Corey Binkiewicz has never been one to follow the traditional path. At 35, the Ohio native and mechanical engineer is pushing performance boundaries and refining a build that started as the relatively unassuming family car, a Thunderbird. 

His 1990 Ford Thunderbird SuperCoupe was the practical family grocery-getter his parents bought new, just months after he was born. “They had a Corvette before that, but with me being born and a sister a few years older, it was time for a family car,” Corey explains. “The Thunderbird was purchased, and we drove it everywhere — vacations, daily commutes to work and school, everything.”

Most teenagers would want to distance themselves from the family hauler, as rarely is the stereotypical family car ‘cool’ by any youthful standards. But not Corey. “My sister and I both learned to drive in it. We both drove it through high school, year-round. It’s always been part of the family,” he says.

By the time he was 13, Corey had already started working on the car, making repairs at first, then adding light modifications. He’d found the SuperCoupe Club of America online and saw people swapping blowers, modifying the suspension, and squeezing more power out of the factory supercharged 3.8L V6. “That’s when I noticed people modding these cars. Had I not found that, I probably would have just bought a Mustang at 16,” he says. “But with every repair, I’d sneak in an upgrade that I read about on the forums.”

That spark evolved into a far more serious build. First came the track outings in high school with a mildly-modded V6. Then, in college, a turbocharged version of that same motor sent the Ford Thunderbird up into the 700 horsepower range. It was, of course, still fully loaded and deceptively stock-looking. “It made 747 horsepower at the wheels, and it still had everything … full interior, full weight. That combination set all the 3.8L records and still holds the stick-shift Thunderbird records,” Corey explains.

Eventually, the V6 gave way to a more purpose-built setup, as Corey dropped in a small-block Ford based on an 8.2-deck 302, punched out to 350 cubic inches. Built by longtime collaborator David Dalke of Dalke Performance Racing Engines, the combination features a Callies crank, Diamond pistons, GRP rods, and a solid roller cam. Yates C3 heads ported by MBE handle the airflow, and a single 94mm turbo — the system of which was also self-fabricated — is responsible for lighting the wick. Behind it is a battle-tested TREMEC T56 Magnum XL manual transmission with an 11-inch Black Magic clutch.

“It’s different,” Corey says of the unique build. “It really turns heads. The 8.2 deck with the ex-NASCAR heads, the big turbo, and 9,000 rpm, it sounds like nothing else at the track.”

That distinctiveness is part of what keeps Corey going with this car. “Other than a few buddies I have with SuperCoupes, you never see another one of these at the racetrack,” he adds. “It still has power windows, a sunroof, locks, and even the Ford keypad on the door works.”

The car has run as fast as 175 mph and 8.18 seconds in the 1/4-mile on a coasting pass, though these days Corey mostly runs no-time 1/8-mile radial events. It’s where the car fits best, and where his 1.25-second sixty-foot times and 140-plus mph trap speeds are competitive. “The car has made its way to the top a few times, but it’s really bringing a knife to a gun fight. If I put some fear into some guys with faster and lighter cars, it’s always fun,” he explains.

From the T56 and clutch pack, the power goes through a PST driveshaft to a fabbed Moser Engineering M9 9-inch rearend with 3.81 gears and Moser 35-spline axles. It all rides on Menscer Motorsports shocks, TRZ ladder bars, and Weld wheels.

The Thunderbird may be fast now, but the journey to get it here was long and often inconvenient. “I’ve built almost everything on this car in a single-car garage at my grandma’s house,” Corey says. “It was so small that I put the car on dollies and shoved it all the way to one side to work on the passenger side, then all the way to the other side to work on the driver’s side. I dropped plumb bobs and sharpied the floor to build the ladder bar setup. I built the cage in that garage, too.”

That garage, and the Thunderbird within it, became a hands-on engineering degree all its own. Corey learned to TIG weld, fabricate, tune EFI, build engines, and design entire subsystems that simply didn’t exist for the vehicle platform. “The Ford Thunderbird shares absolutely nothing with a Mustang,” he explains. “If I wanted anything, I had to make it myself. There were some bolt-ons available, but few.”

Though largely self-taught, Corey’s had help from key partners. Dave Dalke has been part of the program since Corey’s teenage years. Menscer Motorsports and TRZ supported him with custom suspension pieces tailored to the odd application. MBE delivered heads that Corey spins to the moon. Black Magic Clutches has helped him stay competitive in the stick shift game. “Random, but Mechman Alternators hooked me up with a custom alternator for the car,” he adds. “Bob Ette at ARC Engineering custom-designed a fuel pump bracket to run off the Jesel belt drive and fit my weird combination. And of course, my parents, who gave me the car and other transportation while it was broken or torn apart.”

Corey’s affection for cars comes from the technical side of the equation, turning something familiar into something remarkable. The rush of racing is the byproduct of that work. “I’ve just always loved engines and going fast. Probably oil changes and general repairs with my dad started the itch. I had go-karts, dirt bikes, gas R/C cars … I just loved engines,” he reflects. “I sucked at sports. I goofed off on the street, doing lots of friendly red light to red light racing, and it just built from there.”

Today, Corey continues to campaign the Thunderbird in no-time 1/8-mile stick shift classes, even though those opportunities are few and far between. He knows he’s pushing the limits of what the platform was meant to do, and even of what his cage certification allows. “Eventually I may surprise everyone and go automatic and up the cage certification to go faster” he says, “but for now I’m just trying to enjoy it.”

It’s a bit poetic how things have come full circle. What started as a car meant to haul a young family through Ohio winters became a street menace, a track weapon, and a canvas for Corey’s engineering curiosity. Each upgrade and update tells a story, each weld marks a challenge that he had to overcome with his own mind and hands.

For more than two decades, the Thunderbird has been Corey’s platform for testing his ideas and ingenuity. It’s his answer to the notion that you have to start with the right platform, the right budget, or have the right support system. He had none of those things. What he did have was determination, curiosity, and a car that meant something to him. And through every challenge, every late night in a cramped garage, every moment spent tuning or wrenching or welding, he turned that car into something only he could have built.

And maybe that’s the true heart of this build: the fact that every piece and every weld represents his own growth. In a sport where trends come and go and Mustangs are aplenty, Corey’s uber-quick Thunderbird illustrates how staying the course and being unique and undeniably personal can pay off.