2015 Mustang IRS Components. So it begins.

[edwardb]

As I’ve mentioned in a few threads already, I ordered one of the 20th Anniversary Roadsters. These all will use the new 2015 Mustang IRS components along with a new rear suspension design from Factory Five. My kit is due in August, but I’ve been working to obtain the necessary Mustang center section and knuckles. FF announced they would make these parts available from Ford at an “attractive” price. But as of last week, they are not available and no pricing has been announced. At the recommendation of FF, I started looking for the parts in salvage. How much wear could 2015 parts have on them, anyway? Since this is all quite new, I thought others would be interested in more details.

What I found is that parts are out there as “zero mile takeoffs” from new Mustangs that leave the factory but then go to an aftermarket assembly line for further performance upgrades. The IRS assembly is on a subframe, and one of the common upgrades with a new more powerful drivetrain is to remove this entire assembly and replace with one that will handle the 600-700 HP engines, bigger and stickier tires, etc. Rather than re-using, these new IRS assemblies are being sold into salvage and are available. Strange IMO, but I’ll take new over used any time. MPS Auto Salvage, a pretty well known source for Mustang parts, has them available.

Last week I called MPS and they had just what I was looking for. A new zero miles assembly, the cast iron case recommended by FF, and the 3.55 ratio I’ve decided to use for my build. They offered the complete assembly to me for $1,350 plus shipping. It left Georgia last Thursday, and Conway called today for delivery. Turns out since my 2-car residential garage doesn’t have a loading dock (!!!) there was going to be an upcharge for a lift-gate delivery on top of the surcharge for a residential delivery. Since they were only 30 minutes or so from my house, I hooked up the SE and picked it up myself. Total shipping was $187. Not too bad for a 415 pound pallet from GA to MI. The IRS assembly was covered with cardboard, strapped to the skid, and everything stretch wrapped. All good. I used my shop crane to pick it out of the back of the trailer and get into the garage.

So here are some pics of the delivered IRS assembly. As best I can tell, it’s exactly what I expected. Everything looks new with no signs of any wear or shipping damage. There is a little surface rust on the cast iron case and the steel hubs, but not unexpected. The case will get a nice shiny coat of POR15 once I take it apart. My next step will be to remove the center section and the knuckles and get them ready for assembly to the new chassis. I've already backed out a number of the mounting bolts, and I was able to get the axle nuts loose. Obviously there will be a ton of parts I don’t need. I’m going to hang onto everything until the kit arrives and I make sure I have what I need. But then I’m hoping to make a few bucks off the unused parts. Seems that some of the parts should have some value, especially the CV axles. The subframe itself is a $900 part, but I’m not sure who might be looking for something like that plus wouldn’t be cheap to ship. No matter what, I think this is a relatively good value for what I received.

As delivered:





Center section waiting to be removed: