How Quick Can A Junkyard Coyote Run? Jaeson Hager Howling For Seven-Second Time Slips in 2023
When contemplating upgrades to a car, it’s not uncommon to weigh the pros and cons before proceeding. In the case of Jaeson Hager, upgrading the rear end to handle more power led him to switch not only cars, but also be on the edge of a seven-second pass.
Jaeson “Chainz” Hager rolls through a checkpoint during the first day of Sick Week 2022.
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“I sold my F-body because I didn’t want to pay three grand for a rear end (to handle horsepower upgrades),” said Hager.
Searching for alternatives led Hager to a New Edge 2002 Mustang with a stock two-valve, a manual transmission, and an odometer showing 150,000 miles. After his initial track run netted a low 14-second pass, Hager decided it needed some boost. An On3 turbocharger kit was selected for extra motivation, and a best pass of an 11.30 at 125mph was the result. Hager participated in his first drag-and-drive at Hot Rod Drag Week in 2019, netting an eleventh place finish in the Super Street Small Block Power Adder class.
By 2021, Hager had a new plan.
“A friend was buying a house, and he had just purchased a Coyote out of a wrecked F-150 from LKQ,” said Hager. A deal was made for the 140,000 mile engine, and Hager changed oil pump gears, crank spocket, and locking out the camshaft variable timing, leaving the rest of the 2016 Gen two Coyote stock.
A Forced Inductions 96 compressor / 102 turbine single turbocharger was added to the mix, and a Rossler transmission passes the power to the 8.8-inch rear end. The combination debuted at Hot Rod Drag Week 2021, clocking a best of 8.90 letting out early on the test day. Hager stepped up to a best of 8.59 at 157mph at Sick Week 2022, and by the ModNationals in November, Hager had whittled his best time slip to an 8.11 at 168mph on 17 pounds of boost, along with some big wheelstands.
Jaeson Hager getting some sky miles during ModNationals 2022.
For the 2023 season, Hager plans to return to drag-and-drive competition with updates to his roll cage, re-valved Strange shocks and tweaking on his existing TRZ Motorsports suspension. That will allow him to get more aggressive on the tune up through the Holley Dominator system, and no doubt holding seven-second time slips. And again, all of this from a motor with 140,000 miles on it. The junkyard is badass.
Written by Derek Putnam. Photos courtesy of KWS Images.