What parts do i need in doing a 302 into a 5.0L HO????

[It's a 5_0 HO]

Ok here is the deal i just purchased a 1988 mustang hatchback. I believe it began its life as a little 4cyl that couldn't. LOL Moving on. The previous owner put a regular 302 under the hood. Now comes the questions. The parts list is what im aiming for. Do i need to get a roller block or is this block fine? What is different besides the firing order? And what parts do i need to do the conversion? And where could i find them? Where i live, there are only like 4 junk yards around here so use parts are going to be hard to find. Any help or info would be most helpful. And thank you in advance.

P.S. I have looked up some of this in google searches but they were not very specific and i did a search on this forum and came up with very little.

David

 

[jrichker]

Let's figure out what you have before we get too deep in this...

This doesn’t prove that the block is HO. Some trucks evidently use a HO firing order
with a low lift cam. However, it will definitely prove that a block can’t be HO because the firing order is wrong.

Remove the #1 & #3 spark plugs. Put your finger in #1 spark plug hole. Crank the engine over until you feel compression on #1 cylinder. Slowly turn the engine until the TDC mark and the timing pointer line up. Mark TDC on the balancer with chalk or paint. Put your finger in #3 spark plug hole and crank the engine 90 degrees. You should feel pressure trying to blow past your finger. If you do not feel pressure, repeat the process again. If you feel pressure, it is a HO engine.

No pressure the second time, remove spark plug #5. Put your finger in #1 spark plug hole. Crank the engine over until you feel compression on #1 cylinder. Put your finger in #5 spark plug hole and crank the engine 90 degrees. If you feel pressure now, the engine is not a HO model, no matter what it says on the engine.

Using a small carpenter or machinist square to mark the harmonic balancer off into 90 degree sections may be helpful here.

A 15/16 deep socket & breaker bar or ratchet may be used to turn the engine.

The HO firing order is 1-3-7-2-6-5-4-8.
Non HO firing order is 1-5-4-2-6-3-7-8

Now that we know if the block uses the standard firing order, here's the next step.

The camshaft and computer for a HO 5.0 are different from the standard 5.0. Do not attempt to move
the fuel injector wiring around to compensate for the difference in firing order. It will mess up the fuel
distribution and 4 cylinders will run lean and the other 4 will run rich. See http://fordfuelinjection.com/index.php?p=92 for more details.

 

[It's a 5_0 HO]

Thanks jrich.... I tried and from what i could tell its not a HO block