Part of his methodical madness came into play when he added the new engine. Many Mustang enthusiasts upgrade one aspect of the car at a time, but when Pete added the VT engine, he also upgraded to the TKO II transmission and built the rear to its current specs. "I did this so the drivetrain would be as bulletproof as possible and eliminate any weak links," Pete says.
From where we sit, Pete's GT has no weak links. It makes excellent power, with 631 hp and 655 lb-ft of torque at the wheels. The combo makes 570 lb-ft of torque at 2,000 rpm, for cryin' out loud. That's just crazy talk. "The Kenne Bell performed exactly as advertised. Combined with the VT stroker, it brings a smile every time I get into the car, and I can still get 24 mpg on the highway when cruising," Pete says.
That statement tells you something about Pete and his reason for building this GT. "I think people forget why we build these cars - for our enjoyment," he says.
The first questions people ask him are how fast is it and how much power does it make. "I think people get too tied up in numbers," Pete says.
Pete drag raced for years, autocrossed many times, which parlayed into road racing, and then the show circuit. With this GT, Pete wants to cruise and enjoy driving it. After all, what can be more fun than breaking loose the Nitto drag radials at 40 mph in Fourth gear? "It's an amazing feeling!"
Sneaky Pete has a 5.0 under the hood of his GT, but not in the traditional sense. His is a VT Competition Engine Development modular Two-Valve stroker. VT didn't stop there, though: The company also added ported heads with its Stage III blower cams and Comp Cams valvesprings. This combination in naturally aspirated form sounds like a lot of fun in itself, but Pete didn't see it that way. He wanted big power, so he added a Kenne Bell 2.2-liter Twin Screw supercharger to the 5.0 modular. With Jerry Wroblewski tuning using SCT software, the supercharged combination serves up 631 hp and 655 lb-ft of torque at the wheels with 570 lb-ft of torque available by 2,000 rpm. During the car's build process, the engine compartment was painted body color.
With enough gauges to confuse a NASA pilot, the interior of Pete's GT is just as custom as the rest of the car. An Auto Meter dash cluster replaces the factory unit and gauges, while Pete keeps an eye on the air/fuel mixture with an AEM wideband monitor. Pete raided UPR Products for all things billet, nailing down John Force long enough for him to autograph the dash. Pete's GT also spent quality time at Romar Racing [(845) 778-2737] in Walden, New York, for torque box reinforcements, subframe connectors, and a drag/road-race rollbar with removable door bars.