[scruffman]

ok.. you convert to a header??? 17hp maybe
open the exhaust all the way up..maybe 10hp
intake..... maybe 10hp
and under drive pully's... 10hp
roller cam....10 hp

so does that mean 150 hp now?? or just and expensive 105 hp???


I saw this guys post somewhere stating this....

[91BMC]

You won't gain 17 hp from headers on a stock 2.3. The reason headers work is they allow the engine to breathe, and collect the exhaust gases and remove them quicker. The engine isn't expelling all that much exhuast, and the factory manifold isn't THAT restricive.

With bolt-ons, its rarley the sum of the parts. They work together, ie, opening up the intake and exhaust will work better with a halfshafted TB and larger cam, than bythemselves.

[scruffman]

well say 10?? my questio was how can those parts increase hp on a limited motor with a crappy pcu for the brain?? you could build a massive motor, but with a small intake you kill your power, just like with this motor. you could ad this or that, but with a bad pcu running it, where's the power at??

[74stang2togo]

Any time you ad mods that advertise "X" amount of horsepower, you don't get "X+X+X" gains. If you add a cold-air kit that advertises 15hp gains, an exhaust system that advertises 18hp gains, a camshaft that advertises 10hp gains, and a throttle body that advertises 5hp, you don't gain the total of 48hp... real world total would be about 20-30hp for all of those mods combined. You'll notice most manufacturers advertise gains of "up-to" whatever amount of horsepower, or "this much" more than stock, or "with this configuration" That is because every car is different, every situation is different, and there are factors that neither they or you can control.

[Stretchmobile]

Manufacturers like to advertise best world gains. If you took a built engine with ported heads, big cam, compression, big valves, etc. and had stock exhaust manifolds. Then put on their manifolds you might gain the advertised amount of H.P. Everything has to work together like 74stang2togo said. You can't put a short duration, high lift cam for torque in a motor, then put in big valves and ports and carburation/injectors and expect it to work right. All your fuel will go right out the exhaust port and it will be a dog. Before you do anything to a motor you should plan what kind of driving or racing you will be doing with it. If it is stop light to stop light, a torquey engine with a heavy flywheel will launch you hard and get you there fastest. If you are canyon carving or road racing a high RPM engine and light flywheel will keep you in the powerband and allow for faster shifts. As with anything, both camps can be made to work the other way. Some people like a torque motor for road racing so they can point and shoot. Like drag racing with a corner between straights. Have a plan will keep you from buying parts you don't need or change again later.

[scruffman]

ahhh...... thanks guys....
here's another question. I see where people are getting the roller cam from a ranger for their car, why not just use that head?? it's a 2.3. shouldn't it bolt right up??

[Stretchmobile]

Depending on what year you have, the ports might be different, which means your intake won't match. Some later Ranger heads are 8 spark plug heads, which won't work if you have a 4 plug head. Plus it's easier to change the cam than the whole head.

[scruffman]

ahhhh.... thanks.