Reaper's Mustang Project (abridged version)
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Super Cereal Admin
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 7,081
From: Lexington, KY
Yeah, but aside from the swirls and scratches in the clear, my paint is almost perfect (except for the whole two shades of red thing). I figure if the paint is in good condition, I might as well keep it that way. I've actually only waxed it about 5 times in the year and a half I've owned it... so I haven't kept it as maintained as I'd like. But I plan on detailing it once a month from now on (especially when it has fresh paint). Also, your car is white... it's harder to keep white clean than it is red (seeing as how red doesn't show dirt until it's absolutely filthy). And yeah, I noticed how dirty your car is when I was chopping it lol
Recognized HCF Member
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 11,203
From: Brownsburg, IN 46112
looks good.
and about the no wax after fresh paint.... to a extent yes that is correct BUT thats mainly just for common paint jobs. now if the paint shop has a bake oven to put the car in for afew hours then you can wax the next day if not same day after it cools.
and about the no wax after fresh paint.... to a extent yes that is correct BUT thats mainly just for common paint jobs. now if the paint shop has a bake oven to put the car in for afew hours then you can wax the next day if not same day after it cools.
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Super Cereal Admin
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 7,081
From: Lexington, KY
Okay, after thinking about it for a little bit, the 17's/18's and cobra brakes are going to be put on hold until after both the suspension and bodywork are done (meaning after the car gets painted but before I start the engine build). And speaking of the engine build, I think I'm going to just try to source another engine to build so the car won't be down for almost a year (because I'm thinking the engine is going to take a lot longer than a few months to completely build). I'll probably still be getting an EG to DD, though. I'm thinking slammed + really nice (and expensive) paint = bad DD.
Anyway, I've been thinking of the body work a little lately. As far as the overall appearance, I'd like it to look clean, not tacked together. Not only would the '03-'04 Cobra skirts be too high compared to the '00R front, but there's also one slight problem with me flat-bottoming the car and having high skirts: all the air I'd be trying to control underneath the car would simply escape out the sides of the car, rendering the rear diffuser pretty, but useless. So I've been looking at side skirts, and I think I've found a set that should match up with the front bumper fairly well, but are still low and look clean:
They're made by Cervinis, the same company I'm buying the front bumper and spoiler from; the bumper and skirts are both made of polyurethane, so they should hold up fairly well. I'm thinking if I get these skirts, I'll probably shave the little scoop they have in the middle to give it a perfectly smooth, clean look. Also, those skirts are going to be ~$50 less than the '03-'04 cobra skirts I was originally looking at. Opinions?
Anyway, I've been thinking of the body work a little lately. As far as the overall appearance, I'd like it to look clean, not tacked together. Not only would the '03-'04 Cobra skirts be too high compared to the '00R front, but there's also one slight problem with me flat-bottoming the car and having high skirts: all the air I'd be trying to control underneath the car would simply escape out the sides of the car, rendering the rear diffuser pretty, but useless. So I've been looking at side skirts, and I think I've found a set that should match up with the front bumper fairly well, but are still low and look clean:
They're made by Cervinis, the same company I'm buying the front bumper and spoiler from; the bumper and skirts are both made of polyurethane, so they should hold up fairly well. I'm thinking if I get these skirts, I'll probably shave the little scoop they have in the middle to give it a perfectly smooth, clean look. Also, those skirts are going to be ~$50 less than the '03-'04 cobra skirts I was originally looking at. Opinions?
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Super Cereal Admin
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 7,081
From: Lexington, KY
A few things. First and foremost, I bought a new radiator cover for my grille delete last week; it showed up today. I decided I kind of like the pony-less grille better; it gives the car a more aggressive look, which is what I'm going for. Anyway, pics (I didn't feel something this small deserved a photoshoot lol):
Also, sometime when I get bored (probably in a few months after I get the car lowered), I think I'm going to cut up the rear bumper and make a (mostly non-functional) rear diffuser, mostly to get practice for when it comes time to make the real (as in functional) rear diffuser. I say it's mostly non-functional because it will keep the rear bumper from becoming a parachute at speed since there's a gap between the bumper and gas tank that air tends to get sucked up into. I'm going to cut out the black piece below the Mustang lettering on my rear bumper and incorporate that space into the diffuser, I'm just not sure how.
Also, I'm not debating on what I should do with the body. I'm thinking that with the Cobra R front bumper and the drop I'm going to run, the car might be physically unable to make it over most speed bumps. I think what I'm going to do is drop the car to the ride height I want, then find out how tall the Cobra R bumper is, and use that to figure out where the bottom of the bumper would be. If I have at least 2" of ground clearance, I'll probably go for it. If not, I'll keep the stock front bumper, get '03/'04 Cobra side skirts, and a Saleen S281 spoiler (the Cobra R is a visually heavy wing. Without something equally visually heavy out front, it will look extremely awkward. It pretty much needs something like the Cobra R front bumper to balance it out).
And finally, anybody remember this from my old civic project?
I think I'm going to put it to use when I get the custom exhaust done. I'm thinking running resonators instead of mufflers will help make the car a little louder while keeping things smooth sounding and still bearable. Also, its shape is almost perfect for tucking it into the driveshaft tunnel. Now I just have to figure out how I'm going to run cats for the wastegate dump tubes. I think I'll have enough room in the fenders but I'm not completely sure.
Also, sometime when I get bored (probably in a few months after I get the car lowered), I think I'm going to cut up the rear bumper and make a (mostly non-functional) rear diffuser, mostly to get practice for when it comes time to make the real (as in functional) rear diffuser. I say it's mostly non-functional because it will keep the rear bumper from becoming a parachute at speed since there's a gap between the bumper and gas tank that air tends to get sucked up into. I'm going to cut out the black piece below the Mustang lettering on my rear bumper and incorporate that space into the diffuser, I'm just not sure how.
Also, I'm not debating on what I should do with the body. I'm thinking that with the Cobra R front bumper and the drop I'm going to run, the car might be physically unable to make it over most speed bumps. I think what I'm going to do is drop the car to the ride height I want, then find out how tall the Cobra R bumper is, and use that to figure out where the bottom of the bumper would be. If I have at least 2" of ground clearance, I'll probably go for it. If not, I'll keep the stock front bumper, get '03/'04 Cobra side skirts, and a Saleen S281 spoiler (the Cobra R is a visually heavy wing. Without something equally visually heavy out front, it will look extremely awkward. It pretty much needs something like the Cobra R front bumper to balance it out).
And finally, anybody remember this from my old civic project?
I think I'm going to put it to use when I get the custom exhaust done. I'm thinking running resonators instead of mufflers will help make the car a little louder while keeping things smooth sounding and still bearable. Also, its shape is almost perfect for tucking it into the driveshaft tunnel. Now I just have to figure out how I'm going to run cats for the wastegate dump tubes. I think I'll have enough room in the fenders but I'm not completely sure.
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Super Cereal Admin
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 7,081
From: Lexington, KY
Thanks... I think lol
Personally, I don't mind the Mach 1 grille (just the pony, no honeycomb), but I think the Mach 1 grille minus the pony looks way more aggressive.
Anyway, unfortunately money's getting pretty tight at the moment between me trying to make rent and buy tools for work at the same time, but I'm hoping by the end of next month I'll have my tools paid off (I should anyway), so I should be able to start buying car parts again in about a month. Like I've said before, first up is the Camber/Caster plates (I'll be cutting the springs at that time since I'll need an alignment after installing the plates anyway), after that I'll be buying the entire front suspension as one package, and I'll hopefully be able to find a rear end locally. Actually, since the rear suspension parts aren't 7.5"/8.8" specific, I might just buy the springs and LCA's to throw on before I actually get the 8.8" rear end; after all, the alignment on the rear end of a car with a solid rear axle is pretty much bolting the wheels in place and calling it good (there is no toe setting, and due to the design of a SRA, I could drop the car on its nuts and still have 0 degrees of camber in the rear).
*edit: I think I might get some flat black spray paint and spray down the radiator and radiator support sometime soon. Also, as soon as I lower the car I think I'm going to get to work on the (mostly non-functional) V1 rear diffuser. I say V1 because I'm most likely going to be making 3 of them: the first version will be ABS plastic, and for the most part non-functional (it'll lower drag a tiny bit, but not much). The second will be a functional ABS plastic one next year after the body work is done, and the final version will be carbon-fiber.
Personally, I don't mind the Mach 1 grille (just the pony, no honeycomb), but I think the Mach 1 grille minus the pony looks way more aggressive.
Anyway, unfortunately money's getting pretty tight at the moment between me trying to make rent and buy tools for work at the same time, but I'm hoping by the end of next month I'll have my tools paid off (I should anyway), so I should be able to start buying car parts again in about a month. Like I've said before, first up is the Camber/Caster plates (I'll be cutting the springs at that time since I'll need an alignment after installing the plates anyway), after that I'll be buying the entire front suspension as one package, and I'll hopefully be able to find a rear end locally. Actually, since the rear suspension parts aren't 7.5"/8.8" specific, I might just buy the springs and LCA's to throw on before I actually get the 8.8" rear end; after all, the alignment on the rear end of a car with a solid rear axle is pretty much bolting the wheels in place and calling it good (there is no toe setting, and due to the design of a SRA, I could drop the car on its nuts and still have 0 degrees of camber in the rear).
*edit: I think I might get some flat black spray paint and spray down the radiator and radiator support sometime soon. Also, as soon as I lower the car I think I'm going to get to work on the (mostly non-functional) V1 rear diffuser. I say V1 because I'm most likely going to be making 3 of them: the first version will be ABS plastic, and for the most part non-functional (it'll lower drag a tiny bit, but not much). The second will be a functional ABS plastic one next year after the body work is done, and the final version will be carbon-fiber.
Last edited by reaper2022; Sep 25, 2009 at 06:34 PM.
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Super Cereal Admin
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 7,081
From: Lexington, KY
Okay, I'm bored enough to bump this with a few (slight) changes in the project. Also, I'll be able to start saving up for the suspension work starting next month, so I'm expecting to have everything done suspension-wise between the end of December and the middle of January.
First off, for the suspension: I'm not going to be using Racecraft (since I honestly don't know anything about their product quality). Instead, I was talking to someone who has had Modular Mustang Racing parts on his car for a few years, and he had nothing but good things to say about them (and the price is comparable). Also, I'm not going to be using drop spindles since (from what I've been reading) the tubular K-member will lower my front end by an inch by itself. I'm going to be converting to coil-overs on all four corners (literally converting... I'll be changing my suspension over to a MacPherson Strut layout), and will be lowering about 2.5" in front and 2.75" out back. I'll be close to tucking tires, but not quite; the reason I'm not going to go lower is because at that drop, my headers will be about 1.5" off the ground. As it sits now, I have to re-position my exhaust since at that drop, my cats (as they are on the car now) will be sitting on the ground... and that's not going to work.
Next up, the body: I've decided against the '00R front bumper and stalker side skirts in favor of an '03/'04 Cobra front bumper with a detachable '00R style splitter. I'll retain the functionality of the splitter, but I'll be able to take the splitter off to drive over speed bumps (I'm expecting 1.5-2" of ground clearance to the splitter). With that front end, I'll be getting the matching '03/'04 Cobra side skirts. Also, I decided against the carbon fiber hood and trunk lid in favor of a fiberglass '00R hood and I'll be keeping the fiberglass trunk. I can't justify spending $1700 on carbon fiber to lose next to no weight, even if it looks cool.
Basically, here's what the front bumper will look like without the splitter:
And here's what it will look like with the splitter:
And I'm still in the air about the spoiler; the Cobra R wing looks better in person than it does pictures, and (once again) it's functional, but the Saleen spoiler looks good all-around but isn't nearly as functional.
First off, for the suspension: I'm not going to be using Racecraft (since I honestly don't know anything about their product quality). Instead, I was talking to someone who has had Modular Mustang Racing parts on his car for a few years, and he had nothing but good things to say about them (and the price is comparable). Also, I'm not going to be using drop spindles since (from what I've been reading) the tubular K-member will lower my front end by an inch by itself. I'm going to be converting to coil-overs on all four corners (literally converting... I'll be changing my suspension over to a MacPherson Strut layout), and will be lowering about 2.5" in front and 2.75" out back. I'll be close to tucking tires, but not quite; the reason I'm not going to go lower is because at that drop, my headers will be about 1.5" off the ground. As it sits now, I have to re-position my exhaust since at that drop, my cats (as they are on the car now) will be sitting on the ground... and that's not going to work.
Next up, the body: I've decided against the '00R front bumper and stalker side skirts in favor of an '03/'04 Cobra front bumper with a detachable '00R style splitter. I'll retain the functionality of the splitter, but I'll be able to take the splitter off to drive over speed bumps (I'm expecting 1.5-2" of ground clearance to the splitter). With that front end, I'll be getting the matching '03/'04 Cobra side skirts. Also, I decided against the carbon fiber hood and trunk lid in favor of a fiberglass '00R hood and I'll be keeping the fiberglass trunk. I can't justify spending $1700 on carbon fiber to lose next to no weight, even if it looks cool.
Basically, here's what the front bumper will look like without the splitter:
And here's what it will look like with the splitter:
And I'm still in the air about the spoiler; the Cobra R wing looks better in person than it does pictures, and (once again) it's functional, but the Saleen spoiler looks good all-around but isn't nearly as functional.
