My plan for a fun streetable 300 HP daily driver

src5tt · Oct 16, 2006

Hey guys. I have been reading the posts here for several months and compiling parts to put into the stang this winter. My goal is to have a decent 300 HP beast. The car is a 66 289 2v (bone stock) power steering and power drum brakes.

I’m hoping these modifications will really wake up the car. So far what I have purchased are:

Chassis and Suspension:

1. Randall’s Rack  Rack and Pinion setup
2. Mustangs Plus  Street Heat Suspension kit
3. Master Power  Front Power Disc Conversion

Electronics and Motor:

4. Edelbrock Performer Power Package (includes Intake manifold, camshaft, carb)
5. Pertronix Ignitor and flame thrower coil
6. Pertronix flame thrower spark plug wires

Other things I’m thinking of adding are exhaust and gears. Any input that you guys could provide on those would be great. Right now the car has a stock C4. I know the tranny’s are pretty robust but would like to firm up the shifts and get better off the line jump.

I’m thinking about putting in a Transgo shift kit and 3.55 gears. The car does see a moderate amount of highway driving so I don’t want to go too high.

For exhaust I’m thinking about tri-y headers and having the local exhaust shop fab up the rest of the 2.5” setup, ending in a flowmaster delta 50 series muffler. Any thoughts?

I know you guys are extremely knowledgeable so anything you think I’m missing please add or if you can think of a better combination of exhaust tranny components to complement what I’ve already bought that would be great!! I can’t wait to get behind the wheel when this is all done!!!

Scott

Ronstang · Oct 16, 2006

If you are shooting for 300HP at the wheels then you had better and a set of decent heads to that list of parts.

57fairlane · Oct 16, 2006

IMO, if you are making more of a driver (especially if you see highway for 30+ minutes) then you should look into swapping to a t-5 or something with overdrive.

3.55s and 26" tires, you would be looking at 3500 for 65mph.
Everything else sounds pretty good, but I would also look into doing something with the heads. You can go many different routes but probably the easiest is just to have your set ported. Again, not something that needs to be done.

truck90278 · Oct 16, 2006

What kind of mileage is on the short block? typically, if the engine has not been rebuilt, the mileage is well in excess of 100k. If you have a fairlly high mileage engine, then before you do all the other goodies, then you will need to do a rebuild on the lower end with no more than a .030 overbore. If you have high mileage,but do not feel a rebuild is required (good and EQUAL compression in all cylindrs) you should probably replace the cam bearings at a minimum. I would strongly recommend a compression check on the cylinders before doing any modifications to the engine.

I agree with Ronstang about the heads, I would suggest the complete Edelbrock setup with their Performer heads.

mustangdave · Oct 16, 2006

Like others said, you need aftermarket heads, preferably aluminum, to hit your goal. You will also have to check piston to valve clearance when installing your cam. A fresh top end can put too much pressure on a worn bottom end and destroy your engine, so make sure the engine is in top shape. I would go with shoty headers to avoid the headache of burning the power steering lines with long tubes; not to mention better ground clearance.

ForceFed70 · Oct 16, 2006

For 300hp you'll need aftermarket heads.

I'd go with the edelbrock Performer RPM package.

Your other option is to swap in a 5.0L from a newer stang. Won't quite get you 300hp, but you'll be alot closer and will get all the benifits of EFI. For the amount of $$ it'll cost you to upgrade your engine, you could do a 5.0L swap and have an engine that runs better and gets better fuel economy.

brin0357 · Oct 16, 2006

BottleFed70 said:
For 300hp you'll need aftermarket heads.

.

Whats with everyone and aftermarket garbage heads?

5.0ina66 · Oct 16, 2006

brin0357 said:
Whats with everyone and aftermarket garbage heads?

Who says they're garbage?

ForceFed70 · Oct 16, 2006

brin0357 said:
Whats with everyone and aftermarket garbage heads?

You have a better way? I'd love to hear it.

brin0357 · Oct 16, 2006

Theyre too expensive and money could be better spent elsewhere in my opinion. Good ole cast iron heads work pretty good

ForceFed70 · Oct 16, 2006

If he's going to get 300Hp he's going to need either a set of aftermarket heads or he's going to need his stock heads professionally worked and they still won't make the power the aftermarket aluminum heads will.

Cast iron might save you $400 but it'll still cost you a few HP and a good 40lbs of front end weight.

I've still got my cast iron heads and know how well they can flow... but by the time everyting is said and done. It's easier and just as cost effective to go with a set of aftermarket aluminum heads.

brin0357 · Oct 16, 2006

I guess to each his own, not my preference and in theory cast iron makes more power.. Set the motor back a few inches and thatll make 10x the difference a set of aluminum heads would . I guess I try and take the "cheaper" way out of things

ForceFed70 · Oct 16, 2006

I'm all for cheaper.

But l wish I would have bought a set of aluminum heads instead of sinking the money into modifying my stock heads.

Why do cast iron heads make more power? I've always thought it was the other way around because aluminum heads generally let you run a 1/2 point higher compression with the same fuel.

brin0357 · Oct 16, 2006

BottleFed70 said:
I'm all for cheaper.

But l wish I would have bought a set of aluminum heads instead of sinking the money into modifying my stock heads.

Why do cast iron heads make more power? I've always thought it was the other way around because aluminum heads generally let you run a 1/2 point higher compression with the same fuel.

"heat is power is heat" therefore cast iron's heat retention properties allow it to retain more heat for longer periods than aluminum. aluminum dissipates heat quicker, holding less heat in the combustion chamber which in turn allows you to run a bit more compression using the same octane fuel. Now we all know the difference between theory and practice, I myself havent had two sets of heads totally setup the same with the only differenace being cast iron vs aluminum and been able to compare them on a dyno. I read something pretty funny once, one of the Holley engineers said "if your results disagree with your theory, believe your results and make a new theory" .

Helmantel · Oct 17, 2006

If you want 300 rear wheel hp, you need good flowing range, but if you're happy with 275-300 flywheel hp, porting your stock heads will do the job. Shelbys had 306 hp with stock heads, but those 60's ratings should not always be taken too seriously. The goal is a fun daily driver, and I don't think stock heads would keep it from being fun. Few would argue that a 66 Shelby has a lazy engine

If stock heads are still cheap after some bigger valves, valve job, new guides and springs is another discussion.

Regarding cast iron vs. aluminum: It's more so that aluminum NEEDS a higher compression ratio to compensate for the higher heat loss over cast iron. Maybe the net effect is that you gain a little anyway, but not much.

Sometimes when people mentioning things like "superior heat transfers properties of aluminum", I get the impression they think heat is something undesirable that needs to be cooled off. In reality of course, it's the heat that makes the power.

BTW, setting the engine back a few inches will have little influence on the front/rear weight ratio. You need to shift a cast iron headed engine a whopping 9" to get the same results as using aluminum heads! And yes, I was suprised too

So, to summarize all this: I want aluminum heads too

dennis112 · Oct 17, 2006

Although cast heads may make a little more HP, aluminum heads typically allow you to run a higher compression ratio. Adding somewhere around 1/2 point more compression will make up for the disadvantages of the cast iron. Then the scales (pun intended) tip toward the alumininum heads because of their lighter weight.

bad68coupe · Oct 17, 2006

brin0357 said:
"heat is power is heat" .

Heat is lost power. internal combustion engines are onyl around 25% efficient because they lose so much of the energy they creat to heat instead of rotating force. Heat is not power. Because aluminum heads disipate heat faster, they also allow for a cooler engine, which can then be translated into more power.

302 coupe · Oct 17, 2006

you botched up your own logic on that one, lol. Cast iron heads retain heat, thus, making a (very slightly) more efficient engine. Heat, in an internal combustion engine, is power. Aluminum heads shed heat faster, so you lose some efficiency. Problem is, nearly all aftermarket aluminum heads flow more air than cast iron heads(aftermarket or otherwise). You will gain power by switching to aluminum heads 99% of the time. You could port some world products heads, but then you have more cost and more weight, but still less performance than some mildly cleaned aluminum castings.

As for the original post, 300hp is easy with a 289 or 302, and does not require aluminum heads. Check out a set of GT40's or early 351W heads. The edelbrock perfomer stuff is fairly outdated by todays standards too, you can gain some power by not using the "package deal".

danny clemens · Oct 17, 2006

How much less do the World Products flow compared to the aluminum heads? Wouldn't they be good for what he wants unported? If you reworked a set of old Ford heads you'd have quite a bit of money in those too.

Max Power · Oct 17, 2006

If you try to make more than 1hp per cubic inch through factory casting, I guarantee you it won't be cheap. The only reason windsor based Ford small blocks keep up with the Chevys these days is because of after market heads. I remember the 60s and 70s, when nobody took SBF engine very seriously. Why? Because of the heads.

And setting the engine back will cost you a bunch too.

My plan for a fun streetable 300 HP daily driver

src5tt

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