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V6 ~ V8 engine swap

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Old Apr 28, 2009 | 05:34 PM
  #1  
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Default V6 ~ V8 engine swap

If you wanted to say swap out a v6 and put in a v8 into a originally v6 mustang, how much are you looking at having to do? ... new front suspension probably?.. limited slip rear end?... would my v6 manual transmission still mount?...because I can get a crate v8 for $3900 which is about the same price as most forced injection mods but you're still getting about the same HP gains without the risk of blowing your crank out because the v6 wasn't made to have turbo/super. I just don't know how many hidden costs there would be that would have to be changed with the bigger motor... I'm only 20 and i don't know a whole lot so i'm open to any and all information!
Old Apr 28, 2009 | 06:28 PM
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you would be better off selling your car and buying a gt imho
Old Apr 28, 2009 | 07:08 PM
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What he said.^^^^^^
Too much trouble on modern cars and in this case, you have to swap the tranny, the rear axle (weak and open style) etc...
Costly.
Old Apr 28, 2009 | 07:08 PM
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Originally Posted by rmodel65
you would be better off selling your car and buying a gt imho
I agree. With all the time and money you'd invest you are better off just getting a GT to begin with.
Old Apr 28, 2009 | 09:07 PM
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Originally Posted by taterchiprobb
If you wanted to say swap out a v6 and put in a v8 into a originally v6 mustang, how much are you looking at having to do? ... new front suspension probably?.. limited slip rear end?... would my v6 manual transmission still mount?...because I can get a crate v8 for $3900 which is about the same price as most forced injection mods but you're still getting about the same HP gains without the risk of blowing your crank out because the v6 wasn't made to have turbo/super. I just don't know how many hidden costs there would be that would have to be changed with the bigger motor... I'm only 20 and i don't know a whole lot so i'm open to any and all information!

First off the mustang is the most homogeneous vehicle I know of in terms of models. Every major component is the same where conceivable in any Mustang, so it has some of the simplest (but not cheapest) engine swaps.


Lots of parts of your post have something that strikes me as having something wrong with it...

You can definitely get a 4.6 v8 crate motor for $1500 shipped all day any day through regular channels.

Also while the v6 was never made to have a turbo or supercharger, it was built in an extremely unreliable way and Ford made it significantly more bulletproof than the v8 engine over it's development for that reason. The only reason the v8 and v6 still compare liter to liter with FI is because the v8 has very well built intake runners, throttle bodies, manifolds and it has variable valve timing which directly adds power. Yet the v6 can run 40% more boost without a problem based on some people's results.


Your transmission would neither mount nor be reliable but it would cost $10,000 to do everything any which way and you'd end up with 12% less horsepower and even less torque in a comparison to any $4000 range power adder.

I also want to let you know I'm not some crackpot on the subject of engine swaps, I was thinking about putting in 5.0l engine and weighing the process for doing it with many possibilities including all sorts of engines. I spent a lot of time looking at doing these.

Last edited by Legion5; Apr 29, 2009 at 12:46 PM.
Old Apr 29, 2009 | 07:36 AM
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Hey, I have an old coffee grinder guys, if you wanna do a engine swap...
Cheap.
Old Apr 29, 2009 | 08:17 AM
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Originally Posted by pascal
Hey, I have an old coffee grinder guys, if you wanna do a engine swap...
Cheap.
Neat, that would be like a bio-diesel car smelling like french fries except you're would be like finely ground espresso.
Seriously I think it would just be cheaper to swap out the whole car for a GT or go FI for the v6.
Old Apr 29, 2009 | 08:29 AM
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An engine swap isn't for those who are only marginally familiar with tools. It's an involved process (wiring harness, tranny, cooling, exhaust, driveshaft, rear-end, etc). Sure, a shade-tree mechanic can do it, but if you're not too talented of a mechanic (due to lack of experice), then you may want to opt for writing a check and letting a professional do the installation (w/ no malice intended to those who do the latter).

Forced induction on the 4.0L is a great option. The X-Charger looks like OEM-equipment (i.e. factory installed), while the PowerHouse turbo will safely generate optimal power levels while still keeping the car as a daily driver. There are other choices for FI as well - I only named two.

As the 4.0L S197's age and their price continues to drop, there will be more and more V8 swaps, just like the Fox Mustangs (IMO).
Old Apr 29, 2009 | 08:35 AM
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Originally Posted by 28HopUp

As the 4.0L S197's age and their price continues to drop, there will be more and more V8 swaps, just like the Fox Mustangs (IMO).

Haha, a wise man can guess a trend.
We'll prolly see aftermarket harnesses being made for such swaps.


And Ato... They're called Freedom fries!
Get it right!
Old May 3, 2009 | 06:40 PM
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So it would be cheaper and better in the long run to put an X charger on v6 than to put a gt engine?



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