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Too late for SC???

3K views 32 replies 13 participants last post by  SolidRRaxle 
#1 ·

I have a 2011 GT premium with 38K on it. It runs well and shows no bad traits. I would like to SC it but does it have too many miles on it to take the increased wear and tear? Watcher Think???
 
#2 ·
I don't feel like it is, cars now a days are built to last... Unless your has been Beaton the entire 38k I would think you would be fine.... Unless you do the super charger and run the hell out of it...
 
#7 ·
In fairness, that article screams conjecture. Everything is third party, no experience. Parts breaking at 600 but not much heard here. That was written April 2011, and here we are feb 2013.

I may simply be justifying my next mod, but I think the last 1.5 years debunked these suppositions
 
#8 ·
This engine is not "designed for a supercharger", let's get that straight. No OEM factory builds a supercharger engine with 11 to 1 compression and cast pistons like this. It handles it because it's well-designed and engineered and has good aftermarket engine management and tuning.

I didn't FI my last 5.0 until it had about 120,000 miles on it and, I'd been running nitrous up to that point. Sold that with every hole blowing 190 compression and leakdown under 5%. 38,000 miles is nothing and I wouldn't give it a second thought, if you want to go that way.
 
#9 ·
This engine is not "designed for a supercharger", let's get that straight. No OEM factory builds a supercharger engine with 11 to 1 compression and cast pistons like this. It handles it because it's well-designed and engineered and has good aftermarket engine management and tuning.

I didn't FI my last 5.0 until it had about 120,000 miles on it and, I'd been running nitrous up to that point. Sold that with every hole blowing 190 compression and leakdown under 5%. 38,000 miles is nothing and I wouldn't give it a second thought, if you want to go that way.
Designed for a supercharger may have been a bit of an extreme statement, but the motor was very much "over engineered" as well as mildly future proofed. I read an article somewhere directly from the coyote engineers talking about how they did build the motor with boost in mind.
 
#10 ·
Yep, not too many clueless idiots in Ford's engine dep't. They know damn well somebody's going to put a blower on a Mustang in the first 5 seconds after release.

However, the engine is designed to make money, not HP. 99% of Mustangs on the road won't see boost and have customers that want reliable, comfortable power so, that's where the design emphasis goes, no matter what.

No OEM is going to purpose-build a proper SC-prepared engine. That's just pissing money down the drain in HD parts and tooling that you won't see back at deal-signing. They will design an engine that will easily live to 100,000+ miles plus without pissing its owners' off by breaking. This is the margin your cutting into when you mod.
 
#12 ·
GrabberBlue5.0 said:
Designed for a supercharger may have been a bit of an extreme statement, but the motor was very much "over engineered" as well as mildly future proofed. I read an article somewhere directly from the coyote engineers talking about how they did build the motor with boost in mind.
Bost in mind is what I should have said. The article is in the Mustang 5.0 and Fast Fords magazine, March 2010.

---------- Post added at 11:19 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:18 AM ----------

Read it 5LHO, then get back to us.
 
#15 ·
Really? Think hard about what you're saying went on inside Ford, if what you say is true: "I know, let's build an engine that will happily stand 700 hp of supercharger tacked on without complaint, despite the fact only the tiniest fraction of the buying public will ever use it, and btw, let's make sure it meets all government standards for emissions and fuel economy at the same time and have a per-unit cost supportable with a base price car under 30K." No problem there....

Giving a motor a little durability headroom is pretty standard for all things these days, as nobody will tolerate exploding new parts but, it's a reach and certainly more bumf than substance to make the claim the car is "built for supercharging".
 
#18 ·
SolidRRaxle said:
Just read that article. Seems the engineers build the motor for FI, but specifically stated the rods could not handle it.

I hadn't even considered the rods (based on feedback from this forum and two local shops). Anyone know the cost involved in getting proper rods?
They said the rods are the weakest link, not that they can't handle it.
 
#20 ·
Lol, I read that article too but dont recall the specifics. Were they just talking about the block in general? Because its the same in the Boss but with forged internals, a different IM and some other tweaks. Id think the Boss is ready for sc from the factory so thinking that, for a GT, you'd just need the internals to fair almost as well.
 
#21 ·
wheelman said:
Lol, I read that article too but dont recall the specifics. Were they just talking about the block in general? Because its the same in the Boss but with forged internals, a different IM and some other tweaks. Id think the Boss is ready for sc from the factory so thinking that, for a GT, you'd just need the internals to fair almost as well.
Ya if I was going anything over 500hp, I'd change the rods and pistons too just to be safe. The crank is already forged.
 
#23 · (Edited)
Just curious, but why not turbo charge it instead of supercharging it. From my research and talking with performance enthusiasts, I hear the turbo is the way to go. Its puts no stress on the engine when your not hitting that go pedal. Its better for the engine and the life of that engine. As long as you keep the boost within normal levels 5 to 8 psi one should get 200k out the engine with no issues. From my understanding the cars that are pushing 20 to 30 boost are blowing there stuff up. From my understanding the turbo is the way to go over the supercharger. The supercharger is taking power away to make power. Just curious on why not a turbo kit.

Its my understanding that even when the supercharger is not being used it still causes stress to the engine.
 
#28 ·
The only thing "completely safe" in terms of boost is none at all.

You can take the mildest 500-ish hp blower kit, tune it for crap and blow the whole shebang up.

Ford incorporated design thought into the block in terms of strong main webs, forged crank, etc. with an eye to boost at some point by somebody but, the majority of the rotating assembly, i.e. rods and pistons are N/A built. This does not mean to me your 5.0 is "built for boost". The fact that when you buy a Coyote from FRPP, you can spec it for FI or for NA, clarifies my point. FI drops static comp to 9.5:1 to allow more boost and way more power, more safely.

Centri blowers are the easiest and safest way to add boost. Easy install, simple tuning, boost is ramped with load (like a turbo) and they can be really responsive if you're careful and select a right sized head unit and step-up ratio.

I've tried every power adder out there, many on the same car, over the last few decades. I found centri to give the most smiles per hour. Were I given to do this on this car, which I'm not at this point, that's what I'd do, in a heartbeat.
 
#29 ·
The only thing "completely safe" in terms of boost is none at all.

You can take the mildest 500-ish hp blower kit, tune it for crap and blow the whole shebang up.

Ford incorporated design thought into the block in terms of strong main webs, forged crank, etc. with an eye to boost at some point by somebody but, the majority of the rotating assembly, i.e. rods and pistons are N/A built. This does not mean to me your 5.0 is "built for boost". The fact that when you buy a Coyote from FRPP, you can spec it for FI or for NA, clarifies my point. FI drops static comp to 9.5:1 to allow more boost and way more power, more safely.

Centri blowers are the easiest and safest way to add boost. Easy install, simple tuning, boost is ramped with load (like a turbo) and they can be really responsive if you're careful and select a right sized head unit and step-up ratio.

I've tried every power adder out there, many on the same car, over the last few decades. I found centri to give the most smiles per hour. Were I given to do this on this car, which I'm not at this point, that's what I'd do, in a heartbeat.
Would you do it without forged Internals or a rebuilt oil pump
 
#30 ·
That would be rolling the dice, wouldn't it?

Now, that said, could I pop a blower on there as is and if the worst happened, could I afford to fix it? Yeah, because I wouldn't have to pay for any labour, I'd just do it myself. Would I be happy being out thousands, my DD on jackstands and my 2012 car on its second engine? Nope. That's why I'm playing it cool with this car. Tires, traction aids and little things to enhance the experience, like shifter bracket/knob and axlebacks, that's pretty much where I'm at with this car now.

One of the hardest and most expensive lessons to learn in this hobby is when to say when and to know what you actually want. I needed alot of remedial help for those two, over the years.
 
#32 · (Edited)
No mean feat, at this distance:lol:

You can make pretty fun car without taking too much risk but, I think its important to understand the risks. I wouldn't be too worried with a well-cared for car + a low power blower kit, over the long haul.

Honestly, until pretty recently comparatively, I walked around with my fingers in my ears saying, "La la la, can't hear you" as far as the risks were concerned.
 
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