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It’s been a minute since I’ve been active on the forums. I had an unfortunate catastrophic engine failure while idling up Pike’s Peak in May of 2020. With Covid and inflation and parts availability it took some time to regroup and get the car back up and running, but it finally happened, and I couldn’t be happier!
After a 2yr search for an unmolested 4.6, and another 2 years of waiting for custom internals, and a year for my builder to have space for my car it’s back on the road with:
576hp & 608ft-lbs.
The parts list is too extensive to post, but the block has been built for well over 1000hp. He stopped tuning at 576hp because he had already met my objectives and I wanted to maintain drivability.
High points of build:
fortified motor
new turbos
new clutch
I also had him take care of some cosmetic things. The car needed some minor bodywork and a respray. I swapped the factory pedestal spoiler for an MMD Ducktail, Raxiom tails, and the rear quarter windows with the SHR louvred ones.
For better or worse I have close to $100k into this car. I’m a little embarrassed to have put that much into a Mustang that doesn’t get raced to earn its keep, but there isn’t another quite like it. it’s MY CAR and I sure enjoy driving it. Took a 1700mi road trip before it went into winter storage and averaged 21mpg!
Last edited by breathegood; Jan 13, 2026 at 08:43 AM.
It took six months, but I finally got the car back from my builder. Custom work requires two things: patience and $$$. But now that it's done, I'm sooooo glad I went this route and didn't trade the car for something I'd have to finance and probably still wouldn't be satisfied with.
The car previously had intake, CMDP's, heads, cams, shorty headers, and cat back. It made 330/323 whp/tq, but lost over 50ft-lbs of torque below 3000 from stock. It was fun to drive a little wound up, but was tiring when just cruising around town or stuck in traffic....It was time for an upgrade.
I had a failed STS twin kit taking up space in the basement, so I contacted the guy that did the heads and cams to build me a.....
Hot pipes are all hot coated flat black. Cold pipes are metalic silver. Valve covers are wrinkle coated black. Attachment 53021
I thought I would be disappointed in the relatively low dyno results, but at this point, it doesn't bother me too much. I don't think you'll find too many supercharged cars making the same HP on only 4psi. The driving experience is so much improved that 417/412 HP/TQ is PLENTY for a quasi-daily driver. Attachment 53022
I also upgraded the suspension with Steeda Sport springs, Koni Sport adjustable shocks, MMS castor-camber plates, and 19" staggered AMR wheels wrapped in Pirelli P-Zero tires. Attachment 53023 Attachment 53024
Picked the car up on Friday and have put about 110 miles on it. First impressions:
1) If I didn't know better, I'd think he had given me a completely different car! The cockpit may be the same, but the driving experience is totally different.
2) The suspension and tire upgrades improved handling, ride, and steering response. The car is considerably flatter through the corners and instills a confidence in grip that I never felt before. The Koni's are set at their softest setting for now and the ride is comfortable without the wallowing, floating feeling that the stock suspension had. The best way I have to describe it is that response to driver input is more "crisp". The new stance and appearance of the charcoal on black combined with the fading GT/CS stripe is just.....well, I can't help but smile knowing that's my car.
3) Driveability is dramatically improved. The low end torque is back. It doesn't take as much throttle just to get the car rolling and it doesn't feel like it wants to bog down or lug in low rpm cruising. Fifth gear is usable again, and it won't be quite so annoying to sit in traffic anymore. The turbos spool incredibly fast, but also very smooth. The wastegates open so fast, it's going to take some getting used to. The sound is like having open pipes straight from the head. Even though off-boost engine noise in the cabin is reduced significantly, you can still hear the faint whistle of the turbos spinning. It's a pretty cool sound when you give it just a little more throttle to go over a rise and they come on just a little louder as the vacuum needle approaches 0.
4) I'm still a little hesitant to really get on it. The experience is so much different that I fear that the second I don't respect the extra power, it will bite me in the a$$, so I'm taking some time to re-learn how to drive it. That being said, I have discovered that even 4000rpm is a little too much for a clean launch.....tires could get costly in a hurry!
I always liked my car, but would never say I loved it. This round of mods may have pushed me over that line. I'm so glad I didn't trade it for something I would have had to finance last fall. The best part though was my builder's last comment before I drove away. With a great big grin on his face "I would drive this car every day. EVERY DAY!" That's what I want to hear from my builder!
move safe but fun, what do you have in the rear? Gearing? Do you run through gears to quick? Manual? Auto?
looks great
move safe but fun, what do you have in the rear? Gearing? Do you run through gears to quick? Manual? Auto?
looks great
The car has the factory 3.55’s that came with the California Special package, and a manual 5sp. Gearing is great for the turbo setup. I don’t run out of top end, and I have plenty of grunt off the line without roasting tires.
Next up before spring rollout is new brake rotors, pads, lines, and an adjustable panhard to center the rear. I’m mostly happy with ride and handling, but may step up sway bars and control arms if I experience hop or roll this summer.
New Motor Finally!
That's what I want to hear from my builder!