5.0 Explorer Motor in 95 Mustang

[patford5090]

Hey guys...I have a 95 gt with 200,000 on a tired 302. It is all stock. I have a chance to purchase a 5.0 motor out of a ford explorer. I know I will have to use the headers that come with it because of the spark plug positions and even though it comes with the gt40 I have a 95 cobra upper and lower I plan to put on it. Other than that is it pretty much a direct drop in? Was curious if anyone had any experience with this swap. It has only 38,000 miles on it and I can get get it for $700. Good deal I think if it wont be a pain in the ass. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

 

[KamiKaziDK]

Sounds like a killer deal. I don't think explorer headers are going to fit on our exhaust though, you'll have to buy some "P" head specific headers and obviously swap out all the accessories, oil pan and what not, you'll probably want to swap out the camshaft too, I'm not incredibly sure what the specs on the explorer cam are so it might not be required at all if it has decent specs...I've never really looked into that, someone on here will know though.

 

[icemetalstang]

Yes swap cam all torque no hp. My buddy put a explorer motor in his and to had change the oil pressure sending unit. Also had to bolt up his pulley system. Dont look for more horsepower out of a stock explorer motor but he hand ported heads put on typhoon intake, tweecer, underdrive,cam, full exhaust(bbk lt, xpipe,flows), intake, drag radials, 3:90 gear, and the best time I seen was 13.4. Launched in 2nd. There are a few other things but cant remember off hand.
$700 is a great deal on a 5.0 motor that will fit.

 

[final5-0]

IIRC, some of those motors came with gt40 and NOT gt40p heads

Might wanna make sure before you buy headers

You just need to swap over the stuff hanging off the motor like pulley
brackets and the like cause 94-95 stuff will be needed

Grady

 

[BlownFiveLiter]

To make it fit you'll need to swap over from the Mustang engine:

Oil pump pickup tube & pan
Front accessories
Engine mounts
Front cover (though I've heard the Explorer cover is usable)
Balancer
Flywheel
Distributor
Heater core tubes on lower intake
Misc. sensors

If you have a Cobra upper and lower, you can simply swap over the upper to the Explorer engine. They're both GT40 based, so the upper is a direct swap and the lower can remain intact. You should definitely consider a cam swap while you have the front cover off, since it's not much more work, at that point. You may also want to look into a valve spring upgrade if you're going with an aftermarket cam. I'm sure the factory Explorer springs aren't exactly performance oriented and may bind with a decent lift on them.

 

[Chern_889]

To make it fit you'll need to swap over from the Mustang engine:

Oil pump pickup tube & pan
Front accessories
Engine mounts
Front cover (though I've heard the Explorer cover is usable)
Balancer
Flywheel
Distributor
Heater core tubes on lower intake
Misc. sensors

*SNIP*

You are dead on, I used the explorer front cover with no problems at all. You should also switch out the valve covers as the explorer ones are full of mounts for plug wire holders, which look ugly. Cams are fairly cheap, and you will regret not changing it later down the road, once the motor is in the car

The Explorer motors had the regular GT40 heads up until 96.5, then after that they switched to the GT40P heads, which will require a specific header. I run the FMS header, which fit great and are awsome quality. They are made for the fox body cars, but fit perfect except they do not have the peripherals for the EGR, which i eliminated anyways
Ford Racing M-9430-P50 - Ford Racing Hi-Flow Shorty Headers

Here is a great vid explaing the difference between the 40 and the 40P
YouTube - GT40p and GT40 Iron Cylinder Heads


Also check out my build thread, has some info about the swap
http://forums.stangnet.com/772975-my-budget-gt-40p-build-56k-better-take-nap.html

 

[02 281 GT]

IIRC, some of those motors came with gt40 and NOT gt40p heads

Might wanna make sure before you buy headers

You just need to swap over the stuff hanging off the motor like pulley
brackets and the like cause 94-95 stuff will be needed

Grady

Don't GT40P heads have a "P" cast into the surface of the cylinder head on the exhaust side? I can't remember, but I think they do. This would be an easy way to identify them.

 

[99FiveOh]

Actually, the GT40 heads came on the Explorer engines through the beginning of 97. I have one sitting in my shop right now and it has the 3 bar "GT" stamped castings.