Making a ton of power with your Mustang is contingent on several factors. Does it have the rotating assembly capable of surviving? Can the engine's cam profile or cylinder-head design support enough airflow? Will the transmission or rearend withstand the results? And, of course, will the fuel system feed such power?
For this exercise, we cover one way to make sure your fuel system is more than capable of supporting big power--Blow-By Racing's Jackal fuel system for high-powered '11-'13 Mustangs, a return-style system that lives in the stock tank.
At the heart of the system is BBR's billet-aluminum Jackal fuel hat, which houses the familiar Aeromotive A1000 fuel pump. According to Aeromotive, the A1000 is good for 1,200 hp in a forced-induction EFI setting.
If you need more, Blow-By can substitute Aeromotive's Eliminator fuel pump, which is said to support 1,400 horses. In most instances, that's more than enough. It's clear Blow-By Racing wants its Jackal system to offer a one-time solution.
Since you'll need more than just a pump and fuel hat to supply your high-horsepower engine, Blow-By includes everything else you'll need as well: Aeromotive fuel rails, regulator, and fuel filters; and all the necessary fittings, hose ends, Y-block, and appropriate fuel lines.
BBR's main man Chris Jones uses the Jackal fuel system in his '11 Mustang GT, which was a participant in the 2011 King of the Street competition. Not only does Chris drive the car quite often, it also made 952 hp on Holley's Dynojet as part of KOTS. We can report the fuel system did its job quite well, with quiet seamless operation.
If you think you want one for your '11-'12 Mustang, keep reading.
Horse Sense: Blow-By Racing also has a Jackal fuel system available for '05-'10 Mustangs. This system also uses a single pump or twin pumps, but in an in-line fashion, not in the tank. Since the pumps are mounted inline, Blow-By Racing says you can build a fuel system capable of supporting up to 1,500 horsepower.
Like many other Mustang models,...
Like many other Mustang models, the car's gas tank is held in by metal straps. Bolts attach the straps at one end; pins on the other end allow the straps to dangle when the bolted sides are loosened. Chris chooses to remove the pins as well to drop the tank out of the car. The tank in '05-current Mustangs crosses over the driveshaft, so in order to drop it out of the car, the driveshaft must be removed. There's a crossover tube in the tank to get fuel from the non-pump side of the tank.
Here's a look at one of the...
Here's a look at one of the pins on the front side. Chris is using a transmission jack to remove the fuel tank, which is definitely easier than doing it yourself. Make sure the tank has fuel in it before you drop it--without fuel in both sides of the tank, it will be difficult to balance on the trans jack. After installation, be sure to fill the tank in order to keep the crossover tube full of fuel and the fuel system primed for the BBR venturi. This will also help you check for leaks.
OK, with the new cars, the...
OK, with the new cars, the gas tank filler is located on the driver side of the car. As you can see here, you would think there are two factory pump hats in the car. However, one is the pump and the other is the sender. The pump has a fuel-level sender on it as well, but the other side is just a sender.
A closer shot of the factory...
A closer shot of the factory fuel pump shows just one supply source and nothing for a return line. Of course, the latest Mustangs use a returnless system, and have for quite a few years now. The Jackal system converts the fuel system to a classic return-style arrangement. Therefore, there will be a feed line and a return line coming from the new Jackal fuel hat.
To remove the factory fuel...
To remove the factory fuel pump, the retainer must be gently loosened with a punch and a hammer. The retainer must be removed in a counter-clockwise rotation, just like a nut or bolt. Once the retainer is removed, the fuel pump can be removed from the tank.
Here's the retainer once its...
Here's the retainer once its been loosened. Once you remove the retainer, set it aside; you will reuse it with the Jackal fuel hat.
Believe it or not, this is...
Believe it or not, this is an '11 Mustang GT's fuel pump, better known as a fuel pump module or assembly. The factory '11 Mustang GT fuel module is a high-pressure system, but it's not quite enough to feed a high-horsepower Mustang. Notice the green O-ring? It's reused with the Jackal fuel hat, so don't lose it.
This connection is to the...
This connection is to the crossover tube for the opposite side of the tank. Disconnecting it from the factory fuel pump assembly is necessary. It is reattached to the Blow-By Racing Jackal fuel hat.
As we mentioned, on one side...
As we mentioned, on one side of the tank there's a sender, but on the pump side, there's also a sender attached to the fuel pump assembly. Chris is removing the sender float from the factory pump so it can be relocated onto the Jackal fuel hat.