How I make 650 whp reliably for under $3000

Hey everyone,

First of all, thank you for taking the time to read this post. I'm very proud of my build so I thought I'd share Leviathans ([email protected]_5.0) build sheet/cost to show that you DO NOT have to spend as much as $10,000 to have a daily driven Mustang that makes 600-650 WHP both safely and reliably.

For those that dont know, I own a Guard 2016 Mustang GT Premium w/ the Performance Pack.

The Gen. 2 Coyote motor in the 15-17 Mustangs come with a factory power output of 435/400 and is capable of comfortably handling approx. 650 whp w/out issue thanks to the forged engine components that were carried over from the 2012-13 Mustang Boss 302.

The general consensus is if you want to hit 600-650 WHP numbers reliably and still have a Daily Driver, then you need to be prepared to spend approx.$10,000 for a power-adder, the supporting mods required, and installation costs. I can tell you that is NOT the case. I was able to achieve those power numbers reliably for less than half that cost using reputable products from reputable manufacturers that almost everyone in the Mustang world is familiar with or has heard of. Since completing these modifications I haven't had anything break nor have I had any problems. I believe this is because I used quality parts, I triple checked to ensure I correctly installed all of the components, I never bang against the rev limiter,
I'm extremely conservative with my nitrous jetting, the rev. range that I spray (3500-7000), and the timing.

I will say though that to hit those power numbers reliably at half the cost, you will have to do almost all the work yourself.

Personally, I chose to do everything myself for several reasons. It allowed me to learn something new that I didn't know before, it saved me a lot of money, it strengthened the bond I have with my Mustang, and the pride/satisfaction I have knowing that I did all the work myself with success. You just don't get that sense of pride and satisfaction when you pay a shop to do everything for you.

I believe Leviathan is truly unique in that there's no other Mustang on the planet thats spec'd and modified like she is. I chose every single, and installed every single modification myself with the exception of the custom exhaust because I don't have the tooling required to bend tubing.

Below is Leviathans build sheet. I listed her modifications in chronological order from the time I bought her in June, 2017:

1.) Custom Exhaust- $500
**Off-road w/ 4.5" Classic
Chrome tips**

2.) Airaid CAI (tune req'd)- $100

3.) SCT-X4 Tuner- $399

4.) AMR Custom Tunes- $327
**N/A Race Gas, E85, 93,
Flex Fuel, Ghost Cam**

5.) CJ Pony Parts Raked Drag
Springs- $200

6.) Gen. 3 Coyote Intake
Manifold- $330

7.) Ford Performance 47 lb.
Fuel Injectors- $285

8.) Nitrous Outlet X-Series Wet
System- $450

9.) Nitrous Outlet Purge kit-
$125

10.) Nitrous 10 lb. Tank Heater/
Pressure Gauge- $85

11.) Ford Performance Nitrous
Spark Plugs- $50

12.) RPM Activated Window
Switch- $60

13.) Mickey Thompson E/T Street
Drag Radials (285/35 R19)- $800
+___________________________________
TOTAL COST = $3,711.00

The 2 modifications that made the most difference in terms of power output was, of course, the Nitrous Outlet System followed by the Gen. 3 Coyote Manifold that, I'm proud to say, I ported myself!

Regarding the Nitrous System, and Nitrous in general, there's a HUGE misconception that Nitrous blows up motors and Forced Induction is safer than Nitrous. I believe this is 100% completely FALSE!!! People, and their stupidity are the ones that kill their engines, usually because they don't use the right spark plugs, they don't tune the car properly leading to pre-ignition/detonation, they spray below 3500 rpm's, and they spray way more nitrous than the car is designed to handle, resulting in a blown motor. I believe you hear about it a lot more with nitrous than you do with F.I. because it's much easier to increase power output on a nitrous setup than it is on a boosted application. Most Nitrous kits come with jettings that go as high as 250 HP even though a 150 shot jetting is the most you wanna spray on a stock 15-17 motor. But you get these people that feel the instant torque that a 150 shot brings, so they're itching to throw in the 200 shot or even the 250 shot, especially when all their buddies are in their ear telling you to "****in Send It!" which is a shame because Nitrous has been, and likely will always be, the "Best Bang 4 Your Buck" Power-Adder that is being utilized less and less because people fear they're going to become the next internet mustang meme and grenade their motors.

I started out spraying a 100 shot. I stayed with a 100 shot until I had gone through several tanks and had several consistent, healthy datalogs. Because I'm running E85, the knock sensors were extremely happy with the car adding 7-9° timing. So after I had successfully give through several tanks, i decided to increase the jetting to a 150 shot. To run a 150 shot, my tuner did have to pull approx. 2-4° timing.I decided that a 150 shot is the highest I'll go on my stock motor until I upgrade from the stock cast pistons to forged pistons. Yes I may be able to run a 200 shot, but I'm personally not going to take that risk.

I also installed a 24" line going from the Nitrous solenoid to the nozzle which is twice the length of the fuel line. A lot of the major tuners and nitrous gurus such as AED recommend doing so because of the huge difference between the Nitrous pressure and the fuel pressure. Good Nitrous pressure is approximately 20x the fuel pressure at 950 psi, whereas fuel pressure on the 2015+ 5.0's are approx. 55 psi. As a result the nitrous will often times reach the cylinders before the fuel does. By doubling the length of the Nitrous line, the nitrous and fuel now reach the nozzle at almost the same time.

I opted to continue to run E-85 with my nitrous system because it runs cooler and has a higher octane rating, allowing for more timing. To run E-85 with nitrous you have to use a larger fuel injector, a larger fuel jetting, and possibly a fuel pump voltage booster. Whether you need to use a BAP will depend on your Mustangs model year and how much nitrous you intend to spray.
As for which fuel jetting to use, if you intend to run E85 with nitrous then it's imperative that you use the correct fuel jetting. The correct jetting size will depend on the flow rate of your fuel solenoid, your Mustangs fuel pressure, and how much nitrous you intend to spray. Check with either the Nitrous kits manufacturer or your tuner to get the correct fuel jetting size. You dont want to get the jettings sizes wrong for obvious reasons, so always triple check the jettings to make sure they're the right size for your application.

As long as your willing to do the majority of the work yourself, it is possible to achieve your power goals without it costing an arm and a leg which allows you to stay competitive and leaves you more $ to put towards other modifications such as suspension components, a fuel system, or even a Forced Induction kit later on.

Do your diligence, do your homework, take all the proper precautions necessary, and purchasing/install all necessary safety features. Do these things and you should be able to run nitrous safely for a very, very long time.

Before I even thought about spraying I bought all the safety hardware need to run nitrous safely. I'm no expert, nor do I claim to be one, but I have successfully gone through fifteen 10 lb. tanks of nitrous without any issues. The majority of the time I run the 100 shot jettings installed because 580 - 600 whp is usually more than enough to gap most cars on the road, and I'm able to get more runs out of each tank (approx. 15), it's not as hard on the motor, and it's much easier to maintain traction in 2nd gear. However, with that said, I'm always ready to swap in the 150 jettings if the circumstances call for it.
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*** A couple of the most common questions I'm asked are:

-Do I need a BAP to run E85 and Nitrous on a 15-17 Mustang GT? I didn't. The 15-17's fuel system should be able to handle up to 150 shot on E85, but you do need to upgrade to 47 lb. fuel injectors minimum.

- What rev. range do I run on Nitrous?

3500-7000 rpm's

-Why didn't I go with a plate system?

Because I have the nozzle angled to spray directly into the center of the intake manifold which promotes better air flow. I also have the nozzle angled down slightly for better distribution to each cylinder. When I had the nozzle pointing straight into the middle of the manifold, I noticed on the datalogs that the 4 cylinders nearest the front of the motor were receiving the majority of Nitrous. Once I changed the angle, the datalogs read that the Nitrous was almost perfectly distributed.

-Do you have to use a window switch?

YES! It eliminates human error and is one less thing to worry about when racing, otherwise you have to manage the throttle yourself to ensure you don't go WOT below 3500 rpm, activating the nitrous prematurely.

-What about the "Fast and Furious" pushbutton?

Absolutely not

-Why didn't I get a Cobra Jet Intake Manifold?

Because the Gen.3 Coyote Intake Manifold is $1500 less, it makes the almost same horsepower, and more torque than the CJ making it the "Bang 4 your Buck" Intake Manifold on the market IMO. The Cobra Jet Intake Manifold does out-power the Gen. 3 Coyote manifold by 12 hp for a 500 rpm range making the Cobra Jet king of Intake Manifolds by 12 hp. However, it doesn't make sense to pay an additional $1500 to gain an additional 12 hp across a 500 rpm range.
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My next round of mods over the next year will consist of drive train, and suspension upgrades along with some aesthetics. I'll be upgrading the drive shaft, the half-shafts, clutch, transmission, an anti-hop kit. I'm also getting a GT350R spoiler to match the cowl hood I plan on installing.

I encourage you to please follow her build on Instragram @Laviathan_5.0

If you're interested in acquiring any of the parts I used on my setup, or would like a personal quote, please don't hesitate to ask and I'll get you hooked up.

Sent from my Z981 using the svtperformance.com mobile app