Ed stated : It was inevitable that we'd run an article on a hybrid hoss like Dave Mizell's 1990 Mustang. Packing gen III and IV parts under the hood, this Pony run 9.95 without a power adder, and on 93 pump gas, so keep reading...

Unlike most gearheads, Dave Mizell didn’t get bit by the performance bug until he was almost thirty. He addressed his need for speed by buying and modifying a 1971 Chevelle. This car had a mild 396 big block and went through a few combinations including a strong naturally aspirated setup utilizing a solid roller camshaft and some more compression. It was pretty cool driving to and from the track and running 11.9@114 in that 3900 lb car.. Dave also repurchased a 1966 Ranchero he had owned in the 80’s and got that to run 12.17@111 with a junkyard shortblock and some AFR heads.

But eventually high 11’s weren’t enough, and Dave found himself wanting a much faster car, preferably one deep in the 10's. A friend offered to sell him a 1990 Mustang LX 4 cylinder car that had a blown engine at a pretty cheap price, so Dave snapped it up. Dave had long been impressed with Fox Body Mustangs, and knew that he could get the car pretty light with tried and true weight reduction techniques. Major weight reduction was achieved by ditching the stock HVAC, sound deadener, carpeting, and other items that are typically removed or replaced with lightweight parts when building a Mustang race car like Dave’s LX. Swap meets yielded up great deals on wheels and suspension parts. “I’m kind of thrifty plus the prices for Mustang parts have come way down the last five or so years.”

When it came to the powertrain, Dave showed that he was truly brand agnostic, and went with a LSX-based combo. Three influences lured him into the LSX family. A local friend, Mikey Kleman owns Rapid Motorsports and has been building quick LSX powered cars for ten years. Another mutual friend, Larry Zimmerman, actively races a quick LSX-powered car with a engine built by Mikey. The final straw if you will, was a extremely thorough article penned by Jeff Smith of Car Craft. This article discussed going fast on a budget, which of course caught Dave’s attention. They ultimately hit 550 HP with a junkyard 6.0 shortblock, stock L92 heads, custom cam, GMPP intake, and an 850 CFM carburetor. He decided at that point to take the plunge.

On paper the combo looked good for low 10’s, which would solve his need to have a car that run much quicker than high 11’s, and it would set the car up nicely for a local index racing series. Dave bought a complete LQ4 longblock for $1400, and then recouped some of his dough by selling off the heads and other parts he didn’t need. He picked up a set of L92’s from well regarded GM dealer Scoggin Dickey. A GMPP intake and MSD 6010 were also ordered. An AJE Racing conversion K-member was also ordered. This K-member comes equipped with LSX-ready motor mounts. A Meziere race water pump was also purchased, as well as some Kooks 1.875 full length conversion headers made specifically for Mustang swaps.

Dave and friend Mikey Kleman of Rapid Motorsports came up with a custom camshaft that would hopefully make good power, and make peak HP around 6600 – 6700, which was Dave’s goal for the car. This custom grind required flycutting the pistons, so Dave disassembled the shortblock and had Doug Meyers at Automotive Machine Service cut the necessary notches.

The car initially ran 11.96@121 which for many is a great start but Dave knew there was much, much more in it. He retuned the carburetor and went over the tune, and was rewarded with a stronger 10.61@131MPH on his next pass. He later swapped out the 3.73 gears he had been running and went with 4.10’s. He made the right call as the car went even quicker running a 10.36@133MPH. Emboldened by his strong progress, he revised the ignition curve and ran 10.19@136MPH. His 60 FT times were a little soft, and even on that 10.19 pass the car only mustered up a 1.55.

At this point it was winter, so Dave decided to repaint the car, and had a local Maaco reshoot the factory color of Cabernet Red. Dave also had Lenny at Ulimate Converter restall his converter, which was only stalling to 3800. Loosening up the converter was just the right ticket, as the car went 9.97@136mph right off the trailer in March of 2009. His Mustang also achieved a 1.42 short time. His next pass he ran his personal best, 9.95@137MPH. At that point he was politely told by track officials to return after he got his competition license, 9-second legal rollcage, and the other changes that would make his car legal to run quicker than 9.99 seconds He ordered the S&W front-half conversion, and had Dave Guenst of Guenst Motorsports augment the 6-point rollbar that he had previously installed for Dave. The Mustang’s rollcage was certified to 8.50 and he then made his license passes. Dave is thrilled to be running 9’s naturally aspirated with a stock bottom end LQ4, and credits help from a number of friends both local and online for their advice and assistance while piecing the car together.

While he’s enjoyed running the local index series (www.NAshootout.com), he’s getting a little bored… Again. He’s thinking about running another class that would require him to run high 8’s naturally aspirated. He’s thinking he can run that with an LSX combo. Stay tuned.