Colby's Gt350 Drag Build and Adventure Thread!

[coyote.colby]

Hi fellow Mustang enthusiasts,

I thought I'd create a thread to share my GT350 Journeys! this thread was inspired by honeybadger and i hope this inspires and helps others!

a bit about me and the car: My name is Colby. I'm 21 years old, turning 22 in February, and I'm from Virginia!
As a kid, I always had an eye for anything with a motor cars, trucks, and bikes. Eventually, that turned into a passion for Mustangs and motorsports like drag racing, NASCAR grassroots oval, and IMSA, and that led me into buying my first Mustang, a 2015 GT Premium 6-speed manual, in December of 2023. Unfortunately, in September, after Mustang Week 24, that car got totaled due to the passenger rear shock mount retaining clip failing and coming out of the mount, causing the shock to drop out of the car, and that leads us to where we are now!


October 14th, 2024, I went to test drive a 2018 Kona Blue GT350 convenience package car and immediately fell in love. Two days later (October 16th, 2024), I went back to buy the car. It was a 2-owner, 20k-mile car from Maryland. I paid 59,909 OTD. The car had Recaros and the original owner's kit and car cover!!! The car had an x-pipe on it from one of the old owners but was bone stock other than that. since I've only done a mgw short throw shifter and a 93 tune from Lund.


my plan: My plan for the car is to do the build in waves and leave a manual transmission in the car!!! Yes, I know this costs more money, but I want to experience the car in N/A and boosted and also push it in both categories. So far, the car has trapped at a 13.0 at 113 MPH with the stock tune. I know that seems slow for the car, but there is a reason, and that is the driver. I'm not a small guy; I'm 5'11 at 350 lbs.

the start of the n/a build and what i have ordered as of now : I have a set of 2" x 3" long tube headers on the way from ARH. I will be using the x-pipe that is on the car for now and stock mufflers. Next will be a set of injectors, a Cobra Jet intake, a VMP twin jet 67mm throttle body, a PMAS CJ cold air, and an E85 tune from Lund with a set of 18" VMS and ET Street Rs, then it will be off to the track when they open back up! Soon I will be swapping a set of Mustang GT rear brakes to the car so I can run a 17" rim and I'm going to test if a ported manifold it is worth it, , but anyway, that's enough jibber jabbering for now.


Thank you for reading todays Adventure! if you have any questions dent hesitate to ask me!

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[TonyNJ]

What track will you be running at in the spring? Will you be removing the interior seats and such for weight savings? Good luck with all.

 

[coyote.colby]

What track will you be running at in the spring? Will you be removing the interior seats and such for weight savings? Good luck with all.

i will be at Virginia Motorsports Park and Maryland international raceway!

the interior seats will be coming out front and rear


im also trying to get the car down to sc mustang week

 

[NGOT8R]

You’re about to embark on a very fun and challenging experience, I sort of did the same thing with my 2019 Bullitt and man has it been one heck of a ride.

Getting your car to hook is going to be the biggest challenge. Suspension mods are going to be essential in helping you achieve the results you’re looking for and then there’s going to be the challenge of dialing in the proper shock settings.

and address all weak links like the clutch, transmission, driveshaft, half shafts and differential bushings to help remove as much slop as possible from the drivetrain. clutch slipper device would also be a good idea (stick with the original version of the Clutch Tamer instead of their Hitmaster, which is what I have on my car. It has been tough to dial it in, but all has not been lost, because I truly believe that it has helped save my drivetrain from destruction. The alternative to the a clutch slipper device is mastering the use of the clutch and throttle to manually slip the clutch on launch yourself. Many have/are successful in doing it this way as well.

Lastly, be forewarned that this is about to get very expensive (literally thousands more than the exhaust and drag pack setup that you’re gonna be running soon).

What are your ET/MPH goals both NA and boosted?

I wish you the best and have as much fun as you possibly can with it.

 

[coyote.colby]

You’re about to embark on a very fun and challenging experience, I sort of did the same thing with my 2019 Bullitt and man has it been one heck of a ride.

Getting your car to hook is going to be the biggest challenge. Suspension mods are going to be essential in helping you achieve the results you’re looking for and then there’s going to be the challenge of dialing in the proper shock settings.

and address all weak links like the clutch, transmission, driveshaft, half shafts and differential bushings to help remove as much slop as possible from the drivetrain. clutch slipper device would also be a good idea (stick with the original version of the Clutch Tamer instead of their Hitmaster, which is what I have on my car. It has been tough to dial it in, but all has not been lost, because I truly believe that it has helped save my drivetrain from destruction. The alternative to the a clutch slipper device is mastering the use of the clutch and throttle to manually slip the clutch on launch yourself. Many have/are successful in doing it this way as well.

Lastly, be forewarned that this is about to get very expensive (literally thousands more than the exhaust and drag pack setup that you’re gonna be running soon).

What are your ET/MPH goals both NA and boosted?

I wish you the best and have as much fun as you possibly can with it.

E/T: N/A i would like to be in the high/mid 11s, boosted starting goal would be 9s but end game goal would be 7s so i can go to the world cup final's with a car that has the et and mph to go rounds

Suspension: magneride will get deleted out of the car at some point and time and would be going to keltac stuff etc


weak links: i will be going to mantic for a clutch, the 3160 will be staying in the car until it goes boom! and when it does I'm unsure of going to a tr6060 or keeping the 3160 I've also saw that calmer makes a mt-82 d4 swap for this car, as for a clutch tamer/slipper i have been looking at magnus motorsports slipper and do you have any suggestions on a good set of differential bushings? BMR?

and on the money side of things i know hundreds of thousands more but we only live once right?


p.s. when the headers get here i will start uploading "vlog" style of videos to my youtube that is linked here with the header install pov drives racing the car etc kinda like the early its justa 6 days from 2018!

 

[coyote.colby]

i will also be doing a run with the car to see what it can do as it sits with just the 93 tune from lund

 

[NGOT8R]

E/T: N/A i would like to be in the high/mid 11s, boosted starting goal would be 9s but end game goal would be 7s so i can go to the world cup final's with a car that has the et and mph to go rounds

You should be able to achieve the mid/high 11s N/A with not too much trouble.

Suspension: magneride will get deleted out of the car at some point and time and would be going to keltac stuff etc

Mine is a Magneride car too, but I did delete the rears to install KellTrac double adjustables. See link here for when you get to that point.

https://www.mustang6g.com/forums/threads/diy-magneride-delete-option.196442/#post-3939260

weak links: i will be going to mantic for a clutch, the 3160 will be staying in the car until it goes boom! and when it does I'm unsure of going to a tr6060 or keeping the 3160 I've also saw that calmer makes a mt-82 d4 swap for this car, as for a clutch tamer/slipper i have been looking at magnus motorsports slipper and do you have any suggestions on a good set of differential bushings? BMR?

I hear the Mantic is a good clutch. Will you be running through the factory clutch before the swap?

If you go with the Calimer MT82-D4, I believe you can get better gearing in it. Having said that, I would suggest talking to Calimer about what gearing closely aligns with your goals.

Any slipper will be of benefit to you, if nothing else, it will help preserve your drivetrain.

I have the Steeda differential bushings (black ones) with their through bolt kit. I imagine BMR bushings would be comparable though.

and on the money side of things i know hundreds of thousands more but we only live once right?

Facts!

p.s. when the headers get here i will start uploading "vlog" style of videos to my youtube that is linked here with the header install pov drives racing the car etc kinda like the early its justa 6 days from 2018

 

[mavisky]

If you go with the Calimer MT82-D4, I believe you can get better gearing in it. Having said that, I would suggest talking to Calimer about what gearing closely aligns with your goals.

GT350's don't have the MT82 in them. They have the Tremec 3160 that also comes in the Mach 1.

OP - I wish you the best of luck in this build, but the reason almost no one goes this route with GT350's is because all the stuff you paid extra for in the GT350 over an automatic Mustang GT is all going to be stuff you're going to have to rip and replace along the way.

Massive brakes - gotta go for a drag setup as the rear brakes are too big for a drag setup
Magneride - not only does it have to go, you have to buy a $400 electronic device to fool the car into thinking you didn't delete it
Tremec trans - it will hold a basic blower setup, but get north of 800hp and it's going to have to be replaced with a built T56 or TR6060 or something.
Engine - building the FPC is more expensive than the Coyote as the parts are rarer and it's cheaper and more reliable to get a CPC in the car.

You've taken the road less traveled here, but it's because others realized how hard of a road it is and turned around. For the money you spent on a GT350, and all the parts you're going to have to remove, over a GT you could have been halfway down your mod list and boosted already.

 

[NGOT8R]

GT350's don't have the MT82 in them. They have the Tremec 3160 that also comes in the Mach 1.

OP - I wish you the best of luck in this build, but the reason almost no one goes this route with GT350's is because all the stuff you paid extra for in the GT350 over an automatic Mustang GT is all going to be stuff you're going to have to rip and replace along the way.

Massive brakes - gotta go for a drag setup as the rear brakes are too big for a drag setup
Magneride - not only does it have to go, you have to buy a $400 electronic device to fool the car into thinking you didn't delete it
Tremec trans - it will hold a basic blower setup, but get north of 800hp and it's going to have to be replaced with a built T56 or TR6060 or something.
Engine - building the FPC is more expensive than the Coyote as the parts are rarer and it's cheaper and more reliable to get a CPC in the car.

You've taken the road less traveled here, but it's because others realized how hard of a road it is and turned around. For the money you spent on a GT350, and all the parts you're going to have to remove, over a GT you could have been halfway down your mod list and boosted already.

Yes, I’m aware that the GT350 doesn’t come with the MT82-D4 tranny. The OP mentioned he might look into swapping out his 3160 for one, so I was suggesting that if he did go that route, to speak with Calimer to have it geared in a way that would supplement his goals.

You are correct in that a lot of the attributes of the GT350 will be discarded in order to convert to a good drag race setup. Magneride is a big one, but can be overcome or worked around much more cheaply than initially thought. I’ve already done it on my car (rear only) and will likely do the same mod up front when I upgrade the struts.

I agree that there are limitations to the 3160, and/or all transmissions for that matter. The best we can do is try and enhance or upgrade parts that will hopefully let us push the combos much further toward our goals. While I have a fully built MT82-D4 in my car, I don’t think it’s invincible, therefore, it is always in the back of my mind as to what I will do next if it grenades itself. It’s a slippery slope and a risk we take when pushing the envelope into uncharted territory.

I wholeheartedly agree that I’ve taken the road less traveled, just like the OP plans to do. It has been extremely expensive (far more than I would have imagined at this point to have power and torque in the mid 600 range). U fortunately, than still isn’t enough for me, which is why I am preparing for boost in the very near future. There’s a very good chance that I‘ll discover even more weak links (like the Torsen or my already enhanced D4 tranny). It’s going to come down to me having to cross my fingers and toes every single time I push the car hard and hope that it lives to fight another day.

I’m excited for the OP and hope to learn some things from him and many others who are going down this rabbit hole.

 

[mavisky]

Missed his post about the MT82 swap. Have never heard of anyone doing that. All the high hp GT350's I know stick with the 3160 before moving to a T56 or TR6060. A built MT82 seems like a small improvement over the 3160 and an RPM built 56/6060 would be a better long term investment if big power and drag racing are your goals.

 

[coyote.colby]

Yes, I’m aware that the GT350 doesn’t come with the MT82-D4 tranny. The OP mentioned he might look into swapping out his 3160 for one, so I was suggesting that if he did go that route, to speak with Calimer to have it geared in a way that would supplement his goals.

You are correct in that a lot of the attributes of the GT350 will be discarded in order to convert to a good drag race setup. Magneride is a big one, but can be overcome or worked around much more cheaply than initially thought. I’ve already done it on my car (rear only) and will likely do the same mod up front when I upgrade the struts.

I agree that there are limitations to the 3160, and/or all transmissions for that matter. The best we can do is try and enhance or upgrade parts that will hopefully let us push the combos much further toward our goals. While I have a fully built MT82-D4 in my car, I don’t think it’s invincible, therefore, it is always in the back of my mind as to what I will do next if it grenades itself. It’s a slippery slope and a risk we take when pushing the envelope into uncharted territory.

I wholeheartedly agree that I’ve taken the road less traveled, just like the OP plans to do. It has been extremely expensive (far more than I would have imagined at this point to have power and torque in the mid 600 range). U fortunately, than still isn’t enough for me, which is why I am preparing for boost in the very near future. There’s a very good chance that I‘ll discover even more weak links (like the Torsen or my already enhanced D4 tranny). It’s going to come down to me having to cross my fingers and toes every single time I push the car hard and hope that it lives to fight another day.

I’m excited for the OP and hope to learn some things from him and many others who are going down this rabbit hole.

^ this is couldn't have said it better then you! at the end of the the day i want to push the envelope and help others that have gt350/Bullitt/mach1 that want to do the same stuff as us and hopefully this inspires company's to start making more parts for these cars (more so the gt350) as we lack a lot of aftermarket support for exterior interior performance parts some of the big items for the gt350 are hoods and turbo kits/parts etc

 

[coyote.colby]

if any one wanting to know what version of arh headers I've order these are them should hopefully hear something from them about where they are!

 

[coyote.colby]

update headers will be here tomorrow and should be on the car with in the next 2 weeks

 

[Inthehighdesert]

It’s your car, do what you want. That said, I’ve had an fi’d 350 with lots of mods. The aftermarket is not going to do any more develoment with the 350 then is already present. It’s a remarkable car, but it’s designed for road racing. It’s a very limited platform, and it’s out of production. There’s no getting around the Gt being a much better platform in almost every aspect if drag racing is what someone is after. You can literally take a Gt and in a weekish time have the car in the 8’s if that’s what you want, and for not a crazy amount of money. Hellion is local to me, and makes a great product, and whipple which I used has there setup very dialed in as well. There’s many others to.

^ this is couldn't have said it better then you! at the end of the the day i want to push the envelope and help others that have gt350/Bullitt/mach1 that want to do the same stuff as us and hopefully this inspires company's to start making more parts for these cars (more so the gt350) as we lack a lot of aftermarket support for exterior interior performance parts some of the big items for the gt350 are hoods and turbo kits/parts etc

 

[coyote.colby]

It’s your car, do what you want. That said, I’ve had an fi’d 350 with lots of mods. The aftermarket is not going to do any more develoment with the 350 then is already present. It’s a remarkable car, but it’s designed for road racing. It’s a very limited platform, and it’s out of production. There’s no getting around the Gt being a much better platform in almost every aspect if drag racing is what someone is after. You can literally take a Gt and in a weekish time have the car in the 8’s if that’s what you want, and for not a crazy amount of money. Hellion is local to me, and makes a great product, and whipple which I used has there setup very dialed in as well. There’s many others to.

i had a gt. i know that platform very well no need for me to go back to it, this industry is about money any company will make you anything as long as you have money sure some might say no but that doesn't mean you wont find one that will,


this is platform is far from being very limited all it is a edit gt chassis with some bells and whistles

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