SP Rides: Street Fighter

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BY MICHAEL KITCHENS

Name: Brandon Latun
Age: 29
Occupation: U.S. Military
Hobbies: Car building, beach, wife
Engine: VMP Stage 2 Supercharged, Corsa mufflers, Lethal H pipe, BBK long tube headers, VMP twin 67mm throttle body, ID1000 injectors, VMP Performance tune, custom painted valve cover
Exterior: Vinyl wrap by XERO Wraps, Roush side scoops, MMD window scoops, GT350 front bumper, GT350 front grills, custom Coyote emblems
Interior: GT350 steering wheel, custom LED lighting, Galaxy fiber optic headliner, custom Coyote shift knob
Suspension: Ford racing track suspension
Wheels/Tires/Suspension: SVE GT350R wheels (19-by-10 front, 19-by-11 rear), Nitto NT555 G2 tires (285/35ZR19 front, 305/35ZR19 rear), custom painted calipers

Growing up, Brandon Latun was a hardcore off road truck enthusiast who dabbled a little in dirt bikes as well. Fast forward to today, and he’s sitting behind what is essentially a domestic attack fighter, built for high-speed engagements. Granted, this one has four wheels and about 650+ HP, but that doesn’t change the fact that this bad boy is serious business.

Latun, a military transplant, has always wanted a musclecar, and the 2016 Ford Mustang GT was attractive enough to finally convince him to make the switch.

The fact that he uses it as a daily driver, and actually gets better gas mileage than his former rides, is a nice incentive. But, this isn’t about saving gas, it’s about something that involves kicking – and rhymes with it.

That wasn’t always the case, the serious modifications came as a surprise. The original intent was just to add an intake and exhaust and call it done. But that’s not how the modding scene works. One thing leads to another, and eventually, you have a super-charged, fire-breathing monster for a car. I’m not kidding either, Latun almost scared the Willies out of me during an unexpected startup.

The main horsepower generator for this warbird is a VMP Stage 2 Supercharged kit, a massive belt-driven contraption that resides on top of the V-8 strapped within this lumbering beast. A selection of boltons compliment this setup — a Roush intake, Lethal H pipe, BBK long tube headers, and Corsa mufflers all help to increase power. Combined with this, is a VMP Twin 67mm Throttle body and VMP Performance tune to help manage it all.

Beyond the obvious power, are the incredible looks. The custom Satin Chrome color scheme represents a different type of Mustang. Not the pony car, but the P-51 Mustang, one of America’s legendary long-range warplanes from the past. The red trim delineates the sexy silver and the galaxy black vinyl that was applied by Shane Oliberos of XERO Wraps. With the help of body components from the GT 350, the end result is striking.

The entire vehicle rides on a full Ford racing track suspension that replaces a majority of the stock components and drops the vehicle 1-inch. The wheels are SVE GT350R replicas and match perfectly with the red emblems and black faces.

The interior looks fairly stock at first glance with some LED lights in the footwell and a sexy custom Coyote shift knob. That is until you look up and eyeball the Galaxy fiber optic headliner, hand-crafted by Latun. I’ve seen this modification on a Rolls Royce on Top Gear, but never in person. The end result here is much more impressive. I’ve never, ever looked at a roof and thought, “My gosh, it’s full of stars!”

This ride is the total package and a result of tons of hard work. But no matter how hard the military work schedules get, for Latun, it’s important that one keeps up with their hobbies. “Keep trying at your hobbies and have fun in the off-time while you got it,” said Latun.

You may end up having a fighter plane in your garage, just like him.

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