Hello Mustang Forums,

This is my first post here, i am pretty inexperienced so bear with me.

I am going to have Give or take $10,000 in my hands within 2 months here.

I have had my cobra for close to 4 years, 2 of which were spent in japan while the car just sat at home. It has not been tuned once, tires have not been changed, suspension is shot, and my check engine light is on...

I have neglected the car that i have loved for the longest time, and its time to fix it. To the point though...

I want to do what i can to my car, with a few, or many questions in mind and i am asking input from as many sources as i can get.

I live in jacksonville North carolina, i dont want anyone here that i dont know putting their hands on my car, making this even harder for me to do.

there are a few things i need to fix first and formost, and i need suggestions here as i have no clue what im doing at all, im here to learn.

1. New tires(They're practically bald...)
2. New Suspension
3. new front end(sporting a GT bumper due to a previous owners accident)
4. All else goes here, anything I can do to improve the performance of my car, including exhaust

I am unsure what money I will be left with after these fixes, but I still want to invest the rest in my car.
I do know my clutch feels like im pushing back a herd of wild elephants though...ouch.

Any suggestions appreciated, I will be quite active here, I will aslo be posting before pics, videos and after of the same on here during this whole process.

I am here asking for assistance on a lot, i know, but in the end, the outcome will be a good one with everyones help!

 

Supercharger + Transmission + forged shortblock= Really nice cobra

 

welcome! i know some people down in jacksonville, im living up in durham and i think you'll feel at home here.
as for your stang, you didnt specify any direction you want to go (street, strip, auto x, daily driver, show etc etc) so i'll give you some tips and links!
first check yourCEL (any auto parts store will scan your car for free) and fix that. if you get a code, we can usually help in diagnosis, parts buying and repair if you wanna do it yourself. said your suspensions shot, do you know what parts or have some symptoms that lead you to believe it to be? and last your clutch feels rough, which we'll get to.
you need new tires? how bout some rims too? most guys get staggered (wider rear wheels) wheels for an agressive look. 17" are typically cheaper and 18" only advantage is looks. 17x9.5 up front and 17x10.5 out back will get your car set. tires come in 3 styles, street, drag radial (DR) and slicks. street would be cheapest and longest lasting, DR's will improve traction but not last as long, and slicks are pure track tires. the links have nice choices and we can help you pick tires when it comes down to it.
suspensions gone? new shocks and struts will help that, and lowering springs will finish the stance the wheels started. lowering more than 1.5" will require caster/camber plates, which lets shops align your wheels properly. Upper and lower control arms help plant the power your engine makes, and swaybars can stiffen your cornering.
replacement bumpers are about all you got, theres a couple good aftermarket bumpers but most are ricey (in my opinion).
performance wise, the cheapest way to high hp numbers is as Ehmark said. a couple companies will build a shortblock (lower engine) to support all the hp you could make. superchargers come in centrifugal, roots and twin-screw designs, all with their own benefits. your tranny would be a weak point you would need to address, and many companies offer t-56 swaps. t-56s are strong transmissions found in many sports cars, and could be your 6 speed fix. your clutch may be going and a new flywheel and clutch could be in store. lastly, your brakes are good, and upgraded pads and rotors would be enough for street use. outside of that, headers, mid pipe, and after-cat would give you the sound you want. lastly gearswould increase your acceleration, ranging from 3.55-4.56 depending on your preference.theres TONS of options for everything and dont be afraid to ask away.
suppliers/carriers
www.americanmuscle.com,
www.lmperformance.com,
www.lethalperformance.com,
www.steeda.com,
www.maximummotorsports.com,
www.seanhylandmotorsports.com,
www.fordracingparts.com,
www.vtengines.com,
www.modularmustangracing.com
learning material
http://www.miracerros.com/mustang/t_suspension.htm,
http://auto.howstuffworks.com/, http://www.mustangandfords.com/techa...ine/index.html(part 1),
http://www.mustangandfords.com/techa...t_2/index.html(part 2),
https://mustangforums.com/m_2164339/tm.htm

oh and a little hint, ask around about parts your unsure of or interested in, as someone may know of a better deal, better part or have personal experience. good luck

 

Thanks a bunch with the quick response, and tons of information in that post!

As for tires, and rims, I am going to be wanting new rims as well, forgot to post that.

What I am going for is street performance.

As for my suspension, again i know hardly anything about cars, but it just seems even with a slight change in the road surfance my car is bouncing all over the place, like i can sit in my car and rock left to right and move the frame...

I am about to head off to work, again thanks a bunch for all the info, im going to look through those and get back here asap.

 

for wheels, it depends if you wanna go with 18s or 17s. In the rear you can bump up the width to either an 18x10 or 17x10.5. This will allow you to go with wider rear tires for that supreme look andtraction. In the frontyou can stickwith a18/17x9 which will give you a nice staggered look (cant rotate tires though).most if not all the sponsor sites give discounts to members of the group.Suspension isnt really mystrong area, but i've got an eibach pro-kit on mine. Ask around and search old topics, everyone is glad to help. Good Luck

 

Ok guys I'm back!

So I got my new tires. now Im looking for some smaller upgrades.

there are a few things I can start messing with, or should i start going with the big stuff?

I havent gotten my 10,000 just yet so im working on smaller upgrades.

Would these be good options? Or should I look at something else:

Cold Air Intake
Chip
cams(i know nothing about this....)
pullys(this either)
Gears( 3:73 or 4:10)?
Kook Longtube Headers
Pipes?

Anything else to prepare my 113,000 mileage engine for a supercharger and further upgrades.

 

u should jus sell the cobra as is take that money an the other 10,000 u got as a down payment an go buy u a real cobra...2003-2004 termi would be a good investment jus would have paymewnts but a fast car..

 

i would inquire about that CEL. I would get a CAI, and do the exhaust. even if you do a cat back and a midpipe for now.also do some research on suspenion too....like springs, control arms. look into getting a set of gears to.

GL with the build up.

 

I've gotta go with the first reply you got. Your car can only handle around 450 RWHP before the stock internals go boom, but you have a Teksid block which is one of the best, so with your milage and to put down power, I'd get forged internals, a supercharger, and dump that horrible T45 transmission for a T56.

Depending on how much work you do yourself, that will probably take up most of your $10,000, but you'll have a brand new engine, s/c, and transmission. That leaves the suspension which shouldn't cost too terribly much and you'll basically have a new car. You definitely want to look at springs, shocks, and struts. That alone will make a HUGE difference vs the stock Mustang suspension, but while you're there it would be smart to do control arms as well.

Oh, and don't forget gears. With a T56 and a supercharger, I wouldn't go any more than 3.73s. I have 3.73s in my 03 with around 450 RWHP, and I wouldn't even consider anything more. First gear is already almost useless on the street. I start in second all the time.

If you do all of that at once, and you can do a lot of it yourself, then you're going to use just about all, if not more than that $10,000. There are too many variables to give you a better price until you start narrowing down (are you doing engine work yourself? what S/C do you want? etc). Like I said though, you'd have basically a brand new car though, and a monster with all kinds of potential (with that Teksid with forged internals). I'd have to disagree with SC Cobra's comment. I think it would be a hell of a lot more fun to build that car yourself if you have the money. Most people (myself definitely included) would get an 03/04 rather than build up something because when you buy a more expensive car you get payments for it, it's a lot harder to put down that kind of money all at once, but if you can build a sweet car. Plus, ya know, everyone knows an 03/04 is going to be fast, but people aren't going to expect to get smoked like that from a 98.

Good luck with the project, I wish I had the same. I actually know someone (at least on another message board) in Jacksonville. I'll ask him about good shops that you can trust if you can't do the engine work yourself. Worst case scenario, if there isn't a whole lot out there, Fastlane in Benson is one of the best Mustang shops in the state. It's a bit more of a drive for you though.

As everyone else said though, we're here to help, so if you have any questions don't be afraid to ask!

 

What are 'Forged Internals'? Could you explain what exactly it is?

As for Superchargers, what would you reccomend?