306ci crate in 94 Cobra?

[ninetyfourcobra]

I'm planning to purchase a Ford Racing 306ci crate from American Muscle. I don't know what else I will need to complete the swap. I am going to get new headers, and msd distributor. I plan to use my stock intake manifold, accessories, and flywheel. Are they transferrable? Is there anything I'm forgetting? This is my first engine swap and I am a little intimidated. Any help is appreciated!

Also, I have a Tremec TKO600 with the bellhousing for my stock 5.0, will the bellhousing fit on the 306? Sorry if these are stupid questions!

 

[VibrantRedGT]

Edit- Your Cobra heads and cam will install fine. The 306 is just a 302 bored over. Get 4:10's.

 

[ninetyfourcobra]

Thanks, the new crate has ford racing X heads and E303 cam included. Good to know its a bored 302, I kinda thought so. So my intake manifold will surely fit on those heads then, as well as everything else?

Who makes a good set of 4.10's that don't whine too much?

 

[VibrantRedGT]

Seriously, If I owned a Cobra I would get my number matching Cobra block redone from a reputable machine shop instead of buying a crate motor. The X heads are fine, the E cam is weak. Why are you buying a motor? Spun a bearing, busted rod? All your stock stuff will carry over as it's a 302 block. I think your car isn't going to make much more power than the Cobra engine it has in it now. I would rethink your plan before you spend the money. It will be cheaper to get your block machined, heads cleaned up if they need to. This is the route I would go. Find a Vortech blower to slap on with the money saved.

As for gears FRPP (Ford Racing) makes the best ones. There is a gear in between 3:73's and 4:10's. It's a 3:90 gear made by ProMotive or ProMotion.

 

[ninetyfourcobra]

I want to get a blower eventually, there is nothing wrong with the engine other than miles. Instead of blowing an engine with 170,000 miles on it I thought it would be smarter to start fresh for peace of mind. How much am I looking at roughly to get the block and heads redone? Maybe that would be smarter and I could throw in a more hefty cam and get the vortech. As far as renewing the engine what sort of things would be smart to replace while its out, ie: pistons/rings, rocker arms, head bolts, etc? I have 4,500 set aside for this project to work with.

 

[Venom351R]

Do a compression test on your current engine, if it does not show any issues then your fine to boost it as is. If you wanted to do a blower in the future just do it now instead of buying a new block.

And if you dont care about MPG or freeway speeds then go with 4.10's. I love mine. Get the Ford Racing gear set.

 

[ninetyfourcobra]

Yea I heard gas went up again, hopefully it goes back down before I get back to the states! Thanks for the advice, that's probably what I'll end up doing.

 

[revhead347]

There's a numbers matching Cobra block??

Skip the MSD distributor. You'll be lucky if you get 1000 miles out of it.

Kurt

 

[Venom351R]

good point kurt I was thinking that but forgot to mention it. If you dont need a new distributor then no point in getting one and if you need one just get a factory replacement from Ford. Their electronics are far better then MSD as they have taken a downward trend the past few years.

 

[VibrantRedGT]

It was an extreme example of the OP keeping his original block. He didn't know there aren't numbers Kurt.

I'll agree, skip the MSD, China made now, keep the stocker.

 

[revhead347]

If you have a block from a similiar year, it's going to be numbers matching. It's going to be many many years before anyone takes numbers matching seriously on a mid 90s Mustang.

Kurt

 

[ninetyfourcobra]

Does anybody know if my stock intake manifold will fit on ford racing's gt-40x heads or any other aftermarket heads for that matter? They said something about the ports being taller and might not fit some models but they don't specify. If I buy the heads I won't be able to afford a new intake yet let alone throttle body adapters, etc.

 

[VibrantRedGT]

You intake will work with any 302 head. However the GT40X's don't flow a ton better than your current GT40 Iron's. I'd look into an AFR 165 or TFS 170 aluminum head and I had GT40X's too. Your intake is fine, I wouldn't change it. If your doing heads you might as well change the cam while your at it. A custom cam or AFM would be your best choice.

 

[revhead347]

The GT40x heads are aluminum and flow a ton better than the GT40x iron heads. They are pretty comparable to Edelbrock Performer RPMs. Your heads probably flowed find, and you had other issues.

Kurt

 

[VibrantRedGT]

Out of the box the AFR 165's and TFS 170's will out flow the GT40X aluminum's all day. That's what I was suggesting to the OP. Again if I had a Cobra like his I would refreshen the block, clean up and get some work done to the GT40 irons (ported), maybe a GT40 ported lower intake upgrade and then a blower (either Vortech or Kenne Belle).
http://www.veryuseful.com/mustang/tech/engine/images/6HeadShootout.gif

My car ran great, if I had to do it all over again the AFR's were basically the same price as the GT40X's at the time. If he can get a smoking deal on 40X's than that's a different story.

 

[revhead347]

Generally those GT40x heads come for a smoking deal. Most people buy them because they don't know any better or they want a Ford head, and then find out there are much better heads ou there and let them go for a song. It's a great situation for those of us doing budget builds.

Kurt

 

[stangbangerrick]

I'm planning to purchase a Ford Racing 306ci crate from American Muscle. I don't know what else I will need to complete the swap. I am going to get new headers, and msd distributor. I plan to use my stock intake manifold, accessories, and flywheel. Are they transferrable? Is there anything I'm forgetting? This is my first engine swap and I am a little intimidated. Any help is appreciated!

Also, I have a Tremec TKO600 with the bellhousing for my stock 5.0, will the bellhousing fit on the 306? Sorry if these are stupid questions!

You can get the same engine from LMR for less then at American Muscle.http://www.latemodelrestoration.com...Mustang-Ford-Racing-306ci-340-HP-Crate-Engine

 

[Stangstroke]

I'm planning to purchase a Ford Racing 306ci crate from American Muscle. I don't know what else I will need to complete the swap. I am going to get new headers, and msd distributor. I plan to use my stock intake manifold, accessories, and flywheel. Are they transferrable? Is there anything I'm forgetting? This is my first engine swap and I am a little intimidated. Any help is appreciated!

Also, I have a Tremec TKO600 with the bellhousing for my stock 5.0, will the bellhousing fit on the 306? Sorry if these are stupid questions!

I agree with just doing a compression test or just take your car to good shop and put the car on the Dyno a somewhat healthy motor with that milage stock will make around 190RWHP if the motor checks out throw a blower on it. That's how i started i had fun with the car for a year before i decided to rebuild my motor and not because it was worn out just because i wanted more out of it.