While we always had plans...
While we always had plans of taking Cheaper Sleeper to the dragstrip, an unfortunate mishap with Project T-top Coupe one week before the NMCA West's inaugural race at Famoso Raceway in Bakersfield, California (an accident that was detailed on our Facebook page), forced us to call 'Sleeper into service as our race car for the 2012 NMCA West season.
Everyone enjoys the bragging rights that come with having a modified Mustang that can be driven around anywhere and still get busy when wheeled onto a dragstrip. As we stated earlier, we'd like to have those same privileges with Cheaper Sleeper. And with that said, we also need to clarify the fact that our intent isn't to strive for super-low e.t.'s or warp speed.
A good 12-second daily driver is plenty cool. That's where we hope to get with this project Mustang, and we'll be campaigning Sleeper in the NMCA West's Granatelli Motorsports Mustang Madness class for the 2012 season in pursuit of that e.t. range.
For initial baseline data, we took the car to the sanction's inaugural event (held June 2012 at Auto Club Raceway in Famoso [Bakersfield], California). Competing in the race gave us a great chance to make several runs, and learn more about our lab rat's performance--or lack thereof--in bone-stock, high-mileage trim.
From a racing standpoint, your tech editor did not fare well in the season opener (lost in a first-round double-breakout race against Cal Gordon). However, the project car withstood an entire weekend of wide-open flogging, and was able and ready for KJ's commute to El Segundo the following Monday.
Although our latest project...
Although our latest project Mustang was as stock as a rock, we still gave it the race-car treatment for its NMCA West debut.
The decision to tow the 'Stang...
The decision to tow the 'Stang was twofold: A) The rig was already hooked up, checked out, and all set to go (everything was arranged before the accident with T-top Coupe), and we really wanted to show off and try out the new Weld Racing DB59 17-inch dually wheels and Toyo Tires Open Country H/T 17-inch tires that we put on our tow rig in early 2012.
The West Coast's Mustang racers...
The West Coast's Mustang racers definitely have a place to race (for an NHRA Wally, at that) at all NMCA West events. Granatelli Motorsports Mustang Madness is an Open Comp-style category for all Ford-powered 'Stangs. We believe it's a perfect platform for us to race our project car and evaluate the effect of its various upgrades.
Qualifying for Mustang Madness...
Qualifying for Mustang Madness is based on the driver's reaction time, not elapsed time for a run. With your tech editor's skills somewhat diminished after long time away from racing, a few reps on the Perfect Launch practice tree (by Proform) offered a huge benefit.
Lazy...well...slow (but consistently...
Lazy...well...slow (but consistently slow) launches were all that the project 'Stang could muster during three time shots and three qualifying passes. The Strange Engineering front struts were adjusted to their loosest setting, and the rear shocks remained at the same midrange setting used for daily driving. Our plan is to upgrade the stocker's engine and drivetrain, and campaign it in Mustang Madness for the entire NMCA West season. If things go according to plan, future launch photos will be a little more dramatic.
In stock trim, Cheaper Sleeper...
In stock trim, Cheaper Sleeper leaves the starting line without any significant tire spin. Launch rpm was consistent for each run (1,500 rpm), and the stock AOD transmission was plugged into "2" before each run and allowed to shift on its own--without going into Overdrive. Obviously, we're not quite ready for super-sticky Mickey Thompson ET Street Drag Radial tires just yet, so the car sits on stock-size General's G-Max AS-03 UHP radials (40 psi/front, 35 psi/rear) that see street and freeway miles every day.
Here is the data from Project Cheaper Sleeper's quickest-and-fastest run of the NMCA West weekend (#7000). The high-15-second, quarter-mile e.t. is about par for the course with a stock-5.0/AOD combination, and we're pleased with the 90-mph speed. We're also confident the e.t. numbers will drop considerably as we go forward, and the addition of horsepower will bring more mph. But keep in mind we're also paying close attention to the Pony's eighth-mile stats. Some of our future drag tests may be conducted on the 660-foot dragstrip at Irwindale Speedway, and the 'Stang's performances in that distance will be used as a benchmarks on those occasions.