LSrader

I'm new to the forum, and kind of new to these late model Mustangs, especially V6's. I'm from the old school, my stuff has always been pretty much 60's and early 70's muscle cars with V8's, carbs and distributors.

My son has a 1998 Mustang with a 3.8L V6 with automatic transmission, and I'm pretty sure it has thrown a rod or broken a piston. He is in college 240 miles away and has my pickup while I'm fixing his car. I thought I had an engine for it in Albuquerque, where he is at college, but it is an '02 engine and I was told that there were a lot of differences that would take quite a bit of work to change so it could be used in the '98.

What I need to know is what years and models have engines that will work in my son's car? I've also been told that a 4.0L V6 will work. I can use the intake, exhaust headers and front accessory drive components from his old engine but I don't want to get into a bunch of complicated stuff to have to change over. I appreciate any insight you folks could give me on this!

NeoTokyo

You would have to do whats called a SplitPort Swap.

The motors are interchangeable but you will need to change a couple things and alter the wiring harness and get a tune.

Going to a splitport is suggested for more power and reliability as they dont have the head gasket problems that 94-98 do.

Your looking at about $600 ontop of the cost of the motor, roughly.

It can cost more if you upgrade things or replace the water pump and T-Stat, in fact a lot of places wont warranty the motor unless you replace the water pump and T-Stat.


With the splitport you get 40hp more (About 50hp since you have to get a custom tune from VMP and the use of your stock headers) and reduced chance of head gasket problems.

So he will go from 150hp to 200hp

Stock VS stock.
94-95 = 145hp (Singleport)
96-98 = 150hp (Singleport)
99-00 = 190hp (Splitport)
01-04 = 193hp (Splitport)

LSrader

So for a bolt in engine I need a 94 to 98 3.8L engine? He really doesn't need the extra horsepower (already has 2 speeding tickets!) Will any 94 to 98 3.8L work? (Minivan, Ranger, etc.)

mustangman02232

mini van is FWD an will not work, a 99-04 will work im just not sure if all the sensors will bolt up, a 97+ 4.2 out of an f150 or E150 will also bolt in

jthorn9

Actually 94/95 v6s were slightly different than 96/98 V6s which are different from 99/00 V6s, which are different from 01/04 v6s and late 04s have a different V6.

In a nut shell they are all interchangeable with each other. They all use the same motor mounts, same install procedure and what not.

For a direct swap you need a 96/98 V6. The 94/95s use OBDI technology and EEC IV ecus. So they are setup a little differently than a 96+ that are all OBDII EEC V technology. Any 99-04 V6 will swap in, however you need the entire engine (oil pan to the air intake that goes into the fender well), the wiring harness, and the ECU. As they use a different air intake setup, different wiring harness, and ignition system (mainly spark plug wires and coil pack location and setup, should come on the new motor).

Also keep in mind that 94/95 and some early 96 Mustangs had severe head gasket failure problems. While all 94-04 Mustangs are prone to head gasket failure due to the difference in metals in the heads and the block, the 94/95s were more prone than any other year. In middle 96 Ford made better gaskets that dropped the failure rate, but not completely.

LSrader

Jthorn, are there better headgaskets on the market now that resolve the head gasket problem? Once I find an engine I don't mind pulling the heads to put in better gaskets.

LilRoush

Ford used better head gaskets after mid 96.
What you should look for is a 96,97,98 3.8L from a Mustang. They go for a couple hundred bucks from most junkyards.

LSrader

I found a 95 with a 3.8 in it locally that I might be able to pick up pretty reasonable, and I can pull the heads and put better head gaskets in it. How much hassle is it to deal with the OBDI/OBDII issue. Can all the sensors just be swapped out from the 98 engine that's still in the car or are there other issues?

NeoTokyo

While they were suppose to, it didnt really help too much because of the head design.
Aprils 96' blew hers and we have seen a lot of 97-98's with head gasket issues.

With these motor you can pretty much do whatever you want across the generations.

I would say though, if the head gasket isnt blow on it then just use it as it is.


Really if you want to kill this problem, going splitport is the best way.

LSrader

Well, I got a line on an '02 3.8 with only 24K on it for $500, but with the kid in college my budget is kind of tight and from what I've been told it's not cheap to set up the car for a split port engine.