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| Now we are going to complete the preparation of engine bay before the gal's revitalized heart is installed. |
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We spent much time cleaning all of the typical crud, grime, and oil that accumulates over time before sanding and priming areas as needed in advance of some fresh paint.
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Here her engine bay has been completely cleaned and painted. Now all we need to do it re-secure the wiring harnesses that were moved out of the way during this process.
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| Now we are about to remove the OEM calipers as one of the final personal touch tweaks that this gal will receive during this visit with us. They are being shipped out to have the US source that Brembo NA uses to properly paint and stencil them. In the case of this gal's calipers they will remain a shade of red however they will also have distinctive text created and affixed to them too. In OEM trim the calipers have no markings even though they are furnish by Brembo; likely a marketing agreement made between Ford and Brembo. |
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Here the methodical process of removing and then disassembling the calipers is being completed.
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Here all 4 calipers have been removed, disassembled, all of the associated hardware and pads have been marked for location. Now they are ready to be bagged and bubble wrapped before shipping them out.
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| While waiting for the custom machined pieces to return we have continued massage the gal. The latest item being the OEM Brembo brake calipers. We worked with Brembo and their facility to have them custom stenciled and painted. |
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Here is one of the calipers ready to be installed on the gal. It took two tries but we finally achieved exactly what we were looking for, jewelry befitting of the gal proudly sharing the names of both parties involved with this phase of the Ford GT.
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| The gal's heart remains in the very competent hands of two machinist; one tending to the preparation of the lower end pieces so that once received we can methodically assembly it and the other has been tending to the custom work on the gal's heads. They have been fully ported and polished as needed and flow balanced in preparation of new stainless steel intake valves and Inconel exhaust valves. The Inconel exhaust valves are extremely well suited for FI aka boosted gals as they can deal with extreme heat and also dissipate it rapidly. In addition to the custom head work we are installing a set of custom ground cams with greater lift to maximize the benefit of the extreme head work as completed. |
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Here are the heads as they are now ready for the installation of the new valves.
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| We are finally at the point that reassembly plans are being finalized; this to include all of the last minute personal touch items several of which have been the topic of conversation over the past few months. We have the gal's heads back in our facility fully ported and flow matched outfitted with a very nice set of stainless steel intake valves and Inconel exhaust valves. They are held in position with Manley springs and titanium retainers which will come in very handy as they are manipulated through the process of the spinning custom billet cam shafts. The final assembly of this gal's heart is scheduled to begin any day. It is as the result of this timing that the final decision was made to have Stillen integrate their custom 3.90 gear set into the transaxle as well as their custom clutch assembly. |
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Here the gal's transaxle is being made ready to be strapped to a pallet as it is shipped to Stillen for their team to massage it before be integrate it back into her.
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| Now that we have received all of the core pieces back from being massaged we will methodically complete a final inspection before reassembling this gal's heart. |
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Here we are unloading the block as it was shipped in our special container bagged and then wrapped in a sleeping bag insuring that no damage would occur.
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Here, even though the block was thoroughly pressure washed prior to being shipped back to us we still carefully wash it down inside and out and then we will used air pressure to dry it prior to hand oiling the cylinder bores and the lower main bearing saddles to keep all surfaces happy and then seal it in a bag.
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Here we are completing the final pre-assembly inspection which includes the confirming that we have all that is required to complete the process once it begins.
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Here is one of the custom CP pistons; the OEM compression ratio was retained however the upper ring was lowered creating a stronger upper piston surface and one better able to retain and dissipate heat, we also had the face of the pistons thermal ceramic coated creating an insulation blanket of sorts, and the piston skirts were Teflon coated to insure a long friction free life.
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Here we have the assembly process ready to begin.
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| It was during the final inspection process that we encountered an opportunity. The OEM rods have a unique small end design that was not picked up on prior to this moment in time; it is tapered as such the clearances under the custom pistons were not sufficient to allow them to fit the rod properly. It was at this moment that we had 3 options; 1. Have CP re-machine the pistons thus creating needed rod clearance; we were not excited about this idea because we have already hand fit all of the rings and furthermore because the pistons were coated as the final step of the initial fabrication process we also did not want to risk damage to the coatings during a secondary machining operation. 2. Have the small end of the rods ground so as to create the required clearance; we were not excited about idea because of the potentially (albeit minimal) weakening the small end of the rod; in this case the material needed to be removed was nearly .200 3. Purchase and install a new set of rods; this ultimately was the direction that we took and in doing so made this an opportunity to upgrade the rods. The OEM rods are a great rod with the end caps retained with ARP 2000 series hardware however they are only 3/8" bolts as such we selected a set of Manley Pro-Lite rods with ARP 2000 series hardware however the end will now be retained with 7/16" bolts. Once the new rods were received we had the rotating assemblies balance verified and incremental adjustments were made as such we are now finally ready to assemble this gal's heart. |
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Here are the new Manley Pro-Lite rods ready to become one with the pistons.
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| Now that all of the balance work has been completed a second time we will methodically integrate the custom CP pistons onto the Manley Pro-Lite I-beam rods after which we will be setting the fully massaged crank into position as we begin the process of completing the assembly work on the lower end of this gal's heart aka the "Short Block". |
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Here is the fully massaged crank after being returned following the second round of balancing which was necessitated when at the last minute we elected to use an alternate set of rods.
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Here the fully massaged crank has been put into position wrapped in a set of Federal Mogul's Speed Pro bearings.
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Here we are methodically fitting the pistons and the rods together. One of the wonderful things that came as the result of integrating the Manley Pro-Lite I-Beam rods is that they are 32 grams lighter; this per rod as such the rotating assembly will be even more lively.
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Here the lower end of this gal's heart aka the "Short Block" has been fully assembled.
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Here we are installing ARP"s latest head stud offering. These are their 2000 series which have a clamping torque of 100 ft lbs which is very significant when by comparisons the OEM head bolts have a torque value of approximately 65 ft lbs once the torque to yield value is considered. Furthermore the use of head studs rather than bolts means that the clamp load will much more evenly distributed over the face of the block and the torque values will be much more stable.
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This means that any concern of head gasket failure is all but eliminated even under the most extreme of situations.
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| Now that we have the new pistons and rods installed it is time to roll her heart over and begin the process of installing her heads and cams. |
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Here we are securing the wind-age tray before being the process of installing her heads.
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Here we are methodically installing the heads. We used OEM multilayer head gaskets as they have proven even in the most extreme applications to be trouble free.
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The birth of the Redhead. Here we have set the custom powder coated valve covers in position so as to seal the areas until we begin the process of installing the cam gears and chains.
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Here we are integrating the custom billet cam shafts. During this process we will verify that all clearances are as requested including the follower lash/hydraulic preload adjustments.
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| During the gal's stay with use Kip created some new carbon fiber accent pieces and once this was know we were asked to integrated them as well. We will be integrating Kip's carbon fiber inner door pockets and also his carbon fiber binnacle. |
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Here we are disassembling and then removing the leather door panel so we can access the speed nuts on the rear that were used to secure the inner pocket during the assembly of these gals.
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These are the speed nuts that had to be removed; during the reassembly process we will not longer use these as they are not required and will make future service within this area easier over time.
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here the new carbon fiber inner pocket has been made ready to integrate into the gal.
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Here the new carbon fiber inner pocket has been fully integrated.
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| Now we will proceed to remove the instrument cluster, the dash lower leather trim panel, and then the OEM binnacle so we can integrate the new carbon fiber binnacle. This process will require the porting over of all hardware and switch gear from the OEM binnacle to Kip's new carbon fiber binnacle. |
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Here we are methodically moving through the disassembly process.
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Here we are preparing Kips's new carbon fiber binnacle to be integrated into the gal.
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Here the carbon fiber binnacle is ready to be integrated.
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Here the carbon fiber binnacle is being integrated; great patience and a liberal amount of low stick tape and paper are used during this process to insure that no secondary damage is caused.
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Here Kip's new carbon fiber binnacle has been fully integrated. We have left the dash's lower leather trim panel off at this time because we were also asked to relocated the iPod interface from the OEM storage pocket along side of the passenger leg into the carbon fiber/leather center console cubby that we installed earlier in this project.
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Here is the iPod interface now positioned within the carbon fiber/leather center console cubby.
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| Now sadly we are compelled to share that about the time that we were ready to place this gal's heart back into place we encountered a significant issue that took far too many weeks to isolate largely because the cycle of finger pointing ensured until finally we said enough is enough and took all matters into our hands. John at Accufab was contacted a fellow that we have come to respect as well as a company that we do business with and explained the chain of events to which he quickly said "no problem; bring me some pieces and I will help you get to the bottom of it". We immediately took him up on his offer and drove 500 miles so he could look at the gal's heart up close and personal. In the end the problem was as we suspected; extremely poor ground billet cams as presented by Cam Motion however during the inspection process which included fully disassembling the heads John shared a couple other observations . He shared that the valve guides were much looser than he likes to see and that even though the porting work was nice in his opinion it needed a little finish aka detail work . John also suggested that the stretch to yield 12mm crank bolt be replaced with a 1/2" -20 that could receive a proper torque however this would require drilling and tapping the crank . After numerous discussions we followed John's lead and replaced all of the OEM valve guides with mag-bronze guides each hand fit to exacting clearances each wrapped around the new Ferrara valves, the port work was in fact detailed, new billet cams were installed, degreed in, and then secured into position with a set of ARP 12 point bolts , and the crank was drilled and tapped to accept a 1/2" 20 bolt which in the end resulted in a much better heart for this gal. We cannot say enough about all of the support, assistance, as well as the relentless hours that John aka Accufab afforded us moving this project forward particularly when one considers the fact that he was contacted at the last minute and to have him not only welcome us and the project in but then to find the significant issue that the folks at the companies participating with us in this project up until this point were never willing to accept; in fact they simply denied all issues up until hard fact s were presented to them. In the case of the original billet cams as ground by Cam Motion; John methodically checked each stick on the Cam Doctor marking each and every lobe so that in the end there was no room for doubt. A heartfelt "Thank You" to John and his team at AccuFab. Now while the work was being completed on the gal's heart we tended to a few of the final details of this project which included a personal touch item within the interior and re-doing the clear bar that had initially been installed in a less than stellar manner and in addition as yellowed so badly that most thought that they were looking at an antique picture. |
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Here is the OEM plastic pocket cover for the OEM leather trim panel that resides in-between the seats.
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Here is the new custom carbon fiber pocket cover as created by Shadowman that now resides where the OEM plastic one used to be; this carbon fiber panel blends in nicely with the carbon fiber seat backs .
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After looking closely at the gal we came realize just how much some of the original clear bra had yellowed as such we elected to removed and replace it during which we also decided to cover more of the gal so as to better protect her particularly during her many track events. Here the process of removing the old yellowed clear bra is well under way. Evan uses steam as the means to methodically remove it with no secondary damage not to mention it makes the process go much easier when compared to removing it dry.
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Here the new clear bra material is being installed. We elected to completely wrap her nose including 100% of the front fenders and the bonnet. We also wrapped the greater portion of the roof, the entire rocker panels, the areas in front of and behind the rear wheels, the mirrors, the leading edge of the side air scoops, the headlights, and the lower running lights.
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| With the fresh clear bra she looks "HOT!!" and bright white furthermore the process used has the edges wrapped and fully pieces rather than sections so that seams were kept to a minimum whereas before the process mimicked a patchwork quilt. Now we are ready to complete the assembly of the gal's heart and then set it back in place so that she can be exercised a bit before participating in the road trip to the Ford GT Rally in Las Vegas. |
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Here are the ARP bolts as used once the cams had been dialed in.
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Here is the thicker and denser crank washer as furnished by John aka Accufab will be used in concert with the larger 1/2" 20 bolt so as to better secured the harmonic balancer .
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Here are the new hand fit valve guides installed.
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Here the gal's heart has been fully assembled.
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Here her heart is ready to be installed.
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Here her heart is being methodically set back into place ; raising her heart over the gal is not for the meek.
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Here the new custom AP clutch as furnished by Stillen Motorsport's has been installed.
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Here the gal's transaxle complete the Stillen Motorsport's 3.90 gears is being installed.
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Here her transaxle has been installed ; as with the gal's heart this too goes over the top so a methodical and careful process is maintained so that no secondary damage is caused.
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| Now one of the service items that we needed to tend to were damaged rear sway bar drop links. Both of the drop links had been damaged because smaller diameter wheels were used as such the inner portion of the wheels rubbed away the grease boot on both of them. |
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Here we are replacing the drop links however in order to do so the rear brake rotors need to be removed for access to the lower hardware.
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Here we are finally able to install the very cool custom painted Brembo calipers as we are moving her closer and closer to the tarmac.
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| We are now in the final stages of integrating the gal's heart back into place as we make her ready to be brought back to life. |
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Here all of the secondary systems are being methodically reintroduced to her heart.
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Here we have wrapped the starter solenoid with Mylar a heat reflective material so that there are no heat soak concerns caused as the result of the exhaust system's close proximity to it.
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| A friend of ours; Mike a Master technician and Ford GT Guru at Polito Ford in Ontario Canada offered to fly in and spend a couple days assisting with project. It was as the direct result of all of the vendors delays experienced that this was a welcomed and well received offer because we feel/felt it important to have her exercised a bit prior to her heading 600 plus miles one way to the Ford GT Rally in Las Vegas which is only a few short weeks away. |
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Here Mike is completing the integration of the Whipple supercharger. At the very last minute we opened a dialog with Whipple with regards to converting the supercharger from a Gen I to the latest Gen II version; this is something that had been discussed but put on the proverbial back burner when in fact it should have been tended to many weeks ago . In any case Art Whipple magnanimously agreed to assist on a zero notice bases as such one of our team members headed south early the next morning for a 4 hour drive only to be greeted by Michael at Whipple and they promptly swapped the body of the supercharger and while doing so also installed their latest drive snout assembly so as to make sure that only the best of the best was integrated onto this gal.
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Here the ceramic thermal coated Stainless Works exhaust system complete with small metal bed cats and the custom bumper delete "H" pipe is being integrated.
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Final details are being tended to prior to bringing her back to life.
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Here she is ready to make noise.
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| Here she is barking away as we begin the process of collecting operational data so the manipulating bits and bytes can be completed thus making her happy with all of her new hardware. At this point she has already been through a couple methodical and complete warm up/cool down cycles confirming that we have no issues; and we might add that there is no doubt that she wants to go play. |
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| There is no doubt that this project has spanned a significant amount of however the day to send her home is here. As with all of the gal's that come and visit us she too will be missed and yet we smile knowing that she is ready to be exercised once again. |
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Here she is being looked over one last time before she is presented back to her owner.
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Here she is being looked over one last time before she is presented back to her owner.
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There is little doubt that she is ready to roll; and anxious to as well.
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| Here she has been fired with her owner comfortably behind the steering wheel; the moment is finally here. |
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| We received a wonderful call several hours after she left during which we were told that she behaved flawlessly as she was being methodically exercised. She was driven approximately 150 miles and the owner is very happy with all of the mechanical and personal tweaks as completed during this project. So much so that with the iPod loaded they are departing tomorrow for a couple hundred mile journey. |
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