Mach V - cuz I'm tired of waiting for Mach 1

[KazzMANIA]

Wildcatgoal - Thanks! It should be a real fun ride when done. Originally I had spec'd Steeda for most of my suspension related components but, as often happens, budget demanded certain cuts. I picked up the SR Performance bits when American Muscle had them on sale. I saved nearly $200 on the collection compared to Steeda - hope I didn't save the wrong dollar.

There are lots of bits i'd change out if money were no object. I'd love to be running JRZ RS Pro coilovers but that's an extra $4000CAN - maybe more. I'd also like to swap the seats for Cobra's Mosano Anniversary with the upgraded Planted connection kit. But that's another $5000CAN. Gorgeous seats, and way lighter than the Recaros offered in the R (or so I'm told). While I'm dreaming, I should throw in Whipple's twin rad fan kit ($600CAN) and the Ford rear seat delete ($1000CAN). I'd also put in JLT's front brake cooling duct kit to make sure those tiny Aerospace rotors don't burst into flames ($350CAN). I'll keep the stock rear brake calipers but put in Baer's ultra light eradispeed rotors back there - $1100CAN. Then I'm done! I swear to God, THEN I'M DONE. Not one more mod-- not one more penny. ...Well ...maybe a Watson fra--

Wildcatgoal - you are going to cost me a lot of money talking like that! Do only obsessive-compulsives buy Mustangs?

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[plc268]

I'm curious about your brake choice for the fronts. I understand the goal is weight reduction, but you're bolting on an extra 300+ horsepower, and putting on weaker brakes. Seems counterintuitive to me. Personally I'd just do the two piece rotors and a 19" forged wheel instead.

I can't find a solid figure on the vossen wheel weight, but they seem to around ~26 lbs. Seems heavy with lighter 20s on the market. Especially since you'll have additional clearance to run smaller rims if weight savings are your real goal.

Not criticizing, I'm just curious as to why those brakes? Perhaps my idea that they're weaker may be completely unfounded as well. I don't know.

 

[KazzMANIA]

plc268 - You raise a good question and hit on my biggest concern about this build. I came across these brakes in several threads including one on this forum about S550 weight loss.

Despite all my efforts, I could not find anyone that had anything concrete to say about the performance of these brakes when used on a DD or canyon-carver scenario.

A tech at BMR had them installed on his build. I called BMR - the fellow was not available but another person that worked there said that the BMR tech was very happy with the performance of the Aerospace Pro Street kit on the drag strip and when street driving. This was not exactly the hard evidence I was looking for but at least it was a positive albeit second hand report.

I decided to call Aerospace directly. They could not give me the names of anyone that ran the Pro Streets on a DD mustang but they did let me talk to one of the techs. He explained that the 4 piston AC caliper will grab down on the 13" rotor with total force equal to or greater than the force being applied by the PP Brembo caliper biting into its 15" rotor. He said the Hawk pads on the AC are more aggressive and have as much biting surface as the pads on the Brembos. He said the Brembo 6 piston configuration has a mechanical advantage because it can apply pressure more evenly over the whole face of the pad but reiterated that it will not apply more net pressure. He said the larger rotors on the brembos will take more heat and give off the heat more quickly because of their much larger size but he also thought that except for hard-hitting stop-and-go track applications, the extra cooling capacity of the brembos wont add up to a real world advantage as a DD driven spiritedly.

So, I am rolling the dice. But the potential upshot in acceleration gained by (significantly) decreasing rotating mass is worth the gamble. If I put them on and they under-perform, back they will go.

Selecting good parts is never the hard part: selecting the right parts is forever the challenge. We want an assemblage that has no weak links but that is always informed by intended use. No build can be all things to all drivers. I want a DD that can show up at the strip and deliver impressive 0-60 and quarter mile time; one I can take out on a winding hillside road, run it to the max, and be terrified of the acceleration but always be confident in my stopping and cornering. I don't need a track car that can go toe-to-toe with a formula racer for three hours. I don't aim to set world records.

When the build is done, I'll try to test the car's limits. Hopefully, these tiny Aerospace kits won't be a weak link. I'll post my findings here.

The Vossen VSF-1 is certainly not the lightest wheel, but it is much lighter than many. I could not find any hard numbers on line so I called Vossen. They told me the 20x10.5 is a couple ounces under 25lbs. I have the wheels but they came with rubber on, nitrogen filled so I didnt pop off tire to check. The Alloy Technic 20x10.5 is only 21.6 pounds. There may be even lighter in aluminum but the cost starts to get crazy. The Vossen cost me $600 each. The Alloy Technic would have been over $1000 each to save 3.3 pounds rotating mass in each corner. If money was no object, I'd have done it. It can be hard to know where to draw the line. I hope I made a good choice with the Vossens. The decission to go 20" staggered wheels is the second big concern I have with this build. Performance is first and looks are second. But I just love the look of the slightly larger wheels. When I went and looked at the GT350R, my first thought was, "MAN, that's some big meats in the rear!" My second thought was, "the rims look a little small." Those two thoughts kept coming back to me. Every time I looked at the 350R with fresh eyes, the rims appeared too small. I am certain the wheel/tire size on the R is ideal for performance, but I dont want to spend the next 5 years convincing myself that it looks right when, to my eye, it really doesnt. This was one of those rare occasions in my life where I let form win out over function. I hope I wont regret it.

 

[plc268]

Yea, I suppose if you go with an aggressive brake pad and work on the brake cooling, it probably wouldn't be that bad... it just wouldn't hold up well in a track situation.

I myself have 20s on my car, and I think 20s look great, but I don't personally see much of a visual difference between 19s and 20s. My choice to go with 20s was for better tire selection. I think my TSW bathursts weigh under 22lbs (20.9.5 and 20x11), but that has alot to do with the spoke design and are probably not as strong as the vossens.

That visual difference you see in the gt350r probably has to do with the fact that they use a smaller diameter tire even to the gt350. Most mustangs are in the 27-27.5" diameter range, including the gt350. The gt350r's tires are 26.5" in diameter. So stack that up next to other mustangs, and it does look a bit small.

 

[KazzMANIA]

plc268 - I'm hoping it's a couple rungs up from "not that bad" but I won't know until they're on and can be put through their paces. Worst case scenario, I put the 6 piston Brembos back on and replace the stock rotors with Baer's 15" eradispeed. If the only issue is cooling, and brake fade is only a problem when the kit is run pretty hard and in high ambient temps - like California canyon carving on a hot summer day, JLT has a brake duct kit that replaces the fog lamps for air tubes.

Your TSW Bathurts are very similar to the Vossen VSF1 but look a little more tapered in the spoke and have more of a relief in the face. That suggests they have less material which would explain the lighter weight. If that's true, the vossen likely can take a bit more of a beating in terms of potholes and such. Price is about the same - Vossen looks to be a few more sheckles. I don't see a TSW 20x11 listed - 20x10.5 is as big as I can find, which is the size I'm running on the rear.

The extra 1" of tire diameter doesn't sound like much but it is noticeable.

 

[plc268]

Haha. Well, I meant not that bad, in that it'll probably perfectly adequate so long as you don't put excessive heat into them.

I think the 20x11 Bathursts were a special size for the mustang. There was very limited stock of them when I ordered mine. And yea, 1" of tire diameter makes a big difference. I've got a 28.6" tire diameter for the rear, and it filled out the tire well, even when it wasn't lowered and it definitely looks beefier compared to stock tires.

Anyway, I hope I didn't derail your thread too much here, and wish you the best of luck on your build. Will be interesting to see as it progresses.

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