5 best mods

I have a bone-stock 1990 SC and was wondering what the 5 best mods would be to start off with. Three things I plan to do first are:
1. Put a 5-speed in it.
2. Solid engine mounts(originals are shot)
3. New exhaust from manifolds back.

What would be the 5 best mods to do next?
Thanks for all replies.

Why on earth do you want to go to all the trouble to change to a 5 speed?

Put a 5-speed in it.

Click to expand...

Yes do not go through the trouble

Although nitrous is always a good power adder

Hey Kuhnga, you did a great job of rowing those gears! Not many people have done that, the automatic usually comes out the winner there.

If those guys already talked you out of a 5 speed swap then I'd say you will need gears. Then my list of bolt-on mods would be (listed in random order):

1) Underdrive Pulleys
2) OD SC pulley
3) 73mm MAF
4) Some type of Cold Air Intake
5) It depends on how far you plan to go, I'll let others reply

before you do anything, get the full exhuast system done!!! then you can add stuff like the OD pulley

Stock SC would mean the BEST mods are the FIRST mods you should do.

#1 - Exhaust. They key being to replace the stock resonator. But do it all (headers, high flow cats) if you have the cash.

#2 - Intake. Removing the air silencer is the first item. After that it depends on how much money you have and how far you have taken exhaust. I'd take exhaust to the extreme before sinking too much money into intake upgrades. Certainly a larger MAF, then larger TB, cold air intake, 5% pulley. After that it starts to get a little more pricy.

Without more info on you specific goals, it's hard to get specific.

There are new mods available now that are also worth considering. Aluminum Jackshaft pulley being one that is sticking in my mind.

def. what Kurt and Mike said......

Just get it out of the way. Exhaust can be expensive, but in the long run it's worth it.
Have you thought about where you eventually want your car to end up?

13's, 12's....?

that would be a good place to start, then you could figure the order in which to modify.


Skip

Trouble? What Trouble?

The way I see it is I don't have any fun driving my car while it has an automatic in it. I love shifting the gears, upshifting, downshifting and all that good stuff. In my humble opinion an automatic doesn't give a car that "sport" feel. I know the automatics are the fastest on average right now but nothing beats running through the quarter with a 5-speed. It requires more skill and timing and your ET reflects it. The manual transmission has been the performance standard from the 60's Mustangs to the 2003 Cobra's. People always ask me why I like these 4,000 lb. boats, "they're too big and too heavy for a serious performer" they say. I usually remind them that the 1971 BOSS 351 with the toploader 4-speed was one of the fastest production Mustangs ever produced, even faster than their beloved Fox Bodies, and those were big, heavy, boats. In my opinion automatics take away some of the challenge of drag racing. If I beat someone in the quarter mile I want to know that my car was faster, my reaction time was quicker and I won shifting my own gears. It's more fun to me than just pulling up to the staging lights and punching the pedal when the green lights. That's why I say trouble? What trouble? It will be a pleasure putting a 5-speed in my car regardless of the trouble. I've wanted one of these cars for so long that anything I do to it will be a labor of love. These cars are underappreciated by the racing world and I want to be at the track representing the SC family by beating all the stangs and camaros I can (don't get me wrong, I love mustangs, can't say that about camaros though).
Anyway, that's why on earth I want a 5-speed in my car.

P.S. I would like to be in the 13's at some point.

hey man.. i say you get a bad *** shift kit like me and burn every STICK SHIFT car that comes your way on the street.
My tranny was rebuild about 8000 miles ago and it feels so good.
it downshifts at the right spots and upshifts very firm.
lets not forget also that im running :

a home made intake
and a one of those MAF from a 92 i think bored just a little

with stock exhaust

Let me think about it. NO! Me Wanna 5-speed. In case ya wonder why I didn't just buy a Bird with a 5 speed in it already i'ts because I got a really good deal on this car, it was close, and it is in perfect condition(cosmetically that is, mechanically has a few minor gremlins).

1. Exhaust
2. STIEGEMEIER head & cam.
3. BBK 75MM throttle body
4. C&L MAF 76MM.
5.MP magnaport II blower.
6. MP PLENUM.
7. 38 to 42lb injectors.
8. Raised top.
9.. chip-tune.

I hated my auto, untill I got it set up.I know what you mean about the 5 speed.
If you get the auto set up right,and some horse in front of it,you'll start grinin.

I think Kuhnga really has a air shifter,he just won't say I think he runs two bottels
one air and one no2

RANDY

Anybody want to buy an automatic setup? 75,000 miles on it. Sent all my money to XR7 Dave for 5-speed setup. Wife doesn't understand.....I'm gonna miss her. J/K

As long as your not gonna miss your SC is all that counts. Also, I agree with the 5-speed argument! I have an auto and a 5speed SC, and I love driving them both...but the 5speed is MUCH more fun!

PS - I even like the 2.73 rear gears in the 5speed...makes highway speeds much higher! Also, lemme know how you make out with the 5speed swap ... thats an option running through my head for the auto!

Darkside said:

Let me think about it. NO! Me Wanna 5-speed. In case ya wonder why I didn't just buy a Bird with a 5 speed in it already i'ts because I got a really good deal on this car, it was close, and it is in perfect condition(cosmetically that is, mechanically has a few minor gremlins).

Click to expand...

I pulled a 91 5 speed tranny off a SC motor that I bought. The boneyard wants $400 for it. I was going to buy tranny and all, but I thought that was high for the tranny. I gave $75 for the motor.

i have an auto and a 5 speed i like the 5 speed much better
after the exhaust i would get a k&n filter 180 thermostat
and colder sparkplugs

I got a 5 speed and love the sport feel that you are talking about. BUT I hate the darm traffic around here stopping and downshifting, going and upshifting, stopping again and downshifting. ARGHHH!! It is sweet on a back windy road though!

As the first few said, you GOTS to do the exhaust first. It is so chocked up I can't beleive my car ran. After the Ex everybodys opinions and taste differ from rear gears to intake mods to SC mods. Take your pick and see what you can afford.

Another .02.

You and most everybody else has hit #1 - heads back exhaust.

#2 Also un-cork the intake - low restriction intake w/70mm TB & 73mm MAF (you may consder this 3 mod's, but I count it as a matched set)

#3 SC OD pulley

#4 Larger IC w/cooling fan

#5 Ported heads - install ARP head studs while you're at it.

Lee

BTW: the Lentech VB w/OD delete switch allows very nice up/down shifting without wearing out your left knee in rush(?) hour traffic. Just .02 more: a 5spd is better in something that loves to live above 6,000rpm and lower torque - a good shifting auto for anything that loves under 6,000rpm and has torque. Just my own little rule of thumb. I bought a "real" Boss 302 in '69 off the showroom floor and that rush to 7,500rpm was a lot of fun with a "beginner's" box.

Yes, that was a cheap shot, but I also had a '90 5spd (which my son now has down in San Diego), so I've had experience with owning/driving both. You notice which one I still have?

I have only one thing to say. The 5 speeds are fun to drive as I have one -o- them, but the first time your racing & miss 3rd gear you'll wish you had an auto when the you had the guy & he blows by you....I have one -o- them too!
with the right power and the right trans that auto will smoke a set of street tires to the ground through 3 gears, and the only way you'll know it shifted is watching the tach, as the smoke continues to roll.
A 260 rwhp auto SC with a trans go kit and a set of 3.73s on some hard street tires will do it anytime.
Put the drag radials on & look out!
Of course this can take about 3K to get there.

The advantage of an automatic is consistancy! You are not going to get that with a manual tranny I dont care how good you are.
4 of my cars are manual tranny and they are fun to drive but they are smaller cars with high HP(well the Ranger is'nt high HP) The SC is a bigger car with lots of torque and all that torque is what makes it a good car for an auto tranny.
An Auto on my other 4 cars would kill them as far as any kind of acceleration goes but the SC pulls it off very nicely, if it did'nt I would change it out as I normaly dont care for auto tranny's but as I said earlier the SC has enough torque to make an auto work real good.