NEMP; My 'New Edge Money Pit' or The Makings of a Fauxbra?

Apexcarver said:

It is notable that on the cobra engines with the forged cranks that they still have hypereutectic  pistons and the rods arent too special either. The "common knowledge" on them is that much of anything over 450hp with a power adder and they will peel like an onion. The 03 cobra "terminator" motors received forged pistons and better rods supporting more power (pulley, chip, exhaust - 500hp), however they also received iron blocks. 

 

 

Thats kinda the rub. NA power much beyond stock is a big investment for not too much gain. 

 

I had never heard that 2v heads on the cobra block bumped compression that much. Anything more special than a flash tune needed to keep it happy at that CR?

Nope. So Im not sure of the numbers and it depends on who you ask and how they do the math - but the compression bump on a 2V Teksid is somewhere between 11.1:1 to 11.8:1 due to the flatter 4V pistons as opposed to the dished 2v piston (-17cc). the stock compression ration for a Mustang GT 2v is 9.7:1.  Its still in the range that you can get a good tune and run premium pump gas for a very streetably mannered car. The tune isnt anything special just osme fine tuning of the ECU to handle higher compression. Luckily for me, Matt Honeycutt is native to the area and I will be going to him for my tune when the time comes. 

BA5 said:

Very interesting build.  One of the most interesting things I think I just learned is that the SN95's have the quad shocks for axle wrap/wheel hop.  I never knew that.

Yup. The stock SN95 chassis and suspension is a sloppy mess. I couldn't believe the incredible difference subframe connectors made. Prior to subframe connectors, it felt like the you were driving a Pepsi can. The subframe connectors (welded in) transformed the whole feel of the car and that was even on the worn, stock suspension.

TIL Teksid 2v

I have not been a big Modular guy up till recently, and now I own 2. Thanks for sharing the Teksid 2v info as it could be relevant to my interests

*edit: some rough googling says this combo may have PTV issues. Just a heads up for all interested parties

In reply to FatMongo :

Who is Matt Honeycutt? What are you using to tune it? SCT I assume.

I'd say 245whp is pretty good for a stock motor.  Mine only made 260whp with longtubes, intake, coilpacks, coyote injectors, and dyno tune.  I was pretty interested in building boosting mine, I had a fully forged MMR short block that came with the car but decided against it.  The LS3 practically fell in my lap so it was an easy decision.

Just some background info to add to what others have said:

Not all aluminum blocks are Teksid--I think all DOHC engines made through 98 were. In 99 I believe they changed to a new block that's maybe a few pounds lighter, but not quite as strong. Not sure if that compression bump with 2V pistons applies to the 99-up blocks.

It's been a while, but I thought I heard that 4V blocks require minor oil and/or coolant passage modifications to work with 2V heads. But I could be wrong about that.

Then there's the 02-08? Explorer/Mountaineer engine. To my knowledge that's the only factory 2V aluminum-block 4.6. Same compression as the iron block 2V 4.6 I believe, but it's lighter, of course and is a relatively easy swap.

Patientzero said:

In reply to FatMongo :

Who is Matt Honeycutt? What are you using to tune it? SCT I assume.

 

I'd say 245whp is pretty good for a stock motor.  Mine only made 260whp with longtubes, intake, coilpacks, coyote injectors, and dyno tune.  I was pretty interested in building boosting mine, I had a fully forged MMR short block that came with the car but decided against it.  The LS3 practically fell in my lap so it was an easy decision.

Yes SCT X4. Right now, the car has the canned tune that came with the tuner, but I dont think that does anything for the 96-04 cars. 

Matt is a pretty solid Ford tuner - he lives in the Kansas City area. If memory serves right, he used to work on the Ford calibration team. I had him remote tune my old Coyote mustang and he did a phenomenal job. As soon as I get the engine work done to this car, he is going to tune it.I would be pretty happy with a N/A 300-325 whp and Ive been told many times that a Teksid 2V with an aftermarket intake manifold, stage 1 or 2 cams and headers should make that power level.

Will said:

Just some background info to add to what others have said:

Not all aluminum blocks are Teksid--I think all DOHC engines made through 98 were. In 99 I believe they changed to a new block that's maybe a few pounds lighter, but not quite as strong. Not sure if that compression bump with 2V pistons applies to the 99-up blocks.

It's been a while, but I thought I heard that 4V blocks require minor oil and/or coolant passage modifications to work with 2V heads. But I could be wrong about that.

Then there's the 02-08? Explorer/Mountaineer engine. To my knowledge that's the only factory 2V aluminum-block 4.6. Same compression as the iron block 2V 4.6 I believe, but it's lighter, of course and is a relatively easy swap.

So the 93-98 Lincoln Mark VIIIs and the 1996-98 (and apparently the single 1995 4.6 DOHC example) Mustang Cobras all had aluminum blocks manufactured at the Teksid (Italy) plant. To my knowledge these are the only cars that got the Teksid block.

The 99-01 Cobras and 03-04 Mach 1s had the WAP - Windsor Assembly Plant aluminum block.

I dont know much about the 02-08 SOHC Explorer 4.6's, but even if they are aluminum blocks, they are not Teksid blocks and they have the Mustang GT pistons, vise the flatter Cobra/Mark VIIi pistons. Putting a SOHC head (Mustang GT, Crown Vic, Grand Marquis, Explorer, etc) on a Teksid block should yield a compression ration of 11.5 or higher, so it seems like a cheap and easy way to bolt on 300+ hp.

So last we left off on updates to the Mustang, I had gotten the old rotten rear control arms off. See, I had originally planned to slap on some simple suspension: shocks/struts, springs, control arms, bushings, steel brake lines, maybe a brake upgrade and call it good for now.

Well, one day after I got the rear control arms off, I was walking by in the garage and looked at the naked rear axle and thought: "you know, I've been meaning to do gears on this thing, there wont be a better time to do it than now..." and thats how the scope and timeline of my project increased dramatically:

After a few more bolts and some creative positioning with jackstands, I got my prize:

Now the rear of the car was REALLY naked:

Axle assembly got lugged to my makeshift workbench for initial teardown:

Drained the fluid and started disassembly, everything looked good, no issues, but I was tired of the factory 3.27 and wanted a more 'road friendly' gear (more on that later).

4.10's or bust.

Remember how I said the back end was naked? Well, I was crawling around down there and looked over at the gas tank cover and thought to myself, "You know, this is a 15 year old car probably on the factory fuel pump, it wouldnt be a bad idea to drop the tank and pop in an upgraded fuel pump. If you were going to do it, there wouldnt be a better time than now."

So this happened:

I gave it a real half ass spary down of rustoleum gray spray paint:

And in goes a Walbro 255 LPH fuel pump (model #: TU-229HP)

So I was getting ready to pop the fuel tank back in the car and I cralwed underneath and looked around and I thought to myself, "You know, if might now be a bad idea to clean up the underside and hit it with some rustoleum. If you were ever going to do it, now would be a good time."

Patientzero said:

4.10's or bust.

Hey, Im telling a story here. Besides the car is being put together more as a road race car than a drag car. 

In reply to FatMongo :

I had 4.10's with my 4.6 and I liked it.  Sorry to interupt your story though.  Please continue... faster...

Having never done (setup) gears in a diff before, and since the Mustang wasnt my DD, I decided to take things slow, gather the proper tools and parts and take my time doing gears. But since I had the axle assembly stripped of internals and axles, I figured Id shoot it with some paint. And now, I didnt take my time to properly prep it - I went over it for an hour or so with a wire wheel. Also, I put my newly acquired engine hoist to use (I had gotten it the year before and it say in the garage, so I needed an excuse to use it).

So if I was going to build a 'road car' I figured I needed road friendly gears. With that, I went with a 3.55 ring and pinion from Ford Racing:

But wait, whats that thing with the Nordic sounding name printed over it?

Why yes, yes it is - I decided to go all out with a Torsen T2R diff. Now this is a proper road differential!

This is found in the 2013-2014 Track pack cars and Boss 302 Laguna Seca. It has a 4:1 bias and aside from that, I dont know how else differentials work, but this is supposed to be one of the best. So here we are!

So to continue the story...

Knocked a new pinion race into the rear end housing:

Here is the Torsen T2R diff in all of its glory:

Next to some new Ford Performance 3.55s:

Diff and ring gear getting acquainted for the first time (with the help of a 20 ton press):

Repalced the wood block with a socket:

And torqued...

one diff bearing pressed in:

Taking measurements with the Ratech pinion depth tool to set get data to set up shims:

I dont remember exactly what my measurements were as this photo was taken last year, but this is my math:

If I remember right, I made a very slight adjustment from OEM and got it right my first or second try.

Had to try it a couple of times, but I finally nailed it:

It was good seeing the ring gear paint markings in the right place, gave me confidence that I set this up right. Ultimately the rear end in the car has been quiet and runs perfect. So that was a big win for a first time attempt at a rear end!

I went ahead and popped in some new axles seals as good house keeping:

In preparation for these (Moser 31 spline axles):

The whole shebang getting put together:

And then on to the upper control arm bushings (THANK YOU FOR THE MAXIMUM MOTORSPORTS TOOL).

Filling the thirsty pumpkin with some quality juice - and adding the Ford friction modifier:

Upper control arms in an waiting for their new home:

Rear axle assembly in place for final installation:

My assistant says, "Good work! Lets get a beer!"

So to continue the thread from where we left off - with the axle assembly back in, it was time to start hanging the new suspension components. Im a little light on photos here, but I think we've all know the hum drum routing of putting suspension components on a New Edge - nothing to wow here.

Anyway, this girl got:

Bilstein shocks

Ford 'C' Springs

Maximum Motorsports lower control arms

Maximum Motorsports differential bushing

Eibach sway bars

Maximum Motorsports panhard bar

Centric steel brake lines

On the front, she got:

Cobra brakes - calipers, pads, rotor 

Centric steel brake lines

Bilstein struts

Ford C springs

Eibach sway bar

Energy Suspension front control arm bushing

Maximum Motorsports steering rack bushings

Mhmmmm Cobra brakes:

Look at the difference bwtween the somewhat respectable 13 in rotor from 2001 Cobra and the OEM ~11 inch rotor from the 99-04 GT:

Springs and isolators waiting to pop on:

Let me tell you, getting the front control arm bushing (or specifically their metal collars) out was a pain and a half:

You're hardcore.  I would rather buy aftermarket control arms than try to get those bushings out.

Patientzero said:

You're hardcore.  I would rather buy aftermarket control arms than try to get those bushings out.

Yeah, Lesson learned.

I paid a machine shop to press mine out when I did mine years and years ago. 

So since a TNIA event at Heartland Park (KS) in August, the Mustang has been deadlined in my driveway with a absolutely annihilated clutch, throw out bearing, flywheel, among whatever else mightve given up. Over the summer and winter, I was finishing up the rebuild on my Audi - which was taking up workspace (not to mention time and money) in the garage that would otherwise be directed to the Mustang.

Just before the New Year, I wrapped up the Audi and got her moving under her own power again. So with the Audi out of the garage, I needed to find a way to get the Mustang in when the Mustang had zero ability to move on its own. I have neighbors that would gladly help and two brother in laws that are local that would also be there to push a car a few feet up a driveway. However, Im stubborn and I hate asking people for help and i wanted a system to be able to pull future dead project cars in to the garage without needing extra bodies. So I started doing a little research and I decided i would bolt a winch into the concrete of the garage wall under my workbench.

Harbor Freight had some light duty ATV winches under $100 that caught my eye. The problem with those was that I would need a separate battery to power the winch and the fact that I would only be using the winch very rarely meant that the battery would be a pain in the ass to look after, store, and maintain.

Turns out they also have a 120V winch, but its only rated for 1500lbs and its $165 (prior to any coupons). After reading the reviews, people made it clear that this little winch has enough ooomph to drag a car up a driveway, provided the car has tires and wheels to roll on. So I pulled the trigger on it and with a coupon and tax it ended up being under $140.

And this little thing ended up anchored into the concrete in the garage:

The little winch did a pretty good job of dragging the car up the driveway:

cool build.ive been building mustangs for 32 years and having owned 46 of the damn things the one youre doing is exactly what i want to do next.till then i has this Teksid blocked mark 8 motor with an eaton 112 in my lovely volvo wagon...best thing about mustang builds is that theres 11,935,266 aftermarket and factory parts for them.buy a wrecked  cobra of any vintage you get a ton of good parts that can be swapped onto any 79 up mustang in a weekend

and this is the intake y'all need.97 98 mark 8 with the sidemount twin throttle body and plastic imrc plates.that stupid rear throttle body actually fit the 740 but doesn't fit any foxbodys without attacking the firewall like it owes you money

I have the same winch on the lift for my f500 now. Converted it to that from a hand crank. 

Works pretty well