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Thread: just beginning the thought process

  1. #1
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    just beginning the thought process

    Hey! Great to be a part of the forum. I consider myself a novice even though I recently finished a 2 year restomod project on a 69 Mach 1. The more I learn the less I know! I've at least gotten to the point I feel a little more comfortable knowing what to ask. It wet my appetite though, and I now would love to proceed with a GTM. While I spent many frustrating days and nights wanting to just give up on the Mustang, I now see the end result and want to tackle something else. What I love about the Mach 1 is that it will never get antiquated, or go through the stage where it is replaced with the "newer model," since it has already been through that, a long time ago, and so doesn't look dated, but cool. The looks and the comments I get will never get old nor change since the car is a 69, which leads to my concern and perhaps a question to see if anyone else has felt the same...I realize this project is going to take a couple years or more, but by that time, will I have spent a good deal of money on a car that is starting to look a bit old..not old as in classic and cool, but old, as in outdated, even in light of how cool it looks now?
    Secondly, on a more technical point, as I am at the stage of budgeting and trying to figure out what is important and essential and what is something that is just cool and costly and where I want to put the money... is there a big enough advantage of Wilwood brakes to justify the cost over donor/factory Corvette setups? Same question regarding Kooks exhaust...?
    Anyone use aftermarket radiator such as BeCool?
    I certainly have a zillion questions and thoughts at this stage but wanted to at least start with a couple questions to get your thoughts.
    Can you imagine doing something like this in the days before the internet...like when I grew up with Encylopedia Britannica?! Thanks!
    Craig

  2. #2
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    Welcome Craig. The GTM isn't an easy build but the forum members really help with tons of info so there's a great support group here to get you through it. As far as the looks, that's up to you and your tastes. I'm redoing the entire body and interior on mine, not an easy or short task. You can get several body updates for the GTM now that help the looks. I make a hatch glass replacement kit that (IMO) looks way better than the FFR supplied glass and also vents heat from the engine compartment. You can see it by going to my profile and looking in the album there. Shane @ Vraptorspeedworks also makes some nice cosmetic and functional upgrades for the GTM. As far as the brakes, I've upgraded to the C6 ZO6 brakes but the stock brakes with upgrade pads are fine for this car because it's so light. The kooks exhaust is a great piece also but unnecessary if on a budget. The BeCool radiator will be expensive also, I got an all aluminum tig welded radiator (china) new off ebay for $161. Way nicer than the plastic sided factory piece IMO. I'm making a carbon fiber shroud that matches it and mounts two low-profile electric fans. Looks way cooler/works fine/inexpensive. (I'm planning on selling the carbon fiber fan shroud also) You can use the G96.00 or G96.01 transaxles, they are cheaper than the G50 variations and FFR doesn't include the adapter plate or flywheel for the G50 in the kit anymore. Do yourself a favor and research the build carefully, as there are things like the body fitment and bodywork/body mods that have to be done that FFR doesn't mention. You'll have to do fiberglass work if you want it right, guaranteed. Take that 600 hour build time quote with a grain of salt. If you don't know there's another site (FFCARS.COM) that has WAY more info on the GTM. Study HARD, so there's no surprises when you dive in. You can pm me if you have more questions, I'm sure some others will chime in also.

  3. #3
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    Awesome! Thanks for the info. This where I am learning the simple things, like learning where to go to ask questions!
    Quote Originally Posted by carbon fiber View Post
    Welcome Craig. The GTM isn't an easy build but the forum members really help with tons of info so there's a great support group here to get you through it. As far as the looks, that's up to you and your tastes. I'm redoing the entire body and interior on mine, not an easy or short task. You can get several body updates for the GTM now that help the looks. I make a hatch glass replacement kit that (IMO) looks way better than the FFR supplied glass and also vents heat from the engine compartment. You can see it by going to my profile and looking in the album there. Shane @ Vraptorspeedworks also makes some nice cosmetic and functional upgrades for the GTM. As far as the brakes, I've upgraded to the C6 ZO6 brakes but the stock brakes with upgrade pads are fine for this car because it's so light. The kooks exhaust is a great piece also but unnecessary if on a budget. The BeCool radiator will be expensive also, I got an all aluminum tig welded radiator (china) new off ebay for $161. Way nicer than the plastic sided factory piece IMO. I'm making a carbon fiber shroud that matches it and mounts two low-profile electric fans. Looks way cooler/works fine/inexpensive. (I'm planning on selling the carbon fiber fan shroud also) You can use the G96.00 or G96.01 transaxles, they are cheaper than the G50 variations and FFR doesn't include the adapter plate or flywheel for the G50 in the kit anymore. Do yourself a favor and research the build carefully, as there are things like the body fitment and bodywork/body mods that have to be done that FFR doesn't mention. You'll have to do fiberglass work if you want it right, guaranteed. Take that 600 hour build time quote with a grain of salt. If you don't know there's another site (FFCARS.COM) that has WAY more info on the GTM. Study HARD, so there's no surprises when you dive in. You can pm me if you have more questions, I'm sure some others will chime in also.

  4. #4
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    Not sure if my reply went, but just to make sure...thanks for the info! I am learning where to even go to ask questions.

  5. #5
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    Craig,

    Firstly welcome.
    Regarding upgrading from the Corvette stock brakes to something like a Wilwood system.
    I am running wider than typical tires and with soft pads I can lock up all 4 wheels with the stock corvette calipers and aftermarket drilled and slotted rotors.
    So you can stop, but at the track I do have to be mindful of brake fade if I ride the pedal while coming down from a long, high speed straight.
    Would I like to have a nice set of Wilwoods? Hell yes! but I don't feel that you need them.
    Get a front and rear bump steer kit!
    Get a set of decent shocks!
    Ditch the rear hatch glass. There are a couple of options out there from Shane, Carbon and others. Getting the glass to fit right will result in a big chunk of body work, hair pulling, drinking etc
    Watch Gene's , (Fastthings) you tube videos.
    Do searches on both forums
    Don't be afraid to ask stupid questions. We all started somewhere and have all asked our fair share of stupid questions.
    Go see a couple of cars regardless of their stage of completion. Most of us will have no issues taking time out of our day to show you around.
    Most importantly,,,, Have fun.
    Cheers,
    Dave

    GTM # 294 Build Start Date 10/12/2009,
    2000 C5 Donor, LS-1 Twin Turbo, AC/Heat, G50-20.02 6 speed, Brandwood Cable shifter
    Build site. http://s679.photobucket.com/albums/vv153/dfraser/

  6. #6
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    First off welcome Craig. I’m very early on in my build, only having my kit for a few months, but I’ll weigh in here.

    I’m glad Dave mentioned going and seeing a few, at VERY LEAST one, other GTM before you go forward. I’m glad I did as it did highlight some items to keep in mind. One main thing, this car is low, very low to the ground. My first thought after hitting my head on the roll bar while getting in is wow, I’m literally sitting on the ground, followed by I’ll have to remember to duck getting in and out.

    After seeing one in person, I hit this forum and the other to start researching. I find the search function on the other forum way superior to this one, but I decided to do my post here. First off was what can I reasonably expect to spend on my build. So far my budget is around $85-90k and that’s me attempting to do all the body and paint work myself. I enjoy learning and have some friends that have done fiberglass and painting so I have some resources close.

    Within that budget I am going with Wilwood breaks, Kooks exhaust, Carbon Fiber Road Wing, built LS3 427 stroker Motor, Infinity Box System, AEM Infinity Engine Management System, and a few more bells and whistles. Can you do it for cheaper, yes, but it won’t have the nice to have items. Each build is unique and this is my path to help maintain some of the cool factor for years to come.

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Shoeless View Post
    First off welcome Craig. I知 very early on in my build, only having my kit for a few months, but I値l weigh in here.

    I知 glad Dave mentioned going and seeing a few, at VERY LEAST one, other GTM before you go forward. I知 glad I did as it did highlight some items to keep in mind. One main thing, this car is low, very low to the ground. My first thought after hitting my head on the roll bar while getting in is wow, I知 literally sitting on the ground, followed by I値l have to remember to duck getting in and out.

    After seeing one in person, I hit this forum and the other to start researching. I find the search function on the other forum way superior to this one, but I decided to do my post here. First off was what can I reasonably expect to spend on my build. So far my budget is around $85-90k and that痴 me attempting to do all the body and paint work myself. I enjoy learning and have some friends that have done fiberglass and painting so I have some resources close.

    Within that budget I am going with Wilwood breaks, Kooks exhaust, Carbon Fiber Road Wing, built LS3 427 stroker Motor, Infinity Box System, AEM Infinity Engine Management System, and a few more bells and whistles. Can you do it for cheaper, yes, but it won稚 have the nice to have items. Each build is unique and this is my path to help maintain some of the cool factor for years to come.
    Great advice from all and much-appreciated. Is there anyone out there within 3-4 hours drive time from Morehead City, NC who would mind if I looked at their build? I could fly somewhere if needed but figured I'd start with a closer radius!
    Also, I have been reviewing some issues posted from years ago (2008-2010) with great posts regarding body fitment. Just wondering if in general it is safe to assume that problems that existed then along with their solutions, hold true to the latest kits...in another words, have the problems, for the most part, remained the same within the past 10 years or so?

  8. #8
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    You'll have all the same problems you found in the posts. I'm in N.C. but my build is so far off the normal path it won't help with what you need. There's hardly any stock body left. There is another builder in N.C., (Brent aka tucker298 here on the forum) he's building the car pretty much the way it comes body wise which is what you need to see in person. As Shoeless mentioned, the car is VERY LOW. You'll probably want to budget in a ramlift kit for the front coilovers to gain ground clearance, otherwise you'll be limited where you can get in and out of because of front end clearance. Also agree with FraserD, watch Gene's (aka fasthings) videos and ditch the hatch glass and coilovers that come with the kit, and have fun.

  9. #9
    VRaptor SpeedWorks, LLC's Avatar
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    Welcome to the forum, Craig. You'll find that these forums will be your #1 resource for figuring out the answers to your questions. Yes, the GTM is a challenging build, and best to know that going in rather than find out by surprise after you've already spent a bunch of money and get a couple assy-manual pages into the build. Yes, it will be expensive no matter what....just a matter of how expensive and if you can manage to differentiate between needs and wants, like you said. ;-)

    I do have a whole ton of "stuff" available for the GTM on my website. Some of it is "nice to have" stuff. Some of it is IMO, pretty important. Some of it will simply save you a ton of time and headache. All of my first products I came out with were focused on heat management.....after building the first GTM and realizing how seriously lacking the stock configuration is with getting fresh air into the engine bay and heat out of the engine bay. I would recommend setting that as a pretty high priority. If you don't get the heat out of the engine bay, that heat gets pulled forward into the main chassis tunnel between the seats and turns that whole section into a giant cockpit heater.

    Good luck!
    Shane Vacek
    VRaptor SpeedWorks, LLC
    www.vraptorspeedworks.com
    Turn-key GTM, SL-C & Ultima GTR Built to Your Specs!
    Offering a full line of GTM Upgrades and Custom Parts

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by carbon fiber View Post
    Welcome Craig. The GTM isn't an easy build but the forum members really help with tons of info so there's a great support group here to get you through it. As far as the looks, that's up to you and your tastes. I'm redoing the entire body and interior on mine, not an easy or short task. You can get several body updates for the GTM now that help the looks. I make a hatch glass replacement kit that (IMO) looks way better than the FFR supplied glass and also vents heat from the engine compartment. You can see it by going to my profile and looking in the album there. Shane @ Vraptorspeedworks also makes some nice cosmetic and functional upgrades for the GTM. As far as the brakes, I've upgraded to the C6 ZO6 brakes but the stock brakes with upgrade pads are fine for this car because it's so light. The kooks exhaust is a great piece also but unnecessary if on a budget. The BeCool radiator will be expensive also, I got an all aluminum tig welded radiator (china) new off ebay for $161. Way nicer than the plastic sided factory piece IMO. I'm making a carbon fiber shroud that matches it and mounts two low-profile electric fans. Looks way cooler/works fine/inexpensive. (I'm planning on selling the carbon fiber fan shroud also) You can use the G96.00 or G96.01 transaxles, they are cheaper than the G50 variations and FFR doesn't include the adapter plate or flywheel for the G50 in the kit anymore. Do yourself a favor and research the build carefully, as there are things like the body fitment and bodywork/body mods that have to be done that FFR doesn't mention. You'll have to do fiberglass work if you want it right, guaranteed. Take that 600 hour build time quote with a grain of salt. If you don't know there's another site (FFCARS.COM) that has WAY more info on the GTM. Study HARD, so there's no surprises when you dive in. You can pm me if you have more questions, I'm sure some others will chime in also.
    Actually, how do I start a post/thread on ffcars? Whenever I try to start a thread or reply to one, it tells me I can't unless I post something, which I can't do because I need to post something first...?!

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