If you dig the look of 18 x 9.5 GT500 wheels I could be convinced to part with mine, so I can get the Apex wheels I want.
At 30k miles I'm in need of a rear upper control arm, I'm going with the 11-14 model with a stock axle bushing. Having replaced the axle bushing the hard way before this time I will buy the $40 MM tool.
https://www.maximummotorsports.com/Rear-Upper-Control-Arm-Bushing-Tool-P190.aspx
akylekoz said:If you dig the look of 18 x 9.5 GT500 wheels I could be convinced to part with mine, so I can get the Apex wheels I want.
At 30k miles I'm in need of a rear upper control arm, I'm going with the 11-14 model with a stock axle bushing. Having replaced the axle bushing the hard way before this time I will buy the $40 MM tool.
https://www.maximummotorsports.com/Rear-Upper-Control-Arm-Bushing-Tool-P190.aspx
That tool specifically says not for 05-14
Edit: It is also my understanding that the improvement of the 11-14 UCA comes from a combination of the longer arm (requires an 11-14 mount to not ruin your pinion angle) and larger bolt (less likely to slip with a lot of grip/power). My 07 has an aftermarket UCA mount and arm for an 11-14 and there are a handful of subtle differences between the dimensions on that and the stock piece that came out, including I believe the front bolt that goes through the arm as well.
If you order an 11-14 UCA I would just make sure to check the length of the arm and width of the front bushing against the arm that comes out so that you can avoid having pinion angle problems if they are indeed different lengths.
Wheels! Down the road I'm planning on doing a 6-piston Brembo conversion, so I think I need 19" at minimum, since that's what the cars that came with those brakes had.
These are the ones I'm currently considering:
Ford Racing S550 Performance Pack wheel, cast, 19x9, 32.5 lbs, about $335 each:
Pros: OEM quality, not flashy, proven.
Cons: Heavy, I'm not really into black wheels on a black car, narrower than the other choices.
Steeda Trident in Gloss Titanium, flow formed, 19x10, 24.2 pounds, about $375 each:
Pros: Angular design fits the early S197 well, light.
Cons: Pricey, not sure about the color, it may be too light?
SVE R357 in Gloss Graphite, flow formed, 19x10, 23.1 lbs, about $305 each:
Pros: Lightest and cheapest, nice color.
Cons: Not a fan of the "SVE" center caps
And finally, the R157 in bronze, same size and price as the graphite:
I kind of like the bronze on a black car, but I'm worried that it'll be "too much". I'm pretty conservative when it comes to how my cars look.
Thoughts and opinions?
In reply to bumpsteer :
Well shoot! I did not notice the disclaimer on applicable years. I bet my multipurpose pusher puller tool will work.
Yes, if I go to the 11-14 upper I will change the whole mount and arm as an assembly.
In reply to Tom _Spangler (Forum Supporter):
I found a set of 11-14 brembo wheels for my car and got them trued/powder coated, only real downside was that they're heavy and I wish they had about 10mm more offset. The 20mm spacers I have are a bit much and 10mm spacers don't leave much thread engagement on the stock length studs, I don't wish to install new ones again.
The AMR wheels seem to be tried and true, and the center caps should the same diameter as any stock mustang cap that goes in the center bore like that. If you're in the Detroit area we could test fit some that I have laying around or also try 3D printing new caps if they're an odd size. American muscle also sells a blank cap for their wheels in the event that it's an off size.
In reply to akylekoz :
I pushed mine out with some combination of a HF C-clamp press tool and a two-jaw puller and a socket. I think my c clamp tool ran out of space for the bushing once it was almost out. YMMV.
If I were going to do wheels on my car, it would be the Steedas all day.
I agree on the gold-they are neat and like your black car mine is blue- I decided I didn't want "WRX STi" vibes. (No offense offered to STi owners, just didn't want to replicate the color scheme).
However I love my factory chrome 18s enough I elected to go with stock sized Powerstop brakes so as not to need the wheels. Yet.
Loweguy5 said:I agree on the gold-they are neat and like your black car mine is blue- I decided I didn't want "WRX STi" vibes. (No offense offered to STi owners, just didn't want to replicate the color scheme).
Yeah, gold wheels on a blue car screams STi, doesn't it? But on a black one, I'm pretty tempted.
The other advantage of the SVE wheels is that LMR will sell me a wheel and tire package with some Firestone Indy 500s for less than it would cost to buy them seperately and get them shipped and mounted.
In reply to Tom_Spangler (Forum Supporter) :
The cost of mounting and balancing these days has gone through the moon! I agree on the package savings for sure.
Warning, terrible photoshops!
I took a side shot of my car and attempted to (poorly) drop the three main wheel designs I'm considering on to it.
The Steeda:
SVE Graphite:
SVE Bronze:
Opinions?
If it helps, here are the 357's in real life (19x10 & 19x11). I don't bother with center caps anymore but the SVE ones are just stickers. I've replaced them with Ford, Mustang, Running Pony, etc from Etsy and EBay. Just a thought if the center caps are deal breaker. Good build! Keep at it!
Now this next part will be hard to swallow. LMR had the whole set on sale early '22 for $700 including lug nuts plus free shipping. But those days are now long gone for all of us.
Damn, those look really good. Is that color "Gloss Graphite"? It looks lighter than it does on the website pics.
In reply to Tom_Spangler (Forum Supporter) :
Says "Gloss Silver". Don't see it listed anymore. May explain the incredible pricing.
V2U_03 said:In reply to Tom_Spangler (Forum Supporter) :
Says "Gloss Silver". Don't see it listed anymore. May explain the incredible pricing.
Ah, OK. Bummer.
I installed a set of StopTech braided stainless brake lines over the weekend. Went pretty easy, bled the hell out of the brakes afterward and my pedal feel is somewhat improved. Good enough for now, in any case.
While I had the rear wheels off, I made a discovery:
The car has Konis. They seem to be the "STR" non-adjustable kind, but certainly better than OEM. Of course, I have no idea how old they are or how long they've been on there, but interesting, nonetheless.
I also installed my Sony touch-screen stereo with Android Auto. Works great, but I have a bit of a static sound coming from the speakers that you can hear when it's quiet. Doesn't really go with the engine revving, it seems more random. TBD on that.
As for wheels, I've pretty much decided I like the bronze ones best. So, it's just a matter of pulling the trigger. Which, I must admit, I'm having some trouble doing. It's a lot of money. The car needs tires no matter what, but I could put a set of Firestone Indy 500s on the stock wheels for $700, vs well over $2k for the aftermarket wheel/tire combo. Of course, I'll need bigger wheels for the brake upgrade I'm planning, but still....
A little haggling (both seem a little overpriced) and it might be a decent option to combine these two. A set of these wheels and tracking down take-off PZeros with a lot of life left is what I did when I went to 19s on my car.
https://detroit.craigslist.org/mcb/wto/d/saint-clair-shores-19-mustang-track/7618694739.html
https://detroit.craigslist.org/mcb/wto/d/detroit-new-pirelli-zero-summer-tires/7612467398.html
There's also usually a lot of people selling S197 wheel setups on Facebook marketplace.
Tom_Spangler (Forum Supporter) said:And finally, the R157 in bronze, same size and price as the graphite:
I kind of like the bronze on a black car, but I'm worried that it'll be "too much". I'm pretty conservative when it comes to how my cars look.
Thoughts and opinions?
I like this option. Good looking wheel. I really hate the Steeda wheel, it looks cheesy to me, reminds me of the cheap crap people put on pick up trucks the way the spokes split, the angles are wrong and they look strange to me. I think the bronze on black looks good, different enough in color not to look monochrome (I hate black wheels in general, especially on a black car), but not so bright they stand out too much against the background black, which some silvers can do on larger wheels.
bumpsteer said:https://detroit.craigslist.org/mcb/wto/d/saint-clair-shores-19-mustang-track/7618694739.html
I looked at those, the date code on the Pirellis is 2013. So regardless of how much tread they have left, the tires are unusable. So then I'm having to buy that other set of new Pirellis, and I'm a long way towards the price of the SVE wheels with tires, which is what I really want.
Tom_Spangler (Forum Supporter) said:bumpsteer said:https://detroit.craigslist.org/mcb/wto/d/saint-clair-shores-19-mustang-track/7618694739.html
I looked at those, the date code on the Pirellis is 2013. So regardless of how much tread they have left, the tires are unusable. So then I'm having to buy that other set of new Pirellis, and I'm a long way towards the price of the SVE wheels with tires, which is what I really want.
Didn't see the date code, yeah those are 100% junk at this point. I'll keep an eye out for stuff. If I had another plan I'd offer to sell my set (powder coated gold and on Federal 595 RS-Pros) but I haven't found an affordable set of 18s that I like yet.
I ordered the bronze SVEs. I didn't do the bundled tires, even though it's a better value. Just too much of a financial hit all at once.
Couple of updates. I decided to replace the starter in case that was what was causing my intermittent "no start" condition. Old vs. new:
I have been guilty of throwing parts at a problem in the past, but in this case I felt justified, as every other part of the system seems to check out fine. Plus, this starter was like $55 on Amazon. It wasn't too bad of a job, worst part was reaching the top bolt, but I've accumulated enough ratchets and extensions that I can reach pretty much any fastener one way or another. While I was at it, I also gave the insides of the battery terminals a little cleanup with a small wire wheel on my Dremel.
Also, my wheels arrived!
They are a good looking wheel! What's your plan for tire model and size(s)?
Loweguy5 said:They are a good looking wheel! What's your plan for tire model and size(s)?
I decided on Firestone Indy 500s. They seemed to be the best-reviewed tire in the max performance summer category that weren't PS4s or ECS2s, both of which are considerably more expensive. I'm not looking to break any records.
But, on that topic, I have signed up for a track day at M1 Concourse in late August with Hagerty.
Good choice on the wheels. At least it was my preference of the options!
In reply to Tom_Spangler (Forum Supporter) :
Indys look to be a real bargain in the class. My car has Contis on it that are older- I'm likely to bite the bullet and buy a set of PS4s but only because I elected to keep the factory wheels which gives me a little more budget for tires.
I'm still hoping to hit a track day before the end of summer as well. Good luck with it-should be a hoot on track!
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