So all started coupe years ago when I was racing in an Audi TT 1.8 turbo. Nothing spectacular. Running around 350bhp, do not remember exact figures. Now after sometimes I bought through an internet auction a Mercury Comet. After waiting 2 months, it finally arrived to Poland and I started the engine. Sounds just beautiful. Then I got it on the road. The car is a bit modified, a list that I got with the car bellow. After the first drive I felt that it is missing the power I am looking for. Tomorrow if nothing changes I will take it to a dyno run and see what it will show. Than in 3 weeks we have an event with drag race, unfortunately not a lot of those in Poland… I will see what it can do. So for now, what do you recommend to do with the engine to get it running better.
nice car. more specs of the engine would be needed to answer your question. what heads? looks like the stock cast iron heads. what cam? 'race' is not a very exact specification. with a combination of the right heads and cam, there is a lot of potential in the small block ford... looking forward to seeing some dyno numbers. and videos of the race! where in poland are you located?
I am located in Bielsko-Biala, but often traveling to Germany As for the heads, I think they are stock heads, the cam I will check when I will get the engine apart. My plan is to get a 347 stroker kit, proper heads and cam and a roots blower, as I always dreamed about one The car has to be a street car, becouse as I said, we do not have a lot of 1/4 mile events. We do not even have a single race way... I will do max 3-4 events per year. So what cam and heads would you recomend? As I guide so far I use this article: http://www.fordmuscle.com/archives/2002/04/331/
i went with a 11:1 static compression 347, afr 185cc heads, e303 cam. this combination is pump gas friendly, very streetable. unfortunately, no dyno figures yet. i don't have any blower experience, so others will have to chime in. have a look at the build of mashori on here, he built a very streetable powerful race car...
if the engine is basically an 85 mustang roller engine, there are lots of things to do to make more power, bolt on aluminum heads, bigger roller, and posiibly a holley carb (750cfm) can make that car a 7000 rpm motor that would run in the 12s with the right rear gear. it didn't take a lot to make 85 mustangs run in the 12's. and they are about the same weight. Duane
Guys, it would really help if you could show me some detailed specs, so for example links for parts I should buy, would be just perfect. I am new to american V8 and beeing located in Europe makes everything a bit more complex. So what heads exactly you would recomend, what roller?
Looking on what I need to do with my engine, it looks like I could buy a new one and build it while the old one seats in the car. So what engine block you would recomend? There is a CJ 460 to buy in Poland
its endless on the options you have to do with this car. let ask a few questions. how much street driving are you going to do? youve already said that you will only race it 3-4 times a year. is that drag racing? what octane fuel do you want to use? how much power do you think you want? what type of performance times do you want when you race it? do you like the auto or want to convert to a stick shift transmission? the 85 5.0 motor is good because its a roller cam block but has flat top pistons that dont have very much room for the valves to open with a big cam. you can build about 400 hp with a stock 302 block with the correct heads and cam and other proper parts. putting a bigblock in these cars is very hard. the weight of the engine is a big negative. i dont know whats involved with getting parts to poland but my quick thought is to get a complete crate motor and put it in. the reason is that when you build a motor their are lots of little things that are hard to get and things you need to measure during assembly to get dimensions before you can order them. if you have a motor built the shipped to you, you know it will be complete and ready to run (have it broken in and dyno tuned before it gets shipped). your will be able to drive your car and then only have a short down time when swapping motors.
a crate engine is what i would suggest, too. friends of mine have had good experience with promar engines. knowledgeable staff, decent shipping rates. ford racing crate engines are usually of a high quality, too.
Creat engines have one problem - their are creat engines! I want to work on my motor. I have build my own motorbike and the same with my previous 1/4 mile car. My Comet will be taken out from the garage when I will want to blow some steam after a days work or have some fun. When I will go racing, it will be only drag racing. I would like to break the barier of 500hp just for having it and to have a roots blower, becouse I always dreamed about one. Tomarrow I will go for a Dyno run, so I will see a lot.
its not hard to build a 500 hp roots blown 302 based motor. 500 hp is about the max power the factory 302 blocks can handle. sence your wanting that much power just for the sake of having instead of constant racing with it, you should get a good long life out of it sense you want to build it your self, i would contact a good engine building machine shop and have them put together a motor that is ready to be assembled by you. have them do all the machining and blue printing. that way you should get all the correct parts the first time around. check out maverick mans car http://mmb.maverick.to/member.php?u=82 its got a roots supercharger on it.
Now I know... and I am a bit dissapointed, my stock 78 Vetta has better performance Only 235 bhp and 426 Nm of torque
that's not too bad, as the stock 85 engine was rated 210 hp an 270 lb ft. but it looks like the engine is close to stock, so i would consider an upgrade, too. as you have a 302 already in there, i would stick with the sbf. thus, you can reuse your headers and exhaust. for anything bigger than the 351, you would have to modify the shock towers. do what bryant suggested, buy a 'kit' from a reputable engine builder and put it together yourself. otherwise, look for some input as far as compression, heads and cam is concerned and work with your existing block. you will want to start with a roller block anyway.
I think the best way will be to use my existing engine as a base. So now I need to look for a proper stroker kit, cam and heads. Any help with choosing those? What make and specs you would recomend, knowing that a roots blower will be installed.
