84 XR-7 Project Reply #90 – April 06, 2017, 09:43:54 AM I would think that the physical part of the engine swap would be just like putting one into a Fox Body Mustang? Quote Selected
84 XR-7 Project Reply #91 – April 06, 2017, 12:29:18 PM Can't you just drop the engine in from the top? Quote Selected
84 XR-7 Project Reply #92 – April 06, 2017, 02:06:17 PM Yeah, the swap is the same as a Fox Mustang, with it's own quirks. For me, it's going to be easier to drop the body onto the cart. I don't have lift brackets and there isn't a place that makes me feel comfortable attaching chains to lift the engine and transmission. My hoist doesn't go high enough to clear the radiator support with the amount of tilt I have to work with either. After I remove the valve covers, the engine should clear the sway bar mounts. This transmission is a beast as well, so wrestling the trans to mount it to the engine laying on my side is out of the question. Quote Selected
84 XR-7 Project Reply #93 – April 06, 2017, 03:26:23 PM If they have access to a lift most of the modular guys just drop the k-member out of the car with the engine and trans attached and lift the car off of it. This is how Ford supposedly does it but I have never seen them do it just read the service procedure for R&R'ing a motor.I finally remembered where I saw the sway bar relocation kits:http://www.maximummotorsports.com/MM-Swaybar-Relocation-Kit-C83.aspx Quote Selected
84 XR-7 Project Reply #94 – April 06, 2017, 04:16:42 PM Those kits look to move the sway bar forward and not relocate the mounts to under the frame rail like on the SN95. My k-member doesn't move the wheels forward. I'll remember to look into those when I decide to upgrade to the MM k-member. Yeah, it's easier to remove the engine by lifting the body off. While we don't have a lift, the car is stripped enough to be able to use an engine hoist on the bumper reinforcement mounts, or even using the front rotisserie unit. Once the underside and engine compartment are painted, I expect the engine to be mounted in less than an hour. Quote Selected
84 XR-7 Project Reply #95 – April 07, 2017, 09:10:12 AM Read Post #15 & #16http://forums.corral.net/forums/member-build-up-projects/1890402-coyote-swap-into-89-fox-convertible.html Quote Selected
84 XR-7 Project Reply #96 – June 06, 2017, 12:29:37 AM I haven't updated this in 2 months. I stepped away from this to try and concentrate on getting it done. I gave it my best shot, but it was just too much to get done. I'll start throwing some pics and talking about what I've been doing. I just wanted to get this thing bumped back to the top and admit defeat. I'll be plugging away at the car when I have time.I'd like to have it moving under its own power in the next month or so...before we move. Mid-July or early August we leave for South Carolina. I don't know how long after we leave I'll be able to bring the car down. Quote Selected
84 XR-7 Project Reply #97 – June 06, 2017, 10:07:15 AM I came across a solution for our door checks. My driver side was rotted completely off. The door wouldn't stay open to save its life. It would even close up hill. I noticed the 99 check was similar in shape. I don't remember if our checks have a 2-step design or if the check only holds the door at full open. The Mustang has this 2-step design, but unfortunately, our hinge roller only engages past the first step. Still better that having floppy doors.BeforeThe Mustang checkInstalledAt full openNot the easiest thing to do, but if you're going to have the fender and door off the car for any reason, it's worth doing in my eyes. These checks are plentiful and new enough to not be rotted off. Plus I see in the future, since you know, Mustang, these will be made by the aftermarket.To swap them over, there is one rivet on our check and two on the Mustang check. Once drilled out, just remove the two bolts holding each to their respective hinges, and bolt the Mustang one to your car. Quote Selected
84 XR-7 Project Reply #98 – June 06, 2017, 10:48:15 AM All I can say is the timeline has changed but by no means have you been defeated. You would just have to throw up your hands and quit all together to call it a defeat. What you decided to undertake in the timeframe you allotted was insane to begin with but we are all a little twisted to modify a Bird or Cat so take that with a grain of salt. Had you been working on a car with a huge aftermarket support base this would have been a different story. Keep up the solid work and now that you have removed the insane timeline take a moment to look back at what you have accomplished since the start of this which in my opinion is one hell of a lot of really solid work. You have now afforded yourself to look at your build and decide what you really want to do being that you have more time to complete the project.The biggest mistake on my Bird was rushing the interior to make the '99 World Ford Challenge. Still took 1st in the car show but I still think the door panels look like and I am finally going to do something about it and address the py job of installing the speakers.The tip on the door checks is awesome by the way and thanks for posting that up! Quote Selected
84 XR-7 Project Reply #99 – June 07, 2017, 12:22:01 AM I agree with Aerocoupe. It's a big project and you have come a long way, rushing things for a deadline usually ends up with being disappointed in some way with the final result. If you keep at it with the same ambition up until this point you will get there. I have been following along but missed your sway bar issue, not sure if you have it figured out but I ended up mounting it under the rails and moving it forward to clear everything.http://www.foxtbirdcougarforums.com/showthread.php?33763-My-85-TBird/page6 post 59 Quote Selected
84 XR-7 Project Reply #100 – June 07, 2017, 12:26:26 AM Thanks for the words of encouragement. I'm ok with it now. I just wanted to be apart of that show. 10 years ago I saw the car that began my infatuation with these cars and talked to the man behind it. I told him I'd be there for the 50th. It was nice getting to talk to Eric in person for only the 2nd time, but I would have loved to be apart of the group that showed up.If no more big Cougar meets ever happen, I guess I'll have to crash some Mustang shows. After all my car will be more Mustang than half of the cars that show up lol. Hopefully the move goes smoothly and we're settled in by next summer. I'd like to attend my first Mustang Week in Myrtle Beach next year with the Cobra Kitty. Quote Selected
84 XR-7 Project Reply #101 – June 07, 2017, 02:49:46 PM Awesome seeing you again. Apologies if I seemed distant, just had too much to see and a lot of things going on simultaneously. That's an overwhelming show!After talking with you, guess the only thing I can say is: Don't kick yourself about not having it done. That was a truly admirable goal but if time just didn't go and speed up the last few months. It caught up with everyone else too. That car's gonna be something else when it's done, and it gets done when life allows it. You have a lot coming up in your life and this is going to take a back seat for awhile, but when you're comfy and the stars align correctly you'll get back on it just fine. Just wish you were moving closer my way because I'd love to help you with it!My offer still stands too...love to contribute something to the project. Say the word and I'll do my best. Quote Selected
84 XR-7 Project Reply #102 – June 07, 2017, 06:07:46 PM Awesome work. I'd love to 32v swap my '84 Stang. Keep it up! :) Quote Selected
84 XR-7 Project Reply #103 – June 09, 2017, 09:41:01 AM Getting the steering column in was fun. Took a few hours to come up with a design to hold the column in place. A few more hours in and we have this, the finished column bracket:At first it flexed quite a bit. I tied into the A-pillar by cutting a factory brace to size where it intersected my bracket. This helped but still too loose. So I also tied into the pedal mounting bolt. Still flexes when you lean onto it, but I think it'll be good. Won't matter much if I decide to do a dash swap down the road.Here's the bracket mounted in the car.Once I get rolling on the build again, the plan is to put the dash frame in and run the dash wiring. I have all the loom and clips stripped off the front interior harnesses so I can route them much easier. I'll tape them up once they're routed as best as they can be. Quote Selected
84 XR-7 Project Reply #104 – June 12, 2017, 12:23:21 AM This is the work we did to the bottom. The before:We stripped what we could and painted the bottom.This is just to protect the metal from whatever surface rust it would have to contend with. I don't trust this with long term rust prevention.Here you see how I ran the fuel line(bottom of image). It's hard to run a protected line when the original path is changed with the addition of through-floor sub-frame connectors.I used the '99 fuel filter setup. This comes off the fuel pump and uses the '99 filter. There is plenty of room with the rear installed.Here is the fuel tank. Props to my dad(who works as an insurance adjuster for a body shop) for scoring this NEW fuel tank for.....$15!!!! He just had to paint it...whatever. Here you see how I ran the wiring and fuel line. The return was plugged with some marine grade shrink wrap. The original vent runs to the "fuel tank pressure sensor." The vent will run to the charcoal canister, which I mounted in the factory '99 location. From there, a T-fitting allows the vapors to run up to the front to the EVAP Vent solenoid. The purge solenoid will vent to right behind the canister.I researched how to eliminate the EVAP system on these newer EEC-V systems, but apparently they are essential for trim functionality. The only way the EEC-V trims fuel usage is with the EVAP system being fully functional and most tuners don't know where to look in the tuning files to eliminate the EVAP. Most guys who delete the EVAP system in their New-Edge Mustangs complain about drivabilityissues. My hope is to get the EVAP to function good enough to allow proper trim functionality.Here is the tank installed with the fuel line connected to the '99 filter assembly.I didn't get a picture of the fuel pump modifications. Let's just say that "returnless" isn't returnless. The late model fuel pump module has a pressure relief and "return" line built in. The pressure relief is self-explanatory. The return line was a small tube that allowed fuel, above a certain pressure, to be routed back into the fuel tank without causing aeration. I tried my best to attach the '99 fuel pump and pressure relief/"return" line to the '84 module. I managed to make it quite compact. It fits in the factory hole. I had to use the '99 fuel pump as the "returnless" system uses PWM (pulse width modulation) to deliver desired fuel pressure. The factory pump (even upgraded to a high performance pump) could not deliver the "on-off" reliability of a pump designed to use PWM. Walboro does not offer a pump to replace 99-04 fuel pumps, so using a 255 LPH pump like all the 2.3T guys do was out of the question. This should suit my needs until I decide to turbo or Coyote the car....or both. If I ever need to replace the fuel pump, it'll just need the '99-04 pump.Keep in mind that a lot of these mods were decided upon when the car had a deadline. While it's nice to have only a single fuel tube run up to the engine compartment, apparently it isn't the most efficient or easiest system to use with high horsepower engines. Most higher HP 4.6 guys return to....return style fuel systems. But for my needs of the tight deadline I had, it would have been easier/cheaper to make the '99 EEC think it was still in a '99 and not an '84 with a '96 4V swapped in. I just hope this setup works for the time being. I don't know whether or not the stock fuel pump can handle 400+ hp. Not to say that my engine produces that, but I know for a fact that cams wake these engines up. 320hp stock can easily turn to 400hp with just cams. I don't know, and won't know how aggressive these reground cams are until after the move and I find a tuner willing to work with the car to see it to it's potential without knowing its exact specifications. A big reason I went 4V was because of how they perform with mods. I just wish Ford would have had the wherewithal to made the GT a 4V in '99 and have the Cobra be a track monster, kind of like the current GT350. This engine is still rare enough to have the appeal it does for swaps like mine, but costs too much to be viable. The Coyote is the new Ford "goto." I remember the days Ford offered a "kit" to install a 4.6 into a hot rod or swap project. No more as the Coyote seems to be their main focus. If they still offered the 4.6 kits, I might have made my Carlisle goal. I digress as I still feel this is the best route I could take for my car. I'll have the reliability of a newer car with the amenities of said newer car, but the chassis and nostalgia of a car I grew up with. A car that miss driving dearly. Quote Selected