The stock shorty headers and...
The stock shorty headers and old H-pipe were next, and both came out with little drama.
Despite the battery fiasco, we haven't had this much fun with a stock 5.0 Mustang in a long time, and the car's owner, Brian Bohnsack, claimed that Muscle Mustangs & Fast Fords made his year. "I lined up against a red C5 Corvette convertible, and when the nitrous hit, I pulled a car and a half on him," he says.
It was all she wrote for the Vette, but the story doesn't end here for the Vette Eater. We've got some more mods in the works for our little juiced coupe, including more nitrous and induction modifications, so stay tuned. Pushrod power is alive and strong.
Xenos removed the heater rail,...
Xenos removed the heater rail, followed by the water pump to thermostat hose, and then the lower intake manifold bolts.
With a little bit of careful...
With a little bit of careful prying, the stock manifold came off of the 302.
The header and intake manifold...
The header and intake manifold mounting surfaces were cleaned thoroughly with a Scotch-Brite-type disc on our air-powered whizzer wheel. Next, brake cleaner on a rag made sure there was no residue.
DynoMax's Cyclone headers...
DynoMax's Cyclone headers look great and should flow a lot better given their equal-length tubes and 151/48-inch tube diameter. We complemented these with DynoMax's x style midpipe. Both items came with all of the necessary hardware and gaskets to complete the job.
After peeking into the exhaust...
After peeking into the exhaust ports on the header, we noticed that one of them had a bit of welding flash protruding into the pathway, so we used a die-grinder to clean the ports a bit. No big deal, but be careful, because if you take off too much material, you could break through the weld.
New intake gaskets from the...
New intake gaskets from the local parts store were set on the heads, and we used a bead of silicone gasket maker at the front and back of the lower intake manifold before lowering the new Cobra lower onto the engine. We then used petroleum jelly to lube up the O-rings on the injectors and popped them into the lower manifold along with the fuel rails.
The throttle body needs to...
The throttle body needs to be transplanted, unless you're using a larger aftermarket piece. We'll probably do that in a later story, but for now, the stock 55mm unit makes the move. You won't need the EGR spacer, but the EGR valve will have to be installed onto the Cobra upper intake. Be careful when removing it so as not to jack up the gasket.
Our buds at Ford Racing Performance...
Our buds at Ford Racing Performance Parts sent us these cool Cleveland-style Boss valve covers (PN M-6582-Boss) to use. Unfortunately, you have to use a 11/42-inch or larger plenum spacer to lift up the upper intake manifold and clear the throttle linkage. We couldn't get one in time to finish the article, so we may install them later on. FRPP also moved the oil-fill and PCV holes around, which will require some creativity in making them work with the EFI application.
To remedy the valve-cover...
To remedy the valve-cover issue, we grabbed the stock aluminum pieces and gave them a quick coat of satin black enamel, which made them look better and blend into the new color scheme. Between the polished manifold and the ceramic headers, our 302 is looking much better.
After installing the EGR valve...
After installing the EGR valve and vacuum lines, we tightened the six bolts that hold down the upper intake plenum.
The Engine bay is looking...
The Engine bay is looking spiffier these days thanks to the polished Cobra manifold. The high-zoot factory look is trick for sure, and the power improvements that resulted gave us even bigger smiles. At peak horsepower and torque, power improved 17 hp and torque gained 22 lb-ft. Not bad for a day's work in the garage. Don't be surprised to see this 5.0 pop up again in the next issue, as we're looking to drop elapsed times and increase mph with our little juiced coupe.