My engine plans

[Dudenhoeffer006]

Ok so I am a auto tech major in college and am going to be taking an engine overhaul class where I will be building a motor and dropping it in a car. I was planning on building up a 3.8 into a 4.3 stroker v6, then turbocharging it, well actually I'll just be reinstalling the turbo since I am making my own turbo kit for my stang. But back to the motor, it will have fully forged internals, ported and polished heads, bigger valves, a new better cam, a new stroker crank of course, proted and polished upper and lower intakes. I also plan on swapping out the old 4r7ow that is in there and putting in a T5. Without the turbo I hope to be making about 250 to 275 on motor, with the turbo I plan for 500ish. Oh and there will of course be a nice sized shot of spray going into there also (100-150). I am going to install an 8.8 rearend with 3.73 gears.

[jthorn9]

Well that's a great plan/setup, however you're forgetting something concerning the T-5, and that is that they're a crappy transmission. The T-5 is only rated to 310lbs of torque, after that they get very, very iffy, I'm already on my second one, and the reaverse syncros is giving me problems and it's only been in a little under a year. Look into a T-500 or T-600 transmission by Tremec (try to get the 10 spline T-500 version, they're not so nothcy when shifting), a Spec stage 2+ clutch, Fidanza or Spec aluminum flywheel, and a Ford Racing aluminum drive shaft (might as well upgrade everything while you're there). Now as I'm sure you know this setup is going to cost "a lot" and I mean "a lot" of money, so keep that in mind when you're doing this work. Also keep in mind that your car will no longer be streetable in that it's going to eat gas worse than a Viper, so have a backup car ready to go once the work on the car starts.

For a setup like that you'll also need to upgrade the ignition system, and entire fuel system, as well as have some pretty wicked tuning done.

Wish you the best of luck, keep us up to date as things happen.

***note I edited your original post, no V6 vs V8 wars will start as long as I'm on this site, and a V6 to V8 swap is not that economical as a basic swap cost roughly what you're looking at spending to upgrade your car as it sits now.***

[Dudenhoeffer006]

well first off thanks for the transmission advice, I would be throughly mad if i spent all that time and money into it and the tranny crapped out one me. second I wasnt starting any wars just letting everyone know that I'm a v6 mustang guy as well as a plain old mustang, as long as it is a stang I dont really care whats under the hood, I just hate when people try to tell other people that all the work that they did wasnt worth it. Oh and the fuel and ignition upgrades were a given, I didnt think I needed to include those.

[jthorn9]

Well I understand that other sites may allow V8 guys to pick on V6 guys, however while they may want to say something demeaning, that kind of attitude will not be allowed on MMS.

Yea, the tranny is a key essential of the whole setup, screw that up, and all the power you just added was for nothing. Also, if you change from auto to manual, you'll need to either have Ford reprogram your ECU, or you'll need to go to a junk yard and find one that was on a V6 (of your generation), and that was opperated with a manual.

Also, I appologise, it's a TKO-500 or TKO-600, was a little tired when I posted that. Another route would be a T-56 (which is a six speed), and it's rated to 380lbs or torque, and isn't as volital as a T-5, you can get a G-Force kit to upgrade the internals to make the T-56 nearly invincible. Yes, this would be painfully expensive, but you'd have a solid 6 speed tranny that would allow you to make better use of your power than any 5 speed.

[Dudenhoeffer006]

Yeah I was thnking about the t-56, with the computer out of a v6 with a 5 speed would that wourk with the 6 speed or do I need to do anything else to it? and is there any way to switch out my speedo with one from a GT so it goes over 120? Oh and I am doing different parts of this whole thing over different semesters over the next 2 years so the cost wont be as bad since it is spread out over time.

[jthorn9]

No, you just need an ecu for a manual V6, how many gears in the tranny will no longer matter. The only difference between manual and auto ecu is that the gear shift points are gone (no need for them), and the idel RPM has been adjusted a little for the manual.

Yes, you can swap out the speedo cluster, however you'll probably have to get a high rated shop to do the work as the whole thing will need to be reset.

Yea, it's best to split up your purchases like that. I've been buying parts for my engine work for nearly a year and a half, and I'm just now ready to do everything (would of had an S/C to go along with everything, but the kit was too incomplete and I sold it).