fast car

[andyr421]

hey there community,
i've been reading this forum for the past 6 months now and I have really enjoyed it and found it helpful. I ask of you (the more experienced drivers) what is it that i should keep in mind when driving my mustang around? what are some little things that are obvious to you guys now but probably something you found out and thought "Ah i see now."

just some background info:
i normally drive in the city and shift around 2k just because. when i go for some more speed i wait till 3.5k but i still haven't gone past 4k on a shift. There arent that many places i can go in chicago to really push my car and if there i have just been delaying it due to not wanting to completely wreck my car. (i have already crashed my stang once and drive extremely cautiously now) i dont even have a scratch or anything and it has been two months.

i often hear heel-toe but i am not too sure how to shift that way.
i do not down shift. i put the car into neutral and when it is time to accelerate then i shift into the right gear and attempt to rev match. just slightly hit the gas and slide shifter into gear.
my shifter sometimes does not want to go into the gear the first time and i have to shake it and then push it in. that is only when im stationary. not while driving. (1st gear/reverse)

when i want to go for speed what should i "launch" at. i am not comfortable probably launching at 5k or some ridiculously high number. i have tried just launching at 1k and holding down the throttle until 3k and then hitting the clutch while still pressing down on the clutch, and then shifting. its not much but it helps a bit.

anything really will help me at this point.for owning my stang for 6 months ive just been steering it around for the most part not really DRIVING it. Long i know but i just need some advice.

it is a rebuilt motor. the odometer reads 145k, but my mechanic says 15k miles tops.
thanks for reading
- a lost driver.

[nickysixx]

I shift at 2.5k-3k sometimes because it doesn't bog in the next gear when accelerating. I used to shift at 2k and than my engine started to sound like it was bogging out when I shifted so I upped it. When your on a highway stay shifted high. Stay at low rpms for gas. For launching best way is the safe way. Go to the tracks and learn your car. Launching on the street is dangerous to you and others. Infact I don't think were aloud to talk about it on the forums because it's close to street racing which is frowned upon. As far as going into 1st and reverse it sounds like your sticking have your mechanic check the TOB

[andyr421]

Originally Posted by nickysixx

I shift at 2.5k-3k sometimes because it doesn't bog in the next gear when accelerating. I used to shift at 2k and than my engine started to sound like it was bogging out when I shifted so I upped it. When your on a highway stay shifted high. Stay at low rpms for gas.

I shift fast when shifting low as to not bog down the engine. I know what you mean by this and i tryto avoid it. I try to maintain my rpm's over 1.5k in any given speed.
Third gear 50 mph is perfectly fine right?

Thanks for responding.
Ill talk to my mechanic about my gears. Is there anything i should know about taking care of it? Things i ahouldnt do?

[ColeJohnson]

Originally Posted by andyr421

I shift fast when shifting low as to not bog down the engine. I know what you mean by this and i tryto avoid it. I try to maintain my rpm's over 1.5k in any given speed.
Third gear 50 mph is perfectly fine right?

Thanks for responding.
Ill talk to my mechanic about my gears. Is there anything i should know about taking care of it? Things i ahouldnt do?

Idk about 3rd 50mph.. I have 4.10 gears and if I'm leisurely driving then I'm already in 5th by 50-55mph. Haha. I usually let my shifts hang to about 2.5k and daily I probably pull a couple 4-5k shifts. Haha. I dint downshift unless I'm trying to sound cool, so I always go neutral then rev match.

[andyr421]

thanks for your input Johnson.
i never leave the car in third when im at the 50mph range. i drive on the high way at 60-70 in 5th gear. i was told by someone that the car shouldnt be in 5th until mid 80's or 90 mph.
what do you mean sound cool? just by the noise of having your car in gear or does it sound different when you are slowing down and you down shift? or the higher revs making the engine sound louder?

is there anyway to tell what your gear ratio is? idk if i have 4.1 or 3.73
i have a 5 spd of course. also how can i tell the size of the engine. i know it came with a 4.6 but it is a rebuilt motor.
i like the yellow btw.

[ColeJohnson]

Originally Posted by andyr421

thanks for your input Johnson.
i never leave the car in third when im at the 50mph range. i drive on the high way at 60-70 in 5th gear. i was told by someone that the car shouldnt be in 5th until mid 80's or 90 mph.
what do you mean sound cool? just by the noise of having your car in gear or does it sound different when you are slowing down and you down shift? or the higher revs making the engine sound louder?

is there anyway to tell what your gear ratio is? idk if i have 4.1 or 3.73
i have a 5 spd of course. also how can i tell the size of the engine. i know it came with a 4.6 but it is a rebuilt motor.
i like the yellow btw.

If you're cruising on the HWY over 50mph you should pretty much be in 5th no matter what. 5th is just not good on the car for accelerating due to it being an OD gear. It puts a tremendous load on the tranny, clutch, and engine.
When you downshift it revs down very slowly at a higher RPM and snarls like a beast. Especially if you have nice exhaust or a built engine. It's pretty awesome.

And if you could keep track, an easy way to tell your gear ratio is to put the car on jack stands on the rear, put a mark on the drive shaft and the bottom of one of the rear tires. And count how many times the drive shaft fully rotates to turn to tire one time. For example; 4.10 gears means the drive shaft will turn 4.10 times to turn the rear wheels once.

If you have a stock car then your gear ratio will most likely be 2.73(had a factory option of 3.27) and your 4.6 engine will be a 2v 281 V8.

[nickysixx]

I try too keep my car at 2k no lower than 1.6k. 3rd gear goin 50 is iffy. Than again I have 3.9 gears. So it's kinda High. Usually I'm in 5th at 55-60 mph and I'll be at 1.6k rpms. I shift into 4th at 45 usually. I down shift a lot! I almost never use breaks. Its okay to down shift just make sure your in the habit of rev matching. I always rev match when down shifting. Its 10x less strain on your tranny.

[DDTCM]

Many stangs have that 1st gear or reverse issue when going from a stop or parked position. The tranny are tempearmental.

[nickysixx]

Originally Posted by DDTCM

Many stangs have that 1st gear or reverse issue when going from a stop or parked position. The tranny are tempearmental.

+1. it's known and common in most mustangs. Especially in the older ones.

[97GeeTee]

Yupp^^ mine slips out of reverse occasionally even

[andyr421]

Originally Posted by DDTCM

Many stangs have that 1st gear or reverse issue when going from a stop or parked position. The tranny are tempearmental.

alright then thanks.
i was hoping it was nothing really serious.
mine never slips it just has trouble from when i am in 1/2nd and want to reverse i ned to put it back in to first and then in to reverse. maybe i am just doing at a wrong angle?

thanks for all your responses.
the previous owner told me it had around 400 hp
all i know is he upgraded the exhaust system, cold air intake, idk about the engine but my mechanic says the previous owner did a great job. everythings clean and done right. plus it doesnt have that much wear on the engine! 15k miles or so.
but now my front headlights dont turn on so i use my foglights and my radio doesnt turn on when i put the face in. any ideas?

plus:what do you guys thing of my mustang?

[ColeJohnson]

Only way he can have 400hp on a '98 GT is by supercharging/turboing it.. Bolt ons will only get you to about 300ish if you do it all right. >.>

I would check the fuses to solve your radio and headlight problem. If they both messed up at the same time it's safe to say you might have had a short.

[andyr421]

Originally Posted by ColeJohnson

Only way he can have 400hp on a '98 GT is by supercharging/turboing it.. Bolt ons will only get you to about 300ish if you do it all right. >.>

I would check the fuses to solve your radio and headlight problem. If they both messed up at the same time it's safe to say you might have had a short.

yeah it isnt super/turbo charged. ill take a pic with the hood lifted.
ill have my guy check the fuses for me as i am car illiterate.
what must i do about the short circuit?

[ColeJohnson]

Originally Posted by andyr421

yeah it isnt super/turbo charged. ill take a pic with the hood lifted.
ill have my guy check the fuses for me as i am car illiterate.
what must i do about the short circuit?

If I were you then I'd look up the fuse diagram on google and check yourself. You may be car illiterate now, but everyone is at first. Time to start taking time out to learn your ride!

As for a short circuit it could be really easy or really complicated. Check the fuses first.

[nickysixx]

Ex: this in 4th gear at 45 mph a little under 2k rpms. Accelerating in traffic on highway.

[andyr421]

Originally Posted by nickysixx

Ex: this in 4th gear at 45 mph a little under 2k rpms. Accelerating in traffic on highway.

yeah thats what i do all the time. im in 5th to cruise in hwy traffic. i was just asking what would be the ranges that are acceptable to shift at and if it was totally okay to shift ALL the time at 1.6-2k

i still havent checked the fuses. i i was having a hard time finding a diagram but i think i found one.

---------- Post added at 10:27 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:16 AM ----------

this right?
http://i372.photobucket.com/albums/o...eCompartme.jpg
so i pop the hood and where should this be?

[i973eat1]

Originally Posted by nickysixx

Ex: this in 4th gear at 45 mph a little under 2k rpms. Accelerating in traffic on highway.

Thats right where my car is when I am shifting into 5th driving around town... or following a slow car onto the highway.

[andyr421]

So when looking for the fuses under the hood what am i looking for and where wouldnit be? By the top right? Drivers side? Also can someone post a video somewhere that i can follow and now exactly what to do to replace it and how to tell? People tell me things but i cant remember or have no idea hat they mean.

[andyr421]

i took a look at all the fuses. It was all good. I had some one help me out and they rechecked ALL the fuses, they were ALL good. he mentioned power cycling the radio just for the hell of it. and it worked. he said it happens sometimes. rare but it does. my car was working perfectly. except now the battery dies on me. it wont start. i had to get 2 jumps in 2 days. what would be the best option? i was told buy a guy who helped me with the cold coming ( i live in chicago we have been having 20-3o degree nights) i should get a new battery especially with my car that requires more power to operate. what battery should i get? right now i have an eco power. but my sister's expidition has an interstate mega-tron. she has never had a problem. any advice?

[ColeJohnson]

Originally Posted by andyr421

i took a look at all the fuses. It was all good. I had some one help me out and they rechecked ALL the fuses, they were ALL good. he mentioned power cycling the radio just for the hell of it. and it worked. he said it happens sometimes. rare but it does. my car was working perfectly. except now the battery dies on me. it wont start. i had to get 2 jumps in 2 days. what would be the best option? i was told buy a guy who helped me with the cold coming ( i live in chicago we have been having 20-3o degree nights) i should get a new battery especially with my car that requires more power to operate. what battery should i get? right now i have an eco power. but my sister's expidition has an interstate mega-tron. she has never had a problem. any advice?

I have a Legend 75. One of the local shops got it for me. It's pretty awesome.

[andyr421]

thanks. I took it to the shop for my mechanic to look at the charging system and to see if there is anything draining the battery unnecessarily. i shall let him now of your suggestion and ask for his prior to doing so. check out my other post. if you have any advice on that it will be appreciated as well.

hood pins or no hood pins? + 87,89,93 octane gas

[deadsp0t]

Originally Posted by nickysixx

I try too keep my car at 2k no lower than 1.6k. 3rd gear goin 50 is iffy. Than again I have 3.9 gears. So it's kinda High. Usually I'm in 5th at 55-60 mph and I'll be at 1.6k rpms. I shift into 4th at 45 usually. I down shift a lot! I almost never use breaks. Its okay to down shift just make sure your in the habit of rev matching. I always rev match when down shifting. Its 10x less strain on your tranny.

Down shifting a lot is a bad idea, the gears in the tranny wear on the drive side of the gears, and when you down shift they are on the coast side. Down shifting puts undue stress on the coast side and can break a tranny. I spattered 3rd gear once down shifting at about 30mph slowing down to turn on my street. Trans had 175,025 miles exactly will never forget it. Not saying don't do it at all I'm saying it can break as a result and to be careful.

[DaBluedude]

Originally Posted by andyr421

thanks for your input Johnson.
i never leave the car in third when im at the 50mph range. i drive on the high way at 60-70 in 5th gear. i was told by someone that the car shouldnt be in 5th until mid 80's or 90 mph.
what do you mean sound cool? just by the noise of having your car in gear or does it sound different when you are slowing down and you down shift? or the higher revs making the engine sound louder?

is there anyway to tell what your gear ratio is? idk if i have 4.1 or 3.73
i have a 5 spd of course. also how can i tell the size of the engine. i know it came with a 4.6 but it is a rebuilt motor.
i like the yellow btw.

You'll ve able to feel when the car is ok with the revs. My mach 1 cruises at 60kph (about 42 mph) in 5th with 3.55 gears. Thata about 1000rpm. Exhaust is clean plugs have no buildup. But when I'm launching at the track your not lookibg for anything more than 3200rpm on street tires. Rev it to 5200 powershift. Repeat. I wind my mach out to about 6-6.5k but its a 4v engine and it revs higher. Make sure you learn in a controled safe place.

[andyr421]

Originally Posted by DaBluedude

You'll ve able to feel when the car is ok with the revs. My mach 1 cruises at 60kph (about 42 mph) in 5th with 3.55 gears. Thata about 1000rpm. Exhaust is clean plugs have no buildup. But when I'm launching at the track your not lookibg for anything more than 3200rpm on street tires. Rev it to 5200 powershift. Repeat. I wind my mach out to about 6-6.5k but its a 4v engine and it revs higher. Make sure you learn in a controled safe place.

Can i get some info about 3.55 , 3.73, 4.1 gear ratios?
idk where i can find a track that will let me run cheaply ive done 3k+ with out noticing on a turn and spun out a bit. my car is severely under powered at 1k. well it feels like it. when I shift up after slowing down, and need to accelerate fast i floor it and it doesn't accelerate fast enough until it reaches over 1.6k then i just feel the power. 4v engine? what does that mean?

[DaBluedude]

Originally Posted by andyr421

Can i get some info about 3.55 , 3.73, 4.1 gear ratios?
idk where i can find a track that will let me run cheaply ive done 3k+ with out noticing on a turn and spun out a bit. my car is severely under powered at 1k. well it feels like it. when I shift up after slowing down, and need to accelerate fast i floor it and it doesn't accelerate fast enough until it reaches over 1.6k then i just feel the power. 4v engine? what does that mean?

Yeah. Your prob on 3.23 or 3.31 gears. I can't remember what the stock sn95 new edge gts came with. Either way, the higher the gear, the more your set up for acceleration. I run my engine out to over 6k once the engine is up to full temp just to get full pressure through the oil lines. Its important to pay attention to your revs, speed and gear if your going to be a successful manual transmission driver. Rule of thumb is for regular driving you don't need to.rev it past 4k but most of the time youll be shifting around 2000-2500rpm.

[JDF]

Originally Posted by andyr421

Can i get some info about 3.55 , 3.73, 4.1 gear ratios?
idk where i can find a track that will let me run cheaply ive done 3k+ with out noticing on a turn and spun out a bit. my car is severely under powered at 1k. well it feels like it. when I shift up after slowing down, and need to accelerate fast i floor it and it doesn't accelerate fast enough until it reaches over 1.6k then i just feel the power. 4v engine? what does that mean?

I don't know if they're going right now but go to your local drag strip.

What do you want to know about gear ratios? The ratio is how
Many turns the driveshaft makes to 1 turn of the wheel. An example is a 3.55:1 gear means the driveshaft spins around 3.55 times to the tires 1 spin. The shorter the ratio (3.73, 3.90,... Etc) the faster the acceleration. However you lose a little top speed when you change the gear ratio.

[ColeJohnson]

Originally Posted by JDF

I don't know if they're going right now but go to your local drag strip.

What do you want to know about gear ratios? The ratio is how
Many turns the driveshaft makes to 1 turn of the wheel. An example is a 3.55:1 gear means the driveshaft spins around 3.55 times to the tires 1 spin. The shorter the ratio (3.73, 3.90,... Etc) the faster the acceleration. However you lose a little top speed when you change the gear ratio.

The loss of top end is debate able because with my nearly stock 4.6, 4.10 gears actually got me into my powerband in top gear and I actually gained quite a bit of top end mph.

[JDF]

Originally Posted by ColeJohnson

The loss of top end is debate able because with my nearly stock 4.6, 4.10 gears actually got me into my powerband in top gear and I actually gained quite a bit of top end mph.

Nice. When I did my gears I drove around without adjusting my speedometer for a while so I don't remember if I picked anything up from them.

[andyr421]

thanks again guys. youve all been most helpful. i shall make sure not to shift too early. i sometimes shift under 2k, and by the time im in third my rpms drop to 1.2k when it was unnecessary to shift and i have to slow down. i guess ill just stick to 2nd gear and 3k

can you guys comment on my other post as well please?
i need some insight.
picking up my car tomorrow from the shop going to take her for a nice cruise.