It only took drag radials and an E85 tune to get the newest Mustang GT to run an 11.68 quarter-mile.
When Ford introduced the 2018 Mustang GT, the company promised a 0-60 time of less than four-seconds-flat, making it the quickest naturally aspirated production pony car to date. The folks from Lethal Performance have found that with simple modifications—the 2018 Mustang GT with the 10-speed automatic transmission is a solid mid 11-second quarter mile car.
The Lethal Performance 2018 Mustang GT
Lethal Performance is one of the industry leaders when it comes to modifying the Ford Mustang, so it comes as little surprise that the Florida-based shop was among the first to get their hands on the 2018 Mustang GT. As you would expect, Team Lethal has quickly gotten to modifying their 2018 shop car, adding a carbon fiber driveshaft, heavy duty axles, a driveshaft loop and an oil catch can.
Those features all improve durability more than performance, although it can be argued that the carbon fiber driveshaft helps reduce drivetrain loss, so it effectively improves performance by increase wheel-horsepower.
More significantly, the Lethal Performance 2018 Mustang GT has received a custom E85 engine tune and a set of sticky drag radial tires. The tune adds an unknown amount of power while the drag radials allow the driver to put all of that power to the ground and the result is a relatively-stock pony car that runs the quarter mile in the mid-11s.
The Lethal Mustang GT on the track
In the video above from the LethalPerformance YouTube channel, the 2018 Ford Mustang GT shop car from Lethal Performance is making a quarter mile run with the modifications listed above at Palm Beach International Raceway.
After a long, smoky burnout, the black muscle car eases into the staging beams. The driver brings the engine RPMs up, loading the torque convertor as the green lights drop and the new pony car rips away from the starting line. The 10-speed automatic transmission quickly pops from gear to gear and on the top end, this tune-and-tire 2018 Mustang GT runs an 11.68 at 119.4 miles per hour.
We learn that on this run, the Team Lethal GT pulled a 1.774 60-foot time while reaching the eighth-mile marker in just 7.56 seconds.
In short, with an E85 tune, a good set of drag radials and a good driver, the 2018 Ford Mustang GT with the 10-speed automatic transmission will run mid-11s in good air.
"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.
"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.
"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.
"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.
"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.
The Lethal Performance 2018 Mustang GT