Marilyn looks stunning as always Burton.. Btw are those Niche Milan wheels ? I can't really tell from the lighting lol.


-Rocky

 

Hey Thomas - thanks man. I didn't know you daily drove yours. You get to wear a grin EVERYday then I have to drive my 1998 CRV with a rusty rear fender, and no A/C, so I don't get to smile much. Lol...

Yeah post some pics of your paid for baby. Haven't seen her in a while.

Thanks man! We need to see more of your green and blue ponies

Thanks much Rocky! Yes, those are my beloved Milans. I'm impressed with the quality thus far - 3 years old, and they've held up well. The black/gray inner part of the wheel is perfect for hiding dirt and brake dust. The 5 spoke makes it SUPER easy to clean during washing. I'm glad I opted to go this route versus a busy/cluster spoke wheel.

 

Burton, the more I see the Milan's, the more I regret not opting for them lol.

Even though I really like my Steeda Spyders, I'm constantly worried about stone chips due to the machined aluminum face/lip and their also more difficult to clean as well despite the inner part being black..

My main 2 reasons for opting for the Spyders, I got a really awesome deal for both the Spyder and Nitto G2 package from Steeda in which I just couldn't pass up and I was also concerned that the Milan's in a 20X10 wheel with 40mm offset might not clear up front running 275-35-20's being that my Stang is an older 2006 GT.. So I ended up opting for the 20X9.5" Spyders just to be on the safe side..

However from both a visual and appearance perspective, I actually prefer the Milans over the Spyders hands down

 

Thanks Rocky! I appreciate it, bud. I looked at the Steeda Spyders too at the time, but from a design perspective, I chose the Milans. I also am not a fan of chrome/chrome-looking wheels generally. They're alright, but not my first choice.

As for your size though, I think you probably chose good, because you're right - I'm thinking the 20x10 with 40 won't clear the fronts with 275. My question is, why choose the 20x10 square set up up front? You probably would be fine running a 275 on a 20x8.5? Maybe not...

 

Love that kona blue! And your mods are very tastefully done (except those side window stickers, I don't care for stickers much).

But overall very nicely done. Kona can do so much on a sunny day!

 

I've had my Spyders for 4 years now (About 18,000 miles) and they are getting some road love for sure...so get used to the idea that it's bound to...scratch that, GOING to happen. For whatever reason the black spokes on the front wheels close to where they blend into the rim gets sand blasted and the machined part of the rim on the rears gets rock pings. Resign yourself to the fact that NOTHING stays new or perfect forever...just drive your sweet red Mustang and enjoy it.


Burton, your car is looking great as always. Keep up the vigil! I did a mild paint correction on mine a couple weeks ago and she's looking pretty tight again. It needed a wee bit more but I just didn't have the time. I'll probably let it fly until next spring.

 

Simply stunning. Looks like you could dive right into your paint and take a swim lol.

Great stance on the car too. What springs are you running? Didn't you have Koni Yellows as well?

 

Wow thanks so much guys! I very much appreciate the comments. I haven't posted much pics lately before this one, so getting this much love from you guys is much appreciated. I'll try to take more pics when my schedule allows. Between work and kids, it's brutal.

Hey fellow Kona owner! You know I'd trade mine for your Anniversary Edition any day . We DEFINITELY need moarrrr pics of your beauty.

As to the sticker - believe it or not, it was given to me when I first joined TMS many years ago, and I FOUND IT after cleaning up my counter for a garage sale. LOL So as you know, I'm not a fan of stickers/decals either, especially on the exterior of the vehicle. HOWEVER, it's never permanent and can peel off in 5 seconds. So I figured, for the photoshoot, I wanted to pay homage to the best Mustang site around, and the one that I've been faithful to for many years (and it turn, has been very good to me too).

So there you have it - my feeble explanation on why I disgraced Marilyn's side window with that monstrosity.

John what's up buddy. Thanks man! Yeah I did a very light paint correction from her this spring - simple gray pad and Menzerna PO85RD. It came out pretty good. I also don't tape anymore (experience), so it takes me just a couple hours to do the whole car.

Where's updated pics of your sweet ride????

Thanks Nacs!!! Kona ftw! DIB is a close 2nd

Springs are Steeda Competition with adjustable rears. And yes, I'm Koni Yellows on all 4. Set to the softest setting LOL. I'm a wimp that way. But yeah, the stance is my favorite - I'm not overly low but not stock high either. It's the perfect combo, imo. Thanks again.

 

Burton, before upgrading to the 20X9.5" Spyders, my previous wheel set up was 20X8" up front and 20X10" in the rear.. I also ran 255-35-20's up front with 285-30-20's rear..

My reason for upgrading to 20X9.5" wheels, is I wanted to run a square setup in all 4 corners rather than stay with a staggered setup along with running 275-35-20's all around in order to fill up the wheel well gaps..

Prior to opting for the Spyders, I was also considering the Milan's in a 20X8" size, however it's not recommended to run a 275-35-20 tire unless the wheel diameter is at least 9" wide.. So that was my reason for considering the Milan's in the 20X10" size..

I also asked Gabe for his recommendation when I discovered that he runs the 20X10" Milan's with 275-35-20's on his 13 GT as a square setup.. However despite his confirmation, I still wasn't sure if they would clear up front being that my car is an older 06 GT as opposed to the newer 11-14 GT models..

So rather than take the risk on the 20X10" Milan's, I figured that I'd be better off going with the 20X9.5" Spyders instead in which Steeda did assure me they would fit with no clearance issues whatsoever, as Steeda both engineers and designs them specifically to fit all 2005-14 Mustangs..

In the meantime, I hope this clears up any confusion from my previous response




-Rocky

 

You're absolutely right, as nothing does stay new nor perfect forever..

So all I can really do is just keep them as clean as possible and hope they don't get all sand blasted by brake dust, at least not too soon anyhow lol.

If in the event they get chipped, sand blasted to the point where it becomes really noticeable ? I can always look into getting them powder coated down the road if necessary..

In the meantime, what's important, is just continue to drive and enjoy my Mustang like you just said

 

The sandblasting on the fronts is barely noticeable at this point so don’t fret over it too much! I think the front air dam stirs up a lot of road dirt and it exits from under the car with the air as quickly as possible and that’s partially through the front wheels. Not much a person can really do about it. The nicks on rears are all about chucked rocks from the front tires and also passing cars, etc. Again, not much that can be done about it.


Truth be known, anybody who drives their Mustang at all has road rash and paint nicks all over their cars, they just don’t realize it because they don’t get right down there and look closely (Sorry Burton, that includes your car too!). Take my advice, put some front splash guards on your car, maybe even some side splitters. No? First look at the bottom of your doors, fenders and rockers, rub your hands over those surfaces to feel them and then decide! It didn’t take me too long to figure out I needed to do something ASAP and in the short time it did, the paint on those surfaces got beat to heck. Thank God it isn’t noticeable unless a person has their nose right down there.


No pics Burton. I’m a horrible picture maker as witnessed by my previous lame attempts. Nobody wants to see another black Mustang with red stripes anyway!

John

 

I couldn't agree more John.. In fact one of the first things I did was put splash guards on both the front and rear with Jaeger Bros clip on guards..

They're not exactly the greatest quality in the world, but they do their job in reducing stone chips in both the rocker panels and wheels..

I've been using them for nearly 10 years now, but plan on upgrading to better quality molded splash guards.. Just need to find the right ones that will fit both front and rear...




-Rocky

 

That is very clean ride OP.

 

Looks great Burton! Very minimal mods done with this car!

What do you use for processing the photos, lightroom?

 

Man the paint on that thing...Looks incredible, I wish I could keep mine that nice! Love the wheels, they go very well with the rest of the car. The pictures themselves look fantastic too, what kind of camera are you using if you don't mind me asking?

 

John, I totally agree with all you said. That's why I put a small patch of clear bra (Xpel) near the bottom of the doors and rear fenders, and behind each wheel. It really protects it all from chips. I also agree that the splash guards, though shoddy in quality, "do their job" of protecting the paint. I forget what brand mine is. Isn't there only one brand of splash guards for the fronts? The rears are GT500 oem.... but I forget the fronts brand.?

Thanks a ton man! Yeah, a 5 year old clean ride She's getting old. I guess you could say, she's a mature woman. lol.

Thanks Sean! Much appreciated buddy. I guess "minimal" is subjective hehe. I actually have a lot done to her - visibly though, I try not to show "too" much. In other words, I like my cars to have enough "ooomph" visually to show that it's modded, but in a subdued manner. Wheels (of course), tires, lowering, front end switch, exhausts out the side and rear, subtle badging. That's about it. Car guys who are car guys will know that "something is up" with this car upon first or second glance. To the everyday person - all they see is "it's just another one of those mustangs". And I'm ok with that. Don't need to impress them. hehe.

As for the photos - yes I use Lightroom. My Nikon has a couple dust specs in the actual internal mirror that I can't remove, so I use Lightroom to remove/correct them. Depending on my mood, I will edit accordingly. Some pics are very light editing, some tailored towards HDR. This photo set in here was kind of in the middle...

Hey thanks man! You are too kind. I love my Milans also - they're a classic/timeless design. The camera is an old Nikon D60. Someday, I'll get a new one... but for now, my 8 year old camera will do!!!

 

Burton, the only brand splash guards that I'm aware of that are made for the fronts are by Jaeger Bros, which are the same ones I use on my 06 GT..

http://jaegerbrothersauto.com/auto-p...%20Set_84.html

 

Link for the fronts for 2010-2014:

http://jaegerbrothersauto.com/auto-p...odels_593.html

 

UPDATED 8/6/16

It was another beautiful day, so after application of CG Butter Wet Wax (I'm impressed, btw - good stuff), I went out for some errands and took some photos.

Enjoy.

 

Looks killer Burton.