Hi everyone. Just finished trading in my 2010 Nissan 370Z for a 2012 GT, Kona Blue, BBP, and 3.73 Unfortunately I don't get my car till approximately 12/10 or so... but it will be well worth the wait

I've been an import fan all my life, but I almost bought the 2011 5.0 instead of my Z initially, but we all learn. So now that the wife is expecting our 2nd child, a backseat was definitely a must. After 20 minutes of test driving the 5 oh, it was over. I was a fan. I didn't look back. All the cliches of american big blocks flashed through my head, and I agree with all of them. hehe. The 5.0 drove better, had fit/finish on par if not better than the Nissan, of course the power and torque, but for me the thing that sealed the deal was the Transmission/clutch. I didn't realize how crappy the Z tranny was compared to how the 5.0 was. This is how a tranny SHOULD be.

So anyways, I look forward to my car and to enjoying this forum as well. You all seem like a great bunch of fella's from what I have read.

BTW, I've been doing research too, I'm going to get an exhaust for sure, and am deciding between Borla S-types or the Roush axle backs. The Roush's are a lot cheaper (~400) than the Borla's... but are the Borla's worth the extra dough? Seems like both have no drone. All I have to base it off of are youtube videos, since no one around here has a 5.0 with a modded exhaust. Help would be appreciated!

thanks again!

 

Welcome to TMS.........I went from a 300zx Twin Turbo (hence the name) to my S197. There was no comparison

 

What other cars did you look at? Just curious.

Needless to say tho, Welcome!!

 

Borla all the way. Def worth the extra money. Zero drone. Better sounding in my opinion. Also, look into getting headers and an x-pipe if you wanna increase horsepower.

 

Welcome and congrats on the new ride! Great color choice too!

 

Thank u! But yeah no comparison. Torque is a must. Plus the 5.0 sounds astonishing.

Thanks! I was looking for sportscars with backseats only. So it was a used m3, Porsche, g37. Going new with stang gt was a nobrainer.

Btw, I was just spool impressed with ford, I just needed 20 mins behind the wheel during my test drive. I was a believer. Folks definitely just need to drive one...

 

Thanks for input. Yeah the borlas sound nice but over 700 bucks!!!

I initially wanted black or candy red, but when I saw Kona in person, it was done. Blue flakes in Sun, purple black in shade...beautiful.




Btw, was doing some more research, and another option for me is the gt500 mufflers. From what i have read they're louder than stock but not too obnoxious and annoying for other people. Thoughts? Also it is only 250 bucks or so.

 

Roush all the way! Sounds awesome. I had to make my mind up to from youtube. Glad i made the right choice. Wanna do x pipe too.

 

Welcome!! I'm very happy for you. My 1st mod was the mufflers on my 11 GT. I loved Flows, so just habit to get those. I wish about a week after I wish I'd bought the Roush's. Now I want Flow's Outlaw 1's.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=py_BX...e_gdata_player

 

The GT500 Mufflers are a great option for the reasons you stated...Love the sound they produce...btw, welcome to the Kona Family...Lou

 

Congrats on the new car!

My buddy has a 2010 370Z, and we traded cars for a drive a couple months ago...I'm a relatively big dude, at 6'2" and 260 pounds, but I barely fit into his Z! That interior is TINY. The clutch and shifter were also **** near impossible to use. The car drove nice, and cornered well, but the torque just wasn't where I wanted it to be. My friend was actually very surprised at how 'small' my S197 drove, and thought the world of the shifter (MGW).

If I were you, my first mod would be the new MGW shifter, bar none. I drove another friend's 2011 5.0, and while it was really, really nice. I mean, really nice...I hated the shifter and clutch. There's not much you can do on the clutch, without tearing it out and replacing it with a stiffer one, though. Exhaust can wait, but the shifter will immediately increase driveability.

JR

 

Yes thank u sir!!! I placed an order today and should be here this week..well in advance of my car lol, by like, 9 weeks. Hehe

So I take it u have a Kona too? How do u like owning it? I'm big into detailing, so was getting really excited about buffing it and making those flakes pop.

Thank u much! Yeah tho I loved my z, I just never had another car to compare it to, so of course I thought the z was best. But yeah now I know the lack of torque and how crappy the tranny was on the z.

As far as first mod, already got the mufflers but please do explain further this shifter u speak of? You mean its shorter throws or??? I thought stock shifter was already very nice and tight

 

Yes, the MGW shifter shortens throws and is full adjustable for **** height, location, shift length, etc. It replaces everything in the shifter assembly with much, much better components. I've got the older model on my 06' GT (TR-3650 transmission) and there was no comparison between the stock shifter and the MGW.

As for the shifter on the MT-82, many people complain about it. The shifts are much shorter than you'd expect in a Mustang, but they're imprecise, and people have often described the action of the shifter as 'gravelly' because it feels like you're moving a bar that's sitting in a bucket of gravel or sand. The transmission is also a point of contention around here...it's designed by Getrag in Germany, but built in Chain, and many people have had very serious issues with them. Ford still hasn't gotten things right with them, yet.

Check this link out for info on the shifter. http://www.svtperformance.com/forums...ll-review.html

JR

 

Magnaflows are a good setup. And congrats BTW.

I use Magnaflows on both of my stangs and they sound good. Even in my 65 with no sort of sound damp they do not drone out the interior.

 

[QUOTE=FromZto5;6148120]Yes thank u sir!!! I placed an order today and should be here this week..well in advance of my car lol, by like, 9 weeks. Hehe

So I take it u have a Kona too? How do u like owning it? I'm big into detailing, so was getting really excited about buffing it and making those flakes pop.


You will not be disappointed with Kona Blue.

For me, I took a whole day to wash and dry...after which I clayed the entire car. After that, I polished the paint using Meguiar's Polish...then I sealed the deal with Blackfire Wet Diamond. In one word...WOW! Not only was the paint poppin, but in certain light conditions, it reflected a deep shine that gave the car a much darker appearance. Washing my car, I feel like I’m washing ice…that’s how slick the wet diamond is.

Good luck with your ride…I’m sure you will love every minute of it.

 

Congrats my move wasnt as interesting as yours but i came from a 04 maxima, i love my stang and always been a fan of the 5.0 but nissan is my fav car maker too many iconic cars have rolled off their lines

 

Thank you for the link on the shifter. I will have to research that. Although, tbh, I liked the stock shifter during test drive. What will this other shifter gain me?

Thank you! I like the magnaflows too, competition might be too much. Any issue with drone or rasp?

[QUOTE=Lou_n_Ada;6149149]I hope I will love it! Although from all the reading I have done here, I've seen some folks with issues with engine ticking and gear whine. Has Ford addressed these issues yet? I hope since mine is being built currently, I hope Ford has addressed those TSBs already and mine should be exempt from it



And lastly, week 1 of my 9 week wait complete. Geeeez... this will suck waiting. Can't wait till my car get's here.

 

The shifter is fully adjustable, has little play once in gear, automatically centers when you take it out of gear, is fully adjustable, has stiffer bushings, and is in all ways better than the stock shifter.

The only cars I'd driven that were manual, before my GT, were piece of crap Japanese econoboxes with stock shifters, so my stock GT's shifter felt great compared to them. Then I drove a buddy's car with a MGW, and I had to have it. Everything about it was better. Shifts are more positive, it's easier to get the car into gear, I've yet to miss a shift with the MGW, too.

JR

 

You really have peaked my interest in this shifter. This appears to be robust and well made. Also, from research I have done, MGW makes some great stuff. Anybody have any thoughts on the best place to get these from, and cheapest?

 

Not sure if any venders sell MGW. It's a small company with superior products. Just order from their website. I went from steeda to MGW and wow. You won't be disappointed.