Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Will these wheels and tires fit???


This is really a rant, I have to vent it somewhere and since this is my blog I'm going wide open on this subject here.
I see soo many posts about guys asking about wider wheels and tires "fitting" on their Fox Body Mustangs. I can't for the life of me figure out why this issue should for the most part be cleared up. But it's not. Part of this could be due to people being new to fox bodies and don't want to spend a lot of time looking for old posts on it but for the most part a lot of guys think a 10.5" wheel with a 305 width tire will just bolt right in!!! Now I'm exaggerating a little here but if you look at the pictures above this is what I see the majority of the time. A 17"x9" wide wheel on the front of a fox body with a 245/45/17 tire stretched onto it yet still sticking outside the wheel well lip is just not good looking - period. If you like tearing up your tires and having them scrub up against your wheel well lip then fine it fits great - NOT! I have seen guys properly fit a 9" wide wheel up front but it involves getting the right parts and making modifications to make it fit properly. Same thing with the rear wheel and tire fitment.
I'm just flat out tired of seeing wheels and tires sticking outside of the wheel well lip and the owner looks at it and says "Yeah, they fit fine" - C'mon are you serious??? I've even seen worse than what I have pictured above, they just jack up the rear a little so it doesn't hit and only lower the front! Some will defend their rides with poorly fitting wheel and tires by saying "It's a matter of opinion - I think it looks great" Maybe, ok. Then let's look at safety - do you think having your wheels hit the fender lips under high speed cornering is safe? How about driving down the highway at 70 mph and hitting a dip in the road and having the wheel well lip slam down on top of the tire - I can't imagine that being safe. What is the point of a wheel well lip? Was this just an afterthought styling idea by the OEMs or was it included in the design to allow wheel and tire clearance to the body.
Maybe I'm spending too much time typing about this but ya know if people ask if they fit and they don't say - there might be some clearance issues. If somebody asks if they stick outside the wheel well lip - don't say no and they stick out. Best of all, if you found a way to fit some meaty fat tires on some really wide wheels on your Fox Body - tell us how you got it to work the right way.
I COULD get into tires that are too wide for the wheels but maybe I'll save that one for another time.
Here's some places to check out for some good (and maybe some bad) wheel and tire combinations for your Fox Body. Always research ahead of time and measure twice before you buy especially when it comes to proper (and safe) wheel and tire fitment on your Mustang.

Corral.net - there's atleast 100 pages of pics and info.

Fox Body Forums - Scroll down to their wheels and tire forum.

Friday, September 26, 2008


As all of us know, it's getting rarer and rarer to even see fox body Mustangs driving down the road everyday. I haven't seen a Capri just drivin' around in years. The only time I really see any Fox Body Mustangs driving is the same 3 I see on the way to work. 2 white 87+ GTs with ponies, and a blue with silver ground effects white top 5.0 GT. Occasionally there's a real clean 83-84 GT hatcback red with chrome cobra Rs and black hood stripe that I see on the way to work. Evertime I see any of these 5.0s drivin', we all give each other the "nod" or a wave or some sign of some kind basically indicating "Nice Fox Mustang".Pretty similar to what a lot of motorcycle guys do - almost like a fox body brotherhood LOL!

So if you're drivin' around in your 5.0 and you see a good lookin' Fox Body Stang or Capri - you know what to do!

Thursday, September 25, 2008

SOUTHEASTERN FOXBODIES!!!


I'd been a lurker on this website for a little while and finally signed up. It's quickly becoming one of my favorite sites. There's also a lot of enthusiastic people on here who like to pull together to meet at events and look for any excuse to get out and drive their Stangs!

Since I'm in the Atlanta area, this website is of particular interest to me. It also focuses on the Fox Body Mustang from events, to get togethers and also a great forum to post on. But it's all Fox Body! So if all you do is eat sleep and breathe FOX BODIES and you live in the SOUTHEAST - you need to go here and sign up!

Tuesday, September 9, 2008

Billet Specialties Street Lite Wheels



I wanted something a little different than what most guys had on their stangs at the strip. I saw the new Billet Specialties Street Lite wheels, and knew right away they’d do the trick! Designed for the street or strip the new Street Lite wheel is SFI 15-1 approved, light weight, and features an outstanding strength-to-weight ratio. These machined billet 15” Street Lites are absolutely gorgeous and combine a polished & machined finish for an aggressive look. Sizes range from 15x3.5 to 15x15. They accept mag shank lug nuts and can be used with 5/8” racing studs. Out front I ran a set of Kumho Powerstar 758 165/80-15 tires on the 15x3.5" wheels. Out back i wrapped the rear 15x8 wheels with two giant slabs of Nitto Drag Radial 555Rs in a chunky 275/50-15 size! I can already feel how much better these tires hook and I haven't dropped the pressure down on 'em yet. I've had these before on 2 other Mustangs an consistently dropped 3/10s of a second running this wheel and tire combination. Not Bad. For more info on these new Street Lites, contact Billet Specialties at 1-800-245-5382 or check out their website at http://www.billetspecialties.com/ Summit Racing also carries these wheels in stock for many applications http://www.summitracing.com/


Friday, August 29, 2008

80 Miles Per Gallon, 400 horsepower Fox Body Mustang


If you think 80 miles per gallon and 400 horsepower don’t go together you better think again because Doug Pelmear, a 48-year-old electronics engineer and master mechanic from Napoleon, Ohio has done just that with his 1987 Ford Mustang.
Mr. Pelmear created his Mustang and more specifically the technologically advanced engine to compete in the $10 million Progressive Automotive X Prize: a “race” to find an affordable, marketable
automobile that gets at least 100 miles per gallon. The Progressive Automotive X Prize is sponsored by the X Prize Foundation.


Read more about it here on MustangBlog.com


Thursday, August 28, 2008

1:18 Scale Mustang Streetfighter!



What do you get when you take a 1993 Mustang Cobra R and combine it with modern Trans Am race car styling and performance? One heck of a g-Machine that’s what! This model was built by Chris Lee for a Diecast model car contest on www.diecastpub.com sponsored by GMP Diecast. Everybody was offered a 1993 Steeda Mustang Cobra model at a substantial discount from GMP to build for the contest. Chris entered the Pro-Touring/Road Racing class and was voted the winner in that class.
By the looks of the amount of fabrication, detail, and just how wild the concept is it’s no surprise that this car catches a lot of attention from anybody who’s seen it. Widebody flares, super wide racing wheels and slicks, splitters, diffusers, twin turbos, turbo system plumbing with heat wrap (wow!), custom interior, custom roll cage – AWESOME.


Even before building this killer corner carver, Chris had a plan and executed it skillfully. He even sketched up a concept rendering just like a real custom shop – from concept to build. Enjoy the pictures below. Click below to see additional pics on the Diecast Pub
http://www.diecast-pub.com/photos/showgallery.php/cat/634

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

1:18 Scale GMP Diecast Mustangs!!!


If you collect Diecast models and love Fox Body Mustangs, then you gotta have some of these! GMP Diecast is one of the few premier Diecast companies on the planet that produces super accurate scale replicas with an obscene amount of detail. Some of the models even have roll up and down windows!
One line of models that they do produce is the Fox Body Mustang ranging from 1985 to 1993. It includes ’93 Cobras, ’93 Cobra R, GTs, LXs, Cop cars, and even Convertible versions. But what’s even cooler than a recreation of a stock 5.0 Mustang? You got it, a Hot Rod Mustang! These modified 1:18 scale Mustangs are modified with bigs ‘n’ little, Vortech superchargers, Nos, roll bars, rear seats deleted, 4” cowl hoods, competition seats, Cobra R wheels, Cobra brake kits, lowered suspensions, you name it! GMP is no stranger to great detail and cool working features – it’s a standard on all of their models. Brake lines, rubber radiator hoses, vacuum lines, working suspension, seats articulate, handbrake moves up and down, flocked carpeting, flocked cloth floor mats, cloth seat belts, photo etch buckles, hardware metal hood prop rod, and get a load of the retractable seatbelts?! The sickness never stops!
Now I will have to admit, I’m a little biased – I work there and had a large part in developing these models but being a ’79-’93 Mustang freak, I put a lot of work into these to make sure that even if I didn’t work here that if I saw these – I’d just have to have ‘em….ALL! As a matter of fact there was a time when I didn’t work here and I was buying these Fox Body models at retail. This was before GMP released the new tooling for the ’87-’93 models you see here. Since the new tooling the accuracy and details have doubled and there’s so many more versions we are capable of producing with the new tooling. Don’t forget, these cars are produced in limited quantities and once their gone they’ll never reproduce the same one again.
Anyways, for more info about these Diecast Mustangs, check out
www.gmpdiecast.com or click on this link which will take you directly to the ’85-’93 Mustang page http://gmpdiecast.com/products/default.cfm?category=1%3A18%20Scale%20Ford%20Mustangs

You can also contact GMP at 1-800-536-1637
The average retail is $105