The Stang Mang

I got a few questions that i can't seem to nail down by using the search function, and any help would be great.
Alright so i bought a 89 5.0 last year and its got the regular bolt ons, and i'm looking for a bit more power, but on a budget of course ( I'm 18).

So, are gt-40 heads worth it? I've read they can only support 340 horse.
If so what year range explorer can i find them on? And whats a good price for them?

And on a side note, what are some good engine mods for under $1,000?
I already have ford racing headers, bbk h pipe, ford racing cat back (no cats), bbk cai, smog delete, intake spacer, and 4:10 gears on the way.
Any ideas would be appreciated.

I'm sure these issues have been covered numinous times, but it gets tiring searching through 10 pages of threads looking for a specific answer. Lol. And i figure i'd give you mustang guru's something to do.

86 5.0L

stickie tires and a nitrous kit

The Stang Mang

I'm waitin on the man in the brown to bring me my new 17x9 saleen replicas, 245/45 nitto 555's and 275/40 nitto drag radials, and a 5 lug conversion kit, so i'm ahead of ya on that one.
I thought about nitrous kit, but i think i want to stick with mostly strait motor mods, i like the idea of nit relying on some juice to get me the power.
But thanks for the ideas.

86 5.0L

true stickie tires > those drag radial wannabes

auto or 5spd?

The Stang Mang

Haha, It's my DD though.
Its a 5 spd. I also have a steeda tri ax on the way. (Gotta love grad money)

kilby94

The GT-40 heads off an 96-early 97 Explorers had a 64cc combustion chamber which would lower your compression. But they can be milled down a little. The GT-40P heads that came on Explorers 97 1/2'-98' had 59cc chambers and a redesigned spark plug location. Both are better than the stock e7's by a long shot. And if you can make 340 rwhp with them, then you have spent alot of money doing it. The average GT-40 combo probably makes 260-290 rwhp. That is with all bolt ons and a good cam. I run a set of GT-40P heads on my car that i picked up for $275 shipped to my door. I then put a decent p&p job on the exhaust ports, and i am happy with them.

You need to upgrade fuel pump, adjustable fuel pressure regulator, MAF, and a good tune up never hurts. If your doing all the labor yourself $1000 can get you a pretty decent setup. But don't expect to break 300 rwhp..

The Stang Mang

Great Info Kilby, This helps alot.
Where did you get those heads for $275?

FivePointOhh

here is a tip. leave your motor alone. you have a lot of gear for a 5speed on stock set up. suspension suspension suspension.

with a good driver on 410 gears, sticky tires and suspension you'll net yourself a low 13, high 12 second car. being 18 i assume this is pretty much your DD? doing suspension is easy, inexpensive(relatively speaking) and quick. you'll complete most suspension upgrades within a couple of hours.

once you have a decent base, either bolt on a used supercharger or then begin your HCI.... you'll thank me later

kilby94

I searched ebay for a while and came across a guy that had several seats of GT-40P's that he had pulled off wrecked vehicles over the last few years. Another place to look would be the classifieds at corral.net. Also if your gonna reuse older heads, it would be in your best interest to give them a valve job. I did mine as cheap as i could and only lapped the valve seats with some friction compound, but if i could do it again i would have had the seats re-cut. It adds a little cost but will increase performance over time. Another costs that will be mandatory if reusing older heads is valve springs. Never re-use old stock valve springs!!!!

You know that with the GT-40p heads and their different spark plug angles, header fitment can be a bitch sometimes. As well as changing spark plugs. I prefer them over regular 40's but are a bit more of a pain in the ***.

Richard

kilby94

I agree with you that suspension is important and can net you great gains.

But with a stock engine and 4:10 gears i don't see that running very good. A stock motor quits making power right around 5,000 rpm. With just a set of gt-40's, decent intake, cam, that power band will increase to maybe 5,800-6,000 rpm.. That would let you use more of your power to get down the track.

With that said, i think the first thing that i did to my car was put upper/lower control arms, 50/50 rear shocks, and eibach drag springs on it..