I myself have been very interested in going the supercharged route, preferably the xcharger. My question is this. This engine doesnt come from the factory supercharged, therefore probably doesnt have forged internals. How much stress from boost, heat, etc from forced induction can a stock 4.0 handle before catastrophic failure??
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2006 V6 Pony Package 5 spd in Satin Silver - rear tinted windows 20%, Magnaflow Dual exhaust conversion with GT bumper, custom x-pipe, CDC chin spoiler, C&L Trueflow intake with Bamachips tunes for Xcal 3, Hurst Competition Plus short throw shifter removed - back to stock, roush hood scoop, painted mirror covers, painted calipers, done for now.
There is no magic formula. If you run a good, safe tune your engine will last you many years. Of course if you beat on it and are into boost constantly, the lifespan will decline.
The weak point of the 4.0 is it's hyperpathetic pistons... they can take a lot of power but not detonation... main issue is the rings are so close to the top of the piston that the ring landing is very thin and is prone to breaking off...
Most FI guys are running over 300RWHP with no issue... the turbo guys a bit more... the x-charger guys a little less... there currently is no intercooler option for the X so they run a little less boost... although you can install the X-Wet kit (or any other water/meth kit) and get some more HP...
The weak point of the 4.0 is it's hyperpathetic pistons... they can take a lot of power but not detonation... main issue is the rings are so close to the top of the piston that the ring landing is very thin and is prone to breaking off...
Most FI guys are running over 300RWHP with no issue... the turbo guys a bit more... the x-charger guys a little less... there currently is no intercooler option for the X so they run a little less boost... although you can install the X-Wet kit (or any other water/meth kit) and get some more HP...
So that means replacing the pistons when installing a F/I would be pretty beneficial before something gets shredded when one of them breaks through from the boost?
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2006 4.6L V8 Mustang GT - - Black with soon-to-be Red Over-The-Top and Side Stripes - - Black Leather Interior - - Interior Upgrade Package - -Shaker 1000 - - Red Calipers
R.I.P.: 6-26-2007 to6-18-2008 at 11:58am: 2007 4.0L V6 Mustang - - 5-speed - - Black w/ White Racing Stripes
Long before the Xchargr was on the Mustang it was on the 4.0 Ford Explorer,(same engine). There are many out there,though probably not being raced,,,probably..hmm.I have been in contact with many Xcharger equipped mustngs owners and some have over 30K miles on them or higher with no internal problems. Mine runs fine. I dont race it all the time because its a driver but I am not worried about the innards that much.
I guess the harder you drive it the better ,,or worse,,your chances are something will give. I run the hp version with the higher boost and feel that as long as I keep it sane it will last as long as I own the car
thats why the xcharger site is called explorerexpress.com
Last edited by mrjimmy; 03-27-2008 at 09:06 AM.
Reason: additional info
So that means replacing the pistons when installing a F/I would be pretty beneficial before something gets shredded when one of them breaks through from the boost?
Replacing the pistons will not guarantee that it'll be bullet-proof. If the tune is safe and there is no pre-ignition, it'll run fine on the stock bottom-end.
Keep in mind that there are no absolutes when it comes to this kind of thing. No matter how much you do to prevent things from breaking, (forged internals, etc.) theres always the minute possibility that something could go wrong.
Remember, Murphy's Law states that anything that can go wrong, invariably will.
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Black 2005 Mustang v6, 5 speed, IUP, EUP and Leather.
Razzi 1/4 window scoops, Mustang GT Sway Bars, Flowmaster American Thunder Single Exhaust, Clear Front Turn Signal Lenses, Demolet CAI, X-cal2 91 tune, Hurst Comp/Plus Shifter, FRPP T-Lock, Ford 3.73 gears
Keep in mind that there are no absolutes when it comes to this kind of thing. No matter how much you do to prevent things from breaking, (forged internals, etc.) theres always the minute possibility that something could go wrong.
Remember, Murphy's Law states that anything that can go wrong, invariably will.
Yeah, I mean I'm not trying to make it bulletproof by any means, but a system is usually only as strong as its weakest component. If the pistons were considerably more likely to break than the other parts, improving them would seem a good investment. When he posted that, I saw a great mental image of a piston head coming off, and getting wedged sideways into two big gouges
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2006 4.6L V8 Mustang GT - - Black with soon-to-be Red Over-The-Top and Side Stripes - - Black Leather Interior - - Interior Upgrade Package - -Shaker 1000 - - Red Calipers
R.I.P.: 6-26-2007 to6-18-2008 at 11:58am: 2007 4.0L V6 Mustang - - 5-speed - - Black w/ White Racing Stripes
obviously if you run a safe tune, and dont beat on it constantly then the lifespan will be longer. however, guys that are putting superchargers and other power adders similar are doing it for a reason, meaning that your gonna be in boost often enough to warant putting the sc on in the first place. this is the reason i havent done it yet, i dont wanna grenade my block and it seems as tho it is a likely possibility without building one with forged internals.
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2006 V6 Pony Package 5 spd in Satin Silver - rear tinted windows 20%, Magnaflow Dual exhaust conversion with GT bumper, custom x-pipe, CDC chin spoiler, C&L Trueflow intake with Bamachips tunes for Xcal 3, Hurst Competition Plus short throw shifter removed - back to stock, roush hood scoop, painted mirror covers, painted calipers, done for now.
How Much stress can a 4.0 take? 
