2.3L Turbo

I was sitting around at work today with nothing to do, and I latched on to this "brilliant" plan. My kit project is going well, and may be road worthy in the next few months. Certainly by mid summer. So I've been thinking about what to do with my '66 Mustang Coupe. It's a very nice car, solid body, no rust. Has P/S, P/B, A/C, 302/C4. I was planning on some upgrades to make it a better daily driver and cruiser. So I was thinking of installing a late model 302/AOD, or maybe a 4.6/AOD. But today I was reading a magazine article about the 2.3L turbo motor. Why didn't I think of that before? That would look great in my '66! Decent performance, decent fuel mileage, light weight, and a very unique set up. A little painting and polishing, and it would look great. So I cruised e-bay a little, and found more than one car that would fit the bill. I thought of buying the whole car for $1500'ish. Then swapping out all the parts I need - driveline, computer, wiring harness, etc. Then selling the rest of the car to a bone yard, or parting it out myself. The only thing that would be difficult would be fabricating the motor mounts. But I can manage that somehow. Anybody ever done something like this? I bet the whole thing could be done for less than $2,000.

Reply to
.boB
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IIRC, the 2.3 uses the same motor mounts as the 302 in the Fox-body cars. I can't see any reason why, if this is true, it wouldn't just bolt right into an early model's 289/302 motor mount setup. Shouldn't need fabrication.

Take your number and at least double it. Car projects always seem to cost twice as much after all is said and done, don't they? That's if you don't decide it's time for the 2.3 to be rebuilt, if it needs a new (or bigger) turbo... etc...

JS

Reply to
JS

Is that figure factoring in getting all your accessories to work, any hiccups with mounting the transmission, driveshaft, wiring, cooling issues (radiator and engine in/out on matching sides?), etc... You'll never think of everything. Swapping in a late model 5.0 in place of a 302 can be a chore, even on a carbed engine. Swapping to a 351W takes more than one would think. Point being, research and think of as much as you can, as it's going to be a very involved project. You'll end up with a gutless wonder, and an expensive one at that. Before taking on such a project just be sure it's what you really want with the car. It will have little value to anyone once your swap is done so be sure it's a keeper.

The 2.3 turbo is a cool idea for a daily driver, to get good mileage and all, but personally I wouldn't bother with all the hassle for a gutless wonder. No 4 banger is worth driving unless maybe it's got a manual transmission, which if your '66 doesn't already have is even more hassle. If you do any swap the easiest (and likely least expensive) would be a late model carbed 5.0 with AOD. Heck, I'm about to build my 302 for my daily driver Galaxie 500 with 190 PSI compression. It's gonna need at least 93 octane without a doubt with that pressure. It ought to make good power though, which is the idea of using the closed chamber heads. Kind of a band-aid for not having an FE under the hood. My point is that with insurance rates so high (at least for a 19 year old male in NJ), gas isn't all that bad even if it equals my insurance. Surprisingly it costs less to insure my '68 than any of the more modern econo-boxes I've been driving lately. That's for minimum coverage too... Now I'd think a 2 ton Galaxie could do a hell of a lot more damage to another vehicle than a sub-subcompact Honda Prelude or a compact Olds Calais, but maybe I'm just delusional and the insurance company is right on their risk. ;)

Reply to
Cory Dunkle

Look at turboford.org...

Tons of Turbo goodies and a whole group of folks who've tride this kind of thing.

Sean

rec.bicycles.marketplace

Reply to
IamGoode

Nice to know about the motor mounts. Bolt in is good. My original thought was around $1,000: $1500 for the running car, plus some ext5ras, then deduct the price of parting out the original car. Then I double that to come up with $2K'ish. Unfortunatly, I always manage to get cought up in the "While I'm at it" syndrome ;)

Reply to
.boB

I would not do that to a vintage stang that all ready has a V8 in it.

But that motor would make a killer swap into a Sunbeam Alpine.

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You would end up with a car that was as fast as a stock Tiger for half the price.

Erich

Reply to
Kathy and Erich Coiner

Hey, thanx for that site. Nothing like listening to experts talk to get good information.

Reply to
.boB

no problem, I think taking a nice 6 cyl 66 fastback and converting to a 2.3 turbo would be unique and pretty quick. Don't know if I would use a 8 cyl car to start with..Sean

rec.bicycles.marketplace

Reply to
IamGoode

If I was starting froms scratch, I would start with a 6 cyl car. But I happen to have this V8 car.............

Reply to
.boB

I hear ya, I think you'll find a whole car on turboford for 7-900$ with everything still intact. Probably get the computer, AC, pressurized fuel system (pump and lines), trans cross member to hack up and driveshaft... It would be well worth the money spent. BUT I bet you could find a modern 5.0 fuel injected wrecked mustang for 900$ too...

Sean

rec.bicycles.marketplace

Reply to
IamGoode

Oh, sure. Getting the 5.0 in there is pretty easy and affordable. There are plenty of them around. But when's the last time you saw a 2.3 turbo in a 60's Mustng? I'm sure they are around, but I've never seen one. It certainly won't be rocket. But I think it would be a fun and unique project. Since then engine is a "bolt in", and no welding/modification is required, reversing the process shouldn't be that difficult should I change my mind later on.

Reply to
.boB

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