sleeper 14 second car...cheep...help with ideas

Just get an Altima with the V6 and the 5 speed, whatever the first year they offered them (2002?) They're somewhat hard to find, but it should run a high 14 out of the box, and you get Nissan reliability in a nice, comfortable car. You can still tinker with it, although it's not the most creative sleeper. But it sure beats bombing around in a beater.

For that matter, any dohc 3.0/5spd maxima from 92-02 is a low 15 second car out of the box. I prefer the 95-99 body style, personally.

As for the taurus swaps.. As someone who both suggested and has been helping along a v8 sho swap, let me tell you that it is NOT something you should attempt unless you have a lot of experience and patience. There is no non-vulcan 96-up taurus that is even remotely fun to work on, and once you get into v8 sho territory you are talking MAJOR EFFING P.I.T.-EFFING-A. V6 swaps are probably in an entirely less difficult league, but you're still talking a dohc taurus engine bay, which is still a 'normal' PITA.

This is not any kind of condescension, believe me, but you are completely correct in your thinking with the 'above my pay grade' comment. I really think that for you (based on what little i know about you from carefully reading your posts) you should go for something that is fairly quick out of the box and can be made more fun with simple mods that wont make you hate the car and take the fun out of it. This is why i have been harping on the 'quicker than the neon' point repeatedly.

1988 Mx6 GT.

Stock motor. Stock ECU. t3/t4 60trim hybrid, ghetto FMIC setup, full 3" exhaust. Has a stopper screw in the VAF to prevent boost cut, 370cc injectors, 60psi of base fuel pressure via Adjustable fuel pressure regulator, and a walbro 190hp pump. This video is on about 17psi.

I rode in this car 2 years later (it had been set up like this for 4 years without a hiccup) on 22psi. It was FAST. Like.... "holy E36 M3 where's the exit" fast.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0sQ6mDa3C0

And here's a probe GT (same car) with a stock motor huffing 30psi through a 50trim hybrid.

http://youtu.be/s6XnQ9ODnjo

Here's a dyno of a 50trim MX6 GT, stock motor with over 200kkms, megasquirt.

Car ended up making 350whp and 458wtq that night. (That torque is not a typo)

http://youtu.be/2MdRsu5ZA6M

I don't know where you're located, but this just popped up in western MA:

westernmass.craigslist.org/cto/2543499267.html

$3k for a one-owner, 118k mile SVT Contour sounds pretty good to me.

Good luck with your search.

-Sean.

92CelicaHalfTrac wrote: 1988 Mx6 GT. Stock motor. Stock ECU. t3/t4 60trim hybrid, ghetto FMIC setup, full 3" exhaust. Has a stopper screw in the VAF to prevent boost cut, 370cc injectors, 60psi of base fuel pressure via Adjustable fuel pressure regulator, and a walbro 190hp pump. This video is on about 17psi. I rode in this car 2 years later (it had been set up like this for 4 years without a hiccup) on 22psi. It was FAST. Like.... "holy E36 M3 where's the exit" fast. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0sQ6mDa3C0

I didn't know you were friends with Eric. I've been friends with him for 10 years or more. We had a really nice '90 626 sedan that we bought to flip but it didn't end well. Small world... (of MX6s)

JamesMcD wrote:

92CelicaHalfTrac wrote: 1988 Mx6 GT. Stock motor. Stock ECU. t3/t4 60trim hybrid, ghetto FMIC setup, full 3" exhaust. Has a stopper screw in the VAF to prevent boost cut, 370cc injectors, 60psi of base fuel pressure via Adjustable fuel pressure regulator, and a walbro 190hp pump. This video is on about 17psi. I rode in this car 2 years later (it had been set up like this for 4 years without a hiccup) on 22psi. It was FAST. Like.... "holy E36 M3 where's the exit" fast. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0sQ6mDa3C0

I didn't know you were friends with Eric. I've been friends with him for 10 years or more. We had a really nice '90 626 sedan that we bought to flip but it didn't end well. Small world... (of MX6s)

Heh, i've only met him a couple times, but he's a good guy. I hear the black car got destroyed in flooding or something, though. Last i heard he's got a trick up his sleeve involving his old setup off that car, though.

He was helping me troubleshoot a faulty boost controller on my car about a year and a half ago. I just remember him saying "Ummmm... this thing is REALLY torquey" as i was hitting 20+psi by 3000rpms.

His car was way nicer than mine, much as he said otherwise. I was jealous.