1. Home
  2. Ford Mustang Forum
  3. Tips for increasing HP on a 1986 LX 2.3?

Tips for increasing HP on a 1986 LX 2.3?

I've found a 1986 Mustang LX 2.3 here in Norway with AC, pop-open sunroof and CC which I'm planning to buy as a second car (or third..). The car looks great, only problem is the enginge... I don't want to do the hole 302 upgrade (it's difficult to get 302 and 2.3 Turbo's here), but some extra horsepowers would be nice. :) Anyone got any good upgrade tips for the 2.3?

Btw.. hate the winter! It's below zero celsius here in Norway now, and ice on the road... Not a good combination when you've got 300+ ft.lbs. And it's gonna stay like this all the way 'till May...

Regards Tomas

-91 Ford Mustang LX 5.0 conv.

Reply to
Tomas Kristiansen
Loading thread data ...

That's funny because I will be in Geilo, Norway from January till April to enjoy the winter!

Jim S.

Reply to
Jim S.

Thats a pretty cold place.. :) Any particular reason your going there?

Tomas

Reply to
Tomas Kristiansen

As usual I forgot to say: It's a C3 automatic. It's going to be a daily driver for my girlfriend, and her family lives over 1000 miles from us - ergo it has to be ok to drive long distance (aka not 4000rpms at 55mph)... :) Any good aftermarket carburetor I could swap the old Carter 1bbl with?

Tomas

Reply to
Tomas Kristiansen

Just do all the standard hot rod steps that you would do for any 4 stroke engine. In with the good air, out with the bad. Also, changing your rear end gears to something like 3.73 will probably give you the best bang for the buck.

Reply to
.boB

Well, unfortunately, with that car you will quickly hit the point of diminishing returns. Opening up the intake and exhaust will provide a boost in performance and efficiency - but not a tremendous amount. Ignition boxes won't do anything at all. There are no after market 1 barrel carbs available. But Holley makes a couple of nice 2 barrel carbs. But I suspect you'll lose some low end torque while you gain some upper rpm power. Besides, they are pretty pricey. Consider swapping in an AOD transmission. If you can get a used one, it might be worth it for those long highway commutes.

Reply to
.boB

If you can weld I would do a turbo blow thru carb setup. Cheap power!

Reply to
Shannon

Job, but I'm really going for the skiing :)

Reply to
Jim S.

MotorsForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.