I did no racetrack instrumentation but rather let the butt end of my Levis read the changes in a 20,000-mile-long real-world setting. Let's just say the package is very well engineered and lends itself equally well to ride comfort as it does to cornering ability. No bottoming out, no bumpstop interference, and no tangible detriment to moderate load-carrying ability. If there is a sore spot, it's that the shocks need a tad more rebound control as the suspension unloads from dips and bumps at freeway speed. It pistons up and down just one stroke too long for my liking. Otherwise, wheel control is brisk and predictable, and the turn-in feels just as crisp, despite the numb-gum rubber. There is one major caveat with this lowering business-it diminishes the F's payload by half, dropping the 1,000-pound maximum to about 500, though the times I carried an all-aluminum 632-inch Rat and a supercharged iron small-block snuggled close to the rear window, the F behaved admirably.
To provide a smooth ride, a manageable combination, and a high rate of adhesion when needed, I opted for Hankook Ventus ST RH06 rubber and mated their 275/55VR dimensions with forged Center Line Sting Ray III 17x8 rims. The Hankooks are an all-weather design and virtually the same diameter as the BFGs (28.9 inches versus 29.0), so there is no noticeable change in the speedometer calculation. Their V-rating means they'll sustain 149 mph, but that's way more than the F will ever see. The stock 235/70SR16 tires and 7-inch-wide aluminum wheels are relative flyweights at 42 pounds. Though the Hankook/Center Line plus-1 combo tips in at 57 pounds, the increased unsprung mass isn't readily apparent, the corner-carving squeal is gone, and the 55-series sidewall is cushy enough to provide a comfortable journey.
To enhance braking power, I opted for Power Slot rotors, Hawk HPS-compound brake pads, and Classic Tube stainless steel braided lines. The unidirectional rotors are the same size as the original discs (12.0 inches) but slotted rather than smooth to expel the gases that form under pressure. The brake pads contain a semi-aggressive compound that recovers quickly under repeated application yet isn't abrasive enough to cause premature rotor wear. Thankfully, they operate without a sound. Finally, to negate the swelling that often plagues OE rubber brake lines under heavy pedal pressure: stainless braided units, which telegraph a solid, positive feel to the pedal. I'm convinced that the effect they have on my psyche is as good as the actual mechanical benefit they provide.
The front brakes were serviced about two years ago (cut rotors and new OE pads) and operated normally. To gain a baseline, I tested the stock system with the usual 60-to-zero parameter. The seven-run average was 157 feet. Time Machines' Phil Somers and Mike Dear installed the equipment that marginally improved the stopping distance with an average of 155 feet, without fade, strong and die-straight. I frosted the cake with the Center Lines and Hankooks and recorded 149 feet.
All good projects begin with baseline numbers so you can tell how far you've progressed, when you're done with it, or how much further you have to go. When I got the F it already had a K&N filter in the stock airbox so I let it be. I took it to Richard Waitas at the Magnaflow chassis-dyno facility where it established 176 rear-wheel horsepower (flywheel rated at 220 hp) and 266 lb-ft, both values at 4,200 rpm. With the Magnaflow after-cat stainless steel exhaust system in place, the figures jumped to 187 rwhp and 275 lb-ft of torque. While I was thinking shorty headers, Richard eschewed the idea and said that high-flow catalytic converters would make more of a difference, and indeed they did. The 4.6L jammed out 190 hp and 282 lb-ft of grunt.