Some questions for you Mustang guys...

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Thinking about getting an 89 5.0 LX with a 411 rear end. I'm not buying it for fuel economy, obviously, but could I reasonably expect to get... 20-ish on the way? (1 Canadian gallon = ~0.88 US gallon)

How much could I improve the handling with larger wheels and low profile tires?

How big of a job is a drum-to-disc conversion for the rear brakes?
 
epp_b said:
How much could I improve the handling with larger wheels and low profile tires?
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Putting on larger wheels and lower profile tires won't improve handling. They could actually make it worse. Tires grip by the rubber flexing and lower profile tires obviously flex a lot less. The only reason why you would want to increase the wheel size is so you can put in bigger brakes, which in turn means you need to put lower profile tires so that the total wheel radius won't increase too much.
 
Um... really? All of my experience with lower profile tires is that they make quite a big difference in handling. I'd certainly be doing some suspension work as well.

I wouldn't be aiming to get this thing on a track and I'd never expect it to out-corner a Miata or something ... I'd just be happy to get to the point where it could it shrug off lane changes and not lean so much doing down an off-ramp.
 
epp_b said:
Um... really? All of my experience with lower profile tires is that they make quite a big difference in handling. I'd certainly be doing some suspension work as well.
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It all depends. You should figure out which problems you're trying to fix, then figure out how to fix them. There are benefits from both stiffness and softness in the wheel/tire.

If you're getting a lot of sidewall flex, numbing turn-in and reducing feel, try tires with stiffer sidewalls and maybe a bit more tire pressure first. If this isn't enough, you might try a larger wheel and lower profile tire. If you do that, though, make sure you do not increase the total weight, as increasing wheel/tire weight reduces handling (and fuel economy, and ride quality, and... well, is worse for just about everything). If my memory is correct, OEM Mustang wheels tend to be on the heavy side, so you should be able to increase wheel size while reducing rotating mass.

Each car has a "sweet spot" for wheel diameter (and one for tire width, as well). Mustang people may be able to tell you the Mustang's sweet spot from others' experimentation. As I don't really know Mustangs, all I can do is help you understand which changes cause which results. :)
 
It all depends. You should figure out which problems you're trying to fix, then figure out how to fix them. There are benefits from both stiffness and softness in the wheel/tire.
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Like I said: just harder lane changes and road cornering. No racing. Comfort is of little importance to me; I'm 25, single and can do whatever the heck I want with a car.

If you're getting a lot of sidewall flex, numbing turn-in and reducing feel, try tires with stiffer sidewalls and maybe a bit more tire pressure first. If this isn't enough, you might try a larger wheel and lower profile tire. If you do that, though, make sure you do not increase the total weight, as increasing wheel/tire weight reduces handling (and fuel economy, and ride quality, and... well, is worse for just about everything). If my memory is correct, OEM Mustang wheels tend to be on the heavy side, so you should be able to increase wheel size while reducing rotating mass.
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Right. Pretty sure the stock ones on it are steel. I'd be getting aluminum ones for sure.
 
Better off dropping the Diff ratio if you want better fuel economy.
 
Yeah, I know. I've done asking around, I should be able to do 20ish (Canadian gallons) on the highway. With what little I drive, I'd be OK with that.
 
I think 20 is reasonable. These cars have an extremely tall overdrive. The boat anchor we used to call it in HS when me and my friends all had fox bodies. Mine had 3.73 gears and I was managing 20+ mpg highway. (US gallon)

The drum-to-disc isn't too big a deal. Just need to get an axle from an SN95 car out of the junkyard. It will be 5 lug, so you might want to convert the front to 5 lug as well with new spindles. You can kill two birds here if you get the axle and spindle from a 99+ car with the 17" wheels (I think) and big brakes.

From my experience, the stock wheels, tires, and brakes work fine if the suspension is in good shape. Me and my friend both had identical coupes. His suspension was in good shape, and mine was deplorable. Same wheel and tire size. Mine drove like a schooner and his felt very solid. So I would work on that first. Go through it with a fine tooth comb and replace all the bushings, springs, shocks, and anything else that looks worn. I really wouldn't recommend going through the trouble of replacing the brakes to be honest. They are fine unless you are tracking the car, then they will fade like crazy, but on the street that rarely happens.

My friends car and mine were basically identical except for the afformentioned, and I hated driving mine and loved driving his. Suspension wear makes an enormous difference. From another note of personal experience, another buddy had a hatch with pretty much the same mods as ours (bolt ons) but his had 17" wheels and low profile tires from a 2003 Mach 1. The handling difference wasn't really noticeable. Felt pretty much like the coupe in good shape.
 
Cobra IRS...

//Yes I know it won't help with fuel economy.
 
Eunos_Cosmo said:
I think 20 is reasonable. These cars have an extremely tall overdrive. The boat anchor we used to call it in HS when me and my friends all had fox bodies. Mine had 3.73 gears and I was managing 20+ mpg highway. (US gallon)
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5.0s are five lug already. Only Mustangs that weren't V8s to start had four lugs.
 
I think 20 is reasonable. These cars have an extremely tall overdrive. The boat anchor we used to call it in HS when me and my friends all had fox bodies. Mine had 3.73 gears and I was managing 20+ mpg highway. (US gallon)
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It's running at 2500 RPM at 60mph in 5th because of the 411 gears.

The drum-to-disc isn't too big a deal. Just need to get an axle from an SN95 car out of the junkyard. It will be 5 lug, so you might want to convert the front to 5 lug as well with new spindles. You can kill two birds here if you get the axle and spindle from a 99+ car with the 17" wheels (I think) and big brakes.

From my experience, the stock wheels, tires, and brakes work fine if the suspension is in good shape. Me and my friend both had identical coupes. His suspension was in good shape, and mine was deplorable. Same wheel and tire size. Mine drove like a schooner and his felt very solid. So I would work on that first. Go through it with a fine tooth comb and replace all the bushings, springs, shocks, and anything else that looks worn. I really wouldn't recommend going through the trouble of replacing the brakes to be honest. They are fine unless you are tracking the car, then they will fade like crazy, but on the street that rarely happens.

My friends car and mine were basically identical except for the afformentioned, and I hated driving mine and loved driving his. Suspension wear makes an enormous difference. From another note of personal experience, another buddy had a hatch with pretty much the same mods as ours (bolt ons) but his had 17" wheels and low profile tires from a 2003 Mach 1. The handling difference wasn't really noticeable. Felt pretty much like the coupe in good shape.
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The rear struts and front springs are brand new (the rear springs might be, too, I'm not sure). I found braking to be a bit lacking. Not dangerous, but not as strong as I'd have hoped.

5.0s are five lug already. Only Mustangs that weren't V8s to start had four lugs.
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It had covers over the lugnuts and I didn't have any tools, so I wasn't able to check.
 
Spectre said:
5.0s are five lug already. Only Mustangs that weren't V8s to start had four lugs.
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Incorrect:

brake-mockup6.jpg


IMG_0147.jpg


10_hole_lx_mustang_wheels_tires_85-93_375_coshocton_oh_24099233.jpg


94 and up Mustangs were all 5 lug though.
 
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If you convert to rear disc you'll need to change the master cylinder out for a 4-wheel disc unit. A lot of guys use the '93 Cobra MC. You can also source '87-'88 Tbird turbo coupe rear discs and stay 4-lug.

The best 5-lug swap while converting to disc using junkyard parts would be '94-'95 spindles (less track width than '96-'98, then the aluminum PBR dual piston calipers from a '99-'04. Or even the 13" brakes for the front from '99-'04 Cobra, Mach 1 or Bullit. Then a '94-'98 rear axle (again, less track width than a '99-'04).

You can also convert to 5-lug in the front using Lincoln Mark VII rotors up front (bolts directly to your spindles). The only problem is wheel choice is limited due to a large hub. The rear can stay drum doing this with Ranger drums and axles.
 
Well, I think I've decided to go with something else, but thanks for all the feedback guys.
 
So, I looked at an '03 Mustang GT today. Much nicer than the other one, in very good shape (just a few cosmetic issues, would be a few hundred bucks to fix)

Thing is... it still felt like a boat. My 200km 240sx with old, crappy, completely worn-out suspension doesn't squat, dive or lean even half as much!

How much of a difference would I see with:
- lowering springs
- hard struts (I care nothing of ride comfort)
- rear sway bar
- front strut bar
- upper and lower control arms all around

As I understand it, the Mustang's achilles heal is its rear suspension. In what ways and how much would this limit me?
 
Why you want a mustang then if you want to change everything in it? I would go for a "sportier" one as a base...
 
Why you want a mustang then if you want to change everything in it? I would go for a "sportier" one as a base...
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Because it's what I can afford and I like the drivetrain. Basically, all I'd want to do is some suspension work, and possible the brakes.
 
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