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Mustang Live Buildup, Part 2

Blown away by body mods and a Kenne Bell blower

With the suspension and brakes upgraded on this Mustang Live Buildup, we're now ready to get into the engine and body mods.

Big Boost

Under the bulging hood, there's a big boost—literally—from a Kenne Bell blower. At 8 psi, this 2.4-liter supercharger kicks up the peak output to 523 hp. And with quick change of the pulley size, it has the potential to run as high as 25 psi, producing a prodigious 825 horses.

This supercharger system (shown here with both the optional polished case and a flat-black model) features an intercooler, a low-restriction short-runner aluminum manifold (replacing the factory composite unit) and 39-pound Cobra injectors. The self-contained oiling system eliminates the need for any oil lines or tapping of the oil pan for installation. Also, the billet external bypass valve has a "valet mode," allowing you to control where and when the blower is engaged.

Of course, a chili-pepper ponycar needs some spicy looks to match its hot performance, so RKSport added some intense flavoring to the body lines. And the whole thing was slathered in a special new paint from Sherwin-Williams.

Admittedly, this Mustang started life a little plain, about as stock as a Mustang can get with the factory color being Mineral Gray. Most of us would call it "primer gray," but somebody must love it.

Eye Appeal

For more eye appeal, Mike Face Auto Body in San Bernardino, CA stripped the clear coat to make a base for the Sherwin Williams' "Stallion Red Metallic." It goes a long way in waking up the various curves and lines that might otherwise go unnoticed. Taking things a step further, this gold-flecked crimson enhances the body kit as well.

RKSport's conversion package consists of bumper covers, front fenders, a hood, rocker panels, lower door cladding, exhaust pipe tips, and a rear spoiler. Once installed, it adds a completely new dimension to the vehicle, making it look lower and more muscular.

When adding this type of product, it's important to keep a few things in mind. No car is perfect from the factory and the original panels are shimmed on the assembly line to ensure a good fit. The same is true of the replacement panels. All the parts should be assembled to fit your specific car before they are painted, removed and painted to match the color of the car, then re-installed to a perfect fit.

Candy-Coated

Even the best body kits will need a fair amount of prep work before they can be painted to make sure that the fiberglass surface matches the metal and plastic surfaces of your car. If you are going to have the body kit painted to match the stock color of your car, then the factory paint codes numbers can usually be pulled from a tag on the car. If no code is available, then a good body shop can match the color with other special tools.

For custom paint like this one from Sherwin-Williams, it's always better to paint the body kit and car at the same time with the same painter, because even slight variations in technique by individual painters can cause identical paints to show a slightly different shade. After all, when you smoke the tires, you gotta make sure you look good while doing it.

Resources

Kenne Bell Superchargers, 909/941-6646, www.kennebell.net

RKSport, 800/214-8030, www.rksport.com

Sherwin-Williams, www.sherwin-williams.com