Reliability

[diablostang]

Guys,

I'm sure this question has been asked a thousand times over, so apologies in advance

I'm looking at buying a 89 Hatch 2.3L Auto to daily drive. My Cobra is awesome, but it's expensive to maintain. I've got a 91 GT 5 spd to daily drive right now, I'm getting 20MPG mix city/highway.. So would the 2.3L Auto get much better? And how reliable are the engines? Last a good 200K miles if maintained properly? I've had a stock 5.0 last me 250K before, because I always take good care of them..


So lemme know what yall think.. What's looking best right now is the difference in price between selling my GT and buying the 4 cyl, but it'd be nice to get better gas mileage with just as much reliability.

 

[Hickfied]

The Auto wont last at all, worst tranny ford ever made. If you get a 5 spd, a 4cyl can last way over 250k if proper maintained. if you drive like a granny you can get 30mpg, I take it to 5k or more everytime I have to shift and I get 22mpg.

 

[sleeper_inc]

I've seen a car with a 1000000 km's on the bolck, 150000 on the rebuild, but this was an older person (in their 90's)

 

[kevinspann]

The A4LD auto does suck for reliability. Heat kills it, so if you do get the automatic, an inexpensive transcooler will be money very well spent. Hell even if you go the JY and find one from a 4.0l ranger, it will be better than nothing. I dont think you will notice a huge increase in gas mileage with the auto though.
What kind of driving do you do?

The engines will last for quite a while (200k properly maintained, at least), the TFI modules do go bad though, as im sure youre aware of with your 91

Swapping to a Ranger roller cam is a good cheap thing that you can do to add a bit more torque, and the roller cam will last longer as well.

If youve got a cobra and a GT, you will be highly disappointed with how slow the 2.3 is.

 

[sleeper_inc]

91's had MAF (no TIF)

 

[kevinspann]

91's had MAF (no TIF)

What the hell is a TIF?

Yeah i know that the 91s had mass air, not speed density

Im talking about the TFI module on the distributer that tends fail on alot of cars...even the 94-94 GTs and other fords had them , albeit remotely mounted to get them away from some of the heat that would make them fail

 

[sleeper_inc]

Sorry, I miss spelt it.

 

[bluestang2.3]

Well, my 91 hatchack has just over 287K on the original trans and engine and I tow a boat with it too. I've replaced just about every single chassis part on it and a good portion of the engine's electronics but have had no major mechanical problems with the engine or tranny. I get good mileage averaging 20 in city, 30 on highway at 65mph, 27 at 85mph and 15 on highway pulling da boat at 65. Max speed with boat is 75 at 4,000 rpm on the level, lol, but then I get 12 mpg.



I have added a large trans cooler and make sure to change the fluid regularly(and filter). I also added load bearing shocks on the rear to help with the loads I carry. The shocks really help with cornering too and especially come in handy in Chicago's winter when you have to add 100# or more of sand to keep on the road All in all I say it's a good strong engine but have heard the trans(auto) are garbage. Knock on wood, mine's not though. Maintenance is the key to any vehicle. Change oil, flush the coolant, change trans filter and fluid regularly and you should have many years on the road.

My thoughts-Jeff
287K and rising

 

[ethangsmith]

My carbed 86 2.3L has 218K on it. My 88 mustang 2.3L has 76K on it and runs like new. Agreed with above posts- the A4LD automatic can be trouble. My 88 has that transmission so I installed a B&M supercooler in line with the cooler inside the radiator so that way I don't have to worry about burning anything up. An 89 would have the TFI distributor-mounted ignition module, but if installed properly (heat-sink compound applied to the back) it should be just fine. If you do have issues with it, there are TFI relocator kits available for cheap.