Which is a better head of the two, AFR 185 or Edelbrock Vic Jr's? I know the Vic's flow a little more intake wise but is it better over all? Which is better made? Which needs less upgrades? I was told the AFR's would need better springs. Also any issues with spark plugs, headers, etc...? Lastly I am using a small supercharger, and thinking of going with an E cam any advice which head to go with or suggestions on cam/ rocker/ intake? Thanks.
What kind of blower are you installing and how much horsepower do you plan to make? This will have a bearing on the heads I would recommend.
Blower on it atm is weak a Powerdyne BD11 with a 6lb pulley. Depending on dyno numbers after this work is done I am either going to put the 11lb pulley on it with bypass valve or upgrade to the XB1-A with Anderson pipes which handles allot of boost. Hp any where from 350-450 depending on the s/c set up I use.
With a good blower, you don't really need to do heads. I would go with Keene Bell Super charger, far more torque at low RPM.
you dont need springs unless you are going to wind it up into high RPM, racing full tilt, not daily driver stuff.
you need to match up your cam with the blower, more lift? why bother if you have boost ?
You might want to look into a set of AFR 165's instead of the 185's. With a centrifugal blower you will want to choose a head that will keep low end torque near stock to improve off-boost performance and drivability. The 185's have larger intake ports and this promotes high rpm performance at the expense low end torque. IMO, the 165's (maybe with a little port work) are better fit for the engine displacement and blower type you are planning to use.
Overall, I think you should be careful about turning the engine into a high rpm monster because it might not be very fun when running around town or in stop and go traffic. I have a Kenne Bell blower on my car and have the heads/intake ported to the max to promote high rpm breathing. Low end torque is never an issue with a twin screw blower so there is no penalty to setting up the engine to be a high rpm breather. There is a penalty when doing this on a N/A or centrifugally blown street car.
You know that itch you get when you get a classy Mustang? When I got my car I said I was going to leave this ASC McLaren totally stock, then I said a Ford Motorsport Powerdyne is the simplest bolt on bang for the buck no oil tapping quietest around no other mods, but then decided I am going to create the car I would have wanted them to make. :) I allready have the Powerdyne s/c installed for the last 4 years, if anything it would be more cost effective to swap an XB1-A or Procharger on the matching brackets and create an oil line then a KB at this stage. I figured with improved heads, intake, and cam plus the s/c better breathing and even more power and in the future option for more boost. I know I can go for more boost now and then upper motor later but choose to do it this way.
AFR suggests you upgrade your springs with higher spring pressures to reduce chances of valve float in the high 5k to low 6k rpm range. I just dont want any problems down the road.
I would like to match the cam with the heads and the rest of my motor while its all apart. I need some input from people in this area. So just to repeat some key things I need to know, best cam to use so far of the Fords I was told the E cam for my set up but there are better out there, but which are they? Are there any changes with the sparkplugs angles with either heads, would traditional headers work I am using Bassani exhaust from headers to tail pipe, which head is better quality? Will Cobra intakes work well with this? Thanks for your help. :)
Good thinking but long term wouldnt it be wiser to go with the higher flow intake in case I upgrade boost down the road? Also when ever I intend to rebuild the motor the lower end will be redone perhaps with a stroker kit.
This wont be a daily driver just to car shows and track when ever I get a chance. As far as your comment on blower types do you have any where I can reference your remark? I would like to do some more reading on that. Thanks.
KB dosen't need an oil line. And with KB you have the torque at low RPM, you dont have to wind it upto 3K to even get started.
If you are running 6 pounds now, it is a waste of time to do heads. There are lists of improvements to engines in many build ups to see what ads HP and what dosent. Heads is improving airflow, but if you have boost your pushing the air into the engine already. (heads are $2,500?)
Right that is high RPM, I never take mine above 4k, no need, and not enough clear highway doing 130 mph at 4,000 RPM (1993 8# Keene Bell )
I would pick a HP range for the car and design to that, with stock parts you can do about 330 HP mustange 5.0 and a blower. Bone stock.
Cams make the engine breath better, but so does a supercharger, most superchargers are fine with stock cams.
If you plan on using a stock 302 block then you are going to be limited to around 400-450 rwhp at the most. More than 400 rwhp and you run the risk of a split block. Also, IMO, running more than 12 psi of boost on a stock 302 block doesn't promote proper head gasket sealing due to the heads lifting. I ran 16 psi and the slightest bit of detonation would blow a head gasket.
It you are OK with poor low rpm performance then go for it. Personally, I think you will make all the hp the block can handle without a stroker kit. My advice is if you want to do a stroker then use a 351W block and stroke it to 392, or more, cubic inches and forget the blower. My next engine will be a 427W stroker with no blower. Cubic inches is a less complicated and much more reliable way to make horsepower. Plus you get plenty of low end torque.
Trying to use parts that are for a future engine configuration means you will have a half ass setup until you do it right. I guarantee that in the end you will spend much more money this way and won't be pleased with the intermediate results. I've been there and done that.
I learned what I know through trial and error and reading on Mustang based web sites like The Corral. Sign up there and start reading the different forums. There is a wealth of information to be mined out of these types of web sites. Plus, you are getting real world feedback on what works and what doesn't work. I trust the information I get from these sites far more than what I have heard from local speed shops. It will take you quite a while to get up to speed but in the end you will be much better informed to make decisions. Do this before you buy another speed part.
It doesn't matter if the car will be a daily driver or not. It sounds like this will be a mostly street driven car and having the proper setup will mean the difference between a satisfying ride and one you will continually be throwing money at to "get it right". You will not get the knowledge you need from reading a few posts in this newsgroup. You need to understand how forced induction works and what are the pitfalls from using it. Also, look into the different types of blowers and turbos while considering their complexity and cost. You may just find that a 392W/427W stroker motor will give you everything you want with a high degree of reliability and for the least cost in the end. This is what I have determined after years and years of fiddling with a blower and more than $15K in modifications along the way. I could have spent $6k-$7k on a nice stroker engine in the beginning and been more than happy with a lot less frustration.
Actually breathing improvements like higher flowing heads make a big difference on a blown car. The trick is to not have any bottle necks in the intake and exhaust or it won't be money well spent. Mega flowing heads are worthless with out an intake to feed it or an exhaust system to let the gas out efficiently.
I have a KB Blowzilla/Flowzilla combo on my Mustang and improving airflow paid big dividends regarding horsepower. The other thing it does is lower boost pressure which reduces intake air temperature and the risk of detonation. I put extremely ported GT-40X heads and a Cobra lower intake on my car and was able to make more power on less boost while running a more aggressive tune. It was a win all the way around. I just had to make sure all the parts were in place like MAF sensor, throttle body/EGR spacer etc. that would support the ported heads, lower intake and fuel system, which wasn't cheap.
The approach of building an engine that is a high rpm screamer is a proven one for KB blown cars. After all it makes sense. There is no low rpm penalty with this type of build like there would be on a N/A or centrifugally blown engine. No downside, only an upside. ;)
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