Maybe a bit more than $2,000. That amount will get you a decent set of used heads, a nice cam, and a used intake manifold. Then you have to tune the ECU...not to mention injectors and MAF. And even then you're gonna need some good tires and maybe a set of gears. And if you got the car bone stock then you're gonna need an exhaust also. Factor in the cost of labor and you're looking at a good deal of money...
Money, and time, and curse words, and trips to and from the local parts store (within walking distance)...
No need to go cheap on the cam. Considering all the money you're gonna put into it, the cam will be the least expensive...and most critical considering the time, cost, and labor to swap it out again. You can get a really good (performance wise) cam for a tad over $200. Go used and they can be had for about $125-$150.
While those are good prices for heads I don't think you're gonna find a good aftermarket head (not talking about E-streets or Flo-Teks) for that low of a price...at least not every day. That may be a once in a long while sale. And even with a good aftermarket head you'd be hard pressed to make 275 rwhp through the stock Foxbody exhaust. And even if you do its not like that's a normal occurrence. And that power still won't get you into the 12s on stock tires and the stock gears.. Granted most of us would prefer to do our own labor. Still you can't ignore the fact that some don't have the time or tools or space or even the know how to do such work. A head swap is not like an intake manifold swap. And a cam swap is even more involved. How many threads do you see on here where someone pulled their engine apart and put it back together and now it won't start or run right? You factor in all the probable costs and you're not going from bone stock to the 12's on a $2,000 budget.
Did you actually read that article Nik? He barely squeaked into the 12's and put out plenty of cash and did away with all kinds of amenities to do it. Not to mention he had to run the car within and inch of it's life to do it.
If you think $2,500 for a top end kit, plus another $1,000 and 10-15 hours in labour to have it installed (assuming a person hasn't the know how, or the facilities to do it themselves) is cheap and easy, then more power to you.
Did you actually read that article Nik? He barely squeaked into the 12's and put out plenty of cash and did away with all kinds of amenities to do it. Not to mention he had to run the car within and inch of it's life to do it.
Nothing about that read sounded simple.
No a/c, power steering, or smog equipment. No swaybar, removal of various front end bracketry (safety concern). Stripped interior components, etc.
Just look at what he stripped out of the car!?!
He then added an electric fan, battery relocation kit, aftermarket CAI with MAF meter, O/R mid pipe and dumped exhaust system, gear swap with drag wheels and tires, upper and lower control arms, etc.
Right there is not only a list of parts I would not consdider removing from "my" car, but over $3,000 worth of parts and labour just to do the deed.
Running 12's is possible with a stock-ish Fox body, but I wouldn't consider it easy, or cheap.
Gearbanger 101 are you reading AT ALL?!I literally think i have the worlds slowest foxbody. I bought the car a few months back. The owner said it was stock longblock with a b303 cam. Its got longtubes, an full exh, a cai, 3.55s, electric fans, and a short throw. I just put a 125 shot on it and i took it to the track sunday and ran horrible. The first pass was on motor and ran a 14.8. Im a pretty good driver so i know thts completely out the question . I got the timing set at 12 degrees when i put the nitrous on. On the bottle it ran a 13.9. I mean it should run tht on motor and was hoping for 12s on spray. Idk what to try to fix i mean the car runs good. Any suggestion?
You guys are looking at extremes and saying that it can be done. Sure if I had a Fox as a project car with the sole purpose of running a 12 second 1/4 mile then I could strip it down to barely streetable and rip everything out of it and run a 12 second quart on a stock motor. But that also assumes I have a place to do all the stripping and to store all the parts along with the time and tools and know how to effectively accomplish this task and still make it track worthy. And EVEN then it will BARELY make it into the 12's, the motor will be shot to crap, and you're still gonna spend a decent amount of money. Unless you're a very experienced mechanic with a welder, mandrel bender, a lift, power tools, extra time to spare, a few friends to help, etc, etc.
What used heads are you gonna find for less than $900? Certainly not anything good. But let's entertain your previous estimate of $1850 total. Well this OP is probably not gonna be able to do a HCI swap. So figure in another $1,00 for labor...and that's a VERY low price. So now you're at $2800. Add a set of injectors for another $100 and your total becomes $2900. If he feels lucky enough to put the combo together and run it then he should play the lotto if he makes a 12 sec pass...because the engine is either gonna run soo rich that it'll foul the plugs out, or it'll be soo lean that it'll blow up at the end of the pass. But more than likely he's gonna need a FPR, a wideband AFR gauge, and a fuel pressure gauge. So add another $450 (conservative) to that cost and now you're at $3350. And thats if he's lucky enough to just so happen to find all these items at all these incredible prices all at the same time. For craps and giggles lets say he spends a bit of money on shipping and you'll easily make it to $3500...easily.
you guys claim is necessary. How many factory boosted cars do???
