Newbie needs Engine/Tranny Rebuild Advise

[GT4HUTCH]

Hi there, I am new here... in fact this is my first post and I need some help with a project i have. I am in Iraq right now and my girl told me that the car was leaking all over the garage and it was "stinky". It is an 89 lx with about 146k on it. it is stock exept for mac exhaust and pypes o/r xpipe. my mechanic said that it''s leaking oil from the back of the driver side valve cover and from the back of the intake manifold, and quite possibly the rear main seal as well but he's not sure yet. i got to thinking, the motor doesn't have much left. nows a good time to yank it out and go through it. i just found out that i''m going to be a father shortly after my return! so this is a budget built. that''s were you guys come in.

my mechanic suggested boring it out .030, dropping in a new set of pistons, adding a little "junk talking" lunati cam (don't have specs), a set of shortie headers, and opening up the stock heads. I decided to go a little farther with it though. I'm going with some alluminum heads, 24lb. injectors, bigger fuel pump, new intake manifold, TB and MAF sensor(not sure what size to use though), CAI, gears(3.55's out of my '06 or maybe 3:73's), MSD 6AL ignition, and a new coil. This car has an AOD so i told him to go through it also. Are there any recommendations for beefing up the tranny as well. I know B&M makes a "transkit" performace shift kit and a master racing overhaul kit. Would one of these be a wise decision? Anything else...manual valve body, torque converter, etc. I'd like to put a B&M hammer ratchet shifter just to make it a little more fun.

1. I'm leaning toward the polished cobra manifold with GT40x heads. Any other suggestions?

2. What size TB and MAF sensor for this set up?

3. What kind of power will something like this make?

4. Am i missing anything?

5. How much stall on torque converter?

6. What gear ratio did this car come with from the factory? I've been told 2:73 and 3:05

My goal is to have a RELIABLE lil ride thats quite a bit quicker and way more fun to drive that what it is now. This is my daily driver. The others stay in the corral waiting to stretch their legs a bit on the weekends. I apologize about the length. I've asked around a bit but didn't get much feedback yet. I sure do appreciate all the help. I'll be like a whole new car when i get home! :SNSign:

HUTCH

 

[jrichker]

Welcome to Stangnet... " suggests

Not all of us know how to fix everything, but some of us know how to fix some things with excellence!

The phrase "my mechanic" suggests trouble in the making. Older cars require more maintenance just due to the fact that they are older. Modifying an older car adds a whole new dimension to the problem. In order to keep "my mechanic" from owning your wallet, you need to have sufficient mechanical skills and tools to do a major part of the work. If you are not inclined or able to do the modifications, it will be very expensive, and the reliability will be a problem.

If you want to do the fix up & power up thing, make sure that you have some other form of reliable daily driver. That way the stang can sit while your wallet and hands take a rest from the last project that didn't quite get finished on that 3 day weekend. Things always cost more and take longer the first time you do them. Having some other working vehicle makes life easier since it isn't the big crush to get it running for the Monday morning drive to work or class.

Plan on spending some money on tools it you don't already have them. The stang has both metric and american fasteners, so you really need two sets of wrenches. A timing light, digital voltmeter, vacuum gauge, compression tester, fuel pressure test gauge and fuel line coupler tools are some of the test & tuning tools you'll need. Visit the pawn shops and sometimes you can find a deal on tools & test equipment if you stick to well known name brands.

A sheltered work area is almost a must, someplace that you can leave the car in pieces without upsetting anyone. Some guys here have changed a transmission in the parking lot of their apartment in a rainstorm, but they will tell you it wasn't fun. Depending on where you live, a warm dry garage is a nice place to do the winter projects that stangs tend to become.

EFI (Electronic Fuel Injection) Computer - every stang after 85 has or had one: don't let it intimidate you. The computer based EFI systems are not hard to fix and most of the time they tell you what's wrong with the engine. Here's a book that will get you started with how the Ford electronic engine control or "computer" works.

Ford Fuel Injection & Electronic Engine Control 1988-1993 by James Probst :ISBN 0-8376-0301-3.

It's about $25-$30 from Borders.com see http://www.amazon.com/ . Select boo...d.php?t=643651"]Useful Technical Thread Index” sticky at the top of the 5.0 Tech forum.

Things that break often:
T5 5 speed manual transmission (syncros go bad, mostly 3rd gear)
TFI Module (Thin Film Ignition module - mounts on the distributor)
Electric door locks (see the link in my sign for a cheap & easy fix)
O2 sensors(oxygen sensors) They are good for about 60,000 miles and start to go down hill after that.
TPS Sensor (Throttle Position Sensor) causes flaky problems with idle & acceleration.
Fog lights They overheat the wiring and cause the headlights to flicker. The fix is cheap and simple if you can do electrical stuff.
Harmonic Balancer – they separate between the hub and outer ring. A harmonic balancer puller is a must have to change it. You can rent or borrow a puller from most of the larger auto parts stores.

Things that are very durable:
Engine - as long as it hasn't been abused, it will run good for 150,000-200,000 miles without an overhaul
Rear axle other than an occasional case of worn clutches in the traction lock, they almost never have problems.
Computer - believe it or not, the computers seldom have problems of their own. Most of the problems are with the sensors and the wiring.
Suspension – the front and rear suspension has very few problems if the car hasn’t been wrecked or seen a lot of drag strip runs. The drag strip runs tend to distort and tear the mount points for the rear axle control arms. Revving the engine up to 4000 RPM and dumping the clutch with slicks or drag radials tends to break things.

Things that don’t break often but are hard to fix:
Water pump mount bolts – they corrode and shear off when you try to change the water pump.
Rear oil seal on the engine – lots of parts to remove to get to a $20 seal.
Power steering pump – the pumps are noisy and the pulley requires some special tools to remove and install. If you have the tools, they are easy to do. Again, the larger auto parts stores will rent or loan the tools for the pulley.
Power Steering rack - it is hard to get the toe in set so that you can drive the car to the shop to get it properly aligned.
Starter – the top bolt is hard to get a socket on if you don’t have the right combination of socket, universal joint and extensions.

Everything considered, 5.0 Mustangs are not hard to work on. They just require some patience and though before you get started.

 

[GT4HUTCH]

I appreciate the info. Perhaps i should explain a little better. I am in Iraq right now so there is no imediate rush to get the car on the road. My lady and i are expecting a baby shortly after i get home. I want the car done before then. Once the baby is here, this would end up being one of those projects that gets put off for a long time. The reason i am putting it together IS to be a daily driver. I have 2 other mustangs so i've got alternate means of transportation, but that's not an issue given my current location.

I have tools and i have a garage. What i don't have is the knowledge to best achieve my goal with this car or the time to get it done before i get back. My "mechanic" takes care of all my cars, and right now we are just scouting and price comparing parts. He isn't charging me and isn't going to tear into anything until we agree upon exactly what i want him to do. He is a very knowledgeable mechanic with many years as a ford tech before opening his own shop. He has a wicked 347 introus injected fox that he races as well. He is know locally as a ford small block wizard. I trust him with this build, it's not like he's just some strange dude.

Just looking for a little guidance on picking the right combo.

Thank you for the link. the door lock thing might come in handy.

HUTCH

 

[2000xp8]

If you are going to use gt40x heads, you might as well just get the ford racing gt40x crate engine.
Comes with a 12,000 mile warranty last time i checked.
Then you add your cobra intake, 65mm tb, 24lb injectors, and a pmas meter and you are done.
Ya, it seems like it's going to come out to be more than a rebuild+the parts seperately, but it really doesn't when you consider you are at a mileage where pretty much everything needs to be replaced if you are going to do it.

And most other engines have no warranty.

 

[ID89GT]

Lol if thats gonne be a budget build, then damn...

AND your paying someone to do it :O

Gonna be pretty expensive for a budget build lol