A 5.4 Shelby with a throttle body, pulley, CAI and new tune will put out just as much power as a '13-'14 Shelby, all while being cheaper.

The '11-'12's also have the lighter aluminum block.

I'll still take a '12 Shelby over a Boss

 

If you want more HP, get the Shelby and let a Boss person own the Boss. If you have to ask, you should already know the answer.


Dave

 

I've owned both, first the 2012 GT500 and now the Boss. I pullied and tuned the GT500 and loved it. But my stock Boss puts a smile on my face that the Shelby never did!

 

My vote is Boss all the way. Overall a much rarer car and GHIG to boot gets my vote!

 

After hearing opinions and driving the GT500 I've decided I'm a Boss at heart and I'll be going FI for a power adder. Now I jus need to decide which route I want to take to achieve it.

 

A stripped Fox Body with a used Whippled 5.4 would also be faster... but I am one of those who would kick myself for not waiting/saving for the better version, like buying a '10 (any) mustang instead of an '11.
Luckily, nothing changed for the Boss as far as drivetrain and suspension goes.


Good for you!

Eventually I DO plan to do a twin turbo set up. I think the only thing that'd make a Boss sound better... is a turbo. It's not really about the horsepower or even track times to me, just the fun of it all.

 

That's a great decision. The roots type is power all the time. Sometimes when you don't necessarily want/need it. The centrifugal is a great blower for all around especially if you're drag racing occasionally. That second or two without full boost is way more manageable on launches. Either way, a blown Boss will be incredible. And I think you will be much happier with it than a Shelby.

 

Well, I had a 2011 GT500 and sold it to get a 2013 LS. The reason was because of limited production on the LS. I also didn't like the sound coming from the rear during turning. I now have a car that I'll most likely keep for years to come.

 

I had completely forgotten about that...

 

When I bought the Boss I was looking at GT 500s. I saw a 2013 Boss in the showroom. Started researching the Boss and decided it was more what I wanted. I had the Idea from the start to put a supercharger on it to make it the ultimate Boss. After doing a lot of research on superchargers I found the perfect setup. It is amazing the transformation to forced induction. I didn't think this car really needed traction control stock but now ITS A GOOD IDEA. My next mod will be brakes. I would not trade the Boss for a GT 500.

 

I've been doing a lot of research on which SC would work good for me. Lots of great results with all kinds of Blowers (PD/Centri's)

However, the Whipple 2.9 seems to be getting more votes from the guys that I talk to that have much experience (tuners/racers/installers).

Ford Racing offers the Whipple made S/C's. Might be worth a call to the SVT Tech line and get some info?

ps. congrats on keeping the Boss.

 

The catch to putting a supercharger on Boss is the tune. I know Ford Racing will not sell you a tune to put any charger on a Boss. One word VMP.

 

When I had a 2010 Shelby I had the same issue. Dealer put some friction modifier in the rear end and the noise was gone.

 

Boss!

 

Did you mean that Ford Racing will not sell a tune for "just any" Supercharger?

Because you do get a Pro Cal Tune with the Ford Racing Whipple S/C kits.

 

Putting a supercharger on the Boss with a preset tune would be a bad decision IMO. Get it tuned by a custom tuner on a dyno. Many tuners out there that will do much better than a mail order tune and it's just too critical. A simple exhaust or intake mod can cause all types of parameter changes that need to be accounted for in the tune.

 

Ford racing will not sell you any tune for a BOSS. The Boss is not the same tune as a 5.0 tune. Ford racing has not and will not do the R&D on a limited production car like the Boss. You can get a custom dyne tune from someone just open your check book wide.
This is what I did. I bought a tvs supercharger kit from VMP supercharger from VMP Racing complete with SCT tuner and a tune for the Boss. After I installed the charger and tune I did some data logging then emailed the data to Justin owner of VMP Racing and owner of a 2012 Boss. Justin has done extensive tuning on Bosses. His personal car is making over 800hp. There are several articles in 5.0 magazine on his work.
We sense have done a revised tune. I have not yet dynode my car yet but plan on it this spring. It runs awesome and I have had no codes. I would go to there website and call them before buying anything.I researched all the chargers including turbos but this was the best option for me.

 

maddog2:

Thanks. I spoke to Justin when I first picked up my Boss in Orlando. He's got a great reputation. I've since added a tune from AED. Shaun says I should do the Whipple 2.9 and of course he would tune it.

I know it's difficult to imagine how my Boss would perform with a S/C???

Any and all "first-hand" insight is appreciated.

Thanks...

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by maddog2

Ford racing has not and will not do the R&D on a limited production car like the Boss.

Maddog, one minor correction- Ford Racing DID all the R&D on our Boss 5.0 engine to develop Track Key which again is specific to our car. FR contracted Badillo Engineering in Ann Arbor, MI to develop all the TK software and obtain CARB approval for this new dual program approach. See CARB’s executive order D-598-8 for the specifics. And since this was a new and novel approach to engine tuning Ford/Ford Racing did a tremendous amount of R&D on this program (translation BIG dollars). As well as software encryption logic to which you allude. CARB “bent” the certification team over many times asking for a milder and milder “tune” in the name of emissions. They were worried Boss owners would use TK during daily driving increasing engine emission footprint over just track use which is what FR intended. What we finally got is very different than what FR envisioned at the beginning of the TK concept because of CARB’s meddling.

Why FR does not support an “off-road” tune for the Boss is unclear because they certainly have the data and resources to do so…

 

And as it happens CARBS worries were justified as verified by the many post on this and other Boss forums as to Trackeys use.