1989 Ford Mustang GT

You have to love the down-home engineering represented in this picture. Jeremy went to the junkyard, found a couple Garrett T-03 turbos, and then slapped them onto some MAC short-tube headers, which were turned backward for the application. Homemade turbo flanges and pipes cost almost nothing if you have the skills and patience with a welder. From there, it's fairly standard stuff such as iron GT-40 heads, an E303 cam, and a rebuilt 306-inch bottom end (by J. T. Racing). A blow-through 75mm Pro-M mass air, a Ford Racing Performance Parts 65mm throttle body, and a Cobra intake deliver the 22 psi of boost. Lucas 42-lb/hr injectors and a custom Autologic chip are the most expensive pieces to the 10-second puzzle. Add it up, and Jeremy came away with 450 rear-wheel horsepower and a stump-pulling 527 lb-ft of rear-wheel torque, with a modest 12-psi test run on a chassis dyno. Nice!

When it comes time to select the right turbocharger for your application, this is another area where a little knowledge will save you from having to hunt turbo-chargers twice. Again, Jeremy lends his knowledge of these turbos. "I would suggest using the Ford turbos," he says. "The Chrysler ones will work, but they are like 0.42/0.48-just a bit small. For a stockish Mustang, the T-3 with the 0.48 housings will do awesome, I'm talking full boost by 2,500 rpm! The 'Stang with heads/cam/intake might be better suited with the 0.63 exhaust housings. They reach full spool by 2,800-3,000 rpm and will pull to the stock rev limiter. The 0.48s tend to die out around 5,000 rpm, about the same time the stock components give up. On the Turbo Coupes, the manual cars come with the 0.63s and the auto cars came with the 0.48 housings. The housings are interchangeable, meaning you can build your kit with the 0.48s then later swap the 0.63 if you want."

As you can tell, an industrious Mustang enthusiast is capable of taking a couple used-up junkyard parts and a little time to completely transform his or her car. In Jeremy's case, his car has become well known in his hometown of Lima, Ohio-not far from Toledo. It has taken down its fair share of new Cor-vettes, blown Mustangs, and a local Supra owner who once wore the crown of King of Lima. As quiet as this car sounds and as stock as it looks, you can't blame them for giving it a try. And that's exactly what Jeremy was after.

For 2004, Jeremy is looking forward to competing in the Norwalk, Ohio, FFW's True Street class, an annual event that typically draws more than 100 Mustangs in just that one class. He's hoping to average in the mid 10s. "The thing I love best about my car," Jeremy says, "is I built the turbo kit myself. I also like the looks on people's faces when they see what I've done and how much power it makes." Jeremy thanks his wife, Tasha, for her support and his son, Jacob, who will be handed the keys to this car when he turns 16 (about 15 years from now).

So, there you have it-a homebuilt, twin-turbo GT that sweeps the streets at night and gets you around town during the day. Doesn't that make you want to pick up the wrenches and start your own project? We thought so.

Inside the 3,450-pound GT is a Hurst pistol-grip Quarter Stick shifter, the transbrake button that locks up the Trans King C4 (3,300-stall billet converter), and some nice Auto Meter gauges. The rearend houses 3.27 gearing with stock internals and axles. That will change soon-one way or the other.

Quick Start

Here's Jeremy's recipe of parts you will need to begin your own twin turbo project.

* Two T-3 turbos (whatever you can find, preferably 0.60/0.63s from a Turbo Coupe)
* Short-tube headers (aftermarket 1 5/8-inch, can use stockers if on tight budget)
* Two T-3 turbo exhaust flanges (can be purchased through any turbo company)
* Oil-feed lines (Jeremy used -3 AN lines and fittings, but you can use brake line if you want)
* Oil-drain fittings (5/8-inch barbed fittings, 5/8-inch hydraulic hose)
* Two K&N air filters
* A welder and pipe bender would be nice
* Lots of determination!!
* 255-lph, in-tank fuel pump
* 42-lb/hr injectors
* Boost gauge
* Fuel-pressure gauge
* FMU if you use 36-lb/hr or smaller injectors