August 2018

The engine has been sent to Livernois Motorsports to be rebuilt so the transmission was in need of an upgrade. Ivan had Exedy Clutches and a TCS billet Intermediate shaft installed by Brett LaSala from MSRacing because those two OE components are known points of failure for cars that exceed 700 wheel-horsepower with an aggressive shift schedule. Ivan is confident his Boosted Coyote will safely handle 1,000 hp.

July 2018

After the readend rebuild Ivan was on his way to get the car aligned when he noticed the car was eating coolant. He performed a compression test, a leak down test, and had the engine bored scoped.

Ivan discovered water sitting on top of the pistons which prompted him to replace the head gaskets. He also took the heads to a local machine shop to check the cylinder head deck surface to make sure he had a suitable sealing surface to work with.

“While I had the heads off for the head gasket replacement I decided to use ARP head studs to keep the head from lifting again,” Ivan said, adding the ARP studs do a great job of securing the head to the block whereas the stock head bolts stretch with a lot of boost.

After the work was performed and Ivan had it all back together he heard a terrible noise when he attempted to start the car. “I did some investigating with a local performance shop to see what was causing some of the issues I was having while trying to start the engine,” Ivan said.

He pulled the valve covers off and noticed the cylinder head on the passengers’ side wasn’t getting oil. He removed the cam caps and saw the heads and cams were damaged. According to Ivan, metal shavings had been left throughout the oil passages of the cylinder heads which starved the top end of motor oil.

June 2018

Ivan got a complete Ford Performance Super 8.8-inch IRS Differential to replace the damaged OE unit, and he upgraded many of the stock components to ensure the new differential would be consistent and eliminate traction issues.

To aid in the transfer of power to the ground, Ivan upgraded the OE driveshaft to a GForce Engineering 3.5-inch Aluminum Driveshaft. He also upgraded to a set of GForce Engineering axles that serve as a direct replacement for the factory half-shafts. 

To eliminate any wheel hop, Ivan used a Knuckle To Toe Link Bearing from Ford Performance and other bushings from BMR Suspension, BMR vertical links, toe links, and subframe bracing to stiffen up the rearend.

November 2017

All Ivan Korda wanted to do at Memphis International Raceway was set a new personal best quarter mile time. Unfortunately, his 2015 Mustang GT did not want to cooperate.  On a cold November day at a Test n’ Tune event, Ivan heard a menacing sound emit from the rear end on his third pass, and he was towed off track by the safety crew.

Ivan is a lifelong automotive enthusiast. He has interned at Master Engine Tuner Magazine and built a 2004 SVT Cobra Mustang with 550 horsepower, focused on all-around performance before he made a move to the S550 platform.

He bought the Mustang GT because he knew it would be able to run 10-second passes and still be a fun car to drive. Within a week of ownership, he knew the car was capable of nine-second passes, and a new goal formed.

“My car started out as bare bones build to test the OE components’ limits,” Ivan said of his 2015 Mustang. He added that within his first year of ownership he had done a few upgrades such as a Roush TVS supercharger, Sai Li return style fuel system, ID1000 injectors, JMS Wheels with Mickey Thompson ET Street tires, and BMR Drag Springs. With a full leather interior, heated and cooled seats, along with navigation and stereo unit Ivan accomplished his personal best: 9.8 seconds at 140 mph.

On the first pass during the Test ‘n Tune, Ivan noticed some traction issues and lost 2 miles per hour on his second pass. The loss in speed and traction led Ivan to believe the problem was with the track prep and he attempted a third run. “As soon as I felt the weight transfer to the rear of the car I heard this sound like a metal spoon caught in a garbage disposal,” he said.