"The Moose" - 2009 Mustang GT 45th Anniversary

Hey everybody,

I figured I would share some info and pictures of my fun/project car - an '09 Mustang GT.
I found this car in February of 2017 and bought it after an inspection and test drive. It was tricky because both the owner and myself had to plan everything around the weather. We wanted the roads to be dry and clean so the car wouldn't get exposed to salt, snow, dirt, etc.

It spent most of its life in Las Vegas and has zero rust. It currently has 80,000 miles and the drivetrain is all original and unmodified. I will probably be replacing the clutch within the next year or so, because it's original and the rear main seal on the engine is leaking.

This particular car is pretty rare due to its unique options, such as the glass roof (a $2,000 option from the factory), 3.55 rear ratio, HID headlamps and a super-rare metallic fuel filler door (I've never seen another one in person).
Additionally, the 2009 model year was one of the lowest years in terms of overall production numbers, so these 45th anniversary cars are very tough to find.

How it looked when I bought it:








This past spring, I added some Eibach lowering springs, new shocks and struts, upgraded control arms and drilled/slotted rotors on all four corners. I decided to use the "string method" to attempt a front-end alignment by myself, and was successful!
Body-color side mirrors were added to get rid of the ugly black plastic ones. I installed a lower valance on the front bumper to give it a slightly more aggressive look.

I also found a set of forged SVT wheels locally that came from a GT500. They are staggered with 20" in the rear and 19" up front. but I'm not sure if I like them. 20" just seems like too much to me. I think 18" wheels would be more appropriate for the car, so I may change that up next spring.

How it currently looks:

 

Are you planning on keeping the 3V or maybe sourcing like uh...umm, you know.

 

To be honest, I really like the stock 3V engine. It's only 300 horsepower but it feels like a lot more, and is an absolute blast to wind out.
Plus, the idea of keeping the drivetrain original to this car seems like a good thing to do. Thanks!

 

Nice car! I agree with you about 20's on the s197. To me 18's are a touch small unless your'e doing track duty and the 20's are meh. I run 19x 9.5 and 19x10 Ford racing SVT performance pack rims on my 07.

 

Well, the season is officially over now that salt is on the roads, and the Moose is now winterized and stashed away in the garage.
I put the stock 17" wheels back on, and gave it a full tank of gas with the addition of some Star Brite ethanol stabilizer. I also have my battery tender on it, but still debating if I should just yank the battery and bring it into the house so it doesn't spend an entire winter in an unheated garage. Spring can't get here fast enough.

On the bright side, I was able to squeeze the Ninja in there next to it.

 

It lives!

I dragged it out of winter storage and drove it to work this past week, because the roads were clean and dry. I'm glad spring is on the way.

I discovered some corrosion underneath the paint on the hood (common Ford defect, galvanic corrosion on aluminum body parts), but it has already been neutralized and repainted. The next step is to address some minor issues with the body and suspension, and of course, drive it!
I almost forgot how much fun this car is.

 

It’s been almost a year since I updated this thread.
The car is in winter storage, but I did manage to snag a set of 17” GT “split 5-spoke” wheels for it last month. I really like the way they look!

Just waiting for spring to get here.