Project " Preparation H "...preparing a 2005 Mustang GT

ALMACK · 05-03-2016, 11:37 AM

I love the looks of the 2008-2014 Cobra Jets but there was no way I could afford one.

This is as close as I will get, so here goes the story of the build of my S197 Mustang 3 Valve GT up to the point that I took it to the Div. 3 race at Indy in late April.
I wanted to build it for H/SA and see what the car would run with the required Stock Eliminator mods done to the car.

Link to that day @ Indy:

http://classracer.com/classforum/showthread.php?t=62048

After thinking about building one of these cars and searching all the ads on the internet for over a year, I finally got my big break in late Feb. of this year.
A friend sent me a screenshot of a rebuilt 2005 Mustang GT and I found the CL ad.
Up to this point it was the cheapest 3 valve GT I could find. I contacted the owner and locked in a deal where I would be the first person to look at the car.
After looking at it and driving it for 5 minutes, I threw the seller an offer and we exchanged cash for the title.
The car had been hit front and rear and was rebuilt with a clean KY rebuilt title. I had my car, but now I had to work fast to get it ready for Indy.

The car mechanically checked out good. It had fantastic anti-lock brakes, strong engine and the trans felt fine. This was the very first 3 valve Mustang GT I had ever driven. Up to that point I had been used to my 95 Mustang GTs.
The A/C and power steering felt great. Too bad because both would soon be taken off.

It had the wrong headlights, turn signal markers, and was missing the lower grille and left rear side marker. I managed to get a set of headlights locally for 40 bucks.
The other items I had to get on ebay because the local salvage yard here did not have any 2005 and newer Mustangs.
So I paid about $ 140 for all the correct lights, markers and grill, so now the body of the car was legal.

The first mod would be to allow my skinny drag wheels to work. These cars have huge (and heavy) front brakes but require a special part number ARP studs.
Thanks to the S197 forums, I armed myself with enough info to order the correct 3 inch wheel studs and a stud installer. All 10 studs were $ 123.00 delivered. Not cheap, but they are the only ones I could find.

I also purchased a stud installer for 23 bucks. That is one great tool. I would screw a lug nut on the old stud, lightly tap on the stud while applying pulling pressure on the backside of the hub with a crowbar to try and absorb some of the impact of the hammer. Those hubs are sealed and non serviceable, so I did not want to damage the bearings any more than possible.
( I put a lug nut on the old stud while hammering it out to prevent it from hitting the ABS tone ring )

All 5 studs were installed in less than 20 minutes and the wheel fit perfect.

05-03-2016, 11:37 AM	#1
ALMACK VIP Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Bardstown, KY Posts: 1,928 Likes: 98 Liked 324 Times in 116 Posts	Project " Preparation H "...preparing a 2005 Mustang GT I love the looks of the 2008-2014 Cobra Jets but there was no way I could afford one. This is as close as I will get, so here goes the story of the build of my S197 Mustang 3 Valve GT up to the point that I took it to the Div. 3 race at Indy in late April. I wanted to build it for H/SA and see what the car would run with the required Stock Eliminator mods done to the car. Link to that day @ Indy: http://classracer.com/classforum/showthread.php?t=62048 After thinking about building one of these cars and searching all the ads on the internet for over a year, I finally got my big break in late Feb. of this year. A friend sent me a screenshot of a rebuilt 2005 Mustang GT and I found the CL ad. Up to this point it was the cheapest 3 valve GT I could find. I contacted the owner and locked in a deal where I would be the first person to look at the car. After looking at it and driving it for 5 minutes, I threw the seller an offer and we exchanged cash for the title. The car had been hit front and rear and was rebuilt with a clean KY rebuilt title. I had my car, but now I had to work fast to get it ready for Indy. The car mechanically checked out good. It had fantastic anti-lock brakes, strong engine and the trans felt fine. This was the very first 3 valve Mustang GT I had ever driven. Up to that point I had been used to my 95 Mustang GTs. The A/C and power steering felt great. Too bad because both would soon be taken off. It had the wrong headlights, turn signal markers, and was missing the lower grille and left rear side marker. I managed to get a set of headlights locally for 40 bucks. The other items I had to get on ebay because the local salvage yard here did not have any 2005 and newer Mustangs. So I paid about $ 140 for all the correct lights, markers and grill, so now the body of the car was legal. The first mod would be to allow my skinny drag wheels to work. These cars have huge (and heavy) front brakes but require a special part number ARP studs. Thanks to the S197 forums, I armed myself with enough info to order the correct 3 inch wheel studs and a stud installer. All 10 studs were $ 123.00 delivered. Not cheap, but they are the only ones I could find. I also purchased a stud installer for 23 bucks. That is one great tool. I would screw a lug nut on the old stud, lightly tap on the stud while applying pulling pressure on the backside of the hub with a crowbar to try and absorb some of the impact of the hammer. Those hubs are sealed and non serviceable, so I did not want to damage the bearings any more than possible. ( I put a lug nut on the old stud while hammering it out to prevent it from hitting the ABS tone ring ) All 5 studs were installed in less than 20 minutes and the wheel fit perfect. __________________ Alan Mackin Stock 3777/ SS 3377 P/SA & SS/PA Fox Thunderbird I/PS '95 Mustang GT Last edited by ALMACK; 05-03-2016 at 01:09 PM.