Fox body mustang mild eng build

89 gt 5.0
306 stock block ,rods trw stock style pistons
rpm2 intake
30lbs injectors
76mm mass calibrated for 30lb injectors
70mm throttle body
bbk cold air intake
underdrive pullies
aluminum rad
bbk shorty headers catted h pipe magna pack cat back
4.10 gears
stock cam
K now looking at some heads for this motor and debating on afr165 or tw170 rr but not sold on anything just yet, just wanting a little input is all not a race car just looking to get the car in the 350-375hp range at the crank. I have read that a lot of people say the stock cam is not a bad cam
 
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Looks like a solid build. You'll be fine with 24lb injectors, but if you have or want the 30s, it won't hurt anything. Both are good heads. The TF 170cc heads tend to inch out a little more power than the AFR 165s usually. Can't go wrong with either one though. You are definitely going to need a cam to hit 350hp. The stock cam is not a bad cam, but it's not ideal at all with those heads. Is there any particular reason you want to stay with the stock cam? Cams are cheap.

Kurt
 
I spun the bearings in my original eng This is just a replacement block so I can drive my car this summer. I will be building a bottom end for it this year but need a set of heads now and don't want to buy them twice, and will get a cam for the new build As i will have to buy roller rockers an intake spacer to clear the higher rocker covers and all the little stuff to go with it as well as I would like to get a custom for the new eng. Already bought the 30lbs injectors for the car just in case I want to upgrade a little in the future. I have been doing some research on the 11r 190 heads and some people say they clear stock pistons but bigger is not always better, what are thoughts on those heads.
 
I spun the bearings in my original eng This is just a replacement block so I can drive my car this summer. I will be building a bottom end for it this year but need a set of heads now and don't want to buy them twice, and will get a cam for the new build As i will have to buy roller rockers an intake spacer to clear the higher rocker covers and all the little stuff to go with it as well as I would like to get a custom for the new eng. Already bought the 30lbs injectors for the car just in case I want to upgrade a little in the future. I have been doing some research on the 11r 190 heads and some people say they clear stock pistons but bigger is not always better, what are thoughts on those heads.

Awesome. Sounds like a good plan. There's no harm in going to 30lb injectors. You can run the AFR165 or the TF170cc heads with a stock cam and piston. It's all about the intake valve diameter. The 11R heads are flat out awesome. The bottom end 11R 170cc head should be ok. It has an aggressive valve angle, but it's still only a 2.02" intake valve. The 190cc heads step up to a 2.055" intake valve which is probably going to be a problem with stock pistons. I can't say for sure, but I'd hate to see you spend that kind of money to find out it won't clear when you stick the playdoh to it. For a street car, I would probably skip the 190cc head. Airflow is going to be pretty slow at low RPM, and it won't really come alive until you get it revved up a lot. I don't know man, that's a tough call. I would say the 170cc head, but that might not get you to 350hp easily. You could also look at an AFR 185cc head. That should get you to 350hp, be a good reliable head, and work with stock pistons because it has a 2.02" intake valve. Those flow pretty close the old Canfields I have, and I'm in the mid 400s hp wise. As for the valve covers, get the Trick Flow ones. I run these with a big Systemax intake and no spacer. I had to trim a little bit off the bottom of the intake plenum to get them to clear, but not much. Shouldn't even be an issue with a Performer RPM intake. They are also cast, not stamped, which keeps the leaks down.


Kurt
 
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nice kind of what I was thinking bigger is not always better, looks like 11r170 it is and will check out those valve covers cause if I can stay away from the spacer I can keep my stock hood. If I cant get to my 350 goal na then I will put a supercharger on it and that should get me their but that is in the future. Thanks for the reply just wanted to be sure of my direction with head choice cheers. thanks again
 
If you have the stock cam that came in the 89-93 Mustang 5.0, it is specific. It is a steel cam, not cast. It has ZE marked on the shaft near the cam gear. This cam requires a specific distributor gear. If you change cams to a cast type, you'll also need to change the distributor gear.

If you do have the ZE cam and decide not to use it, I highly recommend you keep it and store it to protect it. They are getting hard to find in good condition. Many people are on ebay claiming to have this 5.0 HO cam but many of those are not actually the ZE that came specifically in the Mustang.
 
The 11R heads will likely give better PTV clearance than even the TW 170 heads due to the valve angle, even though they have larger valves.
Yes any of the 11r will give you way more P to V clearance than either of your other choices. Due to the valves being stood up more hence the 11deg valve angle over the 15deg angle of the TW170. I have a set of 11r 190s on a 86 shortblock which has no valve reliefs and my cam is a decent size 234/239 .608/.600 lift,
and I'm no where close on P to V there are way more things that effect P to V but this give you an example. I wouldnt put anything smaller than the 11r 190s on your build there are guys making 375 rwhp with a cam and the 11r 190s on a stock bottom end. Plus it still has great low end driveability. The old myth of bigger isnt better is just that a myth. Look at the LS engines the smallest port they run on the 4.8 and 5.3 is 200cc and i don't hear people complaining it has no low end. The only issue I see is if you are looking not to buy rockers right now the 11r will not be an option since they dont offer a version for pedistal mount rockers. So unfortunately if your looking to stick with some pedistal mount to start with AFR or TW170 will have to be your choice.
You really need to decide what your goals are going to be with the next build and get what will be best for that. Other wise you will find that by trying to save yourself money now and buy heads to fit the situation your in now, then build a new bottom end later you will end up either not being happy with the results of new build when you finally get to it, you will find yourself having to change or sacrifice on the new build because of the parts you have. Or end up selling things again to buy the right combination of parts.

If it were me I would just put yours back together stock for the time being to enjoy the car spend the least amount possible. Then put a real plan together of what you want out of the new build. Then you can focus on putting the correct combination of parts together collect them and build it once, which you will be much happier with in the end
The age old saying buy once cry once.
 
I built almost the same set up. I ran stock pistons with Anderson n61 cam ,AFR 185 renegade heads,Holley systemax intake and 30lb injectors. After the tune we got 320rwhp. Anderson motor sports claims you can run the tw170 with 1.6 rollers 6.7 pushrods with no Clearance Issues. I find Anderson motor sports to be a good place for information. Good luck
 
Yes any of the 11r will give you way more P to V clearance than either of your other choices. Due to the valves being stood up more hence the 11deg valve angle over the 15deg angle of the TW170. I have a set of 11r 190s on a 86 shortblock which has no valve reliefs and my cam is a decent size 234/239 .608/.600 lift,
and I'm no where close on P to V there are way more things that effect P to V but this give you an example. I wouldnt put anything smaller than the 11r 190s on your build there are guys making 375 rwhp with a cam and the 11r 190s on a stock bottom end. Plus it still has great low end driveability. The old myth of bigger isnt better is just that a myth. Look at the LS engines the smallest port they run on the 4.8 and 5.3 is 200cc and i don't hear people complaining it has no low end. The only issue I see is if you are looking not to buy rockers right now the 11r will not be an option since they dont offer a version for pedistal mount rockers. So unfortunately if your looking to stick with some pedistal mount to start with AFR or TW170 will have to be your choice.
You really need to decide what your goals are going to be with the next build and get what will be best for that. Other wise you will find that by trying to save yourself money now and buy heads to fit the situation your in now, then build a new bottom end later you will end up either not being happy with the results of new build when you finally get to it, you will find yourself having to change or sacrifice on the new build because of the parts you have. Or end up selling things again to buy the right combination of parts.

If it were me I would just put yours back together stock for the time being to enjoy the car spend the least amount possible. Then put a real plan together of what you want out of the new build. Then you can focus on putting the correct combination of parts together collect them and build it once, which you will be much happier with in the end
The age old saying buy once cry once.
Have not bought any heads yet trying to do as much research as possible so I can make a educated buy and be sure that I am happy with the out come. I am very happy with everyone’s willingness to put their 2 cents in as their seems to be a lot a knowledge and experience hear and I am very open to it all. Thanks for the reply cheers
 
If I could go back, the one change I would have done to my 302 is fine with the 11R over the TFS170 for my combo.

Stock bottom end, 170s, custom grind cam, 1.6rrs, porter explorer.

PTV is tight, but it does clear. Or at least it should clear as I haven’t run the motor yet
 
Hands down I would go with a set of 11R 190s. The key is the right intake and cam with them. I run the TW 170s as well, and for my setup they do fine but as I continue to mod the 11R 190s would be perfect, even leave room to grow into a stroker. And it would be nice to not worry about necessarily needing TW specific pistons.