Donor Car: 2004 Ford Mustang Mach 1

The donor car arrives! A slightly crashed 2004 Mustang Mach 1. Ford didn't just throw some graphics on the GT for this model. The DOHC high output aluminum V8, 5 speed manual, high 3.55 geared rear end, and big brakes make it an outstanding car and the perfect Cobra donor car. Motor Trend recorded a 0-60 mph time of 4.7 seconds and 1/4 mile time of 13.2 in 2004 for the Mach 1! The Cobra will weigh roughly 1/2 ton less, so it's performance will certainly be breathtaking.

Factory Photo:

The Donor:

The damage from its, uh, fender bender, luckily didn't touch the motor/trans/axle and most of the other needed parts so no worries.

First thing to be done is to make sure our drivetrain is in good working order. After a crash, Ford uses an inertia switch to disarm the fuel pump. We simply flip the switch to get the pump back on:

It's a tight fit but there is space between the pulleys and car, so the engine didn't make contact with anything in the crash.


We clear some things out of the way.



The battery is in about the same condition of the front fenders, so we remove it to use a working unit.



Next we removed the miscellaneous things and shaker assembly.


At this point we put the intake tube and maf back on to start the car. It ran perfectly, no check engine codes, oil pressure was excellent, ran nice and smooth. Now we know, its good to go and can start the removal process.. The next step is to drain fluids, label the wires and then pull the drivetrain and necessary parts.