SS021 had been previously been upgraded with a modified radiator, fan package and air intake system designed by Unique Performance. We will be installing our Air intake system, our upgraded cooling system, ignition system, front and rear suspension upgrades, and parking brake system. In addition to these standard upgrades we will be installing our Electronic Fuel Injection system, prototyping an intercooler system and installing a 3" exhaust system. We will also be installing our power brake system upgrade to improve braking power while retaining the original Shelby brake system.
The project of SS021 has grown as we have once again learned from our work. In our work with SS016 we saw that by improving the airflow through the engine we had lost 3 lbs of boost as the Vortech V2 supercharger was undersized and over driven for the smaller 468ci engine. Now as we prepared to not only improve the airflow on this larger 482ci but add intercooling and EFI we had to face the realization that this supercharger would not do. Upgrading this supercharger would be no small task as the engine accessory brackets were made to provide the minimum of clearance for the small V2 and any upgraded head unit would also increase the scroll size. So as any good builder would; we did our math, we talked to our vendors, and dove in!
Our initial inspection uncovered a surprise better found soother rather than later- an engine knock. We found that somewhere in its life the total timing on this engine had been set to 70*! Once our rough fabrication requiring the engine was complete it was removed, crated up and sent to our good friends at Gessford Machine for rebuilding. The Shelby 427 FE wizards at Gessford are taking the opportunity to rebuild this engine with their own flavor; higher efficiency pistons, bearing clearances re-toleranced, new valves and springs, port matched EFI intake. This reborn stroker FE will be able to take full advantage of the boost we provide.
As of this update all of our rough fabrication is complete and we are awaiting the return of the engine from Gessford Machine to begin our final assembly. To solve our supercharger clearance issue we have fabricated our own Vortech V7 upgrade bracket (soon to be offered as a kit for sale!!) We relocated the supercharger up and inward and re worked the supercharger belt idler and tensioner location for improved belt management. With minor modifications we fit our intercooler inside the stock GT 500 E body work and fabricated our intercooler plumbing through the fender aprons and back to a modified Vortech carburetor enclosure to maintain the vintage supercharged Super Snake look. Of course as with all of our upgrades, everything will be built serviceable, and will look as if it came off the assembly floor this way. SS021 received our upgraded oil cooler system, power brake upgrade, upgraded cooling system, 3” exhaust system, upgraded fuel system, and a dual disk clutch with our upgraded hydraulics to handle that additional horsepower. Fuel management will be handled by a FAST XFI sequential fuel injection system with custom parts we have developed. Enjoy the pictures!
