It's not often we're able...
It's not often we're able to bring you a from-the-driver's-seat view of the dragstrip. Your tech editor grabbed this shot just prior to staging Dana Allen's '11 California Special en route to an easy 12-second, straight-down-Broadway run!
One of the huge benefits of working with AMP Performance is the shop's close proximity to two Phoenix-area dragstrips. This affords us opportunities to take upgraded Mustangs out and see how they perform on the quarter-mile.
The Friday-night grudge session at Firebird Raceway was our test venue for this effort. After the dyno session, the only change that was made to the 'Stang was the replacement of the stock 19-inch wheels and Pirelli radials with a pair of 315/35R-18 Nitto NT05R drag radials that were mounted on a spare set of Shelby GT500 rims.
We learned in a previous track...
We learned in a previous track outing ( "Zex-It Strategy," Oct. '10, p. 114) that a 'Stang's stock rubber is absolutely no match for 400-plus, nitrous-generated horses at the feet. To ensure we'd have spin-free traction during the drag runs, a set of Nitto's NT05R drag radials (315/40R-18) was swapped with the factory P245/45ZR-19s before we headed to the track.
At this time, we also discovered that the Mustang's automatic transmission would not properly upshift under WOT, a result of our failure to remove JLT's dyno tune and replace it with the Street calibration that was included in the handheld programmer used for our project. Shifting manually proved to be a viable workaround for the transmission glitch, and your tech editor piloted Dana's Cali Special on two passes.
The first pass was without nitrous, followed by a second lap with the bottle open. Unfortunately, Dana and her husband, Gregory, were not able to make it to the track with us. That being the case, we admit we were a little more reserved than we would have been if they were there and had given KJ a direct "drive-it-like-you-stole-it" blessing.
Here's the timeslip for our...
Here's the timeslip for our naturally aspirated pass (No. 253/left lane)...
Timeslips for both runs are included. Running in Firebird's left lane and launching at 2,500 rpm both times, the 'Stang (No. 253) covered the quarter in an impressive fashion. However, had we been able to make more passes, we definitely could have lowered the Pony's e.t.s and raised mph-naturally aspirated and with nitrous-considerably. Unfortunately our NHRA rule-breaking e.t. and a 250-foot oil down by a Brand-X junkbox ended our night.
...which was immediately followed...
...which was immediately followed by this 150hp nitrous pass that put an end to our night, as 13.50 is the quickest e.t. permitted for convertibles without a rollbar.
Coyote-powered, '11 Mus-tang GTs are born runners. Feed 'em a just few bolt-ons and a little nitrous, and you're on your way to owning a deceptively fast street 'Stang for a minimal investment.
This cigarette-lighter switch...
This cigarette-lighter switch serves as a super-stealth method of arming the nitrous system, and makes the overall wiring process simple. From the lighter plug, Chris added a weatherpack connector (making it fully removable) that links the plug to its 12v power wire on the NMU.
Our dyno tests were run with...
Our dyno tests were run with West Coast 91-octane pump gas and 100-150hp shots of juice. While custom PCM tuning and colder heat-range plugs such as Brisk's RR14S are recommended when using power adders on an '11 Coyote, we were not able to secure a set of the colder plugs for our project. As a workaround for not having cold plugs, the factory sparkers were gapped down to 0.030 -inch and the appropriate amounts of timing (for each horsepower level) were taken out of the JLT dyno calibration. The Blackout system is capable of injecting up to a 175hp shot of nitrous.
With the completed Blackout...
With the completed Blackout installation, you really have to look closely to see where the nitrous is on our '11 test 'Stang. The nozzle is the giveaway. Chris and Jesse shrewdly placed fuel and nitrous-feed lines coming from the NMU below the OEM radiator cover and out to the nozzle, and the fuel-supply hose into the NMU is hidden by the stock intake cover.