allfyre

My Terrible Dilemma

So I’ve had my Black 2005 GT for about 8 months now, and my plan was to take her to 10k miles stock, then start working on her. As it happens, I hit the 10k mi. mark right about the same time as I settled the score with Uncle Sam and it turns out, I actually did fairly well last year. Go me.

So, I’m in a position to get a fair amount of work done. From the beginning, I’ve had my heart set on that Saleen SC. My first instinct was, of course, to take that dough out and get blown, so to speak.

But, I’ve been thinking about it, and I might go another direction. The SC is an expensive proposition, more so once you factor in installation and all the associated costs. To tell the truth, I’m not even sure I’d want the SC in there without at least some minor suspension upgrades as well, this is a city car and she sees more than her share of questionable pavement.

I’d rather not spend the whole thing on my car (got to save a little something for hookers and blow) so I’m thinking maybe I save the SC for next year? In the meantime, that dough could buy me a lot of other good stuff, and there’s a lot of other good stuff available that I’ve been thinking about

So assuming I can wait for the Saleen unit, let’s say I was willing to dish out some 5k, maybe a little more if necessary for some combination of the following:

1. Intake and a tune. It is time. After reading all the many volumes written on the topic of which is better, I determined that they are both the same, so I flipped a coin and it landed on SCT Xcal 2. It has USB so that’s good too.

2. A first rate suspension upgrade suitable for a hard-core street car. Knowing that a first-rate suspension can cost upwards of 10k, let’s say a good second rate upgrade.

3. Wheels & tires, 19” or 20”, maybe staggered. I have concerns about big, heavy wheels though.

4. HID headlights. Probably more money than they’re worth, but I really like them.

5. Premium exhaust upgrade. This is going to have to happen sooner or later, anything else I plan, at some point I’m going to want better pipes so here’s an opportunity to do it right. Keep in mind though, this is a street car so, I guess that means cats.

6. Gears. 4.10’s, maybe something a little taller so I can keep them in there when I do get the SC.

7. Performance shifter. I don’t think the stock shifter is so bad, but I would like something with a bit more lock to it.

8. Aluminum or CF driveshaft. Probably not necessary, but might help get some more power to the ground and make up for some of the drawbacks to having larger wheels.

9. Other gadgets that divert more power to the ground. This includes pullys, newfangled water pumps & magic amulets. I’m not crazy about pullys though.

10. A first-class radar detector.

That's my dilemma. I know, what a problem, I have a pile of sweaty dough to spend on my car. It's rough, but life goes on. So, given these circumstances, and the fact that the information I get here is the BEST and that’s no bull****, what do you guys think? What would you get?

skilz4u2nv

Wow... I wish I had your problem!!

With $5k you can get a fair amount of that list done

jet22

personaly I would start with the S/C... then you would kinda have a sleeper [sm=gears.gif]

but I like all of the other stuff you want to do, and you could do all that... not the blower... and also have some green left for [sm=nxsmile.gif]

allfyre

Is that your GT there? If so then I like your ride. I did the 8" antenna, painted calipers & sequential taillights too. I also did a satin nickel dash kit on the center console which came out pretty nice. I was thinking about putting a computer in though, but I'm going to want to design that myself, so that could take some time.

Also, do those wheels come in a gunmetal finish?

allfyre

Yeah there's this little dude who keeps popping up on my shoulder and chanting "N-2-O, N-2-O" in my ear. I tell him to knock it off, but he's starting to make a good argument.

Skrappy

Try that Ford Racing suspension kit, looks solid and is a great price.

What about some ported and polished heads? Better Cams?

Skrappy

Bingo

Yeah, I've been thinking the same...except I'm waiting until my warranty goes away. If some of my prospective mods can be deemed allowable under the warranty, then I may start as soon as this summer.

I'd stay away from the supercharger, since the car has only been out a little longer than a year, no one knows how reliable the blowers are or what they'll do to the engine. Besides that, when you make that kind of power, you're looking at a new clutch, new drivetrain possibly, and other things.

What I'd do...

Tuner (this goes without saying)
CAI
Full exhaust: headers, mid-pipe, mufflers (JBA looks good)
Underdrive pulleys
FRPP Handling Pack and whatever is needed to re-align the suspension (though I'd like to hear from more people who have installed it)
Carbon fiber/aluminum driveshaft (that thing will free up a lot of power)

Anything aesthetic can wait...build an internally-nice car first.

allfyre

Yeah definitely, I think I can get my dealer to cut me a deal on installation on that package too, I thought the price looked good and it would be convenient to get a "package" upgrade; but I'm stll curious about how that kit compares to some of the other suspension upgrades on the market.

Bingo

It's the most complete I've seen...most of 'em, you gotta buy everything separate. Mostly I just see springs. Not my idea of a real upgrade.

Besides, I'd rather buy a Ford-built product knowing they have a better idea of what works on the car and what doesn't (or so I hope).

allfyre

I tell ya, that CF Driveshaft intrugues me. It's a little pricey, but like I said if it can make up for the extra wheel weight then it will be worth it. I don't know about some of the HP claims I've seen with it, but it does seem like it would transfer power to the rearend a lot more efficiently. The driveshaft might go well with some racing gears too.

How hard is a driveshaft to install, assuming you have access to a lift?