Each year, we aim to do a variety of shootouts that enable us to report on different niches in our market. For example, a few months ago, you read about the Luxobarge battle that showcased large, overweight Ford/Lincoln/Mercury products. In years past, our Modular shootouts have become legendary. It is nice to showcase several different kinds of combinations. This year we wanted to tighten up the focus for Modular-powered vehicles.
Despite the differences in powerplants (giving the inherent edge to the four-valve cars), a Mach 1 vs. Bullitt showdown seemed like a natural. Besides, once the aftermarket parts are thrown into the mix, all bets are off. There are enough two-valve 4.6 cars running sick e.t.'s that we weren't too concerned with the outcome. In the end, we chose to invite six outstanding examples of readers' special-edition Mustangs.
We used the Internet as our main source of tracking down our initial list of competitors. Three Mach 1 owners were contacted, along with three Bullitt owners. Our original list of cars included one blower, one turbo, and one nitrous combination for each style of Mustang. As the date drew closer, a few contestants dropped out. Bob Watson was stuck in Florida catching up on work that he missed during the rash of hurricanes that ripped through his area. Watson's Bullitt won the Modular Shootout last year and is a 10-second player. He relies on a 5L stroker two-valve with a Vortech blower. The turbocharged Bullitt we invited pulled out of competition when the axle bearings went south on the owner's trailer. He was stranded with no way to get to New Jersey from his Florida home. The final tally of competitors was two Bullitts and three Mach 1s. As usual, we laid out their specs, and you can check out what is needed to run similar times as these Mach 1 and Bullitt cars.
| Corey McComsey • 11.067 at 120.89 mph |
| Hometown: | East Powte, MI |
| Year/model: | 2003 Mach 1 |
| Best-ever e.t.: | 11.067/120.89 mph |
| Weight: | 3,710 lbs |
| Engine: | Stock 4.6L |
| Built by: | Ford Motor Company |
| Tuning: | Custom chip by Livernois Motorsports |
| Power adder: | ProCharger D1SC |
| Intercooler: | Standard ProCharger air-to-air intercooler |
| Max boost: | 15 psi |
| Intake manifold: | Stock |
| Cylinder heads: | Stock |
| Compression ratio: | Stock |
| Camshafts: | Stock |
| Ignition: | Stock |
| Exhaust: | Bassani headers, X-pipe, and cat-back exhaust |
| Transmission: | 4r70W by Livernois Motorsports |
| Clutch/converter | Lentech Torque Converter |
| Rear type: | 8.8" with 3.90 gears and 31 spline axles and differential |
| Wheels: | Verde 17x19 (front), Verde 17x10 (rear), and Weld Drag Stars (rear) | |
| Tires F/R: | 275/40/17 (front), 315/35/17 (rear), 28x9 ET Drags (rear) |
| Suspension front: | Stock |
| Suspension rear: | Stock |
Running 11.06 with a short list of modifications is extremely impressive. Corey's Mach 1 is a true testament as to what these cars can do with a little bit of boost. The Mustang had been used as a prototype car at ProCharger in the development of its Mach 1 supercharger system. Corey's best time before coming to Englishtown was 11.61. He attributed the increase in performance to the better air and track conditions, and more tuning at Livernois Motorsports. The car still sports an automatic transmission, but it has been beefed up to handle and transfer the power effectively to the rear tires. He left Englishtown with an 11.06/120.89-mph timeslip in his glovebox.
Corey did struggle a bit early in the day, and at one point, he thought he had broken a few parts. First, he had trouble shifting the automatic transmission under full throttle. He fiddled with the computer chip and was soon blasting off low 11-second times. He did not use the transbrake during our test because he wanted to be sure to make a clean run for the results. His 11.06 could have been in the 10s, but the discharge tube blew off just before the finish line. As you can see, the 120.89 mph is rather low for an 11-oh run. When he got back home, the Mach 1 blasted off into the 10s and ran 10.96 at 124.63 mph. Corey reported that he used the transbrake, made a good clean run, and hit every shift point on the 10.96 pass.
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