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whats holding me back

  • Thread starter Thread starter bowser1985
  • Start date Start date Oct 13, 2008
B

bowser1985

New Member
Oct 12, 2008
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Oct 13, 2008
#1
  • Oct 13, 2008
  • #1
hello i got a 96 mustang gt coupe with a 98 cobra motor in it a friend of mine was in my cobra and was telling me somethings holding it back til high rpms it seems like something is holding my car back could it possibly be the imrc's maybe need to be cleaned out?? thanks alot ..
 

Steve491

Member
Apr 20, 2008
254
2
19
Charlotte, NC
Oct 13, 2008
#2
  • Oct 13, 2008
  • #2
Maybe they're not opening at all. A 96 GT didn't have IMRCs so it probably didn't have the wiring or the computer for it either.
 

blackfang

Founding Member
Dec 17, 2001
1,290
1
39
Richmond, Va
Oct 13, 2008
#3
  • Oct 13, 2008
  • #3
bowser1985 said:
hello i got a 96 mustang gt coupe with a 98 cobra motor in it a friend of mine was in my cobra and was telling me somethings holding it back til high rpms it seems like something is holding my car back could it possibly be the imrc's maybe need to be cleaned out?? thanks alot ..
Click to expand...
Did you take account for the wiring harness and also have a tune done to the vehicle?
 
B

bowser1985

New Member
Oct 12, 2008
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Oct 13, 2008
#4
  • Oct 13, 2008
  • #4
no tune has been done wat if i take the imrc's out?
 

blackfang

Founding Member
Dec 17, 2001
1,290
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39
Richmond, Va
Oct 14, 2008
#5
  • Oct 14, 2008
  • #5
bowser1985 said:
no tune has been done wat if i take the imrc's out?
Click to expand...
You will need a tune for starters. The ECU still thinks there is a 2V motor in the car.

You can remove the IMRC's but need a short runner intake and a 4.30-4.56 gear to make up for the low end torque loss.
 
S

shoobs99svt

Member
Jul 31, 2006
90
0
6
Charlotte NC
Oct 17, 2008
#6
  • Oct 17, 2008
  • #6
Sorry guys but Noob question here... can someone explain to me (and hopefully a few other browsers) what an IMRC is or what it does?
 

COBRA90GT

Mustang Master
Sep 22, 2001
6,654
0
87
HOCKEYTOWN ® , MI
Oct 17, 2008
#7
  • Oct 17, 2008
  • #7
shoobs99svt said:
Sorry guys but Noob question here... can someone explain to me (and hopefully a few other browsers) what an IMRC is or what it does?
Click to expand...

There's plenty of information about IMRCs in past threads; search results for "IMRC"

Mustang Forums at StangNet - Search Results

In a nutshell, IMRC stands for:

Intake
Manifold
Runner
Control

This engine feature was found on 96-98 cobras and consisted of a controller that opened up a set of secondary valves around the 3250rpm mark in 96-98 cobras to enhance performance.

The secondary valves stay closed until around 3250rpms in order to enhance low engine speed (RPM) performance and open up above 3250rpms in order to increase high engine speed performance.

Many folks would choose to delete the IMRCs when adding a power adder (and sometimes while remaining NA) in order to gain better engine breathing characteristics....

The IMRC plates/valves can get gunked up as well and a thorough cleaning is sometimes needed to bring them back up to speed (or a faulty controller/actuator could be the culprit).

Further:

IMRC Actuator

Picture:



Taken from David Simmons' website: Red Hot Venom
 

LaserSVT

Got FB banned again for saying nards
Founding Member
Nov 29, 1999
9,390
3,536
233
Oct 17, 2008
#8
  • Oct 17, 2008
  • #8
Yeah, just clean them. When my Cobra was still a little cold and I was at 50% throttle I could feel them opening @2800rpm. The car would just surge foreward a little better
The 93-98 MarkVIIIs had them as well but they open closer to 3250. They get carbon build up over time and stick closed.
You do need a tune though unless the ECU from the Cobra was swapped over as well. If you are still running the stock ECU then you are down about 40+hp as well as some higher RPM issues if the IMRC is not hooked up. SOmeone makes a plate kit for that so you can remove it and still retain all the other factory stuff.
 

Steve491

Member
Apr 20, 2008
254
2
19
Charlotte, NC
Oct 18, 2008
#9
  • Oct 18, 2008
  • #9
Shoobs99svt,
Cobra90gt explained it perfectly except I thought it was Intake Manifold Runner Controls. I'm sure my 97 needs a good cleaning job in the future. Until they are opened up a couple if times I have a little flutter around 3200. NO codes and really no problem, just a little bbbbbbrrrrrrrr between 3000 and 4000.
Your '99 does not have IMRC plates. Ford changed several things to eliminate them. Maybe the intake, cylinder heads, computer, etc, I don't know, somebody will chime in with info.
Back to bowser1985, the original post If you don't have the computer open them they are worthless and hamper performance. Either eliminate the IMRCs or make them work. Low cost solution: Open them up mechanically, but you'll lose some low end. Just my opinion.
Steve
 
B

bowser1985

New Member
Oct 12, 2008
18
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Oct 26, 2008
#10
  • Oct 26, 2008
  • #10
wat holdin mee backk

how do i know if i have the cobra computer??
 

blackfang

Founding Member
Dec 17, 2001
1,290
1
39
Richmond, Va
Oct 27, 2008
#11
  • Oct 27, 2008
  • #11
bowser1985 said:
how do i know if i have the cobra computer??
Click to expand...

Well you have a GT and you installed the engine. So if you did not install a new ECU that answers that question. I am not sure if the GT ECU's are the same as the Cobras and just the tuning parameters are different. PM SVTTech on here as he is a Ford Technician.
 
U

Uncle Meat

Banned
Jun 13, 2002
0
1
0
Prattville, Alabama
Oct 27, 2008
#12
  • Oct 27, 2008
  • #12
I believe the ECU's are in fact the same.

U.M.
 
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