The Anti-thesis: A Mustang Made to Corner

With all the rage the internet is on about the humble pony car, perhaps it’s safe to say that the Ford Mustang doesn’t exactly have the best reputation among car enthusiasts. Whether it’s crashing into crowds or sitting outside coffee shops for ‘open-minded’ network marketing meetings, the Mustang isn’t seen by most in a positive light. Though there’s plenty to loathe about the irresponsible antics of the average Mustang owner, it’s unfair to say that the latest pony from Ford’s stable isn’t a competent performance car.

The Mustang we have here is pretty much the middle finger towards all the naysayers of the Blue Oval. Built with a goal to get as much seat time as possible on the track, its driver, Chris Ho, hones his technique with this platform as his weapon of choice. While any unassuming folk may dismiss this as a standard Mustang, its understated dark color scheme hides some choice modifications that allow him to get the most out of the car on track.

By ‘choice modifications’ we don’t mean a full catalog of aftermarket parts. Every single part serves a purpose: to either improve the car’s overall balance or to guarantee consistent reliability while out clocking laps. Chris spends countless hours studying every piece he might even consider buying for the ‘stang – and even more hours trying to justify whether he’ll need it or not. Maybe that’s why this car isn’t even on coilovers yet – a set of Ford Track Pack dampers and BMR lowering springs does the trick for now.

The engine side of things is mostly a factory affair. A change to 47 lb Injectors from Ford Racing, a Flex Fuel tune from AED USA, and a Roush axleback exhaust are pretty much its major power-adders. Apart from that however, religious circuit-oriented maintenance and a plethora of quality fluids ensure that this pony stays in fighting form.

One thing Chris did invest in were a set of properly sticky tires: a wide staggered set of MRR Design Flowforged wheels shod in Bridgestone RE-71Rs on all four corners have become the great equalizer for some blisteringly quick laps around the Batangas Racing Circuit (BRC).

The last bit isn’t exaggeration either, this subtle ‘stang clocked 1’49.8 around the southern circuit after countless laps of practice. And while the rather short spec sheet below details all the necessary bits that make the Mustang faster, we attribute this absurdly fast laptime to the most important part of a vehicle: the driver.

Like I mentioned earlier, the ethos for this particular Mustang’s build is to mainly become a tool to learn more about racing technique – and serve daily driver duties when needed. The reason every part on this car does something to help the driver is because at the end of the day Chris is looking to improve the thing that’s doing all the steering. You see, beyond all the parts that’s on the Mustang Chris takes the time to actually study motorsports through research and reading books about racing theory and technique. Following the books, he puts the theories he’s learned to practice at the track and figures out which one works best for his current setup – truly the one proper way to get better at the track.

While we’ve certainly seen longer spec sheets and far more aggressive builds grace our pages, Chris’ Ford Mustang is a story in itself because despite its minimalism it still cracks a sub-50 at BRC. Now if only we can add his balls to the spec sheet…

Words by Aurick Go

Photos By Jaime Echavez

2015 Ford Mustang GT

Engine and driveline:

• Ford Racing 47 lb injectors
• Flex fuel tuned by AED USA
• Reische 170 thermostat
• NGK Iridium IX Plugs
• Roush axle back mufflers

Brakes and Suspension:

• Brembo 6 piston front calipers
• G-LOC track pads
• Raybestos rotors
• BMR Suspension lowering springs
• Ford track pack monotube dampers
• Maximum Motorsports camber plates
• J&M spherical lower control arm mounts
• Ford Racing forged steel control arms
• BMR Suspension poly differential bushing lockouts
• BMR Suspension subframe to chassis bushing steel lockouts
• BMR Suspension front K-member subframe brace

Wheels and Tires:

• MRR Design flowforged wheels. 19x10 front, 19x11 rear
• Bridgestone Potenza RE71R 285/35/19

Interior:

• Sparco Evo II bucket seat