It may have a stock profile...
It may have a stock profile hood, but there's a big ol' Windsor resting in the engine bay.
Coilover front struts and...
Coilover front struts and Maximum Motorsports Weight Jacker lower control arms enable John to slam his coupe to the ground.
That's 428 ci of small-block...
That's 428 ci of small-block Ford fury staring back at you. At the time of the photo shoot, it produced 508 rwhp and 471 rwtq, but that is said to have increased over the winter. John hopes the extra power and some other tricks will put him solidly in the 10.50s.
The clean and simple approach...
The clean and simple approach was carried over to the interior. A Bullet Racing six-point bar, a custom stereo system, and a few gauges are the only major additions to the factory interior.
It's so easy these days to lose control in the horsepower department thanks to superchargers, nitrous oxide, and turbo-chargers. We certainly fall victim to it, as do many others. But there are enthusiasts who like running their engines naturally, using only what the earth's atmosphere has to offer in terms of air. If the weather is bad, then the car will run what it will run. There's no turning up the boost or adding more nitrous.
John Hartman is one of those guys who prefers to do things the natural way. When he decided to build an engine for his '93 Mustang LX, he went big-428ci big. John's casual response to our question "why" was, "I like the idea of a large Windsor and the simplicity of it." Another positive to a naturally aspirated route to the 10s is the lower maintenance required. John reports that he just changes the oil and spark plugs and goes cruising for a season. Darrin Hendricks will change the valvesprings once a year, as well.
The tame but powerful small-block even knocks down an average of 22.79 mpg on road trips. Trailers are for show cars and race cars-John drove the coupe 422 miles for his trip to our photo shoot. Even in what he calls "mixed" driving, the Stang records an impressive 16 mpg. With those kinds of performances, even the CAFE nazis would be satisfied. And it is a relief to know John doesn't need to waste a week's salary on fuel when he wants to drive his Mustang around on the weekends. By the way, those miles-per-gallon results were achieved with the A/C keeping the cabin cold.
The Loran Kinter-built Windsor engine belts out 508 rwhp and a stump-pulling 471 lb-ft of torque, also rated at the back wheels. When you combine that power with some sticky rear tires in a 3,500-pound ride, the result is 10.79 at 125 mph-all without the help of a power adder. As if running high 10s in naturally aspirated trim wasn't impressive enough, the car is driven to and from the track.
"With some changes, the car is now making more horsepower, and I'm hoping to run 10.50s at 129ish-granny-shifting," John says. The 10.79 run was accomplished with the 17-inch wheels up front and a faulty rev limiter that turned on in the last 100 feet of the dragstrip.
Just tickling the gas pedal switches things from mild to wild In a hurry. So what makes the car tick? The 428 is a big part of the puzzle-and the envy of many. The large cubes make all the difference and allow the camshaft and compression to be mild enough to keep the car sedate. Loran Kinter, mastermind behind this Windsor mill, started with a Dart block for durability and longevity. It was bored 4.125 and the holes are filled up with Ross custom pistons. Compression ratio is listed as a pump-gas-friendly 10.2:1. A Scat 4340 steel, 4-inch stroke crankshaft swings around on the bottom end of the block. Eight Scat steel rods with ARP bolts round out the rotating assembly. A Canton oil pan holds the synthetic oil, while a Precision oil pump circulates it through the engine.
Special attention was paid to the upper end of the engine, first because the car was slated for severe street duty, and second because a mill this size requires a lot of air to fill the massive cylinders. First on the list was a call to Ed Curtis at FTI for a custom camshaft and AFR 225 cylinder heads. A hydraulic roller camshaft was selected with a robust 0.612-inch/0.608-inch intake/exhaust valve lift measurement. Duration is listed as 248 degrees on the intake side of things and 256 degrees for the exhaust. FTI ported the heads and set them up for use with the custom cam. An Edelbrock Super Victor was sent to Wilson Manifolds for a few mods. Wilson is long known for its work in NASCAR, NHRA, Indy, and many other high-end racing arenas. The company's specialty shop converted the intake to fuel injection by welding injector bungs in the runners, and added fuel rails. A Reichard Racing sheetmetal 90-degree elbow holds a Wilson 90mm throttle body in place. FTI ported and polished the AFR 225 cylinder heads to help get air in and out of the big-block-sized cylinders.