- May 2, 2006
- 626
- 171
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Hi Guys, I'm looking for some input on an engine build for my 1995 Cobra. I've been dreaming up different combinations for years, stout HCI 302 - 302 stroker - built 351 - stroker 351..., but after working on a lot of friend's cars, I'm starting to get more serious about pulling the trigger on something. I've picked up lot of great info from this forum over the years, and it would be nice if anyone can offer up some real world experience on the combo or the parts I've assembled as a "desktop" build. I've already picked up a number of these parts which can support multiple builds, but the core components (e.g. heads, short block, and intake) are still up in the air.
The use case: My car is 96% street driven in the summer. She's mostly a weekend or nice weather cruiser, with maybe one to two road race events a year, and one to two trips to drag strip per year. I'm looking for strong mid-range engine that's nearly indestructible. I don't want to rev it too far past the low 6k range. The suspension is done up for handling / road racing.
Short block: Ford M-6009-363 Z363 short block
Heads: AFR185 Renegade stud mount (probably the 64cc chambers to target a 10.x CR)
Cam: FTI or other custom grind
Intake: TFS R-series (not the box upper) TFS-51500003
Rocker arms: Jesel sportsman (either 1.6 or 1.7 depending on the cam and what the cam supplier recommends)
Water pump: FlowKooler SN95
Oil pump: Melling standard volume
Distributor: Stock SN95 TFI
Transmission: TKX with SN95-style 7:00 quick time bell housing
Clutch: McLeod RST
ECU: Stock J4J1 with a TwEECer
MAF: 90mm LMAF
Injectors: FR 24, 36, or 42 lb/hr
Fuel rail: Stock SN95
Throttle: BBK 70mm or 75mm
Headers: JBA fox shorties
H-pipe: Bassani X w/cats
Exhaust: Flowmaster AT
Most of my SBF experience has been with stock or stock-ish parts and builds, like ported iron GT40 heads, GT40 / Cobra intakes, and beefed up stock 302 / 351 shortblocks from back in the day. My time is fairly limited these days between family and work, so I'm not interested in building the short-block myself. (I've built a lot of 460s in the past and know how time consuming it becomes.)
I'm really interested in hearing how robust and well suited the FR 363 short block is for this type of application. I can't find much info related to how street-able or race-focused it is in terms of the components used. I think it's setup for road racing, so that could work well for summer street driving.
I'm also very interested in hearing about experiences with the TFS R-series intake. I know that it's geared toward high rpm tuning, but the runner length with larger ports and plenum volume seems like it could work well for a mid-range torque stroker. I don't mind if it sacrifices a little bit of bottom end because these heads and short block could result in a low rpm torque monster that's impossible to hook. TFS's machining and finishing work has always been top-notch from what I've seen. My apprehension on this model intake comes from a number of random posts on other forums stating that it's a flawed design, but there isn't much data or hard flow numbers to back up these claims or detailed elaboration on the flaws. Plan B could be a ported GT40 lower with an extrude honed cobra upper, but the flow-capability and tuning might be way off with the long small diameter runners and 302-focussed plenum volume.
The other option is to go with a similar 351 build in stock displacement or stroker. I have all of the required swap parts to support that, but it might be over-kill for how I use my car. I've also noticed that 351 strokers, which used to be priced within a couple hundred dollars of an 8.2 deck stoker, are going up in price fast.
I'm not looking to break any HP records here. I just want to build something that makes respectable numbers, is a bit more competitive and fun than a stock Cobra engine, all with a large measure of durability to be driven for years to come. I'm also open to "don't waste your money, just slap a set of AFR 165s on your stock short-block with a custom cam and have fun!"
Well, let me know what you think, and thanks in advance!
The use case: My car is 96% street driven in the summer. She's mostly a weekend or nice weather cruiser, with maybe one to two road race events a year, and one to two trips to drag strip per year. I'm looking for strong mid-range engine that's nearly indestructible. I don't want to rev it too far past the low 6k range. The suspension is done up for handling / road racing.
Short block: Ford M-6009-363 Z363 short block
Heads: AFR185 Renegade stud mount (probably the 64cc chambers to target a 10.x CR)
Cam: FTI or other custom grind
Intake: TFS R-series (not the box upper) TFS-51500003
Rocker arms: Jesel sportsman (either 1.6 or 1.7 depending on the cam and what the cam supplier recommends)
Water pump: FlowKooler SN95
Oil pump: Melling standard volume
Distributor: Stock SN95 TFI
Transmission: TKX with SN95-style 7:00 quick time bell housing
Clutch: McLeod RST
ECU: Stock J4J1 with a TwEECer
MAF: 90mm LMAF
Injectors: FR 24, 36, or 42 lb/hr
Fuel rail: Stock SN95
Throttle: BBK 70mm or 75mm
Headers: JBA fox shorties
H-pipe: Bassani X w/cats
Exhaust: Flowmaster AT
Most of my SBF experience has been with stock or stock-ish parts and builds, like ported iron GT40 heads, GT40 / Cobra intakes, and beefed up stock 302 / 351 shortblocks from back in the day. My time is fairly limited these days between family and work, so I'm not interested in building the short-block myself. (I've built a lot of 460s in the past and know how time consuming it becomes.)
I'm really interested in hearing how robust and well suited the FR 363 short block is for this type of application. I can't find much info related to how street-able or race-focused it is in terms of the components used. I think it's setup for road racing, so that could work well for summer street driving.
I'm also very interested in hearing about experiences with the TFS R-series intake. I know that it's geared toward high rpm tuning, but the runner length with larger ports and plenum volume seems like it could work well for a mid-range torque stroker. I don't mind if it sacrifices a little bit of bottom end because these heads and short block could result in a low rpm torque monster that's impossible to hook. TFS's machining and finishing work has always been top-notch from what I've seen. My apprehension on this model intake comes from a number of random posts on other forums stating that it's a flawed design, but there isn't much data or hard flow numbers to back up these claims or detailed elaboration on the flaws. Plan B could be a ported GT40 lower with an extrude honed cobra upper, but the flow-capability and tuning might be way off with the long small diameter runners and 302-focussed plenum volume.
The other option is to go with a similar 351 build in stock displacement or stroker. I have all of the required swap parts to support that, but it might be over-kill for how I use my car. I've also noticed that 351 strokers, which used to be priced within a couple hundred dollars of an 8.2 deck stoker, are going up in price fast.
I'm not looking to break any HP records here. I just want to build something that makes respectable numbers, is a bit more competitive and fun than a stock Cobra engine, all with a large measure of durability to be driven for years to come. I'm also open to "don't waste your money, just slap a set of AFR 165s on your stock short-block with a custom cam and have fun!"
Well, let me know what you think, and thanks in advance!
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