TACOIII

Hi all I am currently stationed in Belgium and want a Mustang when I get back stateside. I have been looking for a new or used 5.0. Just looking for the best bang for my buck. Only 7 more months so I have plenty of time to browse.

rogcat1

Assuming you are military, thanks for your service, and good luck on your search for a 5.0.

td01gt

Hi, welcome. good luck with your search.

TACOIII

Thanks for the warm welcome guys!! What would be some beginner mods to do? I have an idea of what I want but Im new to the Mustang world, I come from the 4x4 area of expertise. I want to lower, maybe add some suspension for better handling add exhaust, intake, wheels and tires just the basics. What are some other areas I mite want to focus on?

Stevedotmil

As far as your questions, which are very valid, I would say that you should spend some time reading all the stickies on this section of the forum and do some searching to get specific answers to stuff. That's what I did and it helped me a ton coming from a Euro background. Suspension and the manual 6 speed are the weak links. Everything else is top notch for the 5.0. Try to tailor your mods to what you are ultimately trying to in the end based on your driving style and what you want to do with your car. Welcome to the forum from a fellow military member.

TACOIII

Thanks Stevedotmil. I have been browsing and there is alot of info that I need it just requires some digging. Im guessing the weak links of the suspension is just the fact that they tried to give the car a more daily driver friendly ride and not set up for much agressive driving? The only bad thing about the trannys is I believe on the early models they were notchy and hard to get into gear. Is that what you are refering to? Or do they have troubles when lots of power is added to the engine?

Stevedotmil

Even my 13' has had it's share of annoyances. I got the Barton shifter and it made the driving experience much more fun. I also removed the helper spring on the clutch pedal. I still need to get the Barton bracket to finish it off and eventually I'm going to replace the clutch slave cylinder to an upgraded unit. As far as the suspension there is a significant amount of wheel hop which is caused by the upper control arm bushings being really softer than they should be. I'm going to be replacing my stuff with Kenny Brown stuff when the time comes. Depending on what final gear you get you might find that things can get a little unstable when you are hitting it hard. I have the 3.73 Torsen LSD that comes with the Track Pack and 1st gear is useless for the most part for normal driving. I almost always start out in 2nd. There is also a TON of brake dive and squat with the stock shock and spring system. Koni yellows (which are adjustable) and Steeda Sport springs are usually the preferred replacements. I'm going to replace my stuff with the Eibach coilovers that are specifically damped for the Kenny Brown suspension system because I want the adjustability and I want to know that they are going to work with the rest of my stuff. If I was going to just be cruising around I would go with the Eibach Sportline springs and the non-adjustable Koni shocks because I like to ride low. Like I said though, it all depends on what you plan on doing with your car.

TACOIII

WOW ok so I do have alot of research to do! BTW Great looking car. Where are you stationed in Germany? I am stationed at Kleine Brogel. I almost bought a mustang at ENCS but backed out when I found out how much insurance was I just decided to save and put down a huge downpayment.

Stevedotmil

Here's another tid bit. I haven't seen the Track Package listed as an option on the media from ENCS. You can get a Cali Special but not the GT and Track Package. Brembo yes though. I have no idea why. I haven't actually talked to anyone about it but that's what I read in the handout from there. I don't know if Belgium is different either. I pay 117 Euro a month here in Germany but I got coverage off post. USAA wanted twice that for the same coverage and didn't cover travel insurance in case I wanted to go to another country in the EU. Shop around. I'm stationed in Vilseck. Bavaria has some awesome roads, none of which are straight. The only downside is that I'm almost 4 hours from the Ring. I'm 2.5 from the Hockenheim Ring where they do DTM races though.

Thanks for the compliments.

TACOIII

WOW if i had been told 117 euro I would be cruisin now. I have been to Bavaria once and its nice I would love to open it up on some winding roads.

Stevedotmil

This is why I love this forum. People share good info so other enthusiasts can benefit.

Samolet

Welcome to TMS!