I've been thinkin' on ways to make the needed cash, and I think I'm going to hire out my programming skills on a part-time basis (I've been a programmer for over 30 years). I figure I can clear $15k in 3-6 months doing under-the-table odd IT jobs.

 

I was at bass pro Shops in October (I was next to the fancy copper-colored Nova).

 

WOW you have done a lot of research and are off to a good start.

 

So... Isn't this just so much more work that trading in for a gt or gt500 and swapping your mods over? I know you didn't want that suggestion, but wow this seems like such a huge expense in comparison to getting what you want with a warranty and saving time and money while you do it.

 

Some times it is worth the bragging rights to Say I did this and some people enjoy projects. But I would agree with you.

 

a) It *is* a lot of work. Actually, it's a lot of parts. With the help of a friend, I did a drivetrain swap between a 65 2bbl automatic and a 68 v8 4spd, and had both cars running in less than 8 hours. I've been down this road and I know that having all the parts when you start is key to a trouble-free experience. THAT is why this thread exists - to gte incite from people that just might know.

b) It *could* cost a lot (hopefully I can find a really good deal from someone parting out a wrecked-in-the-rear GT), but if I come into the cash, I'll get the crate motor.

c) It's not supposed to make sense.

d) I don't want a GT500.

e) I don't even want a Boss 302

f) I'm not even sure I want a V8, but that doesn't mean I can't see what it's going to require.

g) Its gonna be a blast to do.

 

I used to get this type of flak when I owned my 60 VW bug. Why? Because my project. Enough said. Keep us updated.

 

Nuff said. Good luck. I wish I could provide info for you but your list is already more extensive than what I would have thought of with my current knowledge. I am very much looking forward to following this project of yours.

 

^^^^

 

Just curious about the emissions.....do they use the VIN to determine what the testing should read for that vehicle/engine setup.....thus disregarding your swapped engine? I have done several swaps over the last 40+ years of playing with vehicles but never had to deal with emissions.

 

I really don't know. The only rule in Texas is that you can't use a motor older than the year of the car. I also don't live in a smog-check county - yet.

 

Did you determine if your current gas pedal set-up is compatible? I have a friend who is finishing up a build of a Factory Five Cobra roadster with this engine. I think the mechanical parts of this won't be the trick to research. It's going to be interfacing all the electronics, particularly those involving the subsystems running off the wiring harness that integrate with the ECU. For example, will the traction/stability control, ABS, and alarm system be "plug and play"? My buddy didn't have to do any of this with his FFR obviusly.

If you do this, you might be among the first to retrofit into an existing car in this manner, which means you could definitely gain some notoriety and maybe people asking you to do the same for their cars Good luck!

 

Thank you for choosing a V8. Make sure you buy a PCM. Good luck with your venture.

 

I honestly don't anticipate any computer problems because I'm not doing anything that wasn't already done by Ford, and all of the necessary parts are available directly from the manufacturer. Sure if I have to change the harness under the dash, that will be more work, but hey, I knew the job was dangersous when I started thinking about it.

To be brutally honest, I'd much rather not be the first one to try this, but it really doesn't seem that difficult if you sit down and think about each system and how it could be different between the V6 and V8 cars.it certainly ain't rocket surgery.

BTW, my list of parts grew a bit - I forgot about the starter and the air box/tuner. I'm working on building a we page for the project. My wife suggested that I start a donation page to see if I could get people to pitch in. I laughed heartily over that.

 

Hmmm to be truly unique. How about a Mazda rotary engine swap!?

 

Yeah I was there with the family. No car with me.

I saw your car but you weren't around.

 

it sounds like you have the technical ability and tenacity to pull it off. it would be an impressive project for sure. If you really want to do it, I'd say double your estimated budget and dive in! a few concerns my lizard brain would have are:

1) you pay for the right components and even after a perfect install, you're still only a stock 5.0 liable to get spanked by the many modded 11+ stangs already running turbos, sc's, nitrous, bolt-ons, etc. you're looking at thousands more after the fact just to keep up.

2) the downtime that your car will almost certainly experience for things you may not be able to get a quick answer for or have to go to great lengths find out. it would suck for a car as nice as yours to be sitting while countless little electronic and tune related gremlins/surprises are being worked out. and what if it never gets worked out or weeks turn into months?

3) falling for wishful thinking. a lot of bad things can happen to used engines, it can be difficult to know for sure what you're getting. even if you find the right one, shipping and handling costs add to the many prerequisite little expenses that will come out of the woodwork and make the project more expensive than you originally planned.

4) financially, there is no reward. your hard earned cash that you're considering taking a second job to earn will be torched for the sake of an entity that will have a ridiculously small market should you decide to sell. your v6 with 25k in mods will blue book for the same as any other v6. you are essentially making the decision to spend big money for a swap that will hardly get your car a second glance at a car show.

your car is beautiful as-is and almost paid off. it almost pains me to think of you sinking so much money into a depreciating asset especially when you could put that money down on a car much better than a v6 mustang. by the time you spend 10k on getting this to work right, you would have spent over 24k total. that's a low mileage GT right there with good options. or almost half of a 2014 stingray

either way, i wish you luck and it's definitely far from impossible. from a logical perspective, i see why you think it's doable and i commend you on taking the road less traveled.

 

[quote=essque;6545140]it sounds like you have the technical ability and tenacity to pull it off. it would be an impressive project for sure. If you really want to do it, I'd say double your estimated budget and dive in! a few concerns my lizard brain would have are:

If they have turbos/sc's/etc, they *should* be kickin' my ***. You could use the same logic for supercharging a V6. Spend $8-10k to supercharge (the right way), and the supercharged V8's are still kickin' my ***. My primary desire isn't really to beat the FI cars out there.

BTW, Ford Racing wants $21k for a 5.4 crate engine. Anyone care to estimate what it would cost to transplant one of THOSE into a V6?

I wouldn't even start to dismantle my car until I was as sure as I could be that I could get in done over a week or two (barring anything unexpected happening).

Yeah, I guess it would matter how the donor car the motor was in was wrecked. Of course, it's hard to tell if you're not actually pulling the motor out of the car in question. Besides, I did account for tear-down/inspection by a qualified mechanic at the end of my parts list. I just don't know how much it would cost (I would tear it down to the long block myself, and that would save some cash).

If I was concerned about the money or the resale value, I wouldn't do it.

I plan on creating a multi-media extravaganza for use at car shows. I'm a computer guy - I can do that.

Ain't never gonna be no Chevy's parking in my driveway - ever.

That's why they call me an outlaw programmer. I hate being told "That can't be done". I then feel that they're tasking me to prove them wrong.

 

^^^ ^^^

 

I was looking at the Tousley Ford web site, and it appears that the entire AC system (under the hood) is different from the V6 (of course this will be verified before actually buying the parts).

Add another $671 to the estimated cost (not counting the cost of having the system charged).