new 418 stroker and other winter mods

[MustangNJ]

so last summer I spent a lot of time thinking about what I was going to do for new power in the car.  rebuild the 351, swap the 306 from my Bronco, swap the 545 from my 78 F150, etc.  I made the decision to buy a new 418 crate motor from Engine Factory. its 525hp with a custom cam that will deliver most of the power/torque between 2000 - 3500rpm, with redline of 5800.  so yes, the number matching 351w is gone.  the car is low production Mex Mach 1, but i decided to rest-mod because that is what I wanted to drive.

last summer I did: suspension, brakes, transmission, steering and a 3.73 Auburn posi

This winter I am now just finishing: crate motor, headers, exhaust, rear wheels, clutch, radiator

I went shorty headers because the z-bar was interfering with the long tubes and I didn't want to convert to hydraulic clutch.

getting close on finishing. the last thing will be stance. its sitting in a "pounce" stance right now, in part because the new motor weighs less than the old one.  I am going to raise the rear up, and bring the nose down.  maybe new leafs in back, lowering springs in front, I don't know yet but would like to hear how others have done this.  I don't really think blocks in the back is a good idea as the torque from the new motor will already be causing wrap, and i don't have track bars yet

video of engine running on stand:

motor on stand running

 

[MustangNJ]

here's a pic of the stance right now. the back needs to come up and the front needs to come down. I don't like the pounce/squat look.  does anyone have any tips on raising the rear and dropping the nose?  new leafs in the back and lower springs in front? thanks

 

[MustangNJ]

I think I will raise the rear with shackles and add slappers while I'm at it. the front will get drop spindles if I can find them. I think thats better than trying to just use lowering springs.

 

[tony-muscle]

The rear will rise about half the height difference of the shackle. I bought the taller ones that NPD has, which they are Eaton.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk

 

[pedstagn71]

I took the slapper bars off and put Caltrax on and it made a world of difference.   I have 450hp at 4500rpm and 530 FTLb of torque

 

[MustangNJ]

stance is fixed. you can't see the slapper bars in the pics but they are on.

 

[MustangNJ]

its not the best video, but you get the idea

 

[MustangNJ]

WOW! just drove the Mach 1 for the first time with the new motor, suspension changes, headers etc. this car is fast !!! I only used 30% throttle at red lights and its blowing away new cars. the performance, ride quality and sound are a world better than last fall. the car is now truly exciting....I guess thats what you get with 550hp, 3.73 posi and a 4sp.

 

[tony-muscle]

WOW! just drove the Mach 1 for the first time with the new motor, suspension changes, headers etc.  this car is fast !!!  I only used 30% throttle at red lights and its blowing away new cars.  the performance, ride quality and sound are a world better than last fall.  the car is now truly exciting....I guess thats what you get with 550hp, 3.73 posi and a 4sp.

Nice. You should be spinning those tires in first gears very easily. Are those BFG 295s in the rear?

 

[MustangNJ]

295s yup. the motor has less than 100 miles on it, so I have not pushed it. burnouts will be coming soon.

its not washed, but you can see how the stance is very different now.  it drives to much better now

 

[MustangNJ]

So I just got back from my first 1hr drive. the car is so much better. after 1hr of driving, engine temp is 180, at stop lights, the idle is about 500. since its a stroker, at 500rpm it idles like a drag car, like its about to stall. of course it also shakes the whole car at 500rpm. when the car is not up to temp, such a low idle is actually causing the car to stall, so every stop requires 3 feet: clutch, gas, brake. although its cool in a way, I feel like the idle should be closer to 1,000. anybody have any thoughts on that?

 

[73pony]

I have to idle mine around 900 as per the cam specs. Any lower and it doesn’t like it.

 

[jpaz]

So I just got back from my first 1hr drive.  the car is so much better.  after 1hr of driving, engine temp is 180, at stop lights, the idle is about 500. since its a stroker, at 500rpm it idles like a drag car, like its about to stall. of course it also shakes the whole car at 500rpm.  when the car is not up to temp, such a low idle is actually causing the car to stall, so every stop requires 3 feet: clutch, gas, brake.  although its cool in a way, I feel like the idle should be closer to 1,000. anybody have any thoughts on that?

You need to Not let it idle like that! You can mess up your cam like that, not enough oil pressure and it’s new, so it could use more idle than normal for awhile. Like 73 pony said he’s at 900, so you should be around there too. Just depends on what the engine likes, but don’t let it idle so low where it’s just lopping and barely running. It’s not good for your engine at all.

 I just got my engine rebuilt and I have a pretty good size cam and I keep it at 1000 ish at idle in park but I have an auto so in gear it drops down to 750-800.

 

[EdM]

My 427 Windsor idles well at 900 rpm and drops to 800 rpm when the AC is flipped on. It dynoed at 470 hp (5400 rpm) and 560 ft-lbs of torque (3700 rpm). With the Tremec 5 speed it is a beast yet an easy to drive car.

 

[MustangNJ]

thanks guys. I noted in the engine stand video my builder sent me, the idle is around 1000 at temp. somewhere between the engine build and install/running in car, the warm idle is closer to 500. I need to get that sorted. its a quickfuel carb that I don't know much about, so I will call the builder.

btw, this engine is rated for 525hp, with a custom cam to deliver all the power below 5000, its a blast to drive with a 4sp.

 

[turtle5353]

Yeah my 408C is around 1000 rpm. Lower in gear. around 750. It would help to bump it up just a touch. Only take a second to turn the idle screw slightly. If you have a roller cam it wont hurt it as bad as if you had a flat tappet cam. That low of rpm at idle with a flat tappet cam can wipe out a lobe pretty easily.

 

[MustangNJ]

got it adjusted so at temp its idling nicely at 1000. man this car is fun after all the winter mods. next up are easy things: headlights and seats.

next winter I hope to get into the dash and electrical as I am planning to add A/C. right now I have no heat, a/c or evening the fan working. the wipers work !

 

[Mjordan]

My 427 Windsor idles well at 900 rpm and drops to 800 rpm when the AC is flipped on. It dynoed at 470 hp (5400 rpm) and 560 ft-lbs of torque (3700 rpm). With the Tremec 5 speed it is a beast yet an easy to drive car.

Building a 408 Clevor and tremec. What accessory drive system did you use?