Late Night Oppo: Teach Me Something New/ SN-95 Mustangs

"K-Roll-PorscheTamer" (k-roll390) 04/09/2014 at 00:06 • Filed to: Mustang

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I know jack about Mustangs. This seems to be a popular generation(besides Fox Body), so educate me a little?

What's the deal? The good, bad and ugly? Engines and trannies? Handling, interior and exterior?

IJustWantMyZBack > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 04/09/2014 at 00:27

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Worked on my buddies '95 more times than I can count. 1st thing that I noticed was that the transmission tunnel was different between an automatic and manual which meant doing a transmission swap was not as straightforward procedure as it was on my 300zx. Other things like I'm fairly certain they used both metric and standard bolts on his car and the clutch pedal assembly seems overly compliclated even though it was a cable operated unit. The gas pedal assembly does not lend itself to quickly changing pedals. The stock seats sit really high. Oh and the upper A piller trim pieces tend to fly off at speed. All that being said they can be bought for cheap and can be fun.

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > IJustWantMyZBack 04/09/2014 at 00:29

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always good to learn something new, no matter what time it is! Thanks for the info. :)

Bob Loblaw Made Me Make a Phoney Phone Call to Edward Rooney > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 04/09/2014 at 00:36

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SN-95: cheap as shit, can get a 5.0 in it for '94 and '95 models, and the Cobras are particularly good looking. Negatives: build quality reflects their current day prices, and 4.6 powered versions have the non-PI heads, which makes for a lot less power. Good news is that a PI swap isn't particularly difficult or expensive.

New Edge: despite what anyone will tell you, build quality is higher than an SN-95 and frankly not bad for the era; I'd take one over any GM interior. PI motors. 99-01 Cobras have IRS and DOHC motors, make great platforms to play with. 03-04 Cobras can make all of the power in the world for absolutely no relative money. And the regular old GTs are good looking, cheap, decent performers with more potential than they get credit for.

Me? I'd go for an early-Cobra New Edge, GT, or Mach 1, throw a few grand at suspension parts from Maximum Motorsports, and drive the balls off it. But I used to own such a car, so I'm moderately biased.

1337HPMustang > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 04/09/2014 at 00:38

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I drove a friends GT this one time and since then I was hooked. Ended up buying my own s197 (the generation after these). They're awesome cars if you can get past some of the stigma associated with them, namely: cheapness, commonness, and image. . I don't give a hoot what others think so that takes care of the image problem. I also don't mind a cheap interior if it means I can get a V8 for less money. That is the muscle car maxim after all. And the V8 in question is the 4.6L. There's different variations of it; most are iron with SOHC and 2 valves. The Cobra's and Mach 1s had aluminum blocks, DOHC and 4V heads (except for terminator cobras which had iron blocks).

Now, where the 4.6 shines is in its durability and modifiability. Cam swaps are easy because overhead cams. Low compression means making power is as easy as supercharging or swapping pistons. I don't know about the earlier 4.6's but I know the aluminum block in my mustang can handle 450 whp reliably upon supercharging without modifying internals because of that low compression.

One awesome engine was the "Teksid" block used in earlier cobras. Apparently forged in Italy by some company that does supercar engines, the block was able to handle upwards of 1000hp! They were super expensive to make so they stopped putting them in cobras shortly after. It's a legend in the mustang community.

As for the V6 engines, I don't know squat. They're kinda anemic so never paid much attention to them.

Also the earliest sn95's still had the 5.0 windsor.

Transmission wise, don't know too much either but I know the terminator cobras had t-56's which are as bullet-proof as transmissions get. Often paired to 800+ hp cars.

offroadkarter > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 04/09/2014 at 00:44

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Uh, well, if you want to know something specific let me know

For the most part they are bullet proof

The 99-01 and 03-04 cobras have IRS (As does the 00 Cobra R)

The 03-04 terminator was the fastest factory built mustang until the 2011 5.0 came out, even then its a very close race that causes a lot of rivalries on the SVT boards

94-95 GT had the 5.0L OHV Windsor V8

96-98 GT had the 4.6L SOHC NPI Modular V8

99-04 GT had the 4.6L SOHC PI Modular V8

94-95 Cobras had the GT40 5.0 OHV Windsor V8

96-98 Cobras had the B-head 32V Modular V8

99-01 Cobras have the Early style C head 32v Modular V8

03-04 Mach 1s have the Later style C head 32v Modular V8

03-04 Cobras have the Later style C head 32v Modular V8's with a Eaton M112 Roots Supercharger

94-00 Manual cars use the Tremec T-45 5spd

01-04 Manual cars use the Tremec T-3650 5spd

03-04 cobra and 00R use the Tremec T-56 6spd

Need me to keep going?

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > Bob Loblaw Made Me Make a Phoney Phone Call to Edward Rooney 04/09/2014 at 00:45

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I always thought that the New Edge and SN-95 were one and the same. The latter being a refresh. Didn't some of them have IRS or something close?

HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 04/09/2014 at 00:49

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The only SN95s I've driven were auto V6s. one 96 and one 04. I actually liked them quite a bit. The older SN95 interiors are actually pretty nice, and have a sporty feel. I'd still only buy V8 manual versions though.

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > offroadkarter 04/09/2014 at 01:05

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If you'd like! I find this all to be much more fascinating than just reading Wikipedia. :)

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles 04/09/2014 at 01:08

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I remember my dad telling me he had an SN-95 when my mom and him went down south on a honeymoon. How were the auto trannies?

Bob Loblaw Made Me Make a Phoney Phone Call to Edward Rooney > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 04/09/2014 at 01:09

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New Edge is the refresh of the SN-95. Technically they're all SN-95s, but the community generally refers to the rounder, earlier (94-98) cars as SN-95s and the later, edgier (99-04) cars as New Edges.

The '99-'01 Cobras had IRS, and the '03-'04 Cobras had IRS. The '99-'01 Cobras had normally aspirated DOHC 4.6s (versus the GT's SOHC 4.6); the '03-'04 Cobras, most commonly referred to as Terminators, had supercharged DOHC 4.6s. The '03 and '04 Mach 1s also had the DOHC 4.6, in normally aspirated form.

The Terminators came from the factory sporting 390 HP, with the real number probably a touch higher. Their greatness comes in the form of that motor's mod-ability. A couple hundred dollars worth of pulley swap and tune brings 60+ horsepower to the wheels, and that's not an exaggeration. A $3-4k blower swap will put you north of 600 rwhp. It's really quite stupid how cheap and easy the power comes.

The NA DOHCs all spit out 300-315 HP stock.

The NA SOHC wit PI heads put out 260, non-PI was 230 or so.

SN-95s and early (99-01) New Edges came with T-5 or T-45 5 speeds. Later (02-04) New Edges and 99-01 Cobras came with TR3550 5 speeds, which are much better transmissions. The Terminators came with the T-56 6 speed, and I think the T-56s in the Terminators are the best example of the T-56, above what came in Camaros/Corvettes.

ghosty - electric space wizard > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 04/09/2014 at 01:22

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I own and daily a 98 GT. In stock form these don't make a ton of power. But the aftermarket community is staggeringly massive. Power, handling, and visual parts alike. Personally, I think they drive quite well, but 1) I'm obviously biased and 2) I haven't driven a ton of cars in my life, I'm only 22 haha.

There is a stereotype but that doesn't mean it's followed by everyone who owns a Mustang. We aren't all total dude-man-bros. I do enjoy getting a friendly wave from another owner every once in a while. :)

The exterior has grown on me..... the interior hasn't. American cars + 1990's = terrible interior for the most part. But that's what seat covers are for. ;)

They really are a fantastic bang for your buck. Decent power, RWD, manuals galore and fantastic aftermarket support to boot.

Hope this helps!

offroadkarter > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 04/09/2014 at 01:39

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In 94-98 they had mechanical speedo/odometers, in 99-04 they have digital odometers with their own diagnostic mode built in

01+ cars have the ford "1 1/2" din headunit whereas the 94-00 cars were single din with an optional add on CD player

01+ cars got new "smoked" headlights off the 00R

94-95 Mustangs are the only years with the horizontal tail lights, 96-98 has the style you posted. That move was made to go back to a more "traditional" style rear.

The SN95 platform is built off of the fox platform, so a lot of parts will swap over. With some work you can fit a 2004 interior in a 1979 car.

I'm running out of interesting things to talk about

JoelA237 > 1337HPMustang 04/09/2014 at 02:13

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The teskid block lived in the Mark VIII's I sold a dilapidated old mark 8 to a cobra owner for a decent sum, because he just wanted the block.

lonestranger > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 04/09/2014 at 02:22

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They're a great source of wheels for Rangers!

I ran Tri-bars for a weekend once on my '92 Ranger, and it transformed the handling.(not my truck pictured):

Slow4o > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 04/09/2014 at 02:40

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My dad's terminator is the reason I got into cars. So you could say I have a soft spot for them. They were also beastly.

HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 04/09/2014 at 09:12

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no too bad i guess. They took a little longer to down shift than I would have liked, but what can you expect out of an older 4 speed trans.

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > offroadkarter 04/09/2014 at 10:56

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That's fascinating. could you fit a '79 interior in an '04?

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > ghosty - electric space wizard 04/09/2014 at 11:01

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This is great! hearing it from the perspective of a Mustang owner. I've only driven 5 cars. I never get friendly waves in my ST. :(

offroadkarter > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 04/09/2014 at 11:04

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Uh, technically I'm sure its possible, but I've never seen anyone try that

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > offroadkarter 04/09/2014 at 11:15

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Geez Mustangs are much more interesting than I gave them credit for. I'm gonna have to make another post on another gen. of Stangs later!

offroadkarter > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 04/09/2014 at 11:25

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I know plenty about gens 3 4 and 5, I don't know much about gen 1 and I know barely anything about gen 2

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > offroadkarter 04/09/2014 at 11:32

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Well I guess I know who to ask or expect when I make that post :)

Zerofret > offroadkarter 04/13/2014 at 22:16

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I once saw someone had put an 02 interior inside a 93 5.0 fox body. Surprisingly it didn't look bad at all!