My experience forcing a cheap S550 spoiler onto an S650 mustang

[Renntech]

Hey all,

I've been looking online to see if S550 exterior mods are compatible with the S650. The S550 has been around from 2015 - 2023 and the aftermarket is heavily saturated with products, whereas the S650 market is just barely beginning to crawl. Options are extremely limited.

In my research, I was unable to find any definitive answers over forwards-compatibility for older S550 spoilers to work with new S650 cars, and it seems like no one has ventured to make it work. Therefore I thought I'd buy one and try it myself.

For S650 spoilers: You're in the realm of $350-$400 dark horse handling pack knockoffs that are gaining popularity but difficult to find in stock (I also dislike the gurney flap on these). Very high quality $1000-$1500 gloss carbon fiber S650 performance pack style (plus several month lead-times) from companies like NYTop. S550 style performance pack spoiler with S650 mounting points from Dar Spoilers for about $450 shipped. Ford OEM is a joke, I've seen spoilers on dealer websites for about $3,000...

So what if you're seeking to gamble ~$100 on alibaba/aliexpress/wish.com megacheapo options? I present to you my findings:
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My $109 spoiler arrived in a rapid two days from eBay. I immediately noticed 3 mounting points that are not compatible with the removable S650 trunk wedge. (My car came with the thumbnail spoiler and therefore has pre-drilled holes). As I began to dremel through these mounting points, they heated up so much that I was able to simply extract them from the base of the spoiler with pliers.

The eBay spoiler had 6 remaining studs. 3 groups of 2 for the middle, left, and right points of contact with the trunk wedge. 10mm nuts fit these, and I bought large washers to distribute the load. I needed to drill custom holes about 0.5" narrower on the middle of my trunk wedge, and expand the clearance of the holes on the left and right to make room for the spoiler's studs to descend into the trunk wedge.

The spoiler itself came with foam gaskets which I elected to use, so there is NO 3M tape holding my spoiler to the trunk wedge. I felt the 6 nuts and washers alone provided more than sufficient clamping force, and 3M is not needed.

The very extremities of the spoiler do not line up with the holes found in the trunk itself. If you're familiar with removing the S650 trunk wedge, these are the two that are hidden under rubber pucks. I decided to instead simply thread a nut between the spoiler and the trunk wedge (for some extra clamping) but therefore the spoiler edges are not attached to the trunk itself as they would be in an OEM configuration.

Pics of everything below. The final result turned out quite good in my opinion, but if you are a stickler for perfection, this option is most definitely not for you. As the spoiler isn't a perfectly flush fit, but I forced it to be by tightening the nuts down, I feel I've marginally exacerbated some panel gaps in my trunk area. I'll see if I can get better pictures tomorrow.

This also required a good deal of custom drilling. I figured if I turned my trunk wedge into swiss cheese, I could always cover it up with a completely flat spoiler at a later date
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And the final result!

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[kinelisch]

Nice! Can you post a rear and side angle as well?

 

[WayneK]

Nice wheels. What are they?

 

[SSuperDave]

This is very timely! I just today got a JR3Z-6344210-CA 2023 PP spoiler, already painted Grabber Blue, for free! The spoiler is $1,800, and we sent it out for paint, which was $200. We really needed one for a '24, one of the parts counter people got the wrong one, and it was painted before they caught it, and then we got the correct one for the customer. I'm looking forward to getting this on the car.

 

[SSuperDave]

It looks like you have to remove the trunk lip and then remove and attach the spoiler to the lip, is that correct? I printed the procedure from the factory workshop manual, but its not clear at all.

 

[Renntech]

Nice wheels. What are they?

Thanks! They are 20x10 and 20x11 Velgen VF5 wheels in gloss gunmetal

 

[Renntech]

Nice! Can you post a rear and side angle as well?

 

[Renntech]

It looks like you have to remove the trunk lip and then remove and attach the spoiler to the lip, is that correct? I printed the procedure from the factory workshop manual, but its not clear at all.

Yes, that's what I meant by "trunk wedge" in my original post. Once you've removed the trunk liner, you have access to four 7mm nuts, and seven 10mm nuts. Once you've backed all of them off, you can shimmy/wiggle the entire edge of the trunk completely off the car. This is what spoilers attach to.

You also need to be careful with it, as once it's about 4-5 inches away from the trunk, you'll snag the line for the rear-view camera, which needs to be unplugged.

 

[SSuperDave]

Great, thanks.

 

[SSuperDave]

I question the design of the "trunk wedge" but whatever. I got mine on today, all 4 stud holes lined up, I jut had to make the two center ones bigger. Its on with 4 nuts and washer and double sided tape, just because it was on there from Ford, and really looks great. I may drill and tap the spoiler under the rubber plugs on the ends and add an additional bolt on each side, but not sure yet.
The countour of the part that drops down towards the quarter panel doesn't match the curve of the quarter, but unless you know the cars well, its not likely to be noticed. If the goddam aftermarket would get off their asses and make some stuff, we would not have to compromise and hack up other year parts to fit...

 

[Renntech]

I may drill and tap the spoiler under the rubber plugs on the ends and add an additional bolt on each side, but not sure yet.

Looks awesome, job well done! I also have been considering the same thing concerning the very left and right extremities of the spoiler. I may remove it and just sink two screws upwards into the spoiler for good measure. I've been keeping a keen eye on mine, and even in 100mph winds it appears rocksteady in my L/R mirror where I can see the edges

I also agree, the aftermarket needs to catch up and offer some S650 performance pack style spoilers already!

 

[SSuperDave]

Your advice on removing the locating pins was excellent, mine twisted right out after heating up. The worst part of the whole job was getting the old double sided tape off the insert! My son and I have sore fingers!

 

[Bluember24]

Wow that turned out very nice! Also, the car itself looks great. Cool to see another S650 in Scottsdale. I don't see many driving around here.

 

[MAT1955]

@Renntech ..... I think you did a really great job, considering what you faced. Nicely done - looks awesome!

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