A recurring theme throughout Dan and Denise Shively's 44-year relationship is muscle-car ownership. When they met on a blind date back in 1967, Dan was sporting a '61 Impala. Then in 1970, when he returned from serving our country in Vietnam, Dan picked up a new Road Runner. The two were married soon thereafter.
The GT looks innocent enough...
The GT looks innocent enough at a glance. However, closer inspection reveals Race Star wheels, Mickey Thompson drag radials, a Borla exhaust, and a hidden battery cutoff switch. All are indications of the car’s more serious intent.
The list of cars they owned early in their marriage reads like a roster from the Barrett Jackson Auto Auction, but their muscle-car craze subsided when they began to focus more on raising a family. Once it's in your blood, however, it never goes away. Fastforward 35 years to the introduction of the S197 Mustang. The temptation to own this modern day ponycar lured them back into the game. In February of 2005, they decided to purchase one, but there was one small problem. Dan wanted red and Denise wanted yellow. To settle their stalemate, they chose to order it in black. Immediately afterward, Dan had second thoughts and decided to surprise her by changing the order to Screaming Yellow.
When the car arrived in May, the Shivelys began to personalize it immediately. They added its painted-on Shelby stripes within one week of ownership. But Dan had more than just cosmetic plans for this car. He says that his plan from the beginning was to make the car "as fast as possible." With that in mind, he tore into the car for some performance upgrades after putting only 250 miles on the odometer.
New wheels, upgraded brakes, lowering springs, and a Vortech supercharger were all part of this first wave of modifications. At that point, the Mustang was packing an extra 100 hp over its factory numbers and the Shivelys were content. But as we all know, these projects are never finished until they're sold.
Soon Dan decided to install a Lentech-prepped 4R70W with a Lentech torque converter-at the time, the factory 5R55 transmission was an unknown commodity. So the new transmission went in, along with a Ford Racing driveshaft, and concerns about its durability were laid to rest.
Six months later, Dan caught wind of an opportunity too good to pass up. A local gentleman had built a forged 5.0-liter Three-Valve engine for his Mustang, but later chose to abandon his project. So Dan traded his factory engine and a little bit of money for the fresh modular stroker.
Just three years later, the Screaming Yellow ride was already rocking a bulletproof engine and transmission. Regardless, Dan is not one to rest on his laurels, so he did what anyone with a pristine, 4,800-mile Mustang would do-he took the car right back apart so Mustang Motorsports in Fort Myers, Florida, could swap the supercharger for an 82mm Turbonetics turbocharger! The turbo swap became a three-year transformation as several parts were upgraded along the way.
Following the turbo swap, the last round of modifications involved effectively harnessing the car's newfound power. Since safety was the primary concern, a Maximum Motorsports rollbar was installed with an RCI four-point belt. Traction was the next challenge, hence the installation of UPR's Pro Series rear suspension system and a switch to Race Star wheels wrapped in Mickey Thompson Drag Radials. Finally, there was some concern as to how well the factory rearend would withstand all the mods in front of it, so Moser 33-spline axles, Moser C-clip eliminators, and a Moser spool supplement the stock housing.
After completing the drivetrain renovation, Dan called the project a wrap. The happy couple were finally able start enjoying their wicked ride, though their future plans include dragstrip testing at Bradenton Motorsports Park and cruise-ins with the Gulf Coast Mustang Club. Dan says Denise absolutely loves it when they take it to car shows or out for a cruise. With big power on tap and a wicked street stance, the Mustang is finally worthy, in Dan's eyes, of its paint's moniker, Screaming Yellow.