The ranks of True Street are swollen with late-model Fox-chassis Mustangs, partly due to the class's origination in the Mustang ranks. Thus, it's really hard to get noticed in a Mustang because there are so many of them around. Fortunately for Mike Biggs, his '88 LX stands out from the crowd, not so much for earth-stopping performance, but for its attention to detail, clean looks, and flawless execution. Yes, Mike takes pride in his work, and this LX is his calling card for a burgeoning performance shop he runs back in Indiana. Looking beyond the fairly common, yet competent nitrous'd fuel-injected 351, the LX employs a bulletproof Liberty face-tooth-gear-shifted Tremec, which allows lightning-fast, effortless, clutchless shifts. Mike, the perennial stickman, swears by the United Manual Transmission Racers (UMTR) association, a loose confederation of racers who run a race series in Ohio strictly for stick cars. Amazing launches, wild wheelstands, and gear-jamming excitement are the main draw, and we confess to having no prior knowledge of the Ohio-based group. If the mayhem continues, we may have to check it out.
1988 Ford Mustang LX 5.0
Mike Biggs
Occupation: Auto shop owner
Hometown: Fortville, IN
Best Prior e.t.: 11.04/128
True Street e.t. Average: 11.120
| Engine: | Small-block Ford 351 Windsor |
| Displacement: | 358 ci |
| Compression: | 10.3:1 |
| Cylinder heads: | Pro Action 215cc runner, 2.02/1.60-inch valves |
| Camshaft: | COMP hydraulic roller, 230 degrees at .050, .560-inch lift |
| Rocker arms: | Dove Engineering 1.6:1 ratio |
| Lifters: | stock hydraulic roller lifters |
| Intake manifold: | TFS "R" intake |
| Fuel injection: | stock EEC-IV with PMS controller and 30 lb/hr injectors |
| Power-adder: | Nitrous Works 125hp shot |
| Rotating assembly: | stock |
| Transmission: | Tremec, face-plated by Liberty |
| Rearend: | 8.8-inch Ford with 3.55 gears, Richmond spool, 31-spline axles |
| Rear tires: | Mickey Thompson ET Street 27x10.5-15 |
| Front suspension: | stock |
| Rear suspension: | stock style, Granatelli upper control arms,
Holcomb Megabite lowers |
| Total cost of car: | $17,000 |