95 Cobra - Where to go for Power...

chasenichols · Sep 25, 2009

I've got a 95 Cobra, 94k on it. Runs strong but i want some more power. I was happy where i'm at until I went to a local dyno day and started getting the power itch. My short list of power adders is in my sig and i want to know where to go. I'm looking for 275 to 300 rwhp.

The cobra has decent gt-40 heads and intake (not the best but decent by my understanding) so it seems to me that replacing those is not going give me a very good $/power ratio. What should be my next step? TB and MAS seem to be unnecessary for my car in its current state. I was thinking a cam would be the next best step but i'm not sure if that's true or which one to get. If i do get a cam i would want to make more low to mid range power, since that's what my gt-40 heads and intake are god for, and i think a high end cam would fight all the restrictions in my engine.

I would love to take a sounding here and see if i am on track or if i don't have any *****ing clue what i am talking about. Input appreciated!

95Vert383AOD · Sep 25, 2009

Drive your car as normal.....
Build a 351 stroked on an engine stand and when you cant take the itch anymore.....install said motor.

The Power itch will grow .....I mean i loved my fully built 302 when i had it.... But in the end i wish i would have just built something on a stand....slowly....then dropped it in when i was ready.

Sorry ....im just a 351 Fanboy.

chasenichols · Sep 25, 2009

Yeah...that doesn't help me much. I've seen a number of post on here from you, and though your logic seems sound, i'm not looking to spend my next two years dropping 4 grand on a new motor that's going to mock me from the back of the garage. Thanks though.

95Vert383AOD · Sep 25, 2009

LOL ok well to hit your goal you can do one of the following.....

Supercharger.

Heads Cam and Intake (HCI)

Have the living crap ported out of your stock parts with a bigger cam

Cheapest bang for buck is getting Nitrous.

You could probably hit that 275 with a Cam/Throttle body and MAF.

Not sure what your Budget is

And about the engine mocking thing....
Good things come to those who wait. Realistically how long a motor build takes depends on how much money you have and how much time you have to do it.. I do a Custom swap about once a year for myself or a friend. My 3rd time doing it...Start buying parts in spring and its in by September. Machine shop time is what will halt you more than anything. If it takes you 2 years to physically assemble a SBF you have serious issues. Thats like turning 1 bolt every week.

turbogt · Sep 25, 2009

Find a used vortech..

Labora · Sep 25, 2009

Cam swap IMO.

Or a bit of nitrous.

chasenichols · Sep 25, 2009

Thanks for the advice but i don't really have the time, space or money to build a new motor. The way i see it...and questions i have:

Blower (Vortec) - 125HP, $3k
HCI - 75HP??, 2.5k
Porting + Cam - 50HP??, Porting cost?? + 250
Nitrious - 75HP, 600, but it's not really drivable
Cam, TB and MAF - 40HP??, $750

More input?

final5-0 · Sep 25, 2009

First of all

We wanna know what you did on the dyno ... Give us the details

The real deal to what you seek can be boiled down to this

To get the additional power you seek ........
The cost to gain justification just sucks .... BIG TIME

IIRC ... most Cobras lay down 225-235

If you stay NA and go for 300 Dynojet SAE RWHP or a bit better

You gotta move up to aftermarket hot rod parts ... $$$

Here are some budget thoughts

If you stay with OEM stuff ... a cam would get you 15 MAYBE 20

Get the lower ported for a tad more

Get some LT's on there for a bit more

For Sure ... get some pulleys

That outta bump ya up to 260-275

Yes ... less $$$ than aftermarket stuff
but
Less go fast than if ya went aftermarket stuff

Yes ... tb and meter not needed with this route
but
You will need more fuel :Word:
so
You should upgrade the intank pump
and
You could always just run elevated pressure with an afpr

Here are some ... Best bang for the buck spent thoughts

If I was gonna go for the 300 power option route ............
I'd keep your OEM stuff and go for a blower

You'll spend more with the blower
just as you would with going NA aftermarket stuff
but
You will go beyond the 300 mark
thus
Making each hp be arrived at a cost you can more live with

Of Course ... A blown combo will require more attention on a day to day
basis than a NA combo which you should consider

anyway ..............

I've not yet figured out
how to go fast ..................................... cheap :Word:

Grady

95Vert383AOD · Sep 25, 2009

I'm with Grady....

LOL Makes finding a Junkyard 351 roller and tossing your gt40's and a trickflow intake/ swap pan not sound so bad eeh? And if you get a complete Junkyard 351 roller you'll only need to buy an oil pan and intake. LOL Maybee a hood too lol.

+Junkyard 351 roller $400-600

+Ford Racing pan $150

+Trickflow 351 intake $670

+Swap headers $200

Now if you look around the forums and Ebay you can save money by getting these parts used. You can reuse your precious GT40 heads if you like. If you do it smart you can have a running 351 in your car for under $2000 Sure its a tad more work than tossing a 8psi charger on. But N/A power is what you want.

BTW bolting heads and an intake on is alot easier outside of a car than inside it.....Coming from someone whos pulled and dropped many small block ford motors......I rather pull a motor than do a H/C/I or supercharger while the motor is in the car.

I dont want to beat the 351 horse But as Grady said.... You'll be hard pressed to get near 300hp without alot of gofast parts....and i have gone both ways....I used to have a 300+ hp 302 That wasn't cheap either.

Just hope you weren't looking for an answer like "Add magic oil that will give you 60-70hp"

My ways usually sound like more work....but they aren't....

Or if you don't have the time you can fly me out to Seattle and ill build it for you long as you give me an endless supply of liquor and a stripper.

98Teksidcobra · Sep 25, 2009

A cam would be your best bet in my opinion. Don't look to me for numbers but theoretically, what would the point be of putting on new heads and intake without having a cam that allows all that newfound air to find its way into the combustion chamber?

I dont see a point in upgrading your Mass Airflow Sensor unless your putting on larger injectors

Aside from that (i didnt see if you had cold air) but a cold air intake could help some.

Correctly gapped spark plugs/ basic maintanance could net you a couple more, along with basic tuning (timing)

and underdrive pullies could free up a few more

so call it a generic 300ish for maybe 30-40 more (if you do the work yourself)

If you get your heads worked over, it would cost some more money and time, but you'd gain some power.

I wouldn't do nitrous, people can tout it all they want, it just seems like borrowed time on a stock bottom end and unneccissary wear on a daily driver.

And I'm pretty sure a swap to a 351 would require a hood swap due to the difference in deck height, which would be more cost (not that you would go that route)

After that, I must say it'd be a much better investment to build a longblock to drop in, or at least a bored and stroked shortblock (more displacement, more compression, more power). Im just not a fan of the stock 5.0's 2 bolt main, not that it really matters for most applications, just a personal thing.

turbogt · Sep 25, 2009

98Teksidcobra said:
A cam would be your best bet in my opinion. Don't look to me for numbers but theoretically, what would the point be of putting on new heads and intake without having a cam that allows all that newfound air to find its way into the combustion chamber?

Given the fact that a cobra already has 1.72 rockers, a cam isn't going to do much at all..
The cam thats in the car now is pretty well suited for the heads and intake that the car has..
Plus, if you want to gain any decent power, you'd have to go with a fairly large cam, which won't work too well without cutting the pistons, you'd also need a tune, and steeper gears...

I dont see a point in upgrading your Mass Airflow Sensor unless your putting on larger injectors

Mass air isn't a restriction in any way

Aside from that (i didnt see if you had cold air) but a cold air intake could help some.

Correctly gapped spark plugs/ basic maintanance could net you a couple more, along with basic tuning (timing)

This

and underdrive pullies could free up a few more

Cobras have underdrive pulleys already

so call it a generic 300ish for maybe 30-40 more (if you do the work yourself)

If you get your heads worked over, it would cost some more money and time, but you'd gain some power.

I wouldn't do nitrous, people can tout it all they want, it just seems like borrowed time on a stock bottom end and unneccissary wear on a daily driver.

And I'm pretty sure a swap to a 351 would require a hood swap due to the difference in deck height, which would be more cost (not that you would go that route)

After that, I must say it'd be a much better investment to build a longblock to drop in, or at least a bored and stroked shortblock (more displacement, more compression, more power). Im just not a fan of the stock 5.0's 2 bolt main, not that it really matters for most applications, just a personal thing.

No point in building a badass longblock just to use stock heads. Especially considering the block itself is really the weak point, and not the rotating assembly...

Bolt on Vortech..
No driveablility issues..
And have fun...

98Teksidcobra · Sep 25, 2009

My bad, I didnt think he'd talk about his stock heads (by name) in introducing his car and was talking about GT40X's (which still arent the best aftermarket head)

And for the longblock, it would have been a seperate affair, the rotating assembly was more for displacement than for replacing a weak link.

And of course force induction is a good way to go, he just doesnt want to spend that much.

Black95GTS · Sep 26, 2009

turbogt said:
No point in building a badass longblock just to use stock heads. Especially considering the block itself is really the weak point, and not the rotating assembly...

Bolt on Vortech..
No driveablility issues..
And have fun...

Money post right here. It's a proven, legit bolt-on that doesn't require a lot of space to install. Will easily get the original poster's power goal. Kits can be purchased with everything, including all the supporting mods, in a one-stop shop. If the 330ish RWHP isn't enough for him, he can still grow with the unit past b-splitting territory.

Adam

whitesqual · Sep 26, 2009

Vortechs are great and all but i wouldn't limit the search to just them. Procharger, Kenne Bell and Paxton, amongst others, make great supercharger kits too. The vortechs are usually more readily available used but there are other options out there.

Buying a used supercharger kit can be risky, I wouldn't do it unless I could see it in person and rotate it with my own hand. That and there could be some items missing. Which isn't that big of a deal. A call to the manufacturer and some trips to fastenal cured this problem for me with relative ease.

For me, the 2-3k that I saved buying a used kit was well worth it!

You could also look for a set of used aluminum heads to bolt onto your motor. There are several sets in the classifieds section on here, or you could look to craigslist.

Keep in mind, once you get started adding power, you are just going to want more, so mod accordingly!

Good luck in your search for more power!

revhead347 · Sep 26, 2009

Rip off the donkey dick, and twist that distributer for starters. It's totally free and will wake the car right up.

Kurt

95Vert383AOD · Sep 27, 2009

BTW just a thought but...

Didn't the 95 Mustang Cobra R make only 300 hp with a 351 with GT40 heads on it??? So yeah using GT40 heads on a N/A 302 and hitting 300hp is a pipe dream.

machran · Sep 27, 2009

SPRAY IT !

earleys94gt · Sep 27, 2009

Didn't the 95 Mustang Cobra R make only 300 hp with a 351 with GT40 heads on it??? So yeah using GT40 heads on a N/A 302 and hitting 300hp is a pipe dream.

Cobra R Windsor motor that sported cast iron GT40 heads, a roller camshaft, and a specially designed (to fit the 351) lower fuel injected intake manifold mated to a regular Cobra upper intake. All of this resulting in an engine that produced a healthy 300hp and 365lb/ft of torque which according to most sources was slightly under rated.

To the original poster...bump timing, TB, maybe a tune. For the cheaper route...

The best way to reach your goal, IMHO, is a supercharger.

A cam will give you some good power, but if you are going to install a cam and remove the heads and intake, you might as well replace them too.

chasenichols · Sep 28, 2009

Lots of good info...it's given me a bit to think about.

Building a nice 351 long block seems like the best bet long term, so probably not going to spend to much on the current motor. That said...

It sounds like i could possibly hit 275 RWHP if i go with LT's, Port match the intake and heads (did some separate reading on this), get a new cam and possibly a 70mm TB. Also, i'll maybe get a tuner as well, like a Tweecer. That being true or not, it is probably going to be as far as i want to go with this motor. I think the only hanging question that leaves me with is...

What cam would be best for this setup? I know some cams cause issues on 94/95's if they have an incorrect LSA. I'm look for best overall power gain (area under the graph), not necessarily peak power.

98Teksidcobra · Sep 30, 2009

If you already spent money on headers and exhaust, why switch to long tubes if budget is your main concern? (assuming thats what you meant by LT's)

there is a great selection of aluminum aftermarket heads (that flow better than yours) for the 5.0 that would benefit your car. Such as Trick flow, AFR, patriot performance...etc. I believe that this would be the best modification (not knowing your budget)

95 Cobra - Where to go for Power...

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