One of the first things I noticed about my new 2011 Mustang Gt was its ride height.  As with seemingly every Mustang since 1964, Ford engineered too much altitude into the Mustang's stance.  The reason for this, as we were told by a Ford engineer once, was that Ford required their cars to have enough fender clearance for snow chains.  Go figure.  Well, we don't have much use for snow chains in our neck of the woods, so I felt the car could benefit from a slightly lower ride height.

I've always been a huge fan of Ford Racing Performance Parts.  I have confidence in Ford Racing's parts, as they are engineered and tested by the same folks that built the car, and they offer great value.  

Ford Racing Performance Parts offers 2 different sets of Mustang Lowering Springs that will work on the new 2011 5.0 Mustang GT.  The M-5300-K Lowering Springs reduce the ride height by approximately 1.5".  The M-5300-P lowering Springs drop the car by about 1".  Both sets of Lowering Springs offer improved handling via lower center of gravity and stiffer spring rates.

I opted for the M-5300-P Mustang Lowering Springs for my application, with their 1" drop.  

The before and after pictures tell the story:

Before

.

After

The car is slightly lower, but it's not "slammed".  The ride is slightly harsher, and I can hear a tad more road noise, but that's certainly worth the trade-off in appearance and handling.  I've only driven the car for a few days since the spring installation, and I can already tell the car seems to corner flatter and brake dive seems less severe.  The spring install took about an hour, with the only specialty tool being an air impact wrench, which is not required, but makes the job a lot quicker.

For the investment of a couple hours of your time, and $189.99 (plus wheel alignment), you can't go wrong by installing Ford Racing Performance Parts lowering springs on your S197 Mustang or new 5.0.

Step one in the installation is to jack the car up and support it with jack stands.  I put the front springs in first.  I jacked the car up at the front engine cradle, just behind the front a-arm.  I then supported the car with a jack stand under the cradle, freeing up my jack to support the lower a-arm.

Step two is to remove the upper strut mount nut.

***WARNING***It is a snap installing your new springs without a spring compressor if you're careful.  Extreme caution should always be used when removing the upper strut nut.  Springs store a lot of energy, and can hurt you if the proper removal and installation procedure isn't followed.  Do not remove the large 21mm nut on top of the strut unless the car's weight is supported.  If your jack is placed under the front lower control arm, this will slightly compress the spring and allow removal of the upper strut nut without movement of the spring.

Once you've removed the upper strut nut, remove the 10mm bolt that holds the brake hose bracket to the strut assembly, as well as the 18mm nut that holds the sway bar end link to the strut body, and the plastic push-pin that holds the abs wire to the strut.

Slowly and carefully lower your jack.  This will release the pressure from your spring, and the strut shaft will lower beneath the upper strut mount.  Keep your hands and feet clear of the lower control arm.

Once the lower control arm is completely off the jack, and the spring is relaxed, remove the 2 18mm bolts from the lower strut mount at the spindle, and remove the 4 13mm nuts that attach the upper strut mount to the body.  This will allow the entire strut assembly and spring to be removed from the car.

After the complete strut assembly is removed, the upper strut mount and spring will simply lift off.

The new Ford Racing springs are much shorter, negating the need for a spring compressor.  To install the new springs, simply replace the strut boot with the shorter one from the kit, and set the new spring on the strut body, aligning the ends of the spring with the reliefs in the strut and the upper mount.  You can then install the upper strut mount on the strut and use one hand to depress the spring just enough to re-install the 21mm upper strut mount nut onto the strut shaft before tightening it down.

Note:  You'll notice in the above pics that the two halves of my upper strut mount separated when I removed the strut from the car.  Watch for this.  You can prevent this by making sure the 4 13mm nuts holding the strut mount to the car are removed before trying to pull the strut and spring assembly out.  On my 2011, the strut mount snapped right back together.  On 2005-10 cars, the mounts have needle bearings in them.  If they fall out, you may find yourself chasing them around your garage.  A good practice is to spray the top of the spring and strut mount with penetrating oil, relieve the pressure from the spring, remove the strut mount to body nuts, then reach up an pull the strut and spring assembly out by the top, at the same time holding the strut mount together so it doesn't fall apart.

Reverse the disassembly procedure to re-install the completed strut assembly back on the car.

The rear of the car is a bit easier.

Jack the rear of the car up at the rear differential.  

Support the car with jack stands.  There is a flat spot just in front of the rear lower control arm that serves as a great place to set your jack stands.

With the jack still supporting the car's rear, remove the 15mm bolts that hold the shocks to the lower mounts, as well as the 15mm bolts that hold the sway bar end links to the body.  You may also remove the two 10mm bolts that hold the brake hose brackets to the body to gain additional travel for easier removal of the spring.

Lower the sway bar out of the way.

Slowly lower the rear end, allowing the car to settle on the jack stands.  As the rear droops, pressure will be released from the rear springs, allowing you to simply remove them by hand.

Re-install the Ford Racing rear springs.  If you've installed the springs correctly, the Ford logos will be right-side up.  Orient the springs in the isolators in the same manner as the factory springs you removed.

Once the springs are back in, jack the differential back up and reinstall the shock bolts, sway bar bolts, and brake hose brackets.

You're done!  Stand back and admire your work, then get the car to your favorite alignment shop to check the camber and toe settings that may have been altered due to your car's aggressive new stance.