A common belief is that a person is a direct product of the environment from which he (or she) is raised.
For most Ford fanatics, you are either raised on Fords or you are a brand-Xer. Matt Glover is a rare exception to that rule. Matt got his start as a child with a "Chevy" father.
"My dad had always been a Chevy guy, so we just grew into it. As I got older though, I started to get more into Mustangs. I wanted to be different," Matt explains. So when the chance came for him to purchase an '88 GT from his father's friend in August 2000, he didn't let the car pass him by.
The Stang was mostly stock, with just aftermarket headers, throttle body, exhaust, and 16-inch chrome Pony wheels. Matt was content driving the car like this for a while, but soon, the "mod bug" bit him, and he picked up a stock 302 short-block from his cousin Zach and ordered a Vortech S-trim supercharger from Summit Racing.
Craving speed, Matt added a series of modifications, including 3.73 gears, an F-303 cam, a Holley Systemax intake manifold, and he ported the stock heads. With 12s in the bag, he upgraded with AFR 185s, an Anderson Power Pipe, a 2.95-inch pulley, and long-tube headers. With the timing advanced and race gas in the tank, he broke easily into the 10s. Matt was proud of his setup and amazed that within a 9-month period, he had dropped his quarter-mile times from 13s to 10s.
At that point, Matt's Fox was beginning to gain street cred as the "fast, primered-black Fox Mustang," but as all Mustang enthusiasts know, it's only a matter of time before the adrenaline kicks in and we want to go even faster.
In late 2008, Matt and his father, Jerry, kicked the build into high gear. Marcos of Marcos Auto Body and Paint gave the car a fresh look with custom blue paint and purple pearl ghost stripes on the hood, and Matt swapped the gray interior for black. Matt also custom-made a front bumper using a Saleen lower valance and a GT front bumper, and dressed up his Fox with Cervini Cobra sideskirts and an FRPP Cobra spoiler. Later, he ordered Mach 5 wheels from Steve at True Forged Wheels in Mission Hills, California.
Then the real fun began. Matt and Jerry built a 9:1-compression 306, and ported the AFR heads and Holley Systemax intake manifold off of the original build. After installing a custom smog-legal camshaft, Matt ran 11.6 at 117 mph, and he did so in naturally aspirated trim.
Next, Matt contacted Bob Kurgan of Kurgan Motorsports in Braselton, Georgia, for a mail-order tune. Bob set him up with a Snow Performance Methanol Stage 2 kit, SCT BA-2400 mass airflow sensor, 60-lb/hr injectors, SCT tune with switch chip, and AEM wideband. Matt and Jerry then headed to the nearest highway to check the air/fuel ratio with the wideband gauge, and one of Bob's fuel tunes on the switch chip was on point at 11.6:1.
Suspension was next on the to-do list, and Kevin at Baseline Suspension assisted Matt in purchasing a six-point bolt-in rollbar from Maximum Motorsports, and the components he needed to upgrade his suspension. This included PA Racing tubular K-member and A-arms, HPM caster/camber plates, Strange 10-way adjustable rear shocks, and Lakewood 70/30 struts up front. He also decided on 3.55 gears, an Eaton Detroit Truetrac posi, custom subframe connectors built by Jerry, and a five-lug conversion.
After completing his suspension and rollbar installation with his dad, Matt installed his Vortech S-trim and added a 2.75 pulley for 14 psi of boost. With race gas and an aggressive tune, Matt brought the car out to Sacramento Raceway and was able to pull an impressive 10.09 at 139.1 mph with a 1.44 60-foot.
Matt and Jerry could taste 9s, so they sent the S-trim to Vortech to have it upgraded to an SI-trim. They also ported the lower intake a little bit more, and ditched the smog-legal camshaft for a more aggressive custom bumpstick from Comp Cams. At the same time, they installed a Glenn's Performance 1000HP Sleeper fuel system to feed the monster.
Matt never got the car to the track again to accomplish the 9.99 run, and has since pulled the motor, sold it to his brother Marc, and decided to go in a completely new direction. Now his Stang is powered by a Dart 363 SHP block with 9:1 compression, JE pistons, ported AFR 205s, custom roller cam, and Vortech YSi-Trim supercharger that puts out 20 psi, among other goodies. Matt says, "I can't wait to get it back out to the track. I'm looking to run 9.40s, and after another Kurgan tune, I expect upwards of 800 rwhp."
Matt is quick to thank all of those involved in the transformation of his Fox, including his dad, Jerry; mom, Karen Matranga; brother, Marc; cousin, Zach Smith; and friend Mitch Sample. He also thanks his friend Dustin Worswick for always pushing him to complete his project.
After a rough beginning on the "other" side, the Glovers are proud to have made the switch to Ford. "No Camaros after all," he says. "I bleed Ford blue now!"