East Coast Mustangs: Best Kept Secret In Mustang Performance

East_Coast_Mustangs_Lead_Art2When it comes to aftermarket performance components, enthusiasts are well aware that the Mustang game is alive and well. Over the years, the market has continued to accelerate and increase in a linear fashion, leaving no shortage of go-fast parts behind.

As the market has progressed, Mustang owners have grown accustomed to having a bountiful supply of aftermarket performance outfitters to choose from. However, one company has taken the opportunity to diversify and eliminate the middle-man, creating a one-stop-shop for catering to the needs of just about any Mustang.

From supplying new and used components, to complete vehicle builds and everything in-between, East Coast Mustangs in Greenville, South Carolina has catered to Blue Oval owners since 2011 and has proved to be an excellent source for everything Fox-body era and up.

Follow along as we dive into the details of the company, and explain how those with long-term goals can reap the benefits of using its full-service parts and installation shop.

East Coast Mustangs frequently posts used parts for sale on its Facebook page, like this GT500 5.4-liter DOHC V8 with only 55,000 miles on it

East Coast Mustangs frequently posts used parts for sale on its Facebook page, like this supercharged 5.4-liter DOHC V8 pulled from a ’07-’12 GT500 with only 55,000 miles on it.

Who Is East Coast Mustangs?

ECM_Engine_SwapGREvery great story has a beginning as Andrew Seymore, sales and marketing manager for East Coast Mustangs, explained. The company wasn’t founded on big bucks backing it or big name parts outfitters, but instead was built on the foundation of a love for Mustangs and helping the community.

“We started the company as something to do for Mustang enthusiasts, like helping people to get parts. It wasn’t really anything major. Mike, the owner of the company, started out buying salvaged cars and selling the sought after parts, and helping out guys like himself,” Seymore said.

Having a solid foundation is key to the success of a business. Outlining goals, whether long or short-term establishes a path, which is why Seymore said the company has come as far as it has today.

“As far as initial goals for the company… we didn’t really set too many,” he said. “There wasn’t anything big when we first started out, and one of the milestones for the company is growth. The company started in Mike’s backyard on a slow pace, and we’re in a 12,000 square-foot facility now. For somebody that just basically started out doing the occasional Fox-body and other late-model cars, we’re probably one of the biggest suppliers for ’03-’04 SVT Cobra salvage parts in the country — if not, the biggest.”

What Can East Coast Mustangs Do For You?

East Coast Mustangs has a full performance oriented and maintenance service shop to tackle any job needed.

The company also has a full performance-oriented and maintenance service shop to tackle any job required.

One conversation with Seymore and it was clear just how much East Coast Mustangs provides as a one-stop shop for everything Mustang-related in regards to performance and maintenance from Fox-body to late-model S550 cars. Seymore also explained the company is a provider of new and used parts and offers full-tilt Mustang engine and transmission builds, among other services.

We don’t really see a project that’s too big to take on, or too small, or one that will take too long. – Andrew Seymore, East Coast Mustangs

“We’re a vendor for roughly 450 different brands, and that’s probably a bit of an undershot,” Seymore said. “We manufacture a few of our own products, too. We do five-lug conversions for Fox-body cars and make our own heat exchangers equipped with dual fans. We even manufacture shifter boots — those are prone to ripping and tearing on New Edge cars.”

Trust us when we say that’s not even close to half of what this company is capable of. “We offer what no other Mustang shop offers. We build everything from transmissions to short-blocks, and you don’t have to call 15 different places — you can just call one,” Seymore said. “If there is a certain used or new part you want, or even a combination of a short-block and a brand-new T56 transmission, we’ve got you covered.”

Used Parts: How They Benefit Everyone

Inside East Coast Mustangs' 12,000 square-foot facility sits an abundance of new and used parts ready for purchase at any time.

Inside East Coast Mustangs’ 12,000 square-foot facility sits an abundance of new and used parts ready for purchase at any time.

If you’re lucky enough own one of the rarer Mustangs, like a desirable ’03-’04 SVT Cobra or Shelby GT500, you are well aware that parts are becoming more scarce with the passing of time. East Coast Mustangs acknowledges this absence in the market and has worked diligently to provide a solution.

The company was built on providing Mustang guys with increasingly scarce components through acquiring salvaged cars, but the larger benefits of this effort is passed straight to the buyer.

In regards to the used parts market, Andrew said, “It benefits enthusiasts quite well; it gives someone an extra option when they can’t afford the latest parts, or locating a part that nobody manufactures new. The drawbacks are that we only get these used parts from wrecked cars. So, if no one is wrecking cars, some of these parts can be limited. The Fox-body and the ’03-’04 SVT Cobra parts are getting harder to find. But, for the average person, it’s very beneficial as not everybody can afford to put a brand-new exhaust on their car or buy a brand-new one-piece driveshaft, so it works out pretty good.”

“When it comes to any car that we buy, before we put any of those parts on the website or on our Facebook page, or anywhere, we test them to make sure they are in good, working order. If we send you an ’03 Cobra engine, it runs when it leaves our facility, and we take videos of it running. Ultimately, at the end of the day, we test everything,” he continued.

The Right Way To Build A Mustang

Andrew made it clear that owners don’t always have to install new parts themselves if they choose not to. A majority of locals look to East Coast Mustangs to install everything based on its reputation for precision, and the fact that the company is willing to take on anything.

ECM_Heat_ExchangerGR“From a local perspective, I’d say 85 to 90 percent of enthusiasts buy things and have us install the components,” Seymore relayed. “As far as installation capabilities, there’s not really a job we’re going to turn away regardless of how big it is. We don’t really see a project that’s too big to take on, or too small, or one that will take too long.

“We do the job right the first time. Every one of our technicians has more than 15 years of experience working specifically with Mustangs. Both of our main technicians are very meticulous with their work. If they won’t approve it for their own cars, it’s not going to be on yours.”

ECM_BuildGRSeymore gave us a rundown on the company’s build process as if we were a customer. “We basically get an idea of what their end goal is and help plan their mods around that. We ask them what they want, whether that is to handle well or to run down the dragstrip quickly. If they want a drag car, we actually start with their power goal and then build the engine from the camshaft back. If they want a road course car, we’ll beef them up with a nice suspension from Maximum Motorsports, or something equivalent. We’ll make sure they’re running the proper gearing and power adder, and so forth.”

Product Of The Environment

From the exterior, Andrew's SVT Cobra looks rather stock. Would you guess this single turbo beast puts the hammer down at nearly 700 horsepower at the rear wheels?

From the exterior, Andrew Seymore’s SVT Cobra looks rather stock. Would you guess this single turbo beast puts the hammer down at nearly 700 horsepower at the rear wheels?

If you’re looking for a testament to East Coast Mustangs’ capabilities, then look no further than these two New Edge Mustangs. Both sport some heavy modifications and were built at the company.

“We build our cars in-house, and this is stuff that we do on a day-to-day basis,” Seymore said. “Our slowest car here right now is about 300 horsepower to the wheels, but it’s got a full Kenny Brown suspension package and handles like a dream. All of our cars are performance-based, and we want people who are performance-minded to connect with us.”

Seymore is the proud owner of a low mileage ’04 SVT Cobra convertible finished in Torch Red and was built from the ground-up. It has become host to numerous modifications both from East Coast Mustangs and its vendors.

sinister_299GRIn lieu of the factory supercharger, his Cobra now sports a ported factory  ’03-’04 Mach 1 upper and lower intake manifold in conjunction with an On3Performance Single Turbo System for the ’96-’04 Mustang Cobra four-valve. Seymore opted for the 76 mm ball-bearing turbocharger upgrade, making this Cobra capable of producing 661.1 horsepower and 620.1 lb-ft of torque at the rear wheels on just 15 psi of boost. A Fore Innovations complete fuel system and a set of Siemens Deka 80-pound fuel injectors feed the Cobra enough fuel to supply the demand for target air-to-fuel ratios.

The Cobra also uses one of the company’s level 2 upgraded Tremec T56 six-speed manual transmissions and an upgraded 26 spline input shaft. Paired with a MGW short-throw shifter and a Mcleod RXT twin disc clutch and flywheel, power is transferred to a bulletproof rearend using Moser Engineering 31 spline axles, a 31-spline Eaton Locker differential, and a set of Ford Racing Performance Parts 3.73 rear gears.

With the additional power follows a chassis that can handle it using a UPR Products tubular K-member, A-arms, and coilovers, as well as an adjustable upper control arm and fixed lower control arms paired to a set of adjustable rear struts from Strange Engineering. Tying the package all together are 17×9-inch front and 17×10-inch rear Saleen wheels with Nitto NT555 tires in the front and Mickey Thompson ET Street in the rear.

Loaded up and ready for a fresh tune at Kurgan Motorsports

Loaded up and ready for a fresh tune.

Following the trend of big power builds, Eddie Crook is another employee at East Coast Mustangs who has built one hell of a car. His 2002 Saleen S281 convertible started life as a factory supercharged 4.6-liter two-valve car, but now has twice the camshafts and valves thanks to an ’04 SVT Cobra engine swap.

The new 4.6-liter DOHC four-valve V8 uses an ’01 SVT Cobra upper and lower intake manifold paired to an On3Performance Twin Turbo System, for good measure. This combination pumps out an impressive 722.9 horsepower and 736.3 lb-ft of torque at the rear wheels on 17.75 pounds of boost.

The new 4.6-liter DOHC four-valve V8 looks right at home in Crook's Saleen S281

Ultimately, at the end of the day, we test everything. – Andrew Seymore, East Coast Mustangs

Power is fed to the rear end by a Tremec T56 Magnum transmission and Ram Clutches twin-disc clutch. Handling suspension and chassis duties is a UPR Products K-member and coilover set while a Maximum Motorsports Panhard bar and upper and lower control arms keep it planted during acceleration. The car uses a custom Bassani Cat-Back exhaust made specifically to work with the Panhard bar.

Crook says there are a few much-needed upgrades planned in the future for his near 800 horsepower Saleen, such as Moser 31 spline axles with C-clip eliminators, a beefier ’87-’93 rearend with 3.55 gears, and an Auburn Gear differential.

What’s Next For East Coast Mustangs?

East Coast Mustangs' latest project is a Terminator swapped Foxbody being raffled for charity

East Coast Mustangs’ latest project is a Terminator swapped Fox body that will be raffled to benefit the Make A Wish Foundation.

ECM Terminator Swapped Fox Giveaway To Benefit Charity

The Make A Wish charity car is rocking some serious upgrades. You’ll find a new VMP Performance 2.3-liter TVS supercharger, Fore Innovations fuel system components, UPR Products, and Bilstein suspension components, a five-lug conversion, and a complete rearend built by Moser Engineering.

East Coast Mustangs plans to give away a Terminator Swapped Fox body Mustang at the 2016 Mustang Week event (July 19-23) to benefit the Make A Wish Foundation. To enter the drawing, you can purchase one of 3,000 keychains available for only $25 each by calling East Coast Mustangs directly. All proceeds will be donated to the non-profit organization.

“We’re looking to expand on what the company has,” Seymore said. “The next thing in our pipeline is some transmission stuff. I can’t really go into too much detail on what we’re doing, but we are a fully-functioning transmission facility. We build T5s, T45s, TR3650s, T56s, and perform repair work on MT-82s. I think we are the only Mustang-related company in the country that does MT-82 work.”

From Mustangs to Lightnings, SVT Raptors, and EcoBoost-powered vehicles like the Focus and Fiesta ST, hit up East Coast Mustang’s website or Facebook page for all of your new high-performance or used parts needs.

Article Sources

About the author

Harrison Noble

Living in San Diego for most of his life, Harrison was exposed to a variety of cars at an early age. His passion for anything that is fast, or has a V8, brought him to Power Automedia.
Read My Articles

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