Horse Sense: Dave's GT serves as guinea pig for PA-Performance. It has a PA-Performance 95-amp alternator and a PMGR starter. According to PA, in order to use a 130-amp alternator with a Vortech S- or T-Trim, minor bracket modifications must take place. As Dave was in a pinch for time when he needed an alternator, he went with the 95-amp unit instead of making bracket mods. The alternator still provides Dave with 60 amps at idle.
Dave went the '93 Cobra route when he decided to dress up his GT's exterior. The look works for us-even with the Titanium-colored ground effects. That color almost perfectly matches that of the '95 Cobra R wheels, made possible with a '94-up Cobra brake conversion. Mari-Al Auto Body in Graterford, Pennsylvania, painted the Cobra components and ram-air hood.
The 5.0 Mustang has a huge following. That's a good thing. If it weren't, we at 5.0&SF wouldn't be having so much fun while we're hard at work. However, outside the Mustang community, the 5.0 is looked upon as a lesser vehicle. If we could relate its mystique to that of another car, it would be the C4 Corvette (I promise I'm going somewhere with this, so bear with me).
The C4 Corvette is an immensely popular vehicle. For one thing, Chevrolet made a ton of them from 1984 to 1996. Its technologically advanced components-and the mere fact it's a Corvette- are the other reasons. But if you've ever ridden in a C4 Corvette, you know you have to practically be an origami expert to fold yourself into and out of one.
You don't just sit in a C4-you wear it. Compared to the later C5 model, the C4 rides like a brick on wheels. It squeaks and rattles. And the 4+3 transmission is definitely not one of Chevrolet's brighter ideas. Even with all that, the C4 still remains the most popular Corvette iteration.
The interior of the GT is...
The interior of the GT is mostly stock, save for white-face gauges, an aftermarket stereo, a trunk-mounted battery, and a dash-mounted boost retard. Dave would like to thank his wife, Heather, and all his friends who helped out with the car. Since he's far from being finished, he needs to thank his friends so they'll continue to help him out.
The 5.0 Mustang has a similar story. To those people on the outside (i.e., those who don't get it), the 5.0 is a crude, politically incorrect vehicle. First, the ride is not even close to being comfortable, especially when compared to the SN-95 and New Edge Mustang models. Second, many find its looks boring and lacking personality, more like a box with wheels than a performance car. Third, most people are flat disgusted that it takes only a few well-chosen bolt-ons to really crack the whip on anything out there in a straight line. We call these people 5.0 Mustang haters.
Even with all those negative connotations, Dave Macy found a combination of dependability and speed in the '93 GT seen here. We agree with Dave, as we've yet to find a car other than a 5.0 Mustang that more personifies these two characteristics.
When he purchased the car six years ago, Dave was looking only to add some light bolt-on stuff. "I don't know what happened," he says. "Somewhere along the line I threw that notion out the window." With the dependability and speed building blocks handled, Dave set out to build the ultimate (insert Jersey accent here) street car. The upgrades would be geared toward improving the car's braking, comfort, and, of course, performance.
As with many of us, Dave began with the basics by adding roller rockers, an exhaust, and gears. He then became a little more serious by adding a cam, heads, and intake combination, followed closely by a Vortech S-Trim supercharger. Since the car is a '93, it featured hyperpathetic pistons from the factory instead of the forged units in previous models. Amazingly, the factory pistons took an entire year of abuse before a couple of them succumbed to the S-Trim's boost capabilities. The car still ran, but Dave knew it was the beginning of the end of the factory short-block.
The need for a new short-block led Dave to check out Coast High Per-formance's line of performance short-blocks, specifically its 347 combinations. He did indeed choose a CHP 347 utilizing a B50 block with Coast's rotating assembly components, including forged pistons. He fitted his existing heads and intake to the 347 and went on to produce 440 hp on LaRocca's Performance Dynojet with Jimmy Chahalis working the tune.