Fun measured on a scale of 1 to 6: Maxing out the V6 Mustang
Fun, Measured on a scale of 1 to 6!
Forget what you used to know about the Six Cylinder Rental Car Mustang! It used to be true that the “base” model Mustangs (V6 or if you go way back 4 cyl) were primarily used for rental cars or basic transportation. Well, the game changed when Ford introduced the 2005 4.0L V6 Mustang! The 4.0L engine is not new to the Ford family of vehicles; in fact it is the same base engine that has been used in the Explorer and Ranger for quite some time. It is a torque-filled 210 horsepower light weight engine….what a great place to start having fun. So let’s look at a way to transform your Mustang into a “perfect 6”.
1. First, let’s spur the pony just a bit. Now, there are many ways to give your Mustang a little extra kick; you can add Nitrous, Turbo’s and Super Chargers. We have equipped Mustangs with all three, and the 4.0L V6 responds well to each of them. The traditional advantages/disadvantages still apply. Nitrous is like car cocaine - after your first hit, you will want more and more…odds are in favor of over dosing and popping your motor. Turbo’s deliver very friendly, even power and are a bit easier on your motor’s internals. The packaging and heat management on Turbo systems can be a bit expensive to install, but boy, what fun!!! Superchargers are fairly straight forward to install and tune, and they provide great drivable performance. However, super chargers and turbo chargers can produce more power than your engine can withstand, so be careful not to get greedy with how much boost you try to run on a stock motor. The package referred to here is the Vortech centrifugal super charged V6 Automatic; this system was installed and tuned at MRT. Producing 313 Horsepower and 290 ft/lb torque at the rear wheels makes this pony a ton of fun to drive. The best time at the track is 12.85 in the quarter mile. Sure beats walking!!!
2. Second, we needed to make this pony sound tough, but we didn’t want to pretend we were a GT, so we stuck with the single exit exhaust. There are several choices for axle back exhaust on the aftermarket; in fact, we tried several system on this car, and we found that the MRT Aero Turbine exhaust system out-performed the rest when comparing the horsepower numbers and sound quality. We did notice some resonance on all of the after market mufflers. A resonator can be installed upstream of the muffler in order to achieve the right balance of performance sound and power gain.
3. Third, we tackled exterior styling, probably the most personalized aspect of a car project. We considered wheels, tires, hoods, spoilers, etc. The theme that we chose was to make the car purposefully different while keeping all of the cool Mustang personality in tact. Components added to this car include: MRT Cherry 6T6 mustang hood with functional scoops (which really keep the supercharger cool during driving conditions), MRT Interceptor Chin Spoiler, MRT Interceptor mustang quarter window louvers, MRT mustang rear window louvers, which are made from aluminum and hinged at the top for easy cleaning of the rear window. To finish the look, we added the MRT lens tint to the front and rear lights.
4. Fourth, Suspension is very important when you are setting a car up for the street, drag strip or road course. We set this car up for the street/strip. MRT has a simple and affordable solution for helping your pony hook and go! We added adjustable lower control arms, adjustable panhard bar and sport springs, which align the axle with the body and align the control arms with the axle. The result is a predictably well-performing suspension that functions freely, meaning much of the bind in the stock system has now been freed up. Boy, does this car come out of the hole planted!
5. Fifth, Interiors are often forgotten when it comes to making your Mustang stand out in the crowd. Again, MRT had the solution for this challenge; keeping cost in mind we decided to simply put new skins on the existing factory seats. What’s involved with this project is removing the front and rear seats from the car, slipping off the factory seat covers and slipping on the new covers. Letting the car sit in the sun with the windows up provides enough heat to allow the seats to “smooth out” any wrinkles that are in the covers. They look stunning and all of the factory functions in the seats are retained. Many color choices and styles are available.
6. Sixth, finishing touch. Here are a couple items that are just plain cool and are fun to show off to anyone who is checking out the car: MRT hood struts bolt onto existing fasteners on your hood and fender, no holes are drilled in your car! The brackets are made of stainless steel and are powder coated black to last the life of your Mustang. Trust me, you will not miss your hood prop rod! The shorty antenna fits surprisingly well within the lines of your car. Because it does not extend beyond the visual boundary of your car, it does not jump out at you as even being there. We have observed no noticeable change in radio signal reception with the installation of the short antenna.
Now this is what I call a perfect 6!!! As you can imagine, this customer is having an absolute blast with his V6 Mustang. Heads turn everywhere he goes, GT’s nod with respect, and fun is had every time he gets into his car!
- Scott Hoag
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