aluminum vs iron, heads for a street combo

dstang01 · Dec 17, 2007

for a mild street combo, would it be worth stepping up and getting into aluminum heads? I planned to use gt40ps, Im looking for torquey, reliable power and good street manners/ decent mpg for a semi daily driver. I was thinking gt40ps, explorer intakes, stock HO cam with 1.7s. People have told me with the work the irons might need, i might as well go for aluminums. What are the least expensive aluminums out there? Also, do aluminum heads make bad semi daily drivers? For the extra money, are they really that much better than the gt40ps?

bditty50 · Dec 18, 2007

I had afr165s and they were a great aluminum head you might want to check patriot heads they have basically a clone of the afrs for like 900 I think. Aluminum heads are a great option for a motor whether street or strip or both they also take quite a bit of weight off the front end.

87foxstang · Dec 18, 2007

I would say pay the extra and get some aluminum heads like AFR's or Trick flow

Shakerhood · Dec 18, 2007

I was thinking as listed above as taking some weight off the nose heavy car with some Aluminum Heads!

5spd GT · Dec 18, 2007

AFR's quality is considerably better than the Patriot heads. They also outflow them in design and cubic feet per minute.

Almost all manufactured engines today come with aluminum heads. They must be doing something right

It is not really the material that the heads are made of (besides heat dissipation), but aluminum heads typically will flow better because the amount of work put into them. They are also a bit easier to port.

samickguy15 · Dec 18, 2007

I personally think for a quick and easy budget upgrade you're on the right track. You could pick up GT-40P's, explorer intake, and even an aftermarket cam for less than $500. You would throw an extra $500-$750 if you go aluminuim.

88-378 · Dec 18, 2007

FWIW, I plan on using AFR 185's for my 331. Remeber you get what you pay for.

You can get a great set of iron heads, but shaving 40lbs off the front of the car is just and added bonus. a pretty significant one!!

tmoss · Dec 18, 2007

everyboduy is going to tell you to go with $1,300, aluminum heads and a $300-$500 intake and that is all good. You can buy an entire Explore engine for $500 and have a very fun package that makes good street power.

If you think you'll save money by buying used aluminum heads - caveat emptor!

Budget and hcoices are yours......

dstang01 · Dec 18, 2007

tmoss said:
everyboduy is going to tell you to go with $1,300, aluminum heads and a $300-$500 intake and that is all good. You can buy an entire Explore engine for $500 and have a very fun package that makes good street power.

My thoughts exactly mr. Moss
Im looking for 250-280 rwhp from the explorer setup and my HO cam with 1.7s. Aside from peak power, I think this setup will be fun on the street, have streetable manners (two things im looking for) and not kill on gas like a lopey cam combo would. Later down the road when i have more cash and desire more power, I could have the intake ported by yourself (I hear excellent things about your work) and the heads ported by thumper, and add a custom grind cam.. should yield 300 rwhp, solid streeter.

SuperStang83 · Dec 18, 2007

Definitely worth getting aluminum if you can afford it!

90_Red_LX · Dec 18, 2007

afr 165s ftw. Can't really go wrong with most aluminums tho.

Maryland Stang · Dec 19, 2007

There are cheaper ways to remove 40 pounds from the front end than buying $1200 cylinder heads. Try a battery relocation kit for under $200 and a fibreglass hood for $200. Truthfully the little bit of weight savings should only come into play with an all-out race car. That 40 pounds is good for what? .04 sec in the quarter?

For a fun to drive street car the Ps are just fine and will give a considerable improvement over the E7s given matching supporting parts.

5spd GT · Dec 19, 2007

The aluminum heads is not just for weight savings. The majority of it, is for power gains.

Now, I am a big advocate of doing things on a budget, because that is what 95% of us are limited to in some form.

So if you can get some Gt-40P heads, some 1.7 rockers, and a nice lower ported by tmoss, you could be rocking for cheap!

88-378 · Dec 19, 2007

Maryland Stang said:
There are cheaper ways to remove 40 pounds from the front end than buying $1200 cylinder heads. Try a battery relocation kit for under $200 and a fibreglass hood for $200. Truthfully the little bit of weight savings should only come into play with an all-out race car. That 40 pounds is good for what? .04 sec in the quarter?

For a fun to drive street car the Ps are just fine and will give a considerable improvement over the E7s given matching supporting parts.

It can improve handling by the weight dist it creates.

aluminum vs iron, heads for a street combo

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