Horsepower. When it comes to car enthusiasts, it's one of the first subjects brought up in conversation. Chicks dig it, guys dream about it, and if you want it, then all it takes is money. So if you want to build status within the Mustang community (or automotive community in general), there's no better way than making big power on the chassis dyno.
About a year ago, the MM&FF staff was brainstorming during an editorial meeting when the Dyno Wars idea was born. Initially it was going to be much more specific, say for S197s only. But then it hit us. Why narrow it down so much? Keep the rules simple and open it up to anyone. That's how to make it an exciting and successful challenge.
But we didn't want 275 drag radial cars or Pro Outlaw race cars showing up and ruining the fun for the core group of our readers who have street cars. Besides, what's better than being able to drive your high-powered Stang on the street? So rule #1 was for the cars (or trucks) to be all street-legal and registered. We had to add the ZR-rated/competition tires and tailpipe rules later for the sake of safety, but we stopped there.
We started in Tampa for the first installment, moved to Pennsylvania for the second, and we're in Michigan for Part 3. Walsh Motorsports was our host facility, and is located in Wixom. This high-tech speed shop was born as an extension of the other Walsh-owned company, D&D Performance. Don Walsh Jr. is the proprietor of Walsh Motorsports, while his father and manual-transmission expert Don Sr. runs D&D Performance. Both are class acts, and we couldn't be happier to include them in our dyno challenge.
The day before the event, we had a couple of competitors drop out. After seeing the results from Part 2 in the Aug. '12 issue, their feet may have gotten cold. Or they could have had legitimate problems. Either way, we needed a couple of cars to fill the slots. Being a little late to phone our alternates, we called Donny himself. He offered up his own daily-driven, single-turbo '12 Boss, but we needed one more car.
Thankfully, Ford had given us a brand-new '13 GT500 to drive. So with our cars lined up, we proceeded with the competition. The weather was hot and muggy on the day of the event, but at least it would be fair for everyone. So without further delay, here are the results. Enjoy!
Josh Lupu's GT is not only a great example of exactly what we were looking for to when we dreamed up this competition, but even better, it is a rolling tribute to fallen and wounded soldiers. Companies Webasto and MRT built this former SEMA car in 2010 to showcase the latest Mustang parts available at the time, and now it serves as Josh's daily driver.
Some of the finer points include a 2.3L Roush TVS supercharger, a VMP Tuning tune, a full H&R coilover suspension, SSBC brakes, 20-inch wheels, and Katzkin upholstery. In other words, it looks like it could pass as a show queen. But after strapping it down on the Dynojet, we saw that Josh's GT was anything but timid.
It laid down an impressive 558 rwhp and 512 lb-ft of torque on the first pull, but Josh wasn't happy. He made a phone call to his tuner, Justin Starkey of VMP Tuning. Starkey said it was okay for Josh to add a degree of timing using his handheld SCT tuner. After re-flashing the computer, the Coyote screamed to redline. The result was 580 rwhp and 526 lb-ft of torque. Though the lowest of the group, we admired the GT's well-roundedness.
| Engine Displacement | 5.0L Coyote |
| Transmission | Stock |
| Power Adder | 2.3L Roush TVS |
| Cylinder Heads | Stock |
| Camshafts | Stock |
| Fuel Injection System | Stock |
| Tune | SCT Performance/VMP Tuning |
| Rear Gear | 3.55:1 |
| Tires | Toyo Proxes 4 |
| Max Power | 580 rwhp |
| Max Torque | 526 lb-ft |
Michael Stanford
'03 SVT Cobra
When Michael Stanford of Pinckney, Michigan, bought this Terminator from the first owner, it only had 700 miles on the odometer. Over the last nine years, he has slowly modified it to where it is today. Starting with pulleys, intake, and exhaust at first, he eventually graduated to a Whipple swap and drivetrain mods.
Working with the SVT-built original long-block, Michael has been able to squeeze plenty of performance out of the stock internals without having to drop a ton of money on a new engine. After all, he was on a student's budget for most of the build. With the help of Walsh Motorsports; Varsity Custom Werkz; and his girlfriend, Jillian Lemke, Michael has created a sweet streetable Terminator.
What it could do on the dyno, though, is what really mattered to us. And Michael's Termi didn't disappoint. After making only 583 rwhp on the first pull, Michael knew something was wrong. A new set of spark plugs later, Michael's 'vert laid down 597 rwhp and 552 lb-ft of torque--good enough for Third Place.
| Engine Displacement | 4.6L Modular |
| Transmission | D&D Performance T56 |
| Power Adder | 2.3L Whipple |
| Cylinder Heads | Stock |
| Camshafts | Stock |
| Fuel Injection System | Stock |
| Tune | Diablosport/Walsh Motorsports |
| Rear Gear | 3.73:1 solid rear axle |
| Tires | Nitto NT05R |
| Max Power | 597 rwhp |
| Max Torque | 552 lb-ft |
Ford Motor Co.
'13 Shelby GT500
When Ford told us that we were going to have a new '13 Shelby GT500 to drive during our trip to the Big D, we never planned to put it in the competition. But when an opening presented itself and the car was just sitting in the parking lot, we knew it was meant to be. We never dreamed it would place Second.
When it comes to a horsepower competition, completely stock cars aren't the norm. But with a 662hp rating, the new Shelby is a real beast. We didn't even bother flashing it with a tune or anything. We strapped it to the Dynojet and let it rip. The result was 607 rwhp and 579 lb-ft of torque. We probably would have seen a few more horses if we had better weather, but over 600 rwhp out of a showroom-stock Stang is nothing to sneeze at.
The SVT team really nailed it with this new Shelby. As you read in last issue and from all sorts of other news outlets, it is quite possibly the greatest Mustang ever built--it's certainly the most powerful!
| Engine Displacement | 5.8L Modular |
| Transmission | TR 6060 |
| Power Adder | 2.3L TVS (stock) |
| Cylinder Heads | Stock |
| Camshafts | Stock |
| Fuel Injection System | Stock |
| Tune | Stock |
| Rear Gear | 3.31:1 |
| Tires | Goodyear Eagle Supercar |
| Max Power | 607 rwhp |
| Max Torque | 579 lb-ft |
Don Walsh Jr. • '12 Boss 302
When we told Don Walsh Jr. the morning of the competition that we needed his Boss to fill an opening in Dyno Wars, he was a little annoyed. "You could have told me earlier so I could have turned up the wick," he said jokingly. It was already sitting inside when we arrived, so we strapped it down first.
Walsh Motorsports is a full-service performance shop located in Wixom, Michigan, just a stone's throw from the now-defunct Wixom Assembly Plant, which built Lincolns since the '50s, and also built the Ford GT supercar. The only real performance mod done to Donny's Boss is the Hellion single-turbo kit. He beefed it up a bit with a Precision 72mm turbocharger, and added custom 20-inch wheels and lowering springs. Other than that, it's a stock Boss.
As he drives it every day, it laid down 600 rwhp and 560 lb-ft of torque at 8 pounds of boost. Walsh Motorsports lead tech, Justin Haddon, swapped the spring in the blow-off valve to make a little more boost. After reinstalling the BOV, the Boss put down 643 rwhp and 597 lb-ft of torque at 10.5 pounds of boost--not bad for a daily driver, and good enough to take the win.
| Engine Displacement | 5.0L Coyote |
| Transmission | Stock |
| Power Adder | Hellion single-turbo kit (72mm Precision) |
| Cylinder Heads | Stock |
| Camshafts | Stock |
| Fuel Injection System | Stock |
| Tune | Diablosport/Walsh Motorsports |
| Rear Gear | 3.73:1 |
| Tires | 285/30-20 Nitto INVO |
| Max Power | 643 rwhp |
| Max Torque | 597 lb-ft |