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SVTP members have heard it many times over; the Woodward Dream Cruise, especially the Mustang Alley section, is one of our favorite events to visit every year. The Motor City area is filled every kind of unique American automobile you can image, and it seems like they all come out to cruise Woodward Ave in late summer. In addition to that, Ford puts together a few impressive displays along the route.

We’ve been attending WDC for the past several years, and the 2023 version was perfect. Great builds, awesome products, good friends, and delicious eats/drinks abounded. Easily one of the highlights of the trip was getting a personal tour of the Ford Performance Racing Parts display from SVT Engineering Alumni Nick Terzes (currently Ford Performance Parts Product Planning & Strategy Manager). Check it out:


Walking the Mustang Alley display is always a blast, and you get to see some very special cars along the stroll. We have plenty...

That headline also works as a rallying cry for the F-Series truck team, which for more than 75 years has delivered a lineup of tough, smart and capable trucks – the last 46 as the best-selling truck lineup in America.

The latest Ford better idea: the new 2024 Ford F-150® truck. Available starting early 2024, the truck is designed toenhance the ability to tackle challenges with purposeful features and tech. It has Built Ford Tough® capability to handle tough pursuits. And it has a tough new design, including the new available Pro Access Tailgate for even more access and utility.

With increased production of PowerBoost™ Hybrid for 2024, trims from XL through Platinum Plus, and off-road ready models like Tremor, Raptor and Raptor R, there’s an F-150 for almost every use case.

All that choice is important because F-150 is a leader in all the following industries: construction, government, utility services, agriculture, landscaping, road and highway maintenance, emergency vehicles...

Last week we stopped by the Charlotte Motor Speedway to witness the debut of the upcoming Mustang Dark Horse R. A few minutes after 7:00pm on a Thursday evening the Ford Performance brass rolled out the red carpet for the latest factory built race car to enter the FPRP catalog. But the DH-R announcement was accompanied by some very interesting news. That being, IMSA has partnered with Ford to establish a spec-racing series designed especially for purchasers of the Dark Horse R.

As long time fans of World Challenge and GT3 racing, we are definitely looking forward to traveling to a few IMSA Mustang Challenge races in the near future. We’ve been talking to a handful of well known Mustang-fielding race teams over the weekend, and it looks like we may see some familiar faces on the starting grid behind the wheel of the Dark Horse R. That’s something certainly worth looking forward to.

If you’re interest in the full specs of the DH-R, you can find them by...

Ford Performance today reveals the all-new Mustang Dark Horse™ R, offering the most demanding track enthusiasts a turn-key race car ready to compete in the all-new Mustang Challenge spec racing series, just for Mustang Dark Horse R and sanctioned by the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA).

"Mustang Dark Horse R bridges the gap between Dark Horse and Mustang GT3 and GT4," stated Mark Rushbrook, global director, Ford Performance Motorsports. “Production-based Mustang vehicles have raced from the very beginning, all the way back to winning the 1964 Tour de France, even. Dark Horse R offers our passionate customers not just an attainable, factory-built race car, but also a racing series to compete with other Mustang enthusiasts.”

Mustang Dark Horse R Ready for the Track

With the Ford Mustang Dark Horse joining the herd as the most track-capable 5.0-liter V8 street-legal Mustang ever, Dark Horse R is a natural extension of the capabilities found in every Dark Horse...

In the late 1970s, Ford introduced the Free Wheeling package on F-100, F-150, Bronco, Econoline van, and more. The limited-run trim level featured graphics with red, orange and yellow gradients. The colorful option packs also added painted steel wheels, and black finishes on the grilles, mirrors, and bumpers. Inside the vehicle featured red and orange pinstriping on the dash and seat stitching.

“Bronco customers appreciate its heritage,” said Jason Hyde, Bronco Sport Marketing Manager. “After such a great response to the reimagined Bronco Sport Free Wheeling project vehicle in 2021, we decided to bring this special edition that ties Bronco Sport to its fun loving roots.”

The red, orange, and yellow sunset-inspired stripes became a focal point of the 1970s package.

“The Ford Free Wheeling package was developed to appeal to younger customers,” said Ted Ryan, Archives and Heritage Brand Manager for Ford. “The Free Wheeling Broncos were as popular as they were distinctive.”

Like...

During the recent NMRA event in Norwalk, OH we ran into a new offering for the Ford Performance enthusiast community. A pre-production Ranger Raptor was on premises, having been driven down by a Ford employee. We had the opportunity to give it a fairly close inspection, and I have to say I like what I saw.

Size wise, it is very similar to a PN-96 F-150. The Raptor’ization of the Ranger is much more conservative than what was bestowed on the Bronco Raptor. It is slimmer and wears smaller 33-inch tires. I believe this will ultimately make it more practical as a truck, while still maintaining impressive off-road capabilities. The rear suspension design appears to be a modified version of that found in some foreign market Ford trucks/SUVs, and it looks to be stoutly built.

The 3.0L EcoBoost V6 has been great in our Bronco Raptor, and puts in serious work in the Explorer ST. I suspect it will perform well in the Ranger Raptor. The interior is also greatly improved over that of the...

It may not be what she was designed for, but the Bronco Raptor is shaping up to be quite the surprise on the strip. A few weeks back, with the help of a Whipple tune and intercooler combo, we set what we believed to be the current ¼ mile record with our BRaptor. A cool night in Darlington, SC yielded a best run of 13.93 @ 98.06 MPH. However, we always felt there was at least another tenth on the table if the launch could be better dialed-in.

Fast forward a few weeks, and we installed a set of SPD downpipes with the optional GESI cats on our rig at 5 Star Tuning in Florence, SC. That...

The idea for the SVT 30th Anniversary Reunion Car Show was conceived during a conversation with the NMRA staff at PRI 2022. After several months of preparation and promotion, the event took place at NMRA’s Norwalk, OH race just a few days ago. For a first time event, the results were impressive.

We had quite a few very nice SVT vehicles in the show field, including one of every color 1993 SVT Cobra Mustang produced. Several clean Terminators and nicely modded SN-95 Cobras were represented, as were both generations of SVT Lightning.

Beyond seeing some very nice cars, including those in the main car show field and in the pits, it was great meeting SVT owners and talking about their cars. If you get a chance, you really should try to make it out to one of these shows. Until then, check out the pics and vids we shot at SVT 30th Anniversary Reunion Car Show during NMRA Norwalk 2023:

The 2023 Edition of NMRA’s Norwalk, OH event was one for the history books. It was a celebration of several significant anniversaries in the Ford community, including the SVT 30th Anniversary Reunion Car Show. The Summit Motorsports Park facilities are simply second-to-none, and a great location for performance oriented events. The grounds are impeccably maintained, the track is properly prepped, and they sell gourmet ice cream for $3/pint.

The car show brought out some truly special vehicles. From classic Cobra Jets to the Legendary Boss 10 and Sudden Death, there was something for everyone to enjoy. The drag racing was on point, with many in the heads-up classes pushing their setups beyond their limits. This was certainly one event we were glad we attended, and it makes us look forward to cooler weather and more racing action when we head to the NMRA race in Bowling Green, KY later this year.

Until then, check out the pics and vids we shot at NMRA Norwalk 2023...

You’ve been hearing it from us here on SVTP for years; the Holy Trinity of starter mods is Intake, Tune, and Exhaust. Tackling those three areas will typically show decent gains on any vehicle. When it comes to our project Bronco Raptor, besides our Whipple Intercooler and Turbosmart BOV, there’s not much on the market intake wise (yet). And you guys have seen us lay down massive gains with a Whipple Calibration. But just a few days ago we were able to snag an early set of SPD Performance Downpipes fitted with High-Flow GESI cats. The exhaust side of the more-power equation was now open for business.

It’s been no secret that the factory downpipes found on many EcoBoost engines can hamper performance. They are designed with packaging, NVH, and assembly constraints that the aftermarket can simply sidestep. As such, companies like SPD Performance have found great success developing higher-flowing replacement systems for many Ford platforms. Their latest venture into the Blue Oval...

This one is near and dear to my heart. Every time I’ve ordered a new Ford I’ve requested the dealership not PDI (dealer-prep) my new ride. What can I say? I prefer to unwrap my presents myself. So when I spotted this 35th Anniversary 1990 Ford Thunderbird Super Coupe in the National Parts Depot collection I knew I had to learn its story.

From afar the black T-bird appears to have some major paint/clearcoat issues. However, looks are deceiving in this case. What seems to be Florida sun burnt paint is actually a coating applied by Ford during assembly. It was designed to protect the car’s finish during delivery, and was intended to be removed by the dealer during PDI.


That’s where things really start to make sense. In the days before peeling off shrink wrap, your local dealer had the lowest guy on the totem pole doing his best to remove this spray on coating with whatever tools and skills he had at hand. You can imagine how many black cars left...

The wait is over; the all-new 2024 Ford Ranger Raptor is coming to North America. Raptor is based on a proven legacy of performance and built with uncompromised suspension design, power, purposeful technology, and rugged styling. Ranger Raptor is fully prepared to take on the most demanding terrain its extreme adventure-seeking customers can find. 

The heart of every Raptor is its suspension. Ranger Raptor starts with a purpose-built suspension that includes lightweight aluminum upper and lower control arms and a long-travel rear suspension with a Watts linkage and trailing arms for control and confidence in off-road conditions.

Ranger Raptor’s next-generation FOX™ 2.5-inch Live Valve Internal Bypass shocks are coil-overs at the front and piggyback reservoirs at the rear to reduce heat build-up for uninterrupted performance all day long. ...

A little rain had no chance of dampening the weekend of fun that was the NMRA/NMCA All-Star Nationals in Rockingham, NC. After a moist start to the weekend the racing action kicked off in perfect Southern Spring weather on Sat. We made the short drive north to meet up with long-time friends and take in the festivities. This is the 2nd year of this event, and I'm pleased to report that it appears to be growing in popularity. The track owners have made significant investments in the facilities (including an 1/8 mile of new concrete racing surface) and the local community is significantly coming out to support the race.

We took a walk through the relocated car show field, and found quite a few nice rides. For 2023, the organizers moved the show to the top of the hill which makes up the left lane grandstands. This was a great move because that area has plenty of seating, restrooms, and several food vendors available to keep everyone happy. Check out the video walk-through we...

Amplifying the track handling precision of the all-new 2024 Mustang Dark Horse™, the Mustang team has created a distinctive collection of colors and materials that amplifies its dark aura and digital-age style.

“The sinister and track-hungry attitude of Mustang Dark Horse inspired us to curate colors and materials in a way that underscores the vehicle’s athleticism,” said Carrie Kennerly, Ford senior color and materials designer. “We spent extra time on the cockpit, ensuring the look, feel and function of everything a performance driver could want conveys the performance Mustang Dark Horse is capable of.”

The heart of the Mustang Dark Horse interior is its all-new anodized blue, lightweight titanium manual shift knob. The lightweight six-speed knob is hollow and does not get as hot to the touch as similar aluminum knobs in warmer weather. For customers who chose the 10-speed SelectShift ® automatic transmission, anodized silver paddle shifters provide almost-instantaneous gear...

A few months ago we stopped in to visit Livernois Motorsports for a little dyno session with our Bronco Raptor. While nosing around the back lot we notice a conspicuously placed 2021 F-150 with a little something extra hiding behind the grill. Turns out that Dan and the tuning crew at Livernois had been helping Vortech Superchargers develop their kit for the 2021+ 5.0L powered F-150.

It's no secret that tuning on these newer Ford trucks have been completely locked down since they were released (this only recently changed). Livernois was one of the very few companies that had cracked the code and could tune the ECUs. That lead Vortech to turn to Livernois to help develop the tuning for their new blower kit. The truck we spotted behind the shop had a prototype tune on it that was currently being tested. Check it out:


We have been holding back that video for a few months because I didn't want to spoil the reveal for Livernois. However...

Hanging out in the Ford Booth at PRI is always one of the highlights of the show. Not only is it manned by a great group of incredibly knowledgeable guys, but if you stick around long enough nearly everyone you know in the Ford performance industry will stroll through. That booth essentially becomes an unofficial meeting space for those of us deep in the Blue Oval game. Then there's the parts...

This year the Ford Performance Racing Parts guys debuted the all ne 7.3L MEGAZILLA Crate Engine. Cranking out 615HP and 640 LbFt of torque on pump gas. Even more impressively, it makes over 500 LbFt from 2,500-6,000RPMs. Mike Goodwin, Production Manager for Engines/Drivetrain/Calibrations, took time to walk us through the features of the new pushrod bruiser and Ford's other new products on display. Check out the vid:

It's the most wonderful time of the year!!! We've once again made the pilgrimage to Indy for the annual Performance Racing Industry Show ("PRI"). Thankfully, the weather is much better than in years past. That will make the post-show activities much more fun. As for the show itself, it looks to be shaping up to be a pretty good event. I'm already seeing quite a few serious race cars and new parts.

We'll be posting coverage from the show in this thread, so keep checking back on it. This morning I managed to sneak in and get an early preview of much of the displays before anyone else was around. That makes getting these shots much easier. I'm going to be running around getting coverage for the next three days, so if there's something specific you guys would like to see just let me know. We have a lot more coming, and it'll all be posted here.


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At its core; racing is all about rising to the challenge, overcoming obstacles, and pushing yourself beyond your known limits. ModNationals 2022 perfectly embodied that spirit. In the face of a hurricane, Justin Young (ModNationals Organizer) and the entire ModNationals crew persevered and managed to once again put on one of the largest independent late-model Ford focused racing events on the nation. Though it was forced to end early due to weather, Young knew the end of the 2022 race was only the first step in a move that will setup ModNationals to become something even greater. For 2023, Mod-Nationals will be held on its traditional Veteran’s Day date, but at Bradenton Motorsports Park.

ModNationals has a reputation as an event that focuses on two groups, which often have a large overlap, Veterans and Racers. Since its start, the event has givenaway tens of thousands of dollars to ModNationals Veterans racers and has some of the largest class payouts in Late-Model Ford Racing...

Elevating its adventure game, Ford is introducing a new off-road package that brings increased capability and style with the new Bronco Sport Black Diamond Off-Road Package and is expanding Bronco Off-Roadeo access for customers that purchase a new 2023 Bronco Sport vehicle.

“For adventurers who want to get more from their Bronco Sport, we’re enhancing the ownership experience by offering more trail capability with the new Black Diamond Off-Road Package, plus an included opportunity to learn what their SUV can do at Bronco Off-Roadeo,” said Mark Grueber, Enthusiast Vehicle Marketing Manager. “Today, nearly 90% of Bronco Sport customers that attend Off-Roadeo are likely to go off-roading again, and 97% of customers are more knowledgeable and confident doing so, furthering our goal of getting into the wild.”

The Black Diamond Off-Road Package – available on Big Bend and Outer Banks series – delivers even more off-road capability by adding four steel bash plates covering key 4x4...

Van life just received an upgrade with the arrival of the new 2023 Ford Transit Trail van.

For more than six decades, Ford has provided travelers with vans, trucks and chassis built for life on and off the road. In fact, more motorhomes are built on Ford chassis than any other brand.1 Today, Ford Pro announced it is continuing that tradition with Transit Trail, an upfit-ready adventure van that leverages the same capability, versatility and customization options that helped make Ford Transit® America’s best-selling commercial van.2

“No matter the task at hand – delivering packages or enjoying life off the grid – customers can rely on their Transit to get the job done,” said Ted Cannis, Ford Pro CEO. “Our decades of experience in the motorhome industry and insights from the van-life community helped us design a vehicle that makes it easier for adventure seekers to start their next journey.”

Equipped to take on more of life’s adventures

Available in three cargo van...