I'm ressurrecting this thread because I'm going to ressurrect the car in question, my '89 Mustang LX hatch that was built with a 2.3L/A4LD combo. The original axle and wheels and interior are all long gone, along with the 2.3 and A4. Right now it's sitting in the East corral, (fitting for a 'stang, no?) with a 5.3L version of the LS1, and an empty 4L60E sitting in it for lack of anywhere else to store it. But now I'm going to chronicle what to do to improve a 2.3L mustang for the least money. I've spent days figuring the costs of a Ford 347 stroker, a Ford 351W, a Chevy LS1, and a Chevy 350.
I live at 4500' elev., and anything less than about 340 ci just is NOT enough. Now, I know how to get the 350 to return 27 mpg highway, so that's the build I'm going for. If you're copying this, heres the first part of your shopping list: 235/60R15 rear tires, 225/60R15 front tires, a 700R-4, a Painless Wiring lockup kit, a good QuadraJet carburetor or some form of EFI, a double-hump (for dual exhaust) trans crossmember from a 5.0/AOD '86-'93 Mustang, and from here on each thing can go one of 2 ways. But one key point is that the 700R-4 is extremely similar, dimensionally, to the AOD, and I expect the AOD driveshaft to work fine with just a conversion-style u-joint at the front, and a 700R-4 slip yoke. of course a new rear joint while I'm at it, and having the assembly checked for straightness and re-balanced. I'll use a Camaro mount, but still the AOD crossmember drops too low, by something like 1.6", but I'll get to that later.
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