When thieves stole Dominic Nigro's '90 coupe out of his home garage, they didn't steal just a small piece of his heart, they stole the whole thing. As Mustang enthusiasts, we can all grasp a sense of that sickening feeling Dom felt. When thieves broke into his home, they took anything that had promising value. Whether it was his '92 coupe with over $20,000 invested, to the number of valuable tools sitting in the garage--but what struck him the most was that they stole medical equipment: a mobile wheelchair and ramp, which allowed his son to get around each and every day.
Dominic's son, Ryan, suffers from muscular dystrophy. Every day is somewhat of a challenge, but Dominic's goal for his son is simply to provide and protect. As a father, Dominic explains, "It's not the valuables such as the car or tools that bothers me, but much rather that someone invaded my family's home and took everything from us. "
With a bill tallying just over $70,000 worth of stolen goods, Dominic started over. His homeowners helped, but not everything was covered. As a first priority, he started with purchasing a new home in Westland, Michigan, where according to Dominic, he felt his family would be safer. Once settled, he was back on the hunt for another Mustang--this time with intentions of buying a Four-Valve car. As fate would have it, his love for Fox-bodies overtook his Four-Valve aspirations, and he ended up purchasing this cherry of a Fox from his good friend John Wise.
It wasn't long before Dominic was revitalizing it. He reached out to long-time friend and builder of his previous coupe, Lidio Iacobelli, owner of Alternative Auto Performance located in Chesterfield, Michigan, who set him up with some serious power. Alternative Auto started with a Ford Racing Boss 302 short-block that was bored and stroked out to 366ci. It is filled with a Scat crankshaft and rods, and custom Diamond pistons. The 10.25:1-compression-ratio short-block was mated with TFS heads (2.02/1.60) worked over by Alternative Auto, a Comp Cams camshaft, and an Edelbrock RPM II intake.
MSD ignition components help ignite this beast, and the exhaust is set up with MAC long-tube headers, a Dr. Gas X-style mid-pipe, and Bassani mufflers. The suspension consists of a PA Racing tubular K-member, FRPP B-springs, Tokico D-spec struts, and Strange adjustable shocks. Beefing up the stock 8.8-inch housing are Moser 28-spline 5-lug axles, 3.55s, and an FRPP Traction Lok.
To ease shifting, a Ford AODE automatic transmission with a 3,200-stall resides underneath the Stang. A Vortech V2 Si-trim supercharger, bumped up to 15.5 pounds of boost and tuned by Iacobelli, helps the stroker crank out some high horsepower numbers. With the previous stick in the car, Dominic's Mustang rolled 692 rwhp and 658 lb-ft of torque on the dyno. According to Dominic, none of this would have been accomplished if it weren't for his family and friends. "Our family has been through quite a bit in recent years and we continue to do so with my son. It's very motivating to have something like that happen, and then go back and get everything you had and more!"