Lorne34 Shelby GT350 Build: MESTENO

[DFB5.0]

It's all economies of scale. I was actually just thinking about this today-How amazing the GT350 is, but in order to make it affordable and obtainable to the avg person they had to make some compromises. It's not a luxury interior with aluminum and carbon fiber throughout. Mechanically they did some really great things, but had to draw a line somewhere. A lot of the S550 platform including from the A pillar back is shared off the same assembly line. If they had really pushed the details it would be a 6 figure car.
I'm just really grateful to own one and there is always after market stuff for things like pedals.

Very well said, and something a lot of people tend to forget. Same thing applied to our Aussie muscle cars, they had very humble origins and the money was spent on engines and styling, which is what sold cars.

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[Lorne34]

Very well said, and something a lot of people tend to forget. Same thing applied to our Aussie muscle cars, they had very humble origins and the money was spent on engines and styling, which is what sold cars.

Yeah I agree. At the end of the day it's about the driving experience and things like soft touch leather, high end sound systems and zero noise cabins just seem to fade away. Although I have to say I am pretty impressed with the cabins in these S550 models. Unless you have an obnoxiously loud exhaust that drones all the time the road noise is very minimal. I've gone on several 300+ mile trips down south and been super comfortable with a very quiet cabin. I love the fact that I can rev this car out in 2nd and 3rd gear making all kinds of incredibly violent noises, but then drop it in 6th and cruise home in "mustang luxury"
I do have several buzz/rattles that I plan to fix this winter yet. They have been documented thoroughly and relate to plastic parts not being padded enough. But once again, something I can fix.

 

[RushB]

New owner checking in from Madison! These warm days with salty roads and no rain are absolutely killing me! Do you plan to take yours out earlier than usual this year if it rains?

 

[Lorne34]

New owner checking in from Madison! These warm days with salty roads and no rain are absolutely killing me! Do you plan to take yours out earlier than usual this year if it rains?

Hey There!
This has been the weirdest winter in a long time. We had 68 degrees on Tuesday and then woke up to 12 degrees with minus 2 wind chill. I don't expect mine to be out until late March early April. Happens every year.. March has some yucky weather. Don't want to risk the salt as you mentioned. It's coming, but patience is a virtue in WI...

 

[Lorne34]

Buzz Rattle Journal Entry 2.0 I FINALLY got around to addressing the two annoying buzz rattle noises coming from the C Pillar area by the passenger side quarter window and the main front dash.
Thanks to all of the guys who contributed on this thread for providing me guidance on the source of the C pillar noise.
https://www.mustang6g.com/forums/threads/rear-passenger-side-rattle-buzz.20650/page-7

There were two issues with the C pillar situation. One was the air bag cannister located in the panel above the rear quarter window. The metal bracket which houses the canister was contacting the plastic behind it. This required sticking insulation behind the canister steel bracket to create a buffer between it and the plastic.
The other problem was the high density foam attached to the back of the lower panel which had disconnected partially from the panel and was creating noise as it rubbed against the side of the bodies sheet metal.
I thought about removing the foam, but read this statement regarding safety and instead decided to re-attach using dynamat and 3m adhesive spray.

Some car companies, such as Ford, add impact-absorbing foam blocksbetween the inner door panels and the interior trim during the car panel installation process. These foam blocks are placed near the occupant's chest and hip areas to protect them during an impact [Source: Ford].

The complete process required removing the rear seats and both side panels. While I was in there I decided to dynamat some small areas that had a bit of a tinny feel to them. I also placed dynamat on the metal where the foam contacted the body of the car.
I won't know the results until I can get the car out this spring for a test drive but initial indications are that this should solve the C pillar problem.
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[Lorne34]

NEXT was the front dash panel rattle. Thanks to this contributor for their You Tube Video guidance..

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I had to remove the whole dash panel up to the main guage cluster. I then installed small pads called Hush Mat to all of the contact areas inside the panel itself and also on the dash trim.
I also noticed that the tabs on the two round gauges had plastic tape wrapped around the clips. I removed each guage and applied the hushmat to those tabs in place of the blue plastic tape.
I removed the front dash speaker cover as well and added some padding there just for extra measure. Pressing on the speaker cover did not replicate any noises, but wanted to make sure. This was much easier than the c pillar fix.
Hoping this does it!
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[Lorne34]

Trunk Project- I noticed some unwanted resonance coming from the Trunk Area of the Shelby. In order to investigate I needed to remove the insulated liner from both sides of the trunk area. Once inside there was a module attached to a very thin piece of sheet metal behind the subwoofer. I removed the module and applied dynamat between the unit and the metal. The sub mounts also received some dampening material.
Finally I decided to line the lower trunk area with dynamat/Kilmat to remove any potential rattling and provide a little better acoustics for the rear speakers and subwoofer. I know it creates a little more weight, but when on track everything is removed from the car, so a few extra lb/ounces is not going to make that much difference for what I am doing on the track. It was a pretty straightforward process.
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[Lorne34]

While in the trunk area I decided to pull the plug (black) on the Ford Modem which sends data back to corporate. You can read all about it here:
https://www.mustang6g.com/forums/threads/4g-modem-disabling-instructions.146860/page-23#post-3929983
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[Lorne34]

Bemaro Films badge overlays applied. These were tricky and very difficult to line up. I ended up having to remove and reapply, which was dicey, but they came out ok.
Really like the subtle accent to front and back.
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[Lorne34]

Did a full interior detail after the buzz rattle project. The interior glass really needed to be cleaned/degreased. I used rubbing alcohol to remove the initial grime and then cleaned each window. The back sloped window is a nightmare to clean, but I picked up this tool from Griots Garage which really made the process incredibly easy! Love the removable micro fibers which allow you to switch out from the alcohol to glass cleaner and then final drying process.
https://www.griotsgarage.com/window-cleaner-set/
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[Lorne34]

I wanted something for the engine bay radiator brace and found this custom plaque vendor on etsy. Was a bit hesitant at first to purchase off etsy, but this turned out to be very well made and high quality. Used rubbing alcohol and 3m surface prep to adhere.
Contemplated painting/powder coating the brace performance blue, but actually like the black and silver contrast.
Also removed the radiator prop rod. I had left it intact when installing the redline hood struts.
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[Lorne34]

ordered a replacement Motorcraft Radiator cap when I installed the Steeda Coolant Overflow tank thinking the original cap was somehow defective. It turns out the original was fine, but the fitment was different on the Steeda tank vs the Ford OEM. I did end up putting silicone on the threads when reinstalling the cap to keep the plastic threads from drying out. I also installed the Steeda Vinyl logo on the tank which I think works well with the black/silver theme of the engine bay.
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[Lorne34]

Installed the Bemaro Films Red Steering Wheel Stripe to the Shelby. Thought about doing Blue, but really liked the look of the Red Stripe. Unfortunately my steering wheel is not straight in the pictures as my wheels are on wheel dollies. But you get the idea.
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[Lorne34]

Added some Track Decals to the back window (Road America/Black Hawk Farms) along with something I picked up at the tail of the dragon. Hoping to add a few more tracks in the future. I also added some destination vinyl to the inside of the trunk.
Finally my MCA logo in quarter window.
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[Ballistica]

Added some Track Decals to the back window (Road America/Black Hawk Farms) along with something I picked up at the tail of the dragon. Hoping to add a few more tracks in the future. I also added some destination vinyl to the inside of the trunk.
Finally my MCA logo in quarter window.
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Curious to know where you got the track stickers from?

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