Sal Valdezs - Last Ride - Ford Mustang GT 5.0
Not long ago we had the opportunity to tagalong during AirPower Group’s first lifestyle video, which was also the first time we met Sal Valdez and his 2011 Mustang GT. Sal drove up to our meeting spot in a stealthy but conspicuous manner. Confusing? Well, Sal’s GT armors itself with a nice dark grey but is accented with carbon fiber and a vibrant yellow. It kind of seems a little odd at first but it’s well played.When we spoke to Sal about the build, it was more emotional than the typical, “I want a bad ass car, period.” But rather it was,”this is how Joe would have built it.Sal’s project began with buddy Joe Gosinski, the owner of Chicane Sport Tuning, in the middle of 2010. The initial idea was for Joe to completely overhaul a Mustang to be a one-of-kind version of the Shelby Super Snake, the Saleen Xtreme. Sal hired Joe and trusted him to execute it without any guidance, but unfortunately it didn’t materialize, on December 24th, 2010, Joe was murdered in his shop. The whereabouts of the killer is still at large.With the shocking turn of events, the project was side railed. Sal’s motivation and desire to build the ultimate Mustang wasn’t even a blip on the radar.During a memorial cruise, Sal met Matt Bernal of Bernal Auto Style, Matt was Joe’s friend and right-hand man at Chicane Sport Tuning. In conversation, Sal overheard about Matt’s desire to build a new Mustang for SEMA but couldn’t complete it without the proper backing. That’s when Sal pulled Matt aside and explained what his plans were with Joe. In days to come, Sal and his wife decided that building a Mustang in honor of Joe was a great idea. Sal then purchased the 2011 Ford Mustang and called Matt to execute it.The Mustang was then dubbed “Last Ride” which signifies the last car that would fly the Chicane Sport Tuning name.
“Last Ride” would feature some styling cues form the Europeans. The exterior is well executed with the Trufiber hood, Trufiber trunk, and RK Sport roof. Teresa Contreras at L&G Enterprises nicely color-matched and separated the body color by a broad distinctive yellow stripe splitting the carbon fiber and body color, all courtesy of D-BASF paint.
The mirror tops was also color-matched to the yellow stripe as was the Ford Racing California rear wing by CJ Pony Parts.
A quarter window scoop was added giving it that look of the 60’s fastback.
A Trufiber front lip, splitter, and diffuser help keep the wheels to the ground, while the brake ducts help cool off the 14" 6-piston Baer brakes under hard driving.
Another fine detail was the custom Silverhorse Racing gas door that was engraved “Last Ride”."
Finishing off the body was a Chicane Sport Tuning banner painted on the lower rockers.
Keeping it planted to the ground is a set of Vossen CV3 wrapped with Falken FK-452. The Vossen’s were a perfect match to the build because of the quality, style, and design. Everything was perfect about the CV3: the offset, color and size.
To stiffen the chassis, a custom carbon strut brace was designed and made by Joe himself.
The suspension of choice was Saleen Racecraft N2+ adjustable coilover kit glues the “Last Ride” to the pavement.
Although exterior cosmetics serve a large role in the build, it wasn’t the only purpose. Sal added an AIRAID intake system which was butted up to a Vortech V-3 Si Supercharger.
Sal chose Vortech because that was the only supercharger Joe stood behind and he stood behind nothing but the best. Combine that with the polished snail grabs any passer-by’s attention.
This set up boosts a healthy 8 psi with the aid of an air-to-air intercooler, good enough for 605HP, and 472 ft. lbs. of torque. Sal said it still gets 21 MPG on the highways and runs completely efficient without any overheating issues on the track.
Sal also installed a 50 shot of nitrous from NX Express for that extra oomph. To finish off the performance of things, a set of Doug Thorley tri-y headers and dual-exhausts rounded out the horsepower end of things.
To keep Sal safe, a harness bar was installed behind the Corbeau seats and strapped with Corbeau belts.
A set of AutoMeter and Dakota Digital gauges keep all vitals within a glace.
Sal’s Last Ride is definitely flawless. Anyone can admire the work and pick out all the fine details in the build. Fit and finish was immaculate and the colors were so well played.
I especially love all the memorial badge replaces where the factory 5.0 would have been, and the Chicane logo on the rear badge.When we heard the story of the build and closely looked at the details, we know Sal and Matt put a lot of thought into building a vehicle that Joe would be proud of. And, there is no doubt, Joe would be proud of the “Last Ride.”
As of late, the “Last Ride” currently now has an 8-rib upgrade kit and is now boosting at 12 psi., thanks to a 3.47” pulley. Greg at Racers Edge Tuning was able to tune it to get over 630rwhp. The car also has a Ford Racing Boss 302 intake manifold courtesy of CJ Pony Parts.
Here is a bitchen video put together by Photo MD.[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Of-VRgYvO48&w=540&h=330]
