Progress Thread '88 GT Hell Horse - All over the place

Part collection is growing...

Summit Package.jpg
Balancer 2.jpg
Balancer 1.jpg
 
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Trying to make sure to dampen any and all vibrations in the assembly. With the internal fluid/clutch system it should along with it being stainless no rusting :)
 
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Received the transmission

6R80 Received.jpg
6R80 marking.jpg



It also came with the stock converter, so that I will be able to check the spacing of the mounting feet to the flexplate that I got. So when I give FTI another call to purchase my custom converter I will most likely see if they just want me to ship them the stock unit. They can take whatever measurements that they need to build me mine.

6R80 Torque Converter.jpg



This was a good sight to see as well. Having the connector I can use it for when I build the custom wiring harness that will go the MS TCU for a stock/simple install

6R80 Wiring Plug.jpg


Lastly, they just cut the driveshaft, so I have the flange for when I get the custom driveshaft built for this new combo

6R80 Tail Flange.jpg
 
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This project has been on hold for a few months now due to life, business, and normal work. I was finally able to get some time to drop off everything at the Machine Shop for balancing the rotating assembly and bore, align hone, etc the block. Since that is dropped off next up is finish work on the body work for the cowl area and pulling all the old engine wiring harness out of the car. That will give me a blank canvas for the new build.

I need to also get out the AOD, driveshaft, and rear exhaust so I can push this thing out of the garage to be pressure washed clean too.
 
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Holy :poo:...... actual progress



so when does the turbo go on? :stick:
I know...I know...I know

Getting some movement feels nice and cleans off some of the shelves of parts since this thing is going together. If all goes well maybe end of summer to see engine in turbo in the car :O_o:
 
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I just got the call from the machine shop that none of us want which is bore #1 is to far gone. Boring it .030 over isn't going to clean it up and not even .060 he believes would either. So now I am on the hunt to find another block to get over to them. I see there is a 5.0 in a explorer at the pull-a-part, so are going to try and get to there to see if its still there.

Also, need to replace the brake booster in my other black mustang, so was looking at getting a cobra booster for this build and using the current one in the black mustang. My thinking was the cobra booster would increase the power assist of the brakes.

@Mustang5L5 what are your thoughts?
 
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It certainly will increase the amount of assist. Some people, however, do enjoy the firmer feel of Sn95-style brakes with the fox booster. I am not one of them.

Really it's subjective. It will just make the brakes feel like modern cars, which some might argue are a tad overboosted.
 
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It certainly will increase the amount of assist. Some people, however, do enjoy the firmer feel of Sn95-style brakes with the fox booster. I am not one of them.

Really it's subjective. It will just make the brakes feel like modern cars, which some might argue are a tad overboosted.
Thank you Mike!

I am running a custom front brake setup of 05-09 Mustang GT Dual Piston Calipers with 14" GT500 Rotors, so the additional power assist will add even more "bite" to my current setup. I think I'm going to go that route and move the factory booster to the other mustang.

Now just need to hunt down a new block..
 
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Still on the hunt for another block, but it seems there are a couple 5.0's in explorers pulll-a-part. Now just need the weather to work with me so I can get over there to get one of them pulled. This will work out since I was looking at some GT40P heads and intake for another build that I am gathering parts for as well.

I also got my cobra brake booster in from Rockauto, so its currently getting painted while its still pretty outside.
 
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Still on the hunt for another block, but it seems there are a couple 5.0's in explorers pulll-a-part. Now just need the weather to work with me so I can get over there to get one of them pulled. This will work out since I was looking at some GT40P heads and intake for another build that I am gathering parts for as well.

I also got my cobra brake booster in from Rockauto, so its currently getting painted while its still pretty outside.
Why don’t you just have them sleeve the cylinder on the existing block? Any competent machine shop should be able to do that, and done properly, it ain’t going nowhere. ( the sleeve sits on a step at the bottom of the bore, and the head keeps it there).
The old Monster engine had all six cylinders sleeved. Had I not chosen a shop that employed Simians, that engine would still be in the car. My engine problems ( oil consumption/blow by) and ultimate failure ( Deck cracking between the sleeves) all resulted when the original sleeves were incorrectly finished. The bores weren’t properly honed, there was too much taper at the bottom resulting in insufficient clearance for the pistons, and two cylinders had gouges from the boring process that got missed. That caused the blow by, and damaged the pistons ( In hindsight I shoulda made them replace them) After taking that engine back apart, they had to resleeve all six holes, but they used a super thick wall sleeve that left a very narrow margin between the cylinders, and that ultimately brought the engine to its doom.
(The fact that I was beating on an engine that was making probably 2.5-3 times the power it was originally intended to might have had something to do with that.)

You, on the other hand, wont be doing all the cylinders.
You could go through all of the hassle getting another old assed engine, only to find the same situation that you currently have now. Talk to your machine shop and see what they tell you.
 
Why don’t you just have them sleeve the cylinder on the existing block? Any competent machine shop should be able to do that, and done properly, it ain’t going nowhere. ( the sleeve sits on a step at the bottom of the bore, and the head keeps it there).
The old Monster engine had all six cylinders sleeved. Had I not chosen a shop that employed Simians, that engine would still be in the car. My engine problems ( oil consumption/blow by) and ultimate failure ( Deck cracking between the sleeves) all resulted when the original sleeves were incorrectly finished. The bores weren’t properly honed, there was too much taper at the bottom resulting in insufficient clearance for the pistons, and two cylinders had gouges from the boring process that got missed. That caused the blow by, and damaged the pistons ( In hindsight I shoulda made them replace them) After taking that engine back apart, they had to resleeve all six holes, but they used a super thick wall sleeve that left a very narrow margin between the cylinders, and that ultimately brought the engine to its doom.
(The fact that I was beating on an engine that was making probably 2.5-3 times the power it was originally intended to might have had something to do with that.)

You, on the other hand, wont be doing all the cylinders.
You could go through all of the hassle getting another old assed engine, only to find the same situation that you currently have now. Talk to your machine shop and see what they tell you.
Mike, I did talk to the machine shop about sleeving that cylinder, and he said that he could and would be find if I was NA. But after I told him that I am going to be boosting the engine with a turbo with the goal of beating the crap out of this engine on a road course he said he personally would get a new block. I am already building the engine that's going to be on the "limits" of the stock block, so I didn't think it would be a smart idea to add more possible failure points or weaken it even more.

On the bright side, I will be getting the top half (heads and intake) for my 3rd project Im slowly collecting parts for. Also, at the price of only $250 for a complete engine in a pull-a-parts why not just get a new one. I also plan to use parts of the rotating assembly that's in the explorer engine to make a table out of that block, so I guess its getting reused anyways :D
 
With the weather not working with me and listening to others about sleeving that one cylinder I'm going to listen and give the machine shop a call tomorrow to tell them to go ahead. Later in the future there were plans to put in an aftermarket block, but for now this will keep the project moving forward. The weak areas of the stock block isn't in the cylinder anyways as it will probably split the center before a cylinder anyways.

I also went ahead and purchased the offset bushings from S&S Engineering and a set of XTS Brake Calipers for replacing the current front brake setup. I always wanted 4 piston calipers on this build from the beginning with the 14" rotors. Im thinking that since Im still using the stock master cylinder I will need to change it to a 94-95 Mustang GT 1 1/16" bore due to the increased calipers @Mustang5L5
 
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Called the Machine Shop and they are sleeving the block this week, so should hopefully be able to pick it up to notch it for the stroker by the end of the week. Then I can take it back to them for final hone, wash, and install cam bearings and freeze plugs.

Goal is to start building out the engine next month then :)
 
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I also went ahead and purchased the offset bushings from S&S Engineering and a set of XTS Brake Calipers for replacing the current front brake setup. I always wanted 4 piston calipers on this build from the beginning with the 14" rotors. Im thinking that since Im still using the stock master cylinder I will need to change it to a 94-95 Mustang GT 1 1/16" bore due to the increased calipers @Mustang5L5

With the 14" front setup, you might want to also consider the taurus 43mm rear calipers to help balance out brake bias.

The only question is regarding MC selection with that setup. WIth the XTS/38mm rear calipers, i would go with the 1 1/16" bore MC. WIth the 43mm calipers, unsure if that MC is adequate or if a 1 1/8" MC will be required.
 
With the 14" front setup, you might want to also consider the taurus 43mm rear calipers to help balance out brake bias.

The only question is regarding MC selection with that setup. WIth the XTS/38mm rear calipers, i would go with the 1 1/16" bore MC. WIth the 43mm calipers, unsure if that MC is adequate or if a 1 1/8" MC will be required.
I have considered going to the larger Taurus rear calipers, but are unsure as you are in the effects of the master cylinder sizing that would be needed due to the large increase is caliper piston sizing. The difference in caliper piston size going from the 38mm to 43mm is a 28% increase in piston size.

Now that I have done the math calculations the difference in the Stock 60mm Front Calipers and the XTS 4-Piston 42mm Brembo is minimal:

Caliper Piston Area
  • (Pi x Piston Radius x Piston Radius x Number of Caliper Pistons)
  • Single Piston Calipers are calculated as Dual Piston
    • Stock 60mm = 4.3825 sq in (3.1416*30*30*2)
    • 4-Piston 42mm = 4.3413 sq in (3.1416*21.11375*21.11375*4)
    • Percentage Difference = -1% (.94%)
  • Comparison
    • Cobra Dual 38mm Piston = 3.8956 sq in (3.1416*19*19*2)
    • Percentage Difference = -19.8%
My current thinking is to leave the Master Cylinder alone currently due to the minimal change above between stock and the XTS calipers. It already felt good with the current 05-09 GT Calipers and that was a 2.7% difference in piston area. If I do have an issue I can change the master to sizing based on travel and effort.

I found this when doing further research and may help others as well:
  • Decreased Master Cylinder Bore Diameter
    • Pedal Effort Decreases
    • Pedal Travel Increases
  • Increased Master Cylinder Bore Diameter
    • Pedal Effort Increases
    • Pedal Travel Decreases
 
I just got in the first part for the new front brakes the XTS Brembo Calipers. These things are huge and wasn't expecting them to be this big. The bushings look to be arriving tomorrow from S&S Engineering


IMG_20210623_121155488.jpg
 
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