Plastic Engine Covers/Shrouds
 

The s-197 seems to be, for now, the last generation where you could open the hood and see (mostly see) the actual engine. I have watched reviews of the newer generations and regardless of engine the reviewer usual states something like "lets take a look under the hood" and lifts it to reveal a piece of plastic covering and enclosing most of the engine, at least from the top. I can't see the reason for this beyond it's cheaper to make a piece of molded plastic than it is to put together a collective package of parts that makes the engine something worth looking at. Great for a Prius but for a Mustang??

The awful truth is pretty is not always functional. And to get functional, wires, pipes, etc, ad nauseum are just not going to be good looking. Plus, even in Mustangdom, the truth is people do not clean their engines, much less look at them or work on them, and with all the nooks and crannies and wires and plumbing and such that an engine and its accessories have, the prettier, easier, better to sell thing is the engine covered car.

Further, there's reports that indicate a cover is better to control temperatures and airflow, and the temperatures are everything for the efficiencies and emissions, so the covers are actually needed.

Take those covers off. Look at the engine. And imagine what you'd have to do to make it nekkid and still be pretty and easy to clean and still work the same and all that. Even an added length of wire can screw up the timings of things, so be careful.

In general, I agree with what you said but Ford did a great job with the Coyote in that regard. Even with the plastic cover off, all the plumbing and guts of the engine are pretty well organized, especially compared to the previous 4.6 cars!

As for keeping an engine clean, here's a crappy cell phone shot taken right now (thought I'd get something current) after 7 years on the road,

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/themust...28e04e4dc1.jpgout of the box stock in a dark garage I just think that those covers would make it harder, In a rain/snow climate environment it would be even worse, Here the biggest probable would probably be gopher snakes cozying up under the cover for some overnight warmth. Not to mention the undetected leaks and other maintenance issues that would go unnoticed until it is dripping off the bottom of the engine. I have seen some sort of partial cover for the V6 that I thought looked ok, it was similar to the partial cover the v8's used to have. Now the covers hide the engine completely, with the exception of the Ecoboost which has one to give the illusion of a larger engine. Certainly can't be for cooling as there's still plenty of room in there.

The small covers made for the v6 makes the motor look more 'even' in my opinion. At only $90 now, I think it's worth it. :)

Another reason Ford added covers to the current engines is the injector noise. The ticking from the high pressure injectors, especially on the newer cars with DI, would drive the average owner crazy.

Agreed on the small covers David Young. I've seen them in pictures only. I often wondered if they were an OEM that the previous owner of my car deleted. It was a ordered car, not an off the lot purchase, based on the options package it came with (MT,Premium,Pony Package,Side stripe delete) and he was a Mustang fan trading it in on the anniversary edition GT back in 2015 after driving it only 15,100 miles. I've tried to get a copy of the original window sticker but on a website dedicated to that it's not available.

I believe the cover only came on the Performance Package cars...no?

Yep it was a Performance Package MT only.
I want to put this engine cover on my 6.2 in my F150
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/themust...c2780392ca.jpg

Like Laserred38 and Siber Express said, it only came on the 'performance package' option. I ordered mine from my local Ford dealer several years ago. If you buy one make sure it comes with the 2 or 3 mounting pegs and the oil fill extension. I paid over $140 for mine but now I've seen them selling for around $90. If you have an automatic (I do), if you look at my picture, I had to cut a little off the cover (in the front) for the tube to clear that automatics have. I think the performance package was only offered with v6 Mustangs with the manual transmissions :(


Edit: I see you have the manual transmission, you won't have to do any cutting :)

PP was offered on the V6 for 2013-2014. It was manual only on 2011-2012.

The 2018 5.0 has the ugliest cover I have ever seen on a mustang. So I took mine off . Without it the engine is a little noisy so I had to do something to make it look better.

The cover only came on the Manual though.

I also meant to put V6 Auto lol

I actually like the cover that came with mine. Simple and elegant, and you can just rip it right off without having to unscrew anything. Definitely a bonus!

https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/themust...d6e1491306.jpg

I agree the 1st and 2nd gen Coyote eng covers were the best.

I will soon be getting a CAI for my 14 GT. Do I have to take off the strut tower bar or can I just lift the engine cover a little bit to take off the current intake?

You'll want to take the brace off - it's 4 bolts. Easy.

I know that it is a beaten topic in here. BUt what is your opinion on your CAI? Do you get water in it when it rains or when you wash your car? I am still wide open on what CAI to get. Or should I even get one. I have a tune with the KN flat panel filter now.