Tech Notes
Who: Ray Banks
What: '65 Ford Mustang
Where: Cupertino, California, home of Apple Computer
Engine: The foundation for this road race terror is a Ford SVO circle track block. Gromm Racing in San Jose, California, did a full race-prep job, and what started life as a 351 Windsor-style block now measures in at a stout 382 ci. It's full of top-shelf stuff, too. The Scat crank has been gun-drilled and weighs only 42 pounds. JE-dished pistons were valve-clearanced and yield a 10:1 compression ratio, and Carrillo rods hold the two together. Rings are by Total Seal, and bearings are by King. The cam is a solid roller piece from Comp and specs out at a raucous-sounding 267/257 degrees duration at 0.050 inch and 0.665/ 0.664-inch lift. The details for the cylinder heads are even cooler. Starting with unassembled AFR 205 heads, Ray pocket-ported the bowls and added a Ferrea 2.08 titanium intake and Manley 1.60 stainless exhaust valves. He sourced a set of Comp springs and Ferrea 10-degree titanium retainers and keepers. That weight-saving combination, plus a set of Norris 1.6:1 stainless roller rockers, allows this big-inch small-block to rev like a 302, and it shrieks to its power peak-568 hp at 7,300 rpm. Torque is an equally impressive 510 lb-ft at 4,700 rpm.
Induction: Ray port-matched an Edelbrock Victor Jr. single-plane intake to his heads and topped it off with a Holley HP 750 double-pumper carburetor. He plumbed in a Magna Fuel Quickstar 275 fuel pump and keeps the Fuel Safe cell full of 100-octane.
Exhaust: Those are a pair of 1 3/4-inch Hooker Super Competition headers. Their 3-inch collectors transition to a full 2 1/2-inch exhaust system with a Dr. Gas cross-pipe and Flowmaster 30-series mufflers.
Ignition: An MSD Blaster coil and distributor light off the charge.
Transmission: At the time these pictures were taken, Ray was rowing through a Top Loader. He's since upgraded to a full road-race Jerico four-speed. It's attached to a McLeod scattershield that houses a Ram 13-pound aluminum flywheel and a Ram clutch and pressure plate assembly. The Jerico's dog ring gear engagement allows for clutchless up- and downshifts. That means the clutch gets used half as often.
Rearend: There's a Currie 9-inch out back equipped with a 9+ centersection and a 31-spline Detroit Truetrac limited-slip differential carrying 3.50:1 gears.
Suspension: Ray set up the car for road course and canyon carving duties with Global West front upper and lower A-arms and adjustable strut rods, Koni adjustable shocks, and Pro Motorsports variable-rate springs. The Stam front sway bar diameter measures a beefy 1 inch. A pair of Cobra Automotive rear leaf springs reside out back and are augmented with Koni shocks and a rear shackle slider kit. Ray replaced all the squishy rubber bushings with hard-core spherical bearings.
Chassis: Precise handling demands a tight chassis, and to that end, Ray stitch-welded the entire unibody. The Monte Carlo bar and export brace take the slop out of the shock towers, and an Autopower six-point rollcage eliminates any possibility of chassis flex.
Brakes: Twelve-inch Baer Sport front brakes are a giant step up from even the best setup available from Ford at the time, and Ray backed them up with 10-inch rear discs from a '99 Explorer. As if that weren't cool enough, Ray borrowed from the NASCAR road course setup manual and installed fans and air ducts to cool the backsides of both front rotors.
Wheels/Tires: On the street, Ray runs on sticky Toyo RA-1, sized 245/45R16 front and rear. At the racetrack, a set of even stickier Hoosier R compound tires gets the nod. Either way, they're mounted on a set of Vintage Wheel Works 45-series wheels.
Paint/Body: Other than the Mustangs Plus 3-inch cowl fiberglass hood, all the sheetmetal on Ray's car is original. "Cutting up a vintage car is stupid!" he exclaims. The bodywork was farmed out to Testa's Auto Body in San Jose to spray the Ivy Green PPG Acrylic Enamel.
Interior: Ray made the dash in the stock shape for a full set of Auto Meter Sport Comp gauges. He chucked the stock seats in favor of a pair of Sparco racing buckets and Sparco six-point harnesses. He also plumbed a Safecraft fire suppression system throughout the car, including under the hood in case something goes drastically wrong.