96 Drag Car Opinions

[Hvactom]

Hey all im tom and new to the site. Anyhow my son has been bugging me for sometime now to buy a stang, welp i finally got around to it and ended up getting a 96. We want to make this a 90% drag car. So i got the rear end out and plan to upgrade to rear drag set up. This is my fist 4.6 and i must say that i need more power. So we are looking to do a engine swap and i am thinking of the 5.8 seen as its a pushrod engine that i can rebuild and work on unlike the sohc. Anyhow any help would be great like swap options and anything to look out for. please excuse my typing as i am a little rusty.

[410sn95]

14 hours ago, Hvactom said:

Hey all im tom and new to the site. Anyhow my son has been bugging me for sometime now to buy a stang, welp i finally got around to it and ended up getting a 96. We want to make this a 90% drag car. So i got the rear end out and plan to upgrade to rear drag set up. This is my fist 4.6 and i must say that i need more power. So we are looking to do a engine swap and i am thinking of the 5.8 seen as its a pushrod engine that i can rebuild and work on unlike the sohc. Anyhow any help would be great like swap options and anything to look out for. please excuse my typing as i am a little rusty.

 

If you want a pushrod sn95, sell the 4.6 and pick up a 94-95 GT or Cobra as it came with the 5.0.  If then if you want to swap to a 5.8 you will already have almost everything necessary for the swap as opposed to the 4.6 modular.

[95riosnake]

I agree with the above. However, if you want to keep the 96, another option would be to buy a 94-95 parts car (on the cheap). Pull everything you need from it for the swap to a pushrod, then either sell what's left of the shell or continue to part it out. There's a lot of parts that will nickle and dime you converting from modular to pushrod, a parts car will be the best way to do it IMO. The best way would definitely be to buy a pushrod car, then swap a windsor into it (or build a dart-based 8.2 block), but I realize that might not be an appealing prospect right now.

 

Another option is to stay modular and go with a motor you won't need to build... swap in a DOHC from a terminator and upgrade the blower or go turbo. Another way to do it is to swap in a 5.4L from a lightning. Since you're shooting for a mostly drag-oriented car, notching a cowl hood to clear the blower on the lightning motor isn't a big deal... plus that swap has a totally badass Mad Max feel to it when it's done.

[RedTwilight]

I agree with purchasing a '94-'95 GT to start with.  But other things to consider will be what class do you plan on running?  Bracket class or a Comp. or heads up?  If you plan to bracket race then the 4.6 may be all you need for a couple years.  Just throw some good tires and suspension, maybe exhaust and a couple of other little things and go have fun.    

Another option would be to buy an already built car for whatever class you are planning to run.  It'll say you money and headaches in the long run.

[Yeahloh95]

yeah some more info on your plans will help make for better choices on a power plant

[Hvactom]

Well long story but I'm stuck with this car seen as i traded a beautiful 77 150 rust free for this rusty mustang. anyhow I'm doing all nessery repairs. I have never been on the track. this is new that I want to start and get my son who is 10 into it. I realize the mod will probably do ok bracket racing where I should probably start off. thing is that I want a single cam engine that I can do upgrades fairly easy. I also want to start off with a carb and little computers as possible. also looking for cheap drag radial set up for the car, can I run just get rear radials and keep front wheels for now prob a dumb question but only well. thanks for the imput guys!

[RedTwilight]

Since you're stuck with the '96 keep it and start building from there.  You can keep it mostly stock for now while you search for a donor car.

 

Yes you can run drag radials on the rear and stock wheels (or any others) up front.  If you get the drag radials go with the Mickey Thompson ET Streets.  Don't even bother with the street based drag radials like Nitto NT 555R and the such.  Get yourself a good set of tubular upper and lower rear control arms and at least a set of 4.10:1 gears.  Has anything else been done to the '96?

 

Is the car an automatic transmission or manual?  

 

For now I would suggest start in bracket classes.  That way you don't have to worry about being the fastest.  You're able to run your own race and have more fun knowing that you can win without spending a lot of money.  Consistency is the name of the game in bracket.  For now you can run the 4.6 and just have fun and get much needed knowledge and experience.

 

Since you haven't been on the track I advise going on a test and tune night.  Just go and watch for the first time or two.  Get were you can see the starting line, tree, starter, and even the drivers.  Just observe to see how things are done such as burn outs, courtesy staging, and even launching.  Pay attention to what the track officials are doing and what/how they signal the racers.  Find out what the tech process is.  Make sure you're car will pass tech before your first time down the track.

Then after a time or two and you're feeling comfortable try running for yourself.  Just run test and tune for a few days before your first actual race.  Learn how the car acts, learn the burn out procedure, learn the staging and launch procedure.  Just work on getting everything down and running consistent.

 

Sorry for such a long post but this is something I would tell anyone who is new to the track.  You'll be much better off in the long run to learn as much as you can before even getting into the car.

[Hvactom]

A friend that has a well done sn95 is selling me his entry used drag suspension .  he is now full team z. what size Tire should I run on rear. I was looking at the Mt and would definitely like to run them, I know I will need wheels also. the car has the t45.

[RassCar]

The T45 should be stout enough for whatever that 96 GT can throw at it for a while. I'm pretty sure the weak link in those transmissions is the shift forks. If you get an aftermarket shifter make sure it has correctly positioned shift stops and you should be fine. I'm more familiar with the T3650, which will also bolt up to that engine and is pretty similar (though internals aren't interchangeable).

[RedTwilight]

With the manual trans I'd go with a bias ply tire such as the ET Street R or even a full drag slick.  The bias ply tires will give a little on the launch.  This cushion will help keep breaking part down versus the dead hook of a radial tire.  Tire size will depend on your gearing and if you're running 1/8 or 1/4 mile.  But a 26x10.5 or 28x10.5 will work.  You could find a set of used 15x10 (15x8 will work also) Weld draglites or dragstars to mount them on for fairly cheap.  Keep your street wheels and tires and just swap at the track.

 

I've broken 3 axles and a ring and pinion all in the span of 2 years when the radials dead hooked in my mostly stock '93 with 5-speed.  Swapped to bias ply and everything has held up.  Radials also don't recover as well when they start spinning. So I bias ply will help be more consistent for this reason.

[RassCar]

You might also check out dedicated drag racing forums like yellowbullet. Be careful though, portions like "trash or be trashed' in yellowbullet are pretty volatile and not at all kid friendly. Oh yeah, yellowbullet is also a good place to find used drag racing parts and cars.

[Hvactom]

I plan to get Moser axles with 410 gear. I guess time will tell what works best for me. I should have the rear suspension done within a month .  a friend is telling me not to buy drag shocks to use the new sensitrack that is already in it. I was looking at lakewood and summit adjustable .  coil over for rear is for future once I get going. I want so bad to yank the mod and start fresh with 5.8 and carb but everyone I know including everyone here warns against pulling a already running engine out. I think i need to accept the fact I have to start from the bottom lol. my biggest concern is the 5 speed. practice makes perfect right.

[Hvactom]

[RedTwilight]

That looks like a pretty good deal on the wheels.  I can't tell the condition of the tires though.  But it's a good start.  Those wheels are waaayyyyy lighter than the factory set up.  That's rotational weight cut which is a HUGE help.  

 

As far as the rear suspension, for now you'll be be fine keeping the factory V8 springs.  Shocks I'd keep factory if in good condition.  I wouldn't worry about changing the rear shocks until you change the fronts as well.  I'm partial to the Strange 50/50 rear and Strange 90/10 for the front if you don't go with adjustable ones.

[Hvactom]

Well I believe there are bbk drag Springs in the set I'm getting from friend. problem is that the car has Bullitt wheels on now and there was some sort of metal or aluminum shim in rear Springs to fit the 17 inch I believe .  I won't put that thing in new Springs .  so I'm betting when I sit the car back down tires won't fit. that's why I'm pushing for new tires and wheels also. found 2 lightweight aluminum seats for 70 bucks I'm supposed to pick up tonight . I'll try to get some pics up tonight .

[RassCar]

Just about any aftermarket seat will save big in weight. $70 sounds good to me. You could also ditch the rear seat and lose a bit more. 

[Hvactom]

Rear seat gone carpet gone trunk gutted , they are konig buzz v racing seat so pretty excited to ditch stock junk. it's a bare bones car manual windows.

[Det_Riot]

Welcome to the site Tom! Nice to see another Metro Detroiter around here! Where abouts are you guys from? Fiddling back through what the other guys said, getting used to the car and learning drag racing should be your priority.

 

What I learned from my building my car over the years is that you're always going to want more. Now that being said, you're in a decent spot to start since you do ultimately want to swap over to a pushrod. While the swap will start costing you some money, if you do a carb set up first you'll save a little bit of money there. I recommend getting the block/engine you're going to build your motor out of and at least start tinkering with it and going through it before you even think about accumulating parts for the swap. Get the motor set first because it'll be a lot easier to change out power parts out of the car. 

 

For now, I'd be totally confident in swapping out suspension and other parts that you'll still be able to utilize down the line.

[Hvactom]

Well I believe there are bbk drag Springs in the set I'm getting from friend. problem is that the car has Bullitt wheels on now and there was some sort of metal or aluminum shim in rear Springs to fit the 17 inch I believe .  I won't put that thing in new Springs .  so I'm betting when I sit the car back down tires won't fit. that's why I'm pushing for new tires and wheels also. found 2 lightweight aluminum seats for 70 bucks I'm supposed to pick up tonight . I'll try to get some pics up tonight .

[Hvactom]

Hey man what's up, we're in beautiful Wayne Westland lol. what year engine should I go for I'm thinking mid 90's.

[Hvactom]

So happy with the seats , they are faded but ill probably just spray paint. they also came from a 93 so they bolted right in. plus they sit taller so I will be able to see better. not in the funds to get them wheels right now so if they are still there next week I'll do it then .  to many good deals right now being end of season.

[RedTwilight]

You've got a good start going.  
Why don't ya make a build thread so we can all enjoy and follow along with the development. 

 

[Blackmage]

dont be scared of the 4.6l.    theyre not hard to work on at all and there is a TON of help out on the web to figure anything out.  Some decent starter upgrades to the car can either be a H/C/I swap from a 99-04 mustang GT, or a full DOHC swap from a lincoln mark 8 or cobra from 99/01, mach 1, 03/04 termi.   if you do the h/c/i swap from the 99-04 GT you could see around a 40hp increase, and you will see roughly about the same from a mark 8 4v swap.  both of these swaps can be done fairly cheaply too and will give you a lot of hands on experience with the car with really no special tools needed.  

 

Computers arn't bad either, i am kind of in the same boat where i just dont want to deal with them on my car or with the actual tuning.  this is why there are companies out there like Lund Tuning for example.  They can get you set up with a hand held tuner for the car, and tune the car from their shop even if you're in China.  Build it the way you want and give them a call with all the specs and they can literally walk you through the rest.  there are a ton of places that do this other than Lund.  A computer is going to make it fairly easy to diagnose problems and help keep the car running great even if it you arn't at the track.  A carbed motor in a car that had a modular in it could make for a painful experience trying to figure things out.