There’s not a Mustang fan alive who doesn’t remember the above video. Randy Jackson’s 1988 GT was supposed to have a stock 5.0L engine with 156,000 miles, but with a big cam and 175hp dry kit on it.
The quickest time picked by Kenneth Herring and one of the other contestants on the show was a 12.25. That might’ve been close for just a 175 shot, but Jackson had a little more than a stock 5.0L with a little spray, and a C4 transmission in the tunnel. Jackson tells us the engine was actually a Proline-built, big inch Windsor Tim Lynch and Steve Petty put together. The Windsor had a custom solid roller cam, Trick Flow high-ports, two plates and a fogger, and E98 fuel. Jackson tells us the combination was good for 749-rwhp on just one kit, but that he actually sprayed all three kits on that pass.
The converter within the Keith Neal ‘Glide was a little loose and the engine was up against the rev limiter going through the lights, but the supposed 12-second car actually ran an 8.72 at 165 mph. Though it looked really, really stock, the GT actually had 16-inch Hoosier slicks out back on the ’94-’98 GT wheels.
Alas, the car’s current owner is Anthony Burkeens, and even though he has thought about putting a turbocharged LS combo in the car, the GT is currently for sale as a roller. Burkeens raced the car for a bit after getting it from Jackson, but in order to get a race the car was painted black so people wouldn’t know it was the same car. Burkeens works at DC Motorsports in Tuscambia, Alabama, where they specialize in race cars and parts. David Crouch owns DC, so if you want a part of TV history, contact Crouch or Burkeens for more details.
The first thing you need to do when you buy the car is paint it white like it was on the show, and do not put an LS engine in the car. We will come find you.