I ahve a local junkyard that has both a 2.3 turbo and a 5.0 and i was wondering wich one would be better to put into my 87 bird?
What are the hp on both and what could i do to both when im done?.............
(how much would it cost to..... ;) )
I wouldnt bother with the hassle of swapping to go smaller, even if it is turbo'd. Bottom line, when all is said and done with after the swap, you will have a 4cyl when you coulda had an 8 cyl. Definately go with the 5.0.
2.3T is a cool engine and everything, as a matter of fact I've been looking for a TC myself... but as chrome302 said, it's not worth the work, unless you're a 2.3 guru like Chuck. 5.0 is the easier of the two.
and I believe the 5.0 has a bazillion more aftermarket parts than the turbo 4
ok now thats thats settled has anyone ever had a shop put an engine in before? how much did it cost? how long did it take? the engine is a 5.0 out of a crown vic, its got an aod,mfi, and its $650
5.0 is cheaper. Go with that. If you got the funds (and determination) you can fool around with the 2.3t. Be aware that wiring a 2.3t is no picnic. Now if i had the funds i would ditch my 5.0 in a heartbeat. Everybody and their momma has one. Just like Mustangs.
2.3Lt = 190 HP
5.0ho = 225 HP
5.0so = 150 HP
NO man don't do it(5.0 out of a crown vic) it's only got like 25 more hp than your 3.8l and falls flat on it's face at 4500rpm.
For 650 bucks you should be able to find an HO out of a stang,think about it 225hp!
Put one in my TC after ditching the cool but troublesome 2.3lTurbo and even with 16psi of boost the 2.3l doesn't hold a candle to the 5.0HO's HP and torque not to mention all of the performance parts that are available for later down the road.
Do the HO you'll love it.
I thougth we were supposed to keep shag off the board???? :D
OH you mean HO 5.0.... Yea I agree...
i dont think they have a ho there.......... is there any way that a so can become a ho?
and also still would like to know the price on an install seeing as i dont have anywhere near the experience or tools to do this. did any other car have the ho in it cause i didnt know if thats a stang only
The '86-'92 LSC Lincolns had the HO, with the '88-92 having the 225 Hp('86-'87 LSC had the 200hp HO). At any rate you can use the engine, but will need the wiring harness from a 5.0 Bird or Stang...
Since you are going to have to pay for the engine, harness, computer, etc as well as labor for the swap, you may just want to think about buying a V8 Bird and selling your V6 Birdie.... Would probably cost you less and would be a lot less hassle....
you know theres a older couple down the road with a 5.0 i wonder if they would trade me for my nice little 3.8 cruiser. the only thing i can see wrong with it is the paint looks like a cow, splotches of it everywhere
I knew you guys would catch that but what can i say i love my HO! :rollin:
Yeah, unfortunately 2 swap cars would be ideal. A Lincoln LSC/mustang to the the 5.0 HO engine and a V8 bird to get the harnesses/motormounts/and all the little things you dont think about. Thats what I did, luckily I a friend had a v8 bird he gave me for less than $200 and a complete Lincoln LSC for $400, both of the cars I sold for junk although I wish I kept the V8 bird even though I raped it of all usefull part before they took it. ;) Oh yeah, dont forget a TC rear end, and grab the trans from the V8 bird too...See the list keeps getting longer and longer. :crazy:
Bah..no different than any other swap.... It's not like the 2.3T never came in a Tbird/Cougar.
For me it was the "backwards"..or as some might say.."pointless" 5.0 to 2.3T swap... Hell, it was easy. The Ranger was more difficult.
2.3Ts can give miles of troublefree driving and the power is there if you know how to find it. The swap is not for most though as many blame the "mystical powers of hanging a turbo on an engine" for all/any problems instead of their lack of knowledge or ability. It's an EEC4 car just like the rest...it's not voodoo...
All that being said, most know what direction "I" would take, but it's "your" car and if you have to ask which one is "better"...you probably don't want to do the 2.3T swap.
At least keep it EFI....don't digress to carb...
you know...if it was a turbo coupe from the factory id say keep it a 2.3t and not molest the car. if it were anything else (sport lx 5.0 or 3.8) and id go with the V8 HO swap.
chuck...you realy seem to be the 2.3 turbo to-go-man...i was considering doing something with my 96 ranger...5 speed 2wd regcab, 4 cyl. the 5.0 would be cool and all but the idea of the 2.3t is pretty sweet. any ideas? what needs to be done and what options are their?
I think I'm more the "anti-5.0 man" than anything...or the "King of pointless engine swaps (as I have been called)" :giggle:
As far as the Ranger goes, I'm not as familiar with the Gen3's. Hop on over to turborangers.org and do some digging. There are several guys who have dealt with the wiring harness issues and the like. Mine was "simple" in the fact that really the '87 2.3NA Ranger harness and the turbo harneses were very close in regards to layout and pin-outs. The later trucks got a different ECU harness IIRC and are a bit more tedious to do. I also don't remember when they switched to EEC5...which changes things too.
Most guys stay with their existing tranny if it was a 2.3 to begin with. Mine wasn't (2.9/A4LD)..so I did the T-5 swap at the same time I did the engine.
If you want to keep the A/C there are a few other things to contend with as well.
Pay a visit, do some reading and I'm sure you'll find most of the questions answered.
As far as "molesting" the car...mine is better than it ever was as a 5.0 car....and to me the 2.3T is more satisfying.
i'm going to have to say 5.0. it's easy do to already being an automatic for one. second, the 87-88 birds are no the lightest little creature in the world.
but, if you want something interesting, do the turbo 2.3. i personally love them. they're easy to tweak, have a nicer torque curve then a V8 (i was never afraid of a supercharged mustang...but, there was the twin turbo vette the one time..), and if you want the car to handle, instead of going straight, you knock off around 80-100 pounds easily.
set of aluminum heads on a smallblock will do almost that for ya!
The 5.0 would probably be easier in the long run if you don't know your way around the 2.3T. I will say that a 2.3T would be a ton of fun and get much better gas mileage(if you can keep your foot out fo it). I always loved going to the track and smoking a 5.0 and then popping the hood to this tiny little 2.3 in a big heavy TC. This year(if I have enough time to get it back together) we're going to be playing with the supercharged and nitroused 5.0's.
ah forget it, just do a twin turbo 5.0 swap and you can have it both ways.