• Mustang Forums
  • 1996 - 2004 SN95 Mustang -General/Talk-
  • SN95 V6 Mustang Tech

ACTUAL HP gain question? Heads, cam and intake, is it really worth it?

  • Thread starter Thread starter zealot
  • Start date Start date Feb 26, 2004
Z

zealot

New Member
Feb 22, 2004
57
0
0
Orange County, So Cal
Feb 26, 2004
#1
  • Feb 26, 2004
  • #1
ACTUAL HP gain question? Heads, cam and intake, is it really worth it?

Whats up, I drive a 2002 3.8 V6 and I have some questions about gaining HP. What would be more logical, getting ported heads, cam and intakes on the existing 3.8 or picking up a 4.6 GT engine/tranny and making the swap? Through rpm-mustangs, the ported heads, cam, intakes, gaskets etc..it would come close to $2k. How much more HP would one expect from the P. heads, cam and intakes compared to dropping the 4.6 in there? Last thing, how much would the 4.6 GT engine/tranny end up running me total at the end?

Any feedback is greatly appreciated.
 

5-SpeedStallion

Founding Member
Mar 28, 2002
230
0
0
Tampa, FL
Feb 26, 2004
#2
  • Feb 26, 2004
  • #2
zealot said:
ACTUAL HP gain question? Heads, cam and intake, is it really worth it?

Whats up, I drive a 2002 3.8 V6 and I have some questions about gaining HP. What would be more logical, getting ported heads, cam and intakes on the existing 3.8 or picking up a 4.6 GT engine/tranny and making the swap? Through rpm-mustangs, the ported heads, cam, intakes, gaskets etc..it would come close to $2k. How much more HP would one expect from the P. heads, cam and intakes compared to dropping the 4.6 in there? Last thing, how much would the 4.6 GT engine/tranny end up running me total at the end?

Any feedback is greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...

Properly tuned, you could easily see 220whp with those mods putting you even with a stock Manual GT. Auto's put down significantly less (205-215whp). Oh, and you will weigh ~200lbs less. There are so many variables in how much the 4.6 would cost that it is hard to estimate. Expect to spend way more than $2k though unless you can swap it yourself. It all depends on how much you pay for the engine and how much you pay to install. Too much variation to make a good guess.
 
Z

zealot

New Member
Feb 22, 2004
57
0
0
Orange County, So Cal
Feb 26, 2004
#3
  • Feb 26, 2004
  • #3
5-SpeedStallion said:
Properly tuned, you could easily see 220whp with those mods putting you even with a stock Manual GT. Auto's put down significantly less (205-215whp). Oh, and you will weigh ~200lbs less. There are so many variables in how much the 4.6 would cost that it is hard to estimate. Expect to spend way more than $2k though unless you can swap it yourself. It all depends on how much you pay for the engine and how much you pay to install. Too much variation to make a good guess.
Click to expand...

My car is 5spd manual. With that said, would it be even better if I continued to mod after the heads, cam and intakes? What more could I do that would make my mustang see even better RWHP numbers? The only mod I have to date are flowmaster duals, so would it be ideal to get UD pulleys? 3.73 gears w/ tlok? Short tube headers? Once again, any feedback is appreciated.
 
L

lexman84

New Member
Feb 26, 2004
17
0
0
Tampa, Fl
Feb 26, 2004
#4
  • Feb 26, 2004
  • #4
If your looking to spend less money i would mod the 3.8 there are companies out there that make a vortech supercharger that you can purchase for the 3.8 and you might spend a little over 2k. This would be considerably less than trying to drop a 4.6 in there. I just recently converted my 98 v6 to a 5.0 and we ran into some major issues. I was able to pick up the 5.0 engine with 13,000 miles from this guy in clearwater, fl. for $1300 but i got really lucky to pick that up. If you would rather upgrade the engine I would check out stangparts.com they pull engines from wrecked stangs and you might be able to get a good deal there.
 
B

bjam2

New Member
Jun 20, 2003
94
0
0
Michigan
Feb 26, 2004
#5
  • Feb 26, 2004
  • #5
Hey lexman84, you just put a 5.0 in your 98, i just got a 98 and forsee that in my future, I hear it is recommended to put a 4.6 in because the motor mounts just line up, but i would rather have a 5.0.
Tell me about what was involved and everything please.
You can email me at bjam_2@hotmail.com or add me to MSN if you use it, AIM is bjam272.
 
L

lexman84

New Member
Feb 26, 2004
17
0
0
Tampa, Fl
Feb 26, 2004
#6
  • Feb 26, 2004
  • #6
v6 to v8

bjam2 said:
Hey lexman84, you just put a 5.0 in your 98, i just got a 98 and forsee that in my future, I hear it is recommended to put a 4.6 in because the motor mounts just line up, but i would rather have a 5.0.
Tell me about what was involved and everything please.
You can email me at bjam_2@hotmail.com or add me to MSN if you use it, AIM is bjam272.
Click to expand...


hey if you log onto aim i will tell you the steps that i took to do the conversion.
 

5-SpeedStallion

Founding Member
Mar 28, 2002
230
0
0
Tampa, FL
Feb 27, 2004
#7
  • Feb 27, 2004
  • #7
zealot said:
My car is 5spd manual. With that said, would it be even better if I continued to mod after the heads, cam and intakes? What more could I do that would make my mustang see even better RWHP numbers? The only mod I have to date are flowmaster duals, so would it be ideal to get UD pulleys? 3.73 gears w/ tlok? Short tube headers? Once again, any feedback is appreciated.
Click to expand...

Yeah, once you have good mods like the heads, cams, and such, the gains from other things will be magnified. I would think that with heads, cams, P&P, pulley, gears & Tlok, Full exhaust, intake, and a good suspension, we could definately see some 5-speed cars in the mid-low 13's. Now if we only had money coming out our ears.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

J
Intake
  • James S
  • Jul 10, 2026
  • 1979 - 1995 (Fox, SN95.0, & 2.3L) -General/Talk-
Replies
10
Views
192
1979 - 1995 (Fox, SN95.0, & 2.3L) -General/Talk- Jul 12, 2026
James S
J
Engine Catch Can or not?
  • R82148V
  • Mar 4, 2026
  • Fox 5.0 Mustang Tech
Replies
9
Views
366
Fox 5.0 Mustang Tech Mar 6, 2026
ctandc
C
B
Screamin Demons Worth It N/A?
  • Blackout67
  • Oct 20, 2025
  • 1996 - 2004 SN95 Mustang -General/Talk-
Replies
1
Views
277
1996 - 2004 SN95 Mustang -General/Talk- Oct 20, 2025
Noobz347
Ford truck engine swap issues
  • keel
  • Jul 7, 2026
  • Other Auto Tech
Replies
17
Views
318
Other Auto Tech Jul 13, 2026
General karthief
A
Discussion on mild budget build/ top end
  • Acesario
  • Feb 21, 2026
  • 1979 - 1995 (Fox, SN95.0, & 2.3L) -General/Talk-
  • 2
Replies
20
Views
753
1979 - 1995 (Fox, SN95.0, & 2.3L) -General/Talk- Feb 23, 2026
General karthief
Share:
Bluesky Email Share Link
  • Mustang Forums
  • 1996 - 2004 SN95 Mustang -General/Talk-
  • SN95 V6 Mustang Tech
Menu
Log in

Register

  • Forums
  • What's new
  • Media
  • Resources
  • Contact
  • Sponsor
X

Privacy & Transparency

We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:

  • Personalized ads and content
  • Content measurement and audience insights

Do you accept cookies and these technologies?

X

Privacy & Transparency

We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:

  • Personalized ads and content
  • Content measurement and audience insights

Do you accept cookies and these technologies?