Ford Mustang Forum banner

THE 2.3 Liter Natuarally-Aspirated Performance/Modifications Thread

240K views 243 replies 114 participants last post by  Fredness. 
#1 ·
Hey all this is my first post to this board and I'm hoping someone can help me out a little bit. I just bought a 1987 LX. Its 2.3L and 5 speed but other then that I don't know anything about it. The owners manual is long gone so I have no idea of where to look for specifications and stuff. Is it turbo or not? I don't have license plates or insurance yet so I can't drive it around any. Is this a fast mustang? More importantly, is it faster than the stock civics my friends drive? Its blue, does being blue make it faster? :cool: Anyways! Any help anyone could give me would be awesome. Thanks a bunch!
 
#102 ·
HIys, New to the 2.3L

Well I have went a month now since my v6 crapped out on me and the first stang for a good price came my way and its a 1990 2.3L and its a standard.
Was jsut wondering what kind of relativly inexpensive things I can do to it to get some more power?
Also what should it have for power stock? HP/Torque.
It runs great I took it for a test drive the otherday. Im not getting it until the 15th tho. My parents are buying it as a graduation present :)
Buying it from the original owner for $800 it has some rust on the fenders and the front bumper is cracked but the rust just started coming through and I can find a bumper easily enough. It just needs some extra power :)

Thanks in advance

-Guardian
 
#103 ·
I think those had 88 HP, give or take.

There are performance parts around - heads, cams, headers, intake, etc - but I would look at swapping in a 2.3T from a turbo coupe, or consider a v8 swap since it wouldnt cost that much more, and you would get a lot more power in the long run.

Blade
 
#105 ·
It depends on what your wanting out of your 2.3L . My brother and I rebuilt a 2.3 out of a '74 Pinto , that ended up being a bad a__ little runner. We were outrunning Honda's , Mazda's, etc..... just about anything in our class. We stuffed it in a 1978 Pinto H/B that had been totally redone, with 1980 Mustang Suspension, sway bars, & drivetrain. We mated it to a T-5 Mustang tranny.
So like I said , it 's all in what ya want out of it .
sspncr
 
#108 ·
it depends on how much money ur really to spend. if u want to upgrade it and have the money then do it, but i think it would be cheaper to buy a better engine because look at it this way by the time u buy all the parts: cams, crank, lifters, pistons, valves, etc ur going to spend more money on parts all together then a whole new engine it self.
 
#109 ·
Racecar18 is right about the money. When it was all done , my bro & I had alittle over $ 4000 in the engine work and parts for the 1978 , that we did. That's not even counting buying the cars. But , we also had money at that time . Since then I , got buried (oops Married ) with children. There went my funds, for awhile .
 
#110 ·
91LXCoupe said:
Is it really worth trying to get power out of a 2.3L?
Normally Aspirated - NO! 2.3 Turbo...........oh yeah, it's worth it! N/A 2.3's are 88 hp stock. 2.3 Turbo stock is 200 hp. It doesn't take much to hit 300 hp. Free flowing exhaust system, minor head work, manual boost valve and a good intercooler will get you close. Proper tuning will get you there. Check out www.turboford.net. 300 hp is the norm. Lots of guys running 400 and above! Joe Morgan got what, 1100 hp out of his (although it's a full on race car). Do yourself a favor. Don't waste your money on a N/A 2.3. Once you've gone turbo, you'll never go back!:happyhapp
 
#113 ·
Hey i just got a mustang to and 5.0 for life gave me sme good suggestions hope they will help
Cut out your catalytic converter(s), and weld in straight pipe. Any honest muffler shop should do this for about $30-$50 a cat. If you don't have emissions issues where you live, that is. A k&n air filter will help you breathe a little better too.
You could try advancing your timing and see if that helps any. Make sure your
Spark plugs and wires ect. are in good shape. IMO Motorcraft plugs work best
for ford engines. If your car is a standard, a new clutch will get you movin' a lot
faster if yours is worn out. Clutch for your car is cheap if you do it yourself. Those are some inexpensive things I can think of at the moment.
 
#114 ·
91LXCoupe said:
I was think in'of swapping in a 2.3 DOHC from the Ranger and mating it to a T-5 with 8.8in rear end. Give those import boys a run for there money maybe.
I hate tiburons


BTW.. I am really new to this topic...

Is the turbo 2.3 a modified stock 2.3 or a totally different engine?

I hope to God its not just a turbocharged 2.3 like Ford did with the late 80's T-bird
 
#115 ·
The turbo 2.3 is basically the same engine with forged pistons to the best of my knowledge. The N/A 4 bangers can top 200 horsepower with enough compression, cam and head work. In a backyard buildup of a '80 4 banger that my dad, brother and I did over a decade ago, we wrung out 140 and that was still burning 87 octane on a 2 barrel carb with no more headwork than removing casting defects and a very streetable cam.
 
#116 ·
BlueStreak03 said:
The turbo 2.3 is basically the same engine with forged pistons to the best of my knowledge. The N/A 4 bangers can top 200 horsepower with enough compression, cam and head work.
So stock they run 88hp bw or at the engine?

What would it take to make my N/A 150-ish
I dont want to race or anything, just want more pep.
I'm not looking for anything drastic either, but looking through some of the catalogues got kind of depressing. I see the "89-93 5.0" label on EVERYTHING and I really want one, but anything to tide me over is fine.

This is my main transportation, so anything too drastic would be a waste.
 
#117 ·
dawrr said:
I hope to God its not just a turbocharged 2.3 like Ford did with the late 80's T-bird
Thats the motor lol :D And I love mine in my mustang...If you dont beleave in the motor hop in my car. Ill take you for a ride. When we get back all you will be able to say is TURBO!!! :D
 
#118 ·
Entirely new to 2.3L .. info?

Well, I currently have a 2.0L DOHC Dodge Neon, and it is quick .. I have an opportunity to buy a 2.3L Mustang LX .. I'm just wondering, in comparison to my 2.0L Neon, how would this 2.3L Mustang pull? Is it going to be quick on the take off, and pull hard, and like most 4cyls, be crappy on the top end?

I just want some general information so I know what I'm getting into :)
 
#119 ·
i bet my tc your dodge isnt quick

***does the 2.3turbo***
 
#120 ·
Im no expert, but I have driven some neons. and the dohc really is decent for 150h.p. and from what I know from 2.3 stangs they are slow in almost any catagory. assuming they are not turbo. They feel like a brick tied to a kite when trying to get off the line. so in other words don't expect an improvement in performance just because its a mustang.
 
G
#121 ·
The regular old plain-jane 2.3 at it's best had 109hp... in 1974, and it went downhill from there, though fuel economy eventualy went up a little bit (heck, in 1974, a 2.3 Mustang II or Pinto could do 30mpg plus... and it still had a points-triggered distributor and a 2-stage 2-bbl. Holley!)

The 2.3 Turbo is both the same and different, the displacement is the same, but the pistons are forged in the turbo motor, the connecting rods are a slight variant on the old Boss and 289 hipo designs, the block is modified for oil feed and return, and the intake and exhaust manifolds for each are unique, as is the cam.

An N/A 2.3 can be built to scream... for some big money... but only with either a full aftermarket EFI (I'm still contemplating a Holley 4-bbl. TBI on an Offy 4-bbl. 2.3 intake... lol...) or a carburetor (You'd be surprised how big a carburetor a stock '70s vintage 2.3 can run with just an adapter plate, I drove mine for a few days with a 600cfm Holley 4-bbl., it idled at 1500rpm, but it took off like a shot from a cannon! The factory EFI systems for the EFI 2.3s, while based on the same basic principles and architecture as the 5.0 EFI systems, aren't really all that upgradeable.


Hey Dawrr? When you say "late 80s" T-bird, do you mean the 1983-1988 Thunderbird "Turbocoupes" or the 1989-1991 Thunderbird "Supercoupes"?

Two different animals, the "Turbocoupes" are 2.3 turbo cars, while the "Supercoupes" are 3.8 Supercharged cars.. Both were awesome in their own right, but I'd take an '87 or '88 Turbocoupe any day... over almost any other Ford. (The four exceptions would be a 1978 Mustang II King Cobra, a '71-76 Thunderbird with a 429 or 460, a 71-73 Mustang convertible, or a 1963-1968 Thunderbird.)
 
#122 ·
turbo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
just go to the airport listen to the jets take off....sounds just like that when your pressin it......
 
#123 ·
hey so can anyone suggest some quick cheap upgrades for the 2.3 n/a. Imma get a 2.3T but till then i wanna do somin here.

Could i gut the intake upper and port the lower, then use them on my 2.3T?
about how much hp could i get from that and a cold air intake?

ne other suggestions?
 
#124 ·
Greatest Move Is To Dont Waste Your Time And Especially Money Tryn To Upgrade The N/a.....not To Many Parts For That Motor Anyways.....just Get The Turbo And Go From There.....
 
#125 ·
J. Quality said:
Greatest Move Is To Dont Waste Your Time And Especially Money Tryn To Upgrade The N/a.....not To Many Parts For That Motor Anyways.....just Get The Turbo And Go From There.....

no way it wont b a waste. what im talking about would fit onto a 2.3T. If i could beef up the injectors and fuel pump and get a response then that would also transfer into the 2.3T. I want ram air for my car eventually, so i can add that 15-20 hp easy, also will b made to fit both ways...

how about a 3 inch xhaust that xits under the car? when i get the 2.3T ill just need the downpipe.

i wanna do somin now...not waste my time waiting. but i dont wanna go overboard and try to get 300 hp outta a n/a.

cheap easy upgrades is the name of the game.
 
#126 ·
Well Like I Said Theres Not To Many Parts For The N/a....and Just Cuz There The Same Engine Doesnt Mean..u Can Take You N/a Part And Put It On The 2.3t...hell And If U Can U Might Now Be Able To Get The Same Amount Of Hp...
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top