[BlueStonedMustang]

Yeah just whatthe topic says. if all goes well i shall be picking up my very 1st 5.0 im quite excited actually.
The car is a 87 GT auto.

now my question is should i even bother modding this engine is 160k 302 100% stock.
Or should i just go get a newer less mileage engine and swap then mod.

Also what kinda good mods should I start out with? (learning all over again got a modded v6.)

Thanks in advance.

 

[92coupelx]

Depends on your budget and what you want to do with the car as what your mods should be. The first mod should be a gear at least 3.73's. That engine has a lot of miles on it to be doing anything big to the motor unless it was mainted very well.

 

[BlueStonedMustang]

well my budget is some what open to options. basically a quick engine swap newer fresh engine in (what you think abut getting one from stangparts?) or whats the next size up engine?
all the bolt ons complete exhaust system and supercharger.

i wanna run 11's so hopefuly thats a combo i can do.

Im learning about 5.0s so any advice and help would be great.

 

[tooler]

If I were in your position, I wouldn't do anything major to the engine. Bolt-ons are fine, but you can also repair and upgrade everything around the engine instead.

 

[Untamed Pony]

I myself have a 90 GT w/ 150,000 original miles that was stock until a few months ago. You can see in my profile all the mod's that I have done myself. The only mod missing is the gears and I would say that 92 coupelx was right 3.73's or even 4.10's (depending on what you are going to use the car for daily driver or just race)would definitely be the perfect mod to start with. I just started halfa_ _ backwards. Also they where charging me $500.00 just for the gear mod. I figured I would be able to do more mods for the money but those gears are definitely crucial. This is my next step.

 

[Michael Yount]

If you're serious about wanting to run 11's - I'd start with another motor, build it and swap it in. If it's a street car that you want some reasonable drivability with, then to go 11's you're probably gonna want a power adder, or a bunch more cubes. Going 11's normally aspirated with only 300 cubes usually makes for a motor that's not too much fun to be stuck in traffic with. So, maybe it's not a daily driver, and you can live with that kind of drivability.

On the other hand, there are lots of cars out there with high miles that people modify with great success. If it's been well maintained and you don't go wacko with mods, you can still get many miles of good service out of the stock motor. The key is how well has it been maintained. I'd want to run a leak down compression test on the motor before I put a whole lot into it. Seems to me you need to sort out those kinds of issues before you set out to modify.

 

[s151doc]

just freshen the motor up(rings,bearings,rod bolts etc.) and you should be alright.then put whatever you want on it thats what i did.mine has 220,000 miles on it and im still able to click off 12 sec.runs on motor alone.11's would be np with a shot of juice and could still drive the car everyday anywhere i wanted to.later

 

[Mark Harrell]

FWIW - What I'd do...

Can't disagree with anyone here - but here's what I would do…

You said you want full exhaust and a blower. First off, you need to check with all the blower guys. Like everyone here said, rear-gears are a great (best bang-for-the-buck) mod - but a lot of (blower) guys say the 3.55 gear - not a 3.73 - is best because you're running more mph. You don't want to run out of gear at the end of the track. Just something to check…

Now - your motor. My opinion is that a motor swap is completely dependant on how the '87 5.0 is doing. I can't see any reason NOT to slap a blower on a well-seasoned short-block as long as it's not using a bunch of oil, and more importantly - it's got good oil pressure. If you've got good oil pressure - the internal rotating assembly should be in great shape. Depending on how much boost you want to run, I believe there are better-suited (blower) head gaskets available, so I would be thinking about getting the heads "freshened-up" - or maybe a head swap, and put the blower gaskets on it. IMO, I'd rather not break-in a new motor with boost - but that's just me.

Lastly, since you seem to have the cash for both a blower and new motor - if the "tired" '87 gives up on you, you can swap your blower and other bolt-ons to the new motor.

I'm thinking I'll need a hone and rings on my '86 at about the 325-350,000 mark… Good luck! Mark

 

[BlueStonedMustang]

Im quite serious about running 11's.
i think im going to contact stangparts see how many miles they have there engines at since they are selling at $450 i think.
from there just see where it goes.

Can anyone reccomend me to any good websites that sell 5.0 parts
Thanks

 

[Putz]

My opinion is...if the engine is in good working order...isnt burning oil ect ect then put on a pair of turbos!!! Twin T3 or T3/T4s, intercooler and a decent amount of boost with 3.55s. With DR's or ET streets you'll hit 11's. You are gonna need to get turbo headers, offrd x pipe and dynomax ulraflows/spintech pro streets for exhaust.

 

[SC1987AOD]

87 auto

Things to think about in the future.....

87 car .......stay speed density or go to Mass-Air?
Run 11's.....Going to need to put some $ money in the AOD & converter if you are going to cranking out 11-12 second time slips. Or convert to 5 speed?

I would go ahead and start with a solid foundation and freshen that block you have NOW. (Or crate motor). Build the short block OR long block now to handle what you foresee your GT doing 1-2 years from now.