So I finally did it! Found an event that I could take the Mustang down the track! (11 times to be exact. lol) They had free spectator drags at the Byron Dragway in Byron, IL!  I've never done it before, and scared the crap outta me the first couple times. By the 3rd run, I wasn't so nervous anymore! I know this sounds lame to all of you track goers, but it was exhilarating, and the adrenaline pumped every time I came to the line! I won some, I lost some, I came close a couple other times... And now because of it, I've got the "itch" to make my car go faster! Here's the breakdown for all you guys wondering, "What did you run?" Well, my BEST time was an 11.1 @ 83 MPH... While my worst was an 11.3 @ 82 MPH. And if my opponent could go faster than 90, they had me. (Namely the Dodge Charger Super Bee and Pontiac G8 GTP I raced against... >.<) I came close with a 2004 GMC Sierra 1/2 Ton Truck, who beat me by only .2 seconds... But what the most fun was racing this dude in an older (Probably 70's) Chevrolet Nova, who I beat EVERY time. (Raced him 4 times. Just was the luck of the draw.) After the 2nd heat with him, we talked. His exact words were, "We are pretty even at the start, but as soon as you hit your top end, God Damn, you're just GONE!" I laughed heartily at that! (By the way, the Nova was running a 305 V8 with a double barrel carb FYI) In the end, it was epically awesome! My fiance took a few videos. (Which I'll post later in here once I can get them uploaded) The quality isn't great, but you'll get the point! At the end of the drags, they had a huge fireworks show! Best 4th of July EVER!!!

Coincidentally, I managed to get my RPM Number as my car #! Good ol' #17! (Yes, I have a Paw in my car. It's a power decal that glows when it gets dark!)


Just a shot of the fireworks at the END of the track from the parking lot! And these were the ground display they had! Not what was going off above them!

Awesome!

If you want to make it go faster- get on one of these kits before you can't get them any more- took a full second off of my 1/4 mile time.

http://www.vapauto.com/windstar.htm

Are those 1/8th mile times?
Your ET computed from your vehicle ET of 11.1 seconds is 17.28 seconds in Quarter Mile.

Quote from: JeffSeb on July 05, 2012, 04:14 PM

Awesome!

If you want to make it go faster- get on one of these kits before you can't get them any more- took a full second off of my 1/4 mile time.

http://www.vapauto.com/windstar.htm

Are those 1/8th mile times?
Your ET computed from your vehicle ET of 11.1 seconds is 17.28 seconds in Quarter Mile.

Good advice Jeff , and I think this should be his first mod with gears being the 2nd mod.

Jeff: Being that I'm new at this, you're right. It is 17 seconds in the quarter mile. The slips I got are SLOWLY making sense to me. haha

Germeezy: I plan to get the Windstar Intake. It's just a matter of getting the money together for one. (Donations would be appreciated. ) I still need to get a couple things fixed on the car first though. (Rear pinion seal... Tail shaft seal... Rotted exhaust... Squeaky front suspension... >.<)

Badass: Thank you! I'm very excited to have started doing this! I was only able to do it because they didn't require helmets, and was free to run.

Is your car an auto or manual?

With the windstar/tune I was hitting 15.8 1/4
LT's and DR's I got 14.8
Supercharged... Yet to be determined.

Before putting money into your 7.5 you may consider just swapping in an 8.8 out of a GT, I think mine was around 100.

Same with your exhaust, go with GT take-offs and fix the problem and upgrade to duals.

I have an Automatic. (And no, I'm not switching out of it! lol)

For the exhaust, I'm considering getting a fully custom exhaust from the cats back. H-Pipe into a dual set up with Flowmaster 40's. Debating over the 2.25" In/Out or going slightly larger.

Aaaaand I'm a bit of a dummy... No idea what you mean with the 7.5 and the 8.8... (Still learning all this terminology.)

Quote from: Kitsunechild on July 05, 2012, 04:53 PM

Quote from: JeffSeb on July 05, 2012, 04:45 PM

Is your car an auto or manual?

With the windstar/tune I was hitting 15.8 1/4
LT's and DR's I got 14.8
Supercharged... Yet to be determined.

Before putting money into your 7.5 you may consider just swapping in an 8.8 out of a GT, I think mine was around 100.

Same with your exhaust, go with GT take-offs and fix the problem and upgrade to duals.

I have an Automatic. (And no, I'm not switching out of it! lol)

For the exhaust, I'm considering getting a fully custom exhaust from the cats back. H-Pipe into a dual set up with Flowmaster 40's. Debating over the 2.25" In/Out or going slightly larger.

Aaaaand I'm a bit of a dummy... No idea what you mean with the 7.5 and the 8.8... (Still learning all this terminology.)

Keep the auto, a tune and "j-mod" (google it) will really wake it up

Stick with 2.25 piping. Our cars do not need the extra flow, it will only hurt your torque numbers.

7.5 is the size of the rear-end in your car. The GT came stock with an 8.8 inch rearend. The GT is beefier and comes with trac-loc limited slip (means it will spin both tires instead of just 1). This will help your launches and is all around more robust.

Thank you for the information and advice! You can bet I'll be taking all of this to heart! Anything to make it better on the track, and on the street.

((By the way, off topic, this is my 1000th post, Everyone!!! I officially have no life now! hahaha)

Suspension is always a good way to go. If you don't have a rear sway bar those are a dime a dozen off of GT's.

Exhaust makes your car sound better, which in turn makes it more fun to drive IMO

I need to get the front suspension done. I don't wanna lower the car though. I know it's better for aerodynamics and traction, but I like the higher stance on my car with the smaller wheels. (I'm thinking of getting wheel spacers for the rear too. Good idea?)

And yes! That's one of the bigger things I'm looking forward to when I do the exhaust.

I still have yet to take Midnight Pony down the track and see how she will do I want too but the track here in Pueblo is not the best. I was going to run up at Bandimere during the KBPI Rock-N-Roll car show on 07/07/12 but do to flash flood warnings they postponed it until 08/26/12 not sure I'll be able to make that show.

Haha, I plan to keep you all posted as this track noob continues to make progress. I'm already on contact with the owner of VAP to get my hands on a Windstar Intake. Sounds like I might have one by this fall. (I'm on a LONG waiting list apparently. lol) And then I'll be working on the rest of the car in the coming months. I don't think she'll see the track again this year, but next year for sure! She's just very limited right now, and in disrepair. I don't wanna break her at the track. (Especially since it's over an hour n' a half away. lol I can't pay that towing bill.) Thank you to everyone who's given me the advice, the encouragement, and the pats as I step into this new world. I look forward to hearing from all of you as this continues, and you can bet there'll be lots of questions. I wanna be smart about this, and I know you guys have my back! Thank you, each and every one of you!