Fox ECU for 351w swap w/out EFI?

[Dxn]

Have an 85 hatch I am thinking about 351w swapping. My 85GT has the 302HO, being said both have the same firing order so can I just reuse this ECU? Are there any other standalone ECUs that are more benefitial without the complete swap to EFI? Please share your experiences with this swap and other obstacles with the solutions you have found. Thanks all!

 

[AeroCoupe]

So I thought ‘85 GT’s were carbureted I.e. no ECU?

 

[General karthief]

I think the 85 may be a Duraspark type ignition system if carbed,

 

[AeroCoupe]

Which if paired with the correct dizzy from a truck 351 will work for his project.

I used and MSD dizzy and box and called it a day.

 

[General karthief]

Which if paired with the correct dizzy from a truck 351 will work for his project.

I used and MSD dizzy and box and called it a day.

That's what the MSD type box was made for

 

[85GTStangGuy]

So I thought ‘85 GT’s were carbureted I.e. no ECU?

Only the ones with manual transmissions..... automatics were efi.

 

[limp]

Only the ones with manual transmissions..... automatics were efi.

I would disagree as my EX wife and looked at these when they were new.... Last year of Carb, was a big selling feature to me....
Of course I was ONLY looking at manual transmissions...... So you could be correct........

 

[Dxn]

So I thought ‘85 GT’s were carbureted I.e. no ECU?

Oh I didnt even know I thought the ECU still would have controled the timing/coil. Thanks for this haha!

 

[AeroCoupe]

So were the ‘85 autos CFI with an EEC-III?

 

[Noobz347]

So were the ‘85 autos CFI with an EEC-III?

Nope. Just carbureted that I'm aware of.

 

[AeroCoupe]

Some are saying the auto cars were injected hence my question.

 

[Noobz347]

Some are saying the auto cars were injected hence my question.

I vaguely recall something of that nature and if it was relegated to Auto cars, I think it might also have been relegated to California cars.

 

[Noobz347]

I found this:

What I don't see is the who, what, when, where, and why for the "F Code" cars.

Most threads concerning CFI cars are about how to convert [away] from the restrictive 2 bbl CFI.

I also saw some discussion about the CFI cars being non-roller but I don't know if that's true.

 

[General karthief]

Let's get @FoxChasis in on this, he may be able to shed some light on this, I think the question may be what ignition control was used on the CFI model

 

[85GTStangGuy]

I think the 85 may be a Duraspark type ignition system if carbed,

That is correct.... a DuraSpark II system. Again, that is on carb'ed cars only though.

So were the ‘85 autos CFI with an EEC-III?

No. '85's with slushboxes, which used the 2 barrel CFI, came with an EEC-IV managed DuraSpark III system.

An interesting side note is that the intake manifold on those CFI cars was the same manifold used on 1979's two-barrel carbureted 5.0 Mustang motor.

I vaguely recall something of that nature and if it was relegated to Auto cars, I think it might also have been relegated to California cars.

Yes, that's correct about the CFI being relegated to AOD cars only. But it had nothing to do with Cali versus 49-state cars.

I found this:

What I don't see is the who, what, when, where, and why for the "F Code" cars.

Most threads concerning CFI cars are about how to convert [away] from the restrictive 2 bbl CFI.

I also saw some discussion about the CFI cars being non-roller but I don't know if that's true.

The "F" Code engines were for the AOD equipped cars. The bottom "M" Code engine was for the T-5 manual cars. The middle "M" Code (EFI) engine listed there was never used in the '85 Mustang.

That's true about the CFI/AOD cars not being roller cammed, at least for 1985. In 1986, all combos went to the roller cam motor.

Also, the '85 CFI cars, which initially came out as 165 hp (the "F" Code motor above), had a mid-to-late model year upgrade which upped them to 180 hp. That was done by using the carb'ed motor's exhaust system (ss tube headers vs cast iron manifolds, lower restriction cats, the whole pseudo-dual exhaust setup, and other tweaks) in place of the originally carried-over '84 exhaust.

 

[FoxChasis]

85GTStangGuy is correct on all counts, except the "F" engine code. Both 1984, the first year for 5.0L with CFI in the Capri/Mustang, and 1985 model years were engine code "M" for either the CFI/AOD or the 4V/T-5 combo. Last year for the "F" engine code was 1983.

 

[Noobz347]

85GTStangGuy is correct on all counts, except the "F" engine code. Both 1984, the first year for 5.0L with CFI in the Capri/Mustang, and 1985 model years were engine code "M" for either the CFI/AOD or the 4V/T-5 combo. Last year for the "F" engine code was 1983.

Question: If the last "F" engine code was 1983, why do I see multiple references to a 1985 "F" code?


The table that I posted above is from here: https://www.mustangspecs.com/1985-mustang-engine-302-v8/

Is this incorrect?

 

[FoxChasis]

That is incorrect, for the Capri/Mustang anyway. I just went through a bunch of those pages, not just engine specs, but VIN codes, and there is some bad info on every one of them. I left several replies but I'm not confident anything will get corrected.

1979-93 Mustang (and 1979-86 Capri) 5.0L engines...

1979 = F
1982* = F
1983* = F
1984* = M (4V or CFI)
1985* = M (4V or CFI)
1986* = M
1987* = E
1989* = E
1989* = E
1990* = E
1991* = E
1992* = E
1993* = D (SVT Cobra) and E (GT, LX 5.0L)

* High Output (H.O.)

 

[85GTStangGuy]

85GTStangGuy is correct on all counts, except the "F" engine code. Both 1984, the first year for 5.0L with CFI in the Capri/Mustang, and 1985 model years were engine code "M" for either the CFI/AOD or the 4V/T-5 combo. Last year for the "F" engine code was 1983.

Thanks for the clarification/correction on that.

I guess it's one of those errors that was made somewhere along the way and then just kept getting repeated by others.... many others. Like @Noobz347 pointed out, I've seen it in multiple publications/websites. And also at quite a few parts sites, when it makes me do the drill down to a specific car model, one of the last specs is for the motor/transmission combo, and it always identifies the 4bbl/T-5 as an "M" Code and the CFI/AOD as an "F" Code. So, while FoxChasis is very much technically correct, there are times when one needs to identify (albeit incorrectly) their CFI/AOD car as an "F" Coded car in order to get the right parts.