Hellcat out, Mustang in

Exposed

Exposed

ESB Sports Bookie
Staff member
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Short story long, I blew my Hellcat motor and had it rebuilt.

Spent about 7k total. Reason is because I went upper pulley and the tuner I was using decided my pistons weren't worth it. So I cracked 3, melted the spark plugs, and scorched the cylinder walls pretty good. All because I wanted 900whp, which is actually a very common setup on the Hellcat platform, but that means didly squat if the tuner doesn't care.

Anyways built the motor and got it back, much stronger than OEM. Switched tuners as well, this time went with one of the most top rated tuners for the Hellcat platform. Costs 2-3 as much as regular tuners.

Got the tune down and I felt the rush of 900whp for all of one day. Turns out now the transmission is going. Took that apart and the gear oil was burnt, and 3rd gear was pretty much toast. Now, this wasn't the fault of the new tuner, it was a carryover from the old one. The old tuner didn't retain the safety parameters in place when doing the transmission tune. These transmissions are doing 1000whp and over and holding, but mine didnt because of the tuner didn't think my transmission life was worth it.

So the plan was to replace it with a Demon transmission, which is just the regular ZF HP90 transmission on the Hellcats but with a demon torque converter.

Then I started noticing boost issues. If it was the supercharger, that would be another 6k for a new one.

Decided I had enough.


Bought a base Mustang GT 10 speed automatic with Performance Package 1.

Will be throwing a Whipple on there in a few weeks and calling it a day. Easy 9's at 145+.

I still need a 4 door so I will be revisting the Charger Hellcat platform, except I'm gonna wait until the widebody redeye version is out.


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Those are lots of power for only rear wheel drive. Sit and spin times.

Ever think of going light and fun instead?
 
Greasy said:
Good looking Mustang man. Love the black on black.
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I just put in black tinted windows, looks even more blacked out now. :lol:

Destroy said:
Those are lots of power for only rear wheel drive. Sit and spin times.

Ever think of going light and fun instead?
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Well once the whipple is on I'm gonna put on 305 Mickey Thompson ET Streets as well. With RWD once you go over a certain power level drag radials become a must. With the whipple it's going to put down over 700whp, that in itself will be fun on the road, at least the way I tend to drive. :lol:
 
Shadowless said:
Send that beauty down to Justin @ VMP and get one of their Gen3 blowers.
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I was looking at the new Gen 5's specifically for the 2018+ Mustangs. VMP is good but i'd likely stick with the canned whippled tune for now for warranty purposes on the powertrain.
 
Ouch. Bummer about the bad luck. The 900whp mark is still tough for a lot of cars today to run reliably. With a good tuner and driving it right, a lot of them can last longer, but it's definitely a gamble and a game of chances.

A C5Z can be made to run 750-800rwhp with not a ton of money put into it, and do it reliably. Once you get over that, you run into the same issues and it's a maintenance nightmare.

The Mustang is a great choice for big power. One of the few platforms with an absurdly overbuilt motor ready for amazing things. Looking forward to seeing what you do with it!
 
OverclockN' said:
Ouch. Bummer about the bad luck. The 900whp mark is still tough for a lot of cars today to run reliably. With a good tuner and driving it right, a lot of them can last longer, but it's definitely a gamble and a game of chances.

A C5Z can be made to run 750-800rwhp with not a ton of money put into it, and do it reliably. Once you get over that, you run into the same issues and it's a maintenance nightmare.

The Mustang is a great choice for big power. One of the few platforms with an absurdly overbuilt motor ready for amazing things. Looking forward to seeing what you do with it!
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Yup, everything is a gamble. I'm just annoyed the worst case scenario fell to me, while countless other Hellcat owners are running 900whp+ on stock everything with just pulley/fuel upgrade without issue. It just goes to show a car is only as "bulletproof" as the tuner behind it.

I came close to just buying another Charger Hellcat and starting over because I loved my Charger, then I just decided to wait until the refresh in 2021. The refresh with a widebody and either the Redeye or Helephant motor.

So this Mustang is just a 3 year car at most for me. I'm seeing the 10 speed automatics are making over 500whp and running 10's with some minor bolt ons and E85. If I wasn't so tempted by the simple bolt and go Whipple package that retains the powertrain warranty, I'd probably go the NA route.
 
OverclockN' said:
The tuner will definitely make or break the deal, without a doubt.
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Absolutely. I remember having the TCSS cobie tuned the tuner who was at the time, one of the best and he had a thing about not going above 24 PSI due to ring float. He'd do pretty much anything but he physically would not ever tune the stock system over 24 psi because he knew what would happen. He'd tell you to find another tuner.
 
OverclockN' said:
The tuner will definitely make or break the deal, without a doubt.
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Something Automatic guys have to consider these days is not only ECU/PCM tuning, bu trans tuning. There are many shops out there who are know as good ECU tuners, but have a terrible rep for trans tuning with newer transmissions (6 spd GM's, 6spd Ford's, 8spd GM's, 10spd GM/Ford).
 
Exposed said:
Yup, everything is a gamble. I'm just annoyed the worst case scenario fell to me, while countless other Hellcat owners are running 900whp+ on stock everything with just pulley/fuel upgrade without issue. It just goes to show a car is only as "bulletproof" as the tuner behind it.

I came close to just buying another Charger Hellcat and starting over because I loved my Charger, then I just decided to wait until the refresh in 2021. The refresh with a widebody and either the Redeye or Helephant motor.

So this Mustang is just a 3 year car at most for me. I'm seeing the 10 speed automatics are making over 500whp and running 10's with some minor bolt ons and E85. If I wasn't so tempted by the simple bolt and go Whipple package that retains the powertrain warranty, I'd probably go the NA route.
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Sorry to hear about the Hellcat but that's a sweet Stang you got yourself.
 
Love the Ford, sorry about your last science project.

My new angle -- leave things stock but hey, to each their own.
 
Thanks fellas,

Leaving it stock and just going plain E85 (requires a tune) is also an option. I was never really a Mustang guy before, but I can't deny they're really cheap and a great platform to mod with. The S550 engine is already stout enough to begin with, enough for a power train warrantied supercharged option, and the 10 speed is a game changer.

It's funny how I hated on Mustangs before and here I am driving one. :lol:
 
switchAMG said:
Love the Ford, sorry about your last science project.

My new angle -- leave things stock but hey, to each their own.
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I would have certainly done that for the Hellcat. What, 700hp isn't enough? Jesus...

Maybe I am just getting old, but even when I had my 2015 Mustang GT Premium I thought it had enough power (at least for a daily driver). If it was something you are tracking (and probably should then just have 2 cars) I could understand.

What does 900hp offer you on the street that 700 doesn't besides bragging rights and a bit of dick waving?
 
Clockwork said:
I would have certainly done that for the Hellcat. What, 700hp isn't enough? Jesus...

Maybe I am just getting old, but even when I had my 2015 Mustang GT Premium I thought it had enough power (at least for a daily driver). If it was something you are tracking (and probably should then just have 2 cars) I could understand.

What does 900hp offer you on the street that 700 doesn't besides bragging rights and a bit of dick waving?
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Exposed races his cars on the street + drag strip, IIRC.
200+ extra HP can mean the difference between winning or losing the race.
 
Quickstrike said:
Exposed races his cars on the street + drag strip, IIRC.
200+ extra HP can mean the difference between winning or losing the race.
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Agreed.

if the car never leaves the street, I don't agree, but...Mine is right at about 750hp (put down 650rwhp) and I'm also looking for more. I'd like to get as close to 800rwhp as possible, which is pushing around 950hp. When you run 1mile, 1/2 mile, and 1/4 mile...there really isn't too much power. The only wall is your bank account or how much you're willing to throw at it.
 
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