that connects to the trans direct like the race spec or blowfish (SP). That will make for quicker more precise shifts for your drag strip days you liked. Looks like you have the exhaust and tires already done. Maybe do intake and tune? I know that seems overrated, but some sets on AM claim decent HP improvements. My guess is mostly the tune. Plus the runner can be used for future mods like headers and etc you talk about later down the road.

Edit: Add on. I see you say you have a FRPP tune. Is that with the ford tuner? I hear those are very mild. A BAMA tune will be much more aggressive from what I have heard. Can't speak as I have never directly compared the two, but just in reading. Plus with a BAMA handheld tuner you get free tuns for life for future mods and they will data log for you to help spot issues, see if everything is good, and see if power is being left on the table. Still not a custom dyno tune for your exact car, but about as close as you will get for a remote handheld tuner.
 
#5 ·
Ok, that makes sense. I thought it was my medical cannabis. Op, I would do your suspension first.
 
#9 ·
I have the MGW and as my first "real" mod I'm extra happy I spent the cash for it when I did. (Other mods are axle back and stereo). Anyway on to the MGW. If you want positive solid shifts that don't bind or miss then that's the shifter you want. It completely changes the driving experience and allows you to focus more n other aspects of driving besides just trying to make sure you hit the next gear properly.
Plus since your car now shifts properly you can do power mods later without worrying so much about them destroying your transmission.
Dollar for dollar I'd say this is one of the highest quality mods with the best and most dramatic results. Plus it helps save the glass MT82 transmission you have.
 
#10 ·
I haven't used the MGW on the MT-82 yet, but I had one on my TR-3650, and it was an INCREDIBLE improvement over stock. For your budget, I'd grab the MGW, a CAI, and upgrade that tune.

JR
 
#15 ·
A divorce can be an emotionally trying time and financially difficult as well. The first thing I would suggest is that you not act impulsively. It's easy to do, but it often has unfortunate consequences. Once things have settled down and you still want to have fun with your Mustang it would be best to decide just what type of competition interests you most. I have some personal experience with drag racing and autocross and have crewed for a couple of successful SCCA road racers and I can tell you that modifications that work for drag racing are generally a disadvantage on a road course or autocross. An automatic transmission is better suited to drag racing than a manual. Not that it can't be done, but if you decide to go drag racing you will almost certainly be doing so in what is known as bracket racing. In bracket racing raw speed is less important than reliability, consistency and predictability. An automatic transmission car is better at all three and winning is better than loosing. Conversely a manual transmission is generally better for autocross and road racing. The single most important modification you can do should you decide to go in this direction is seat time ie. driver modification. Get as much driving [ practice ] time in as possible. Ask for help, take lessons. Mario Andretti said he never drove a perfect lap, much less a whole race. If he couldn't do it I doubt anyone else could either. The next most important modification would be tires and wheels. It's not that springs, shocks & struts, brakes etc. aren't important, they are, but I would still concentrate my money on track time in the beginning. Autocross is a good way to get started. It's relatively cheap and you will learn good car handling skills in a generally safe environment. The speeds are low enough and the duration is short enough that brake fade is seldom an issue. Good luck in all things.
 
#16 ·
. . . for autocross and road racing. The single most important modification you can do should you decide to go in this direction is seat time ie. driver modification. Get as much driving [ practice ] time in as possible. Ask for help, take lessons. . . . .
This is by far the best suggestion in this thread so far -- get yourself a few track days! For $750 you could get at least 2 or 3, depending on pricing in your area.

And don't even worry about "getting the car ready" except make sure you have fairly new brake pads and flush the brake fluid if it is more than a couple years old.
 
#17 ·
Thanks for the replies everyone. When I said drag racing earlier, I wasn't really intent on bracket racing, or serious competition, because I know the car will never be as consistent as an auto. I was referring more to test & tune days, and improving my personal best. I know the car is capable of more than I am at this point.
Road course or autocross will be a serious consideration come spring when tracks open back up around here. I know there are at least two within a few hours drive.

That being said, I do think I'll start looking for deals or economical paths to acquire a suspension setup. Feel free to chime in if you wish with experiences, or opinions on brands and or things to look out for. Given my intent for the car, on-car adjustable dampers, lowering springs (probably 1", maybe 1.5" max drop because of local road quality) and panhard bar should be a solid start to get me in the right direction. Maybe, depending on budget, UCA mount would be a worthwhile upgrade to do while I already have the back apart for springs/dampers?

Thanks again everyone!

Oh, and trust me. This is far from impulsory. I recieved 5k in the settlement, so my original impulse was to save a couple paychecks with the settlement money and blow it all on a turbo/supercharger. As tempting as it still is, I couldn't bring myself to be that irresponsible even if I wanted to. haha
 
#18 ·
Just a couple of quick thoughts since you've clarified your situation. Test and tune is cheap, easy and fun. It's easier to control clutch slippage than it is tire spin. One or the other has to slip in order to get a good launch and slipping them obviously accelerates wear. Tires and clutches are about the same price, but clutches are are lot more work to change. Before you go buying suspension parts for autocross, read the rule book! Stock class is pretty restrictive. If you go with modifications, you want to maximize the car up to, but not beyond what's allowed for the class you want to run. One sure fire way to have an uncompetitive car is to have that one modification that jumps you into the next highest class without doing all the other things allowed in that class. I still strongly recommend holding back on modifications except for tires and wheels until you refine your driving skills. At this point even in stock form the car is probably capable of more than you can get out of it.
 
#19 ·
I still strongly recommend holding back on modifications except for tires and wheels until you refine your driving skills. At this point even in stock form the car is probably capable of more than you can get out of it.
I agree with your statement except that there is one more part that anyone with one of these cars can benefit from. It won't matter if your a cruiser road course or drag strip guy. The MGW race spec shifter is worth every penny. It changes the feel and makes the shifting so solid and predictable that I can't even imagine not having mine now. I don't think about shifting any more. I just do it. I don't worry about it any more and now I KNOW that a missed shift or wrong gear is my fault. Because the MGW when adjusted properly won't miss a gear.
 
#21 ·
you'll probably be tempted to spend some or all on the ex.....but don't. shifters are a huge part of the tactile experience, so the mgw sounds like a pretty good place to go. good luck to you. Oh, and at the risk of being indelicate, girls love short shifters too. At least mine does. (no hidden meaning intended.)
 
#23 ·
Blowfish shifter bracket and a Watt's link and welcome back to the world my Friend.


Scott
 
#24 ·
In your case, the BEST mod would be a NEW hot (choose your taste here,blonde, brunette, albino etc ) babe sitting shotgun in passenger seat, rubbing that new MGW short throw shifter you will install soon in your ride!....oh, and a NEW updated Tee shirt that screams, DIVORCED!
 
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