Building up an engine to run a Blower on a V6...

[BlueThunder]

I'm sure their is more than one way to build up a V6 to run a blower but want to get some insight on the matter from all on the board about how to do it.What is a good thorough way to build up to run one?And also, if you were to wanna buy a blower unit that wasn't brand spanking new(used) then what model years of Pony would you look to for compatibility?And finally,does anyone know(if any)what year models came with a blower installed(standard equipped or optional)?Any serious input on the subject would be much appreciated!

[Brent]

Couple of ways to do it... I have a 3.8 engine sitting in my garage out of a 96 Mustang that I am going to be rebuilding.

I am ripping it down to the block, boring it .100 over, going with a 4.2L crankshaft, forged pistons and rods, big valve heads, 224 cam, ported intakes

If you dont want to go that far I would suggest forged pistons and forged rods at least with some big valve heads and a cam to complement the super charger. Ported intakes will help alot as well

[97Stallion]

Quote: Originally Posted by BlueThunder I'm sure their is more than one way to build up a V6 to run a blower but want to get some insight on the matter from all on the board about how to do it.What is a good thorough way to build up to run one?And also, if you were to wanna buy a blower unit that wasn't brand spanking new(used) then what model years of Pony would you look to for compatibility?And finally,does anyone know(if any)what year models came with a blower installed(standard equipped or optional)?Any serious input on the subject would be much appreciated!

Well the only 3.8s that had blowers stock are t-bird supercoupes and mercury courgars XR7's. They had the same engine. You can ususally find the blowers on ebay. But if you're wanting to build a solid engine. You can use a whole supercoupe engine out of one of the previous car I just mentioned. They came stock with forged blocks, rods, and pistons. It's definately the economical way to go, but will require a little additional work. Also, it's been shown, not proven that 4.2's are quite durable. But this can also depend upon the tune. Tuning is the key to everything. When building an engine that is N/A, you're window of error is actually quite big, but once you go with a supercharger or some sort of power adder you're window of error shrinks to almost not visable. Hopefully this gives you some insightto what you want to do. Also don't be afraid to do some searching. Building your engine is a complex decision because now there are so many ways to go. Try to make a plan and stick to it as best as possible. BUT, make your plan a realistic one. Most everybody wants a crazy fast car, but a few things make this dream just that. Money, and lack of knowledge basically limit people here. Try to keep it reasonable so you don't get burnt out so quickly. And when you have questions don't be afraid to ask them. I say this alot but is better to ask questions before you have a problem then after.

[Monkey]

I would get a forged 3.8 crank from a supercoupe along with some nice forged 8.5:1 compression pistons with good rods. A set of ARP head studs to complete the block. Then get some ported heads with big valves and long tube headers. Get a set of 1.73 adjustable roller rockers and new valve springs to match up to your new cam. Set of ported intake manifolds. This will allow you to run upwards of over 15psi of boost daily on the engine. With your car being a split port design, i would stick with a centrifugal blower instead of a roots or screw type.

If you want to go with a turbo instead, look at this site:
http://www.members.aol.com/andylittleton/tma.htm you can do that on the stock bottom end until you get a little bit more money for forged parts and ported head and new cam, etc.

[SpectorV]

the best way is to buy a whole motor and just build it then swap it in, if your current motor is in good shape you can sell it to get some cost back or just keep it for a back up... or spare parts

[smokin6]

my 99 v6 is stock except for injectors and i push 11 lbs boost and have hit as much as 15 lbs at red line and my engine is just fine . your pre 99 will blow head gaskets unless they are replaced. get a ati s/c and dont mess with the supercoupe stuff unless you are good with Engines. the ati or any new s/c has a warrenty where as e-bay is a garage sale full of 80% junk and 20% ok stuff. At least if you know the person you buy your s/c from if it dosent work you still have the option to throw it through his living room window!

[Concordium]

Quote: Originally Posted by smokin6 my 99 v6 is stock except for injectors and i push 11 lbs boost and have hit as much as 15 lbs at red line and my engine is just fine . your pre 99 will blow head gaskets unless they are replaced. get a ati s/c and dont mess with the supercoupe stuff unless you are good with Engines. the ati or any new s/c has a warrenty where as e-bay is a garage sale full of 80% junk and 20% ok stuff. At least if you know the person you buy your s/c from if it dosent work you still have the option to throw it through his living room window!

youre lucky your stock bottom end hasnt died. 11# is the absolute most you should run on your car, and even that is going to shorten your engines life. (atleast the life of your internals and so forth)

as far as a good setup for a blower, it really all depends on what kind of application you want. do you just want something to give you some more power or do you want a street racing monster? if you just want some more power then get an ATI 8# tuner S/C. that will give you some nice gains over stock. if you want more power then you would need to rebuild your bottom end, get a new cam (they help out alot with an S/C) and also toss some money out for some things like a bigger throttle body and/or MAF. these are relatively cheap things (aside from the internals) to help give you more power than the setup mentioned before.

however, if you want a street racing monster then i am afraid that i cant help you there. i know some other stuff to boost power in the presence of a blower but not enough to build a race car.

[pete]

Quote: Originally Posted by Concordium youre lucky your stock bottom end hasnt died. 11# is the absolute most you should run on your car, and even that is going to shorten your engines life. (atleast the life of your internals and so forth)

Really? Who says?

[97Stallion]

Quote: Originally Posted by pete Really? Who says?

I don't think he understands that your engines life really depends on the tune. Quality parts also play a big part, but forged rods won't hold up long to a bad tune.

[Danger Dude]

[quote=smokin6] your pre 99 will blow head gaskets unless they are replaced. QUOTE]

This is simple not true of all pre 99's On 94 to somewhere in 96 had the head gasket problem. The 97-98 has no head problems. The real problem was a water jacket hole that was designed to close to the cylinder wall causing the blowout.

Now saying that if you have a high mileage motor you might consider changing the head gaskets anyway

[smokin6]

[quote=Danger Dude]

Quote: Originally Posted by smokin6 your pre 99 will blow head gaskets unless they are replaced. QUOTE] This is simple not true of all pre 99's On 94 to somewhere in 96 had the head gasket problem. The 97-98 has no head problems. The real problem was a water jacket hole that was designed to close to the cylinder wall causing the blowout. Now saying that if you have a high mileage motor you might consider changing the head gaskets anyway

If you run 11lbs boost on a pre 99 the head gaskets are weak and can blow. O ring the heads for the kind of stuff Pete does. Tom Marrona of Marrona Racing can explaine it better than me. As for weak head gaskets.....
yes the thin part by the water jacket goes out. as for the tune determining life of motor any lean tune will not help the cause.Espically where boost is involved. Pete himself tuned my chip and im on a Safe Tune. He did it by mail and the air /fuel is on the conservitave side. I ran a 11.79 et 1/4 mi on street tires, on oct 31. this car is my work car -daily driver 50,000 miles...stock engine internalls except for injectors.2001 mustang v6 automatic.