my '85 vert is a dog
- Thread starter marmot
- Start date
fivespeedsteed
20+ Year Stangneter 
Yeah, its that old CFI crap. Just like a Chevy TBI only older.... and less powerful.
Shaolin Crane
Banned
Switch it to a carb and do a full exhaust. Gears like some 4.10s will help too. Higher stall and a shift kit too.
an 87-93 5.0 would work too
fivespeedsteed
20+ Year Stangneter
I wish. If that was the case, my '84 would be carbed and I could actually do something with it to give it some balls without having to swap out the entire top end of the damned motor.
You really can't do a whole lot to upgrade the CFI system without freaking out the crappy EEC-III system, as it's even less adaptable to mods than EEC-IV speed density systems. You can swap to duals, but that's kind of an involved deal for CFI cars, or at least on the '84 and early '85 models with the external fuel pump (you'd have to swap to a single in-tank setup first); you'll need a double-hump transmission crossmember from an '86-'93 5.0, and you'll need to either swap to an '86+ rear brake hose or find a way to move yours out of the way of the passenger-side tailpipe. Other than going with duals, the only things you can really do beyond that are a drop-in K&N filter, underdrive pulleys, and an electric radiator fan with 3G alternator.
You MIGHT be able to get away with swapping to E7 heads without freaking out the computer, but at that point you'll have the intake off anyhow, so you may as well swap to a carb'ed setup then, anyway. Going carb'ed on these cars is pretty much just a matter of throwing on a 4-barrel intake and carb (a stock Holley 4180 or Edelbrock 650 seem to be the most common, no need for a monster carb), replacing the high-pressure pump with a low-pressure electric with a fuel pressure regulator or converting to an old-school mechanical pump (involves pulling the timing chain cover), swapping in a Duraspark distributor and using either a stock Duraspark box or (better option) a GM HEI ignition module, and then getting a Lokar linkage adapter for your AOD's TV rod to hook it up to the carb. Depending on how much you can buy used, the swap should only cost you around $500 or less.
"My '85 vert is a dog" Well I could have told you that! CFI, oh hell. So we have the crappiest most restrictive fuel delivery system ford ever made with an automotic behind it trying to get the tires rolling through probally a 2.73 gear and move along a convertable.... damn dude, my truck could probally tow your car faster. The good news is you have lots of potential. Swapping to a 87+ EFI system or a well put togeather carb setup along with a 3.73-4.10 gear would wake your car up like cold water in your bed on a winter's day. It wouldn't cost that much either. Don't worry about exaust systems and other things right now, you are wasting your time and money. If you are really feeling froggy while you have that intake off go a step further and throw on at least some E7TE (stock 87+ heads) and a stock 87+ cam.
QUICK91LX
Founding Member
if that was the case, your car would have that CFI crap too
86 was the first year of the good port injection
84 and 85 cars with automatic transmissions got CFI which is essentially an electronically operated carburetor and sucks royally
As for getting more power...rip off that manifold and replace it with a weiand stealth manifold and a holley 600 carb, throw some dual exhaust on it and wake that baby up! It wont be HUGE gains but definitely something you can feel on the ol' butt-o-meter
yeah, it would probally run better and might even get better MPG as well. That CFI crap has to go. Ford only ran that setup for half a year, then switched, so that should tell you something.
Thats not true, they ran it for 4x that length. They had it for two full years
