SEMA 2017: Hellion Boosts ’18 ’Stang With Twin Turbos

As we recently let you know, Hellion Power Systems developed the first twin-turbo system for the 2018 Mustang GT and the system made its public debut in Ford’s booth at the SEMA Show. The kit is under the hood of a menacing Mustang built by Tucci Hot Rods.

Main man Dave Tucci has a history in drag racing and even crewed on alcohol funny cars, but eventually opened a shop and began building high-end muscle cars and hot rods. At the urging of his son, the shop got involved building projects — ranging from a truck to a Fiesta ST — for SEMA. Tucci parlayed that successful track record into the 2018 Mustang GT you see here.

Drawing on its experience with 2015-2017 Mustang GTs and 2016-2018 Shelby GT350s, Hellion Power Systems used this Tucci Hot Rods-built test bed to create the first twin-turbo system for the Gen 3 Coyote engine.

“We are performance guys so the pick of the 5.0-liter Mustang was just perfect for us,” Dave said. “This is going to be set up for standing mile so that’s a little bit different and to have John come on board and help us get the power to do that is just amazing.”

His first call was to us because it really is the ultimate power adder. — John Urist, Hellion Power Systems

The John in question is multi-time NMRA Outlaw champion John Urist, who is the driving force behind Hellion Power Systems. Working with Dave and building from his experience with the 2015-2017 Mustangs and 2016-2018 Shelby GT350s, John was quickly able to create an Eliminator twin-turbo system for the dual-fuel Coyote engine, which installs without cutting the body.

“His first call was to us because it really is the ultimate power adder,” John proclaimed. “The other power-adder options, like a supercharger, are drawing power from the engine at all times. It’s like when you turn on your air conditioning and the engine drags down. A supercharger does that all the time. With a turbo, during normal driving, there is no power being lost. When you put your foot in it is when the turbos come alive and we get our power gain.”

The black Tucci machine is set up for standing mile runs and features aerodynamic upgrades, racing seats, a roll cage, and a number of 3D-printed accents. If it looks this good standing still, we can’t wait to see it run flat-out.

Look for the Hellion-boosted Tucci 2018 Mustang GT to hit the dyno soon once Eddie Rios at Addiction Motorsport finishes tuning the car with HP Tuners software.

“This system is based on the pedigree of our 2015-2017 Mustang systems, which holds every major record,” John added. “We simply transferred everything we learned from those applications to this bitchin’ new car.”

If the results from the previous Hellion systems are any indication, this 2018 Mustang is going to have no trouble putting down big numbers and running flat out on the half mile toward 200 mph.

 

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About the author

Steve Turner

Steve Turner brings decades of passion and knowledge in the world of Ford performance, having covered it for over 20 years. From the swan song of the Fox Mustang to the birth of the Coyote, Steve had a front-row seat.
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