Chances are that if you’re reading this online magazine, you’re either an enthusiast or a racer and given either of those designations, that means that you’ve already modified your vehicle to oblivion or you’re here to learn more about how you can do as such, because the term “stock” simply isn’t in our vocabulary.

JPC Racing's 2005-10 GT and 2007-12 GT500 Triple Pump Return Style Fuel System.

The S197 Mustang’s from 2005 to present are arguably the most common and popular of enthusiast vehicles on the streets and strips these days, and their OEM parts don’t generally stick around long before upgrade exhaust, aftermarket camshafts, intakes, power adders, and even entire short/long block assemblies come aboard.

If you’re making any number of these power-gaining steps to your Mustang, then an upgraded fuel system to handle the rigors of increased flow demands and power numbers is essential, and to keep the modification process streamlined, the team at JPC Racing have developed complete fuel system upgrade kits for the 2005-10 and 2011-present Ford Mustang GT, GT500, and Boss 302, allowing for well in excess of 1,000 horsepower.

These kits from JPC are a drop-in triple pump assembly, featuring a billet “Top Hat” fuel hat with three Walbro GSS342 (342 LPH) fuel pumps. This system eliminates the need for three lines and fittings and the use of a Y-block by using a single outlet feed, allowing you to save money, reduce weight, and lower your chance of leaks.

The triple pump return style systems are a direct replacement for the stock fuel assembly, utilizing the factory fuel tank and all, and includes virtually everything you need to get up and running, including high quality woven feed and return lines that have been pre-cut to size for the S197 Mustang.

Specifications:

• CNC Machined from high quality billet aluminum
• All gas blocked wiring for the Pumps, Ground and Level Sender
• Direct plug in harnesses for fuel pumps
• Oversize pump retainer for Walbro GSS342 pumps
• -8an female feed port and -6an female return ports
• Gates 30R10 Submersible Fuel Hose for each pump

System Includes:

• cp-e “Top Hat” Triple Pump Walbro Billet Fuel Hat
• Magnafuel Pro Star Large Two-port EFI Regulator w/ 1:1 Boost Reference
• Magnafuel 25 micron Aluminum Inline Fuel Filter
• (3) Walbro GSS342 Fuel Pumps
• (3) 30amp Relays
• Fragola high quality Black Woven Pushlock -8an Feed Line & -6an Return Line
• 4ga Wire Harness with Relays and Inline Fuse
• All required fittings, clamps and fuel pressure gauge

In addition to the standard 342 LPH pumps in this kit, JPC also offers two upgraded setups, as well. The first is three higher-rated Walbro 400 LPH pumps that are rated to flow 404.59 LPH, and just as notably, a new – albeit smaller – 300+ LPH pump from DeatschWerks that JPC’s Eric Holliday explains is 100% E85-safe. “They’ve load tested these pumps for 4,000 hours on E85 and haven’t had any failures, and they also warranty the product, so if you’re an E85 kind of guy, that’s the way you’d want to go.”

JPC's billet aluminum drop-in Top Hat shown installed in the factory fuel tank. Photo courtesy: Mike Galimi

For those of you out there with 2011-12 GT500, JPC Racing has also rectified issues with what Holliday describes as a “goofy” fuel level sender. On 2005-10 GT and GT500 systems, one can simply take a 2008-later fuel level sender, slide it in and clip it, wire it up, and you’re done; but not so on the later models. “Unfortunately with the new style fuel level sender on the 2010-12 GT500’s you can’t backtrack to the ’08 fuel level senders, so we actually came out with an adapter that will bolt to the Top Hat allowing for modification of the stock fuel level sender to make it work,” says Holliday.

Installation

The stock fuel system utilizes a returnless fuel system with a pulse modulated fuel pump. When going to an aftermarket unit, a return style regulator system is required.

As Holliday explains, “The installation process is pretty straightforward.” The billet aluminum “hat” is first assembled with the three fuel pumps of your choice and dropped into the tank and plumbed using all of the supplied lines and fittings and clamps that hold the line to the floor. “It comes with everything you’d need to hook it up to stock fuel rails or if you purchase rails or have rails, it comes with everything to do that, as well.”

Tuning

So aside from the increased fueling capabilities, what other benefit does a system like this one from JPC offer? “We feel that they’re easier to tune, simply because it’s a steady pressure and you’re not dealing with a fuel driver module anymore where you’re doing duty cycles and such,” says Holliday. “That, and it’s enough pump that you’re not going to have any pressure drops, allowing for a steady base pressure to tune your injectors from instead of trying to ramp in pressure as power comes in and things like that.”

JPC's drop-in, triple pump return style fuel assembly with billet aluminum Top Hat as see alongside the factory S197 fuel pump assembly. Photo courtesy: Mike Galimi

These elements make this JPC fuel system much easier to tune and monitor as an end-user. If there’s a fuel pressure gauge in the car and you see it losing pressure at WOT, the fuel system is maxed out, whereas with a factory fuel system, you’re looking at the use a data logger and other tools to see if you’re maxed out. This all combines to make a much simpler fuel system to operate and tune.

In terms of tuning, vehicles will need to be re-tuned because of the differences in the two systems and how they operate. The varied use of power adders, the level of horsepower being made, the size of the injectors, and many other factors come into play in re-tuning your vehicle, and a such, there aren’t exactly any one-size-fits-all tuning suggestions.

Explains Holliday, “Most guys now have a local dyno tuner that’s doing their stuff. Once you’re needing this fuel system, you’re really past making a couple of small adjustments on a handheld tuner. This is really for cars over the 600 horsepower, so it’s not really plug-and-play for most people.”

On the base system using the GSS342 pumps, JPC technicians have produced as high as 1,030 horsepower with a blower car with no signs of fuel pressure loss or the ceiling have been reached.

“I’d venture to say you could make 1,200 horsepower with just the base system fairly easily,” says Holliday.