Progress Thread Tfs 205cc 302 Build

[FoxMustangLvr]

Ummm... It's not good. I've not had the best luck the last 6 months. Thought it was just the bent fan giving me the vibration but the motor is hurt. My buddy threw a new clutch fan/fan he had on it. I think I have the same thing going on as @TOOLOW91 old motor. Still have ok oil pressure(but it's lower than it was) it's at 58-60# on cold start. It was always at 75# before. Has a pretty good vibration at idle and a little bit of ticking/clicking noise. I'm pretty sure it's a bearing and the crank may be walking slightly.

So I am at a crossroads on what I need/want to do. Obviously the motor/trans has to come out of the car. Both are hurt. Do I even bother with this 302? I could possibly get away with throwing some bearings back in and following through with initial idea. Or....just go ahead and place my order with Woody at FordStrokers.com for the 363 shortblock. All the h/c/i-exhaust parts can be switched over(even if they are on the small side). I could sell the unused leftovers and scrap the 302/T5.

I'm leaning towards throwing this thing in the garage and letting it be a jackstand Queen for awhile. I think I'm going to go more towards a restomoded idea with a good bump in power but not solely concentrated on 1/4 mile. I think it is a waste of money to play with the 302 idea anymore but do I want to invest 20k and 1-2 years? I'm going to step away for a few days and decide what's next.

I don't know what you bank account looks like for having a "fun" car and I don't know what your end goal is for the car but I do know that 1-2 years on jack stands and about $20k is never the end of it. Once you invest the big bucks into the big power you'll need more money to keep it going and replacing broken parts.

Ask yourself this, what's wrong with a stout refreshed 302 cid with a turbo/blower pushing 450+rwhp on that light weight car? It can be done reliably with a solid engine management system and a good tune. You will never be the fastest car on the street, there are too many other people that have more time and more money than you and I.

I'm only speaking based on how I feel with my own experience so far with my car and watching other progress/build threads. Seeing my car out of the garage today while following it to the performance shop I was getting giddy about getting to hopefully drive it soon. Sad to say but the 17 miles it traveled today was the most action it's seen in a long time. Building/restoring a car is fun but it's more fun driving the damn b!tch.

My official $.02. Buy some bearings (assuming that's the problem), a used T5 and enjoy your car while building this 363 over the next couple years if that's the engine you really want. It won't cost that much to get your car back on the road if you do the work yourself.

 

[Chuckman]

i vote rering/rebearing it if possible, and save the money for the dart. if, after teardown, you see it needs more than just a quick hone and those "consumables", and you have bigger plans anyway, THAT's when i'd start sending woody money.

 

[TOOLOW91]

Ummm... It's not good. I've not had the best luck the last 6 months. Thought it was just the bent fan giving me the vibration but the motor is hurt. My buddy threw a new clutch fan/fan he had on it. I think I have the same thing going on as @TOOLOW91 old motor. Still have ok oil pressure(but it's lower than it was) it's at 58-60# on cold start. It was always at 75# before. Has a pretty good vibration at idle and a little bit of ticking/clicking noise. I'm pretty sure it's a bearing and the crank may be walking slightly.

So I am at a crossroads on what I need/want to do. Obviously the motor/trans has to come out of the car. Both are hurt. Do I even bother with this 302? I could possibly get away with throwing some bearings back in and following through with initial idea. Or....just go ahead and place my order with Woody at FordStrokers.com for the 363 shortblock. All the h/c/i-exhaust parts can be switched over(even if they are on the small side). I could sell the unused leftovers and scrap the 302/T5.

I'm leaning towards throwing this thing in the garage and letting it be a jackstand Queen for awhile. I think I'm going to go more towards a restomoded idea with a good bump in power but not solely concentrated on 1/4 mile. I think it is a waste of money to play with the 302 idea anymore but do I want to invest 20k and 1-2 years? I'm going to step away for a few days and decide what's next.

Ouch I am sorry bro . My car was walking the crank and no 4 main was spinning in the bore .


Sent from my iPhone using my fingers while my auto correct makes me seem illiterate

 

[A5literMan]

Thanks for the feedback guys. I'm about as bad as it comes with concentration/follow through/attention span. I am going to have to pull the motor apart no matter what. I overhauled this thing once already. I've always wanted to do a Big inch motor(initially 400+ but 363 would work lol). I don't have unlimited funds(or this would have been done already) but I could do it within 18mo(motor/trans/fuel etc etc). @FoxMustangLvr i also agree with your opinion the older I've gotten. I don't want or need to be the fastest(even if I could afford it). I don't want a "track only" car. I have decided I'm not going to cage it. I was going to do both(302 now-save for 363) but I'm either going to do one or the other. I may re do the 302/and a modified T5(A-5 or G force) or TKO and concentrate on exterior/interior/nice 5 lug conversion,updated a/c,etc. Actually I want all those things anyways. Like I said I need to focus and truly decide what I want to do. It only costs money right??

*edit* after re reading my post above I had the realization that I'm going to give this 302 "thing" another try. I'll worry about the Dart build later. Thanks again for your opinions/advise.

 

[89oem]

+1 on your decision

 

[FoxMustangLvr]

Freshen up that 302, get some spray like you wanted, do the 5 lug swap and TKO and have fun with the car. Most of those upgrades will be much needed in order to support more power in the future anyway.

Edit: Heck, with what I just said above I already estimate that spending spree to be between $7-$8k. This sh!t adds up fast.

 

[TOOLOW91]

Freshen up that 302, get some spray like you wanted, do the 5 lug swap and TKO and have fun with the car. Most of those upgrades will be much needed in order to support more power in the future anyway.

Edit: Heck, with what I just said above I already estimate that spending spree to be between $7-$8k. This sh!t adds up fast.

I vote the same I should've just got another block and punched it out and put it all back together again . It's a never ending money spiral the dart stuff


Sent from my iPhone using my fingers while my auto correct makes me seem illiterate

 

[A5literMan]

Well I kind of feel stupid(actually I feel real stupid). The noise/vibration is a combo of water pump/"new" fan/exhaust leak/noises lol. When we fired it the other night we just shut it down quick and I didn't check anything in there. It was late, I was already still p.o'd and I automatically assumed the worst. I didn't notice the wp itself is bent. He had thrown the fan on previous. Don't know how he missed that one?! I messed with it last night and pulled off the "new" old fan and the belt. I re start it without the fan/belt etc and no vibration. I do have a healthy blown header gasket though lol. Hence the "loud ticking/clicking". I still don't know why my oil pressure was low when I started it that night. It now is right at its normal range and it isn't smoking at all. So let's just mark this up as me being a pessimistic idiot.

So... I call my "Drag racing shop owning friend" (not where the car is at now)and talk to him. He informs me that "yes, you are an idiot! And bring it over here and he'll start working on it!" He's going to pull and rebuild my trans,do the h/c/i,and pull the oil pan and check some things out first. I know I should just go with the TKO but I'm trying to save some $$ for now and is going into the "dart block buy later file". Oh and the radiator is coming out. I didn't see the nice hole I punched into it that I'm sure will be a problem. So adding to the list of parts to buy- new radiator,elec fan kit, Astro T5 kit,mm clutch cable kit,and maybe oil pump(bearings? Still not sure). But I'm now optimistic I didn't spin a bearing. We will see soon enough.

 

[FoxMustangLvr]

Awesome!! For this instance it's nice to be wrong. Do you think you'll have the car back to drive around before winter? What are you going to do for a tune?

 

[Boosted92LX]

If you are not going to boost it, I think you should at least stroke it.. that way upgrading the trans is justifiable. I know T5s suck, I've wasted more than most, but a 302 is a 302 is a 302, hci or not. Buy a stroker assy you can move into a dart block when money permits and enjoy some torque now.. My .02.

 

[A5literMan]

Awesome!! For this instance it's nice to be wrong. Do you think you'll have the car back to drive around before winter? What are you going to do for a tune?

I'm hoping to have it on the road in under a month. I'm just going to use a chip for tuning(after its back together). There is a good tuner within an hour from me. Fingers crossed.

 

[A5literMan]

If you are not going to boost it, I think you should at least stroke it.. that way upgrading the trans is justifiable. I know T5s suck, I've wasted more than most, but a 302 is a 302 is a 302, hci or not. Buy a stroker assy you can move into a dart block when money permits and enjoy some torque now.. My .02.

If I'm buying a rotating assembly I'm going to put it in a good block. I'm more likely to look for an Explorer motor if there is a problem and rering and bearing it. I think a T5 will hold up if I stop abusing them so much. I would just like to get 330rwhp/tq and then throw a little nitrous at it.

 

[Boosted92LX]

If I'm buying a rotating assembly I'm going to put it in a good block. I'm more likely to look for an Explorer motor if there is a problem and rering and bearing it. I think a T5 will hold up if I stop abusing them so much. I would just like to get 330rwhp/tq and then throw a little nitrous at it.

Well there you go.. my mindset with the stroker kit was not buying things twice.. it does add up... and I wouldn't bet the farm on that trans with nitrous. Good luck whichever way you go, brother.

 

[squeak93]

The trans will last until it breaks.

No really I'm in the same boat of rebuilding this extra 302 I've got or throw a GOOD rotating assembly in it. Either way I've got a fresh t5 that will be on borrowed time regardless due to how I row gears.(drive it like I stole it daily).

Good luck with the selections and hopefully it makes fast progress.

 

[Boosted92LX]

The trans will last until it breaks.

No really I'm in the same boat of rebuilding this extra 302 I've got or throw a GOOD rotating assembly in it. Either way I've got a fresh t5 that will be on borrowed time regardless due to how I row gears.(drive it like I stole it daily).

Good luck with the selections and hopefully it makes fast progress.

Yeah, there's really two ways to look at it.. You could say it's pointless to put an expensive forged rotating assy in a stock block because the block can only handle so much hp.. BUT, on the other hand, a stroker will make a lot more HP n/a than a stock 302 bottom end will, and if you don't hurt it, it can be poked into a dart block later... Now this plan is only logical if you are not boosting the engine, because obviously if you are boosting, you don't need the cubes to make that extra HP.

 

[A5literMan]

I agree. I'm just to far down the rabbit hole to go back. Lol

 

[89oem]

Ya a rebuild is quick, and with everything refreshed you can add your N2O and let it eat...... plenty of fun and reliable.

 

[Boosted92LX]

@A5literMan .. You might know this already, but if spraying it is your plan, Use Clevite bearings with the "H" designation on the end of the part number. They are harder and designed to handle the violence that comes with the spray. I've pulled engines down with standard bearings in them after 10 passes on the juice and the bearings all were spider web cracked.. You can find them on Summit's site. Just something to think about.

 

[A5literMan]

@A5literMan .. You might know this already, but if spraying it is your plan, Use Clevite bearings with the "H" designation on the end of the part number. They are harder and designed to handle the violence that comes with the spray. I've pulled engines down with standard bearings in them after 10 passes on the juice and the bearings all were spider web cracked.. You can find them on Summit's site. Just something to think about.

Thanks for the info. I've just had the stock bearings/and standard clevites before. I will look into it.

 

[Boosted92LX]

Thanks for the info. I've just had the stock bearings/and standard clevites before. I will look into it.

You also might consider a moly top ring or a plasma top ring also.. they are harder on cylinder walls, but almost a must with nitrous..