Paxton then brakes then suspension, no no no suspension then brakes then

Hey Guys,

I am new to this forum and for the most part just lurk
in the backgroud reading and learning. I met some of your members at
the Tulsa Claremore show and I really enjoy your forum. I was hoping to
get some advice from those that have time to respond.

Right now I have a 2006 GT Eleanor mustang that I love to drive. My goal is
to get a Paxton supercharger by March of next year in time for me and
my 6 year old son to do the Mustang across America trip. The problem I
have is that I will have the $6500 to $8500 (different quotes)
hopefully by December but I dont know what order to do the upgrades. My
gut says get the Paxton ASAP and then the rest later as you see and
feel what needs to be changed. If I do this I assume the mustang will
float like a river barge which is ok I guess for a short amount of
time?

Suspension- This cervini eleanor kits sit pretty low
with stock springs so is it possible to keep the ride height but
improve the suspension? Every once in a while I will hit a bad bump and
rake the bottom and it always seems to be in front of 4 or 5 hot girls.
Last time I could'nt tell what they are saying but it was followed by
laughter. I dont really care because I am married and dont date that
much anymore.


Brakes-I am new the mustang world and I was surprised at how many people
noticed that I hadnt upgraded my brakes. I am in the computer software
business so I am part geek but never noticed the rotor size of
anything. I want to improve the brakes but I dont notice them being
really weak right now. $3000.00 for braking does not give me great joy
or excitement.

Clutch-Is it wrong to say that I will replace it when it dies?

KevinGT wrote: I dont really care because I am married and dont date that
much anymore.

LOL.. Now thats funny...

Oh and dont worry.. your not the only IT type here.

Hey Kevin! I remember you! How are things going?

First question goes towards your available $$... Will you be doing the install? or will you be having is done? Doing it yourself always frees up $$ for more parts.

If you have someone do your work, $6500 will eat all, if not most of of the SC with the install cost.

As far as what to do first... I've always been one to build a solid foundation before you build a house. That being said, the stock setup up works well, but yes, I would do susp. and brake upgrades first. You don't have to... but that's just me. It also depends on what you want to do with your car. Drag race? Road Race? Cruiser?

I would reccomend a good coil over setup over just springs like most do. especially with your body kit, this will give you performance and allow you to adjust the ride height to best suit your needs.

Control arms... Upper and lower are recommened. With a upper adjustable unit. This will help stick that new power to the ground and get rid of wheel hop.

Brakes... the rear are fine... I'd focus on the front for sure. A good set of 4 or 6 piston calipers and matching rotors will do the trick. Brembo and Baer are both good choices. Not sure what size rims you have, but a rule of thumb is rim size minus 4 inches for a rotor that will fit. Example... if you are running 18 inch rims... the largest rotor that will fit is 14 inches give or take a fraction of an inch.

Hope this helps...

BlackGT02 wrote:

KevinGT wrote: I dont really care because I am married and dont date that
much anymore.

LOL.. Now thats funny...

Oh and dont worry.. your not the only IT type here.

Me too... I'll be using that! ;)

Kevin... I'd call our sponsor. Archangel Motorsports. Ask for Kurtis. He's the top tuner around these parts. Would not trust no other.

2006GT wrote:Kevin... I'd call our sponsor. Archangel Motorsports. Ask for Kurtis. He's the top tuner around these parts. Would not trust no other.

He's been cool with me. When ever i stop by his shop, i always see him and the rest of the crew working on different projects. Supercharged, turbo and naturally aspirated cars. I got my part from him to do the rear suspension for my stang and it made a bid difference. "bye bye wheel hop." he treats me good and not like them Car DX guys do.

Steer clear of Car FX. Overpriced and have a history of ripping folks off if you don't really watch them. Are you dead set on the paxton kit? I know another one of our members just installed a procharger. Kurtis helped out some on this so he would be familiar with any pitfalls you may encounter. I would look into a brake upgrade for at least the front. FRPP sells the GT500 upgrade kit for the GT which brings the front rotors up in size and adds brembo calipers with more pistons. You can also find stock replacement rotors (drilled or slotted) and add some Hawk brand pads to improve the brakes a bit pretty cheap on fleabay. Tokiko D spec shocks are pretty good and offer user adjustability for jounce and stiffness. They go for around 700 bucks. This might be a way for you to improve the handling without breaking the bank. I would also look at control arms to help with the wheel hop. If you have any now you will have it twice as bad with the additional power. Be careful as well as you may have to upgrade your fuel system with the SC if it dosent come with the kit. The GT500 dual pump isn't cheap so be sure to watch out. Also you will want to replace your spark plugs with a heat range cooler than stock with the SC. Just some things to watch out for.

yah, what he said.

Kevin are you dead set on a centrifugal type supercharger? (IE paxton, procharger, vortech) With the money you have available to spend and most of your driving will be cruising I personally would go with the Saleen Blower, Kenne Bell, Or Whipple. These type of superchargers are a Twin screw type....similar to what comes on the Cobras and GT500s only more efficient. We have a few members running the Kenne Bell and swear by it. The Centrifugal superchargers like the Paxton take time to spool up and power doenst kick in until the upper RPMs. Whereas a twin screw kicks in instantly and will take out those deisel trucks...no problem.

Im going to guess here...But Car FX suggested the paxton. My opinion and most of the clubs...STAY AWAY from Car FX. I wouldnt trust them to change my wipers..hell it would cost me $100 to do so. CarFX suggests Paxton NOT because its the best choice for you...but because they are sponsored by them and get a great deal. My 2 cents.

As for Brakes: ....Some have just went to Rotopros.com and purchased the Drilled and slotted rotors with Hawk Performance pads...I have them and am very happy. BUT I am not running the power you will be. Like some others have suggested Baer and Brembo make some nice kits...the front brakes are the most important..if you want to wait on the rear brakes..that would be fine.

Suspension: Go with Fixed Lower control arms and relocation brackets if your lowered...I would suggest an adjustable Upper control arm so you can set your pininon angle. Some D-spec shocks will allow you to soften or stiffen your ride for perfect feel and performance


Again if I had the money.....the Saleen, Kenne bell, Or whipple would be my first choice.

Procharger is my #1 centrufugal...Paxton? lets just say not many are running them, so I cant give you my honest opinion.

As for Price....CarFX will Rip you off! Contact Kurtis at Archangel Motorosports and speak with him. Let him know what your looking to get out of the car and what he suggest...twin screw or centrifugal.

Hope this helps. Let us know if we need to go into dept about any paticular area you still unclear about. We are happy to help.

Also you might take a ride in Docs car...he has the procharger...then take a ride in Jeremy or Jeffs, they have the twin screws, then make a decision.

Thanks everyone for the feedback. I spoke with Justin at ArchAngels and we had a good conversation. One thing he said really hit home and that was my wife could drive this car and wouldnt know the difference unless she got on the pedal. That is exactly what I am looking for as far as boost being there if I choose to use it.

Grabber, all your assumptions are correct. That is kinda scary but you are dead on. So what would be the best opportunity to see these supercharged mustangs that you mention? Do you guys host a car show or have some events coming up. It is getting late in the year so I might have missed the chance.

FYI, Curtis was at the lower end of all the estimates I recieved.

You might message Doc, Jeremy, Chris (427R), and Jeff.

Doc has the procharger, Jeremy has the Kenne Bell, Chris has the Roushcharger (roots type similar to the kenne bell), and Jeff also has the Kenne bell, But is running in the neighborhood of 600rwhp...so that might be a little extreme hehe.

Oh yeah Jerry on the forums has a 2003 sonic Blue Cobra with a Eaton roots type supercharger on his...has around 427 rwhp..thats about what you would want. Take a ride in his and see what you think.....its very streetable...and stock like when your not in the gas.

I honestly think a twin screw is your best bet for everyday WIFE driveablity. You will never know its there until you smash the gash...and even then its controlable.


Hey David or Paul...do we have everyones contact info we could PM Kevin?

Mr. McKay was working on the list...

Twin screw...

Just let me know who you want to talk to and I'll see if I have their info.

Great, I will get back with you guys when I am ready to move forward. Taking the wife on the cruise which will be good timing to break the news that I am spending 7k to go faster.

lol. good luck. may the car gods be with you.

You may not need to spend 7k...but plan on it...just in case


Im thinking WHIPPLE for you Kevin...I think it would look great under the hood...go with the Black Whipple!! although Chrome would look amazing as well!

The great thing about the Whipple kits are that they come with the Dual GT500 pump setup. This is to make sure you dont run out of fuel and reduces the chance of running lean.

CHROME WHIPPLE

http://www.superchargersonline.com/images/productimages/whipple_05_mustang.jpg

BLACK WHIPPLE

http://www.allfordmustangs.com/forums/attachments/power-adders/31373d1186357334-frp-whipple-supercharger-review-blower1.jpg

The whipple kits have gone up in price though...For the intercooled kit I think they run around 6800 or so. A Kenne Bell or Saleen Supercharger would be cheeper. BUT those kits dont come with the dual fuel pumps which is worth another $700 to $800

Kenne Bell in BLACK

http://www.dragtimes.com/images/10365-2006-Ford-Mustang.jpg

Kenne Bell POLISHED

http://home.comcast.net/~it.works/cam.jpg

Of course I like the Whipple being that it is the most expensive model. Since I have only been in a stage 3 I will have to see some of these examples first hand. The only thing I have decided is that it is going to be polished.

Roush-

Pros- The charger can get me to 445 and the M90 seems to be well respected in the market place. They have a great polished look that will fit in nicely and they seem to be built on the safe side. I don’t get a lag because it is twin screw and I don’t plan to start upgrading the engine to get more than 445. If I do I will be single and have less cash on hand.

Cons- You can only get 445 HP out of these units or maybe a little more. My dream of being the fastest street racer ever and being sponsored by Bold Moves would be dead. Granted I have never been to a quarter mile track in my life but this dream could happen. I work in software so I understand not being on a beta release or first release but the M90 is long in the tooth. I never like buying something that others are already looking to upgrade away from and 445HP is an absolute limit for the SC. My last concern is that I don’t want my car to be considered a poser.

Kenne Bell-

Pros- Seem to have a good standing in the market place but are more performance based than Roush. I would have room to grow if I did decide to upgrade engine components. The price is lower than the Whipple and Curtis can do the install which adds a certain comfort level to the process.

Cons- The worse looking SC of the bunch. I can’t put my finger on it but it doesn’t look as sharp as the others. I guess it is more of a plated look than a forged steel look if that makes sense. I also am not sure about the boost-a-pump as the ultimate solution for me. I don’t want knobs mounted anywhere if I can help it.

Whipple-

Still researching this one. I love the look and the room to grow but cost drives everything.

WOW Kevin...you hit the nail on the head!! Great write up!!

Have you thought about the Magnuson Magnacharger? Priced very nicely and is very much more attrative than the Kenne Bell.

Here is a write up on it

http://www.steeda.com/products/steeda_magnuson_supercharger_s197.php

SOme pictures

http://images.mustangandfords.com/featuredvehicles/m5lp_0712_04_z+funkmaster_mustang_s197+black_mustang_engine_bay.jpg

http://www.fordmustangfaqs.com/wp-content/uploads/2006/08/steeda-magnuson-magnacharger-supercharger.jpg

Hmmm anyone have the TVS2300 ROUSHcharger. That seems like the best of both worlds maybe.

TVS has produced some great numbers...BUT it is an Eaton style blower....Does not compress the air, basically just blows it into the motor...which generates more heat. The Twin Screw supercharger is much more efficient as it compresses the air as it enters the motor. Also offers a cooler charger and added with an intercooler gives the best of both worlds..

BUT yes the TVS Roush supercharger comes on the Roush P51As and JDM has produced 500 something RWHP with one...by only adjusting the tune.

In the end its your Budget and decision. I would say Buy what you like :) How much are those TVS superchargers anyway? Im going to guess expensive.

[b]KB

Congrats! I'm sure you will be happy with which ever way you decide to go.

although the whipple is a prettier blower and will most likely always give you the power you are looking for i would personally go with the tvs blower. if in the future you do decide to get stupid with your need for power levels the tvs has more capabilities for power levels and will support levels around the 1000 hp mark. 7000 installed is a pretty good deal also. i would say if you never ever plan on pushing the limits that far then go with the whipple. to do all that extra power of course will mean much much more money in the car. the stock bottom end will only hold around 450. there's a some guys that will push 500 to the wheels on a very good conservative tune. is the dealer also going with a dyno tune also i hope. i would also suggest you don't forget to get some guages to keep track of your fuel pressure, boost, and a/f.

Thanks for the reply Psycho. At least with the TVS I would be buying the newer technology. The counter to that is do I really need that extra HP if I dont plan to use it. I know that I would be at the bottom end of the the TVS and the top end of the Whipple.

I told the guy this morning if he can get me a polished TVS then I would do it. lol that is a terrible way to make a decision but at this point I am happy either way. He says that Roush owes him a favor or two and that he will call them today.

what are you wanting out of the car in the future. how long will you keep it and what are your power goals. if you don't plan on ever forging your bottom end then you'll never even touch the power potential of the whipple and i'd go with that long before the tvs. if you truely don't think you'll ever want to make this a dedicated race car or a car just to say hey look how much power i have. you'll be able to push 600+ rwhp with the whipple. you in reality should never need that kind of power on the street.

Its up to you kevin I think you will be happy with whatever you decide. Both the TVS and Whipple are great blowers! It all comes down to $ and your individual needs. Go with your gut!! And let us know how it ends up!.

Good Luck!