Do I have your blessing to install a 5.3 or 6.0 GM motor in my 2012 mustang

14065 Views 42 Replies 29 Participants Last post by jsimmons, Apr 14, 2014

Belanger Racing

Discussion Starter · Feb 2, 2014

I need your opinions on how the "ford guys" feel about me installing a 5.3 or a 6.0 GM motor which both are extremely strong truck engines with huge power and almost endless upgrade potential. This potential upgrade is for performance only and not to offend either Ford or GM owners. If any of you are familiar with the drag racing scene, a lot of ford racers install GM motors for more durability, reliability and performance and not to forget more available parts at cheaper prices.

Please respond with helpful/productive criticism with out bashing me or GM. I have had a Chevy upbringing (check out my childhood drag racing profile pics) and with now ford being a big part of my recent years as follows:

*My wife and her parents work for Ford Motor company and have graciously let me use their Z plan on the last 3 car purchases.

-Focus/Truck plant in Wayne Michigan
-Mustang I Flat Rock Michigan (they might have had a hand in your original interior installation, LOL but true)

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CodeGT

· #2 · Feb 2, 2014

GM rear ends are cruddy, besides the 14 bolt... I'll just leave it at that.

It doesn't bother me on the fact that it's your car do what you want with it. auto.gif

Belanger Racing

Discussion Starter · #3 · Feb 2, 2014

Just shoot me straight

Come on guys I know you want to chime in on this one just keep it clean. Most of you must of know about this.

CodeGT

· #4 · Feb 2, 2014

Belanger Racing said:
Come on guys I know you want to chime in on this one just keep it clean. Most of you must of know about this.

haha honest opinion, I would take the 6.0 over the 5.3 if looking for streetable power. with the smaller displacement your back at needing more to get higher numbers. just like the 4.6L. they are all a brand of the lsx concept so you can't go wrong with any of them especially being OHV makes them very simple. you would have to adapt it, but while your at this swapping thing throw in a T-56 behind it, and a good strong rear end... just don't get me started on a rear end. I've twisted and ripped apart so many axles that I'm very particular. haha I like both ford and gm motors if that's specifically what your asking. Swapping it into a ford is preference.

Like i said its your car do what you want, i had ford, gm, chrysler, and more in my jeep

the 8.8 in the mustangs is actually a very strong axle compared to what GM used bleh. the 8.8 with a c-clip eliminator and chromoly shafts will handle what your throwing at it. the 8.8 is a fairly narrow stout axle. You could go bigger (my preference) but maybe to big for a street car? Like the Dana 60, 70, 80 hehehe 14 bolt, 14 bolt shave kit, 10.25 is alright.

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Kona stang10

· #5 · Feb 2, 2014

Alot of fox body guys use gm engine because they are more readily available everywhere and cost less to make power with. But s-197 guys dont use gm engines because they dont rev like the coyote engines. No ones is gonna give you crap about wanting a hybrid mustang. Me, I wouldnt want to do all that modification to make it fit, and If i liked chevy engines more then i liked ford engines i wouldnt be driving a mustang. if i had a fox body car i'd rather have a ford racing 427 in it then a gm engine! To each his own. But most cars I've seen at the strip are ford cars with ford engines. I dont by into the reliabilty part of your statement. If any engine is built right from the ground up it will be reliable! Oh and 1 thing i do see is chevy guys using ford 9 inch rears over their 12 bolt. But then again we know why. The ford 9 inch rear is practically bulletproof!

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Tim Comer

· #6 · Feb 2, 2014

It would be cheaper, not to mention far easier to stick the engine in a GM car. Trying to make the brackets to mount the engine is one thing. Making it start and run is another.

<3_3.7

· #7 · Feb 2, 2014

Why would there be an issue? I'd just get the least expensive 2011+ v6 you can since they are basically identical to the 5.0 except for the engine.

Usmc1488

· #8 · Feb 2, 2014

facepalm.gif

Why? Just get a clapped out early 2000s TA or Camaro. The engines will bolt up, the trans will bolt up, and there is a HUGE aftermarket support for such a thing. All the custom work required to make the swap work in the mustang will put you at almost equal to the purchase price of a coyote crate engine that you could drop in any s197.

heavy metal

· #9 · Feb 2, 2014

IMO...would be an interesting project,but i could not do it to a 2012.If you want to do a Stang-get a 99-04 V6 car,they go for cheap.

Black Fire

· #10 · Feb 2, 2014

6.0 stroked to 402 w/L92 heads L76/LS3 intake and custom cam should put you well above 500 HP.
I forgot more about LS engines then most will ever know.

RoboStang

· #11 · Feb 2, 2014

It's your car. Do what whatever you want with it.

F91

· #12 · Feb 2, 2014

Cheaper to put a Chevy motor in a newer Mustang? More HP? Better reliability? My math must be totally F%$#ed up. NA Coyotes can put out 500HP all day and oh, wait... you don't have to fabricate a single thing. It's your money, waste it however you want but , like somebody else said, there's a clapped out Camaro somewhere just waiting for you to buy it.

matthewr87

· #13 · Feb 2, 2014

Didn't you want to build your V6 to beat a Nissan GTR recently?

05mustangsoa

· #14 · Feb 2, 2014

A 3.7 is different from a 5.0 more than just the engine. The engine, DS, gears available, brakes & brembo package, sway bars, tire size, ect lol. The GT has a little more to offer as far as performance goes. A GM motor in a Ford, umm not my taste but it's your car...

CodeGT

· #15 · Feb 2, 2014

F91 said:
Cheaper to put a Chevy motor in a newer Mustang? More HP? Better reliability? My math must be totally F%$#ed up. NA Coyotes can put out 500HP all day and oh, wait... you don't have to fabricate a single thing. It's your money, waste it however you want but , like somebody else said, there's a clapped out Camaro somewhere just waiting for you to buy it.

although I agree with you on the more hp which is debatble, the reliability which is debatable, and the whole chevy motor in newer mustang. The LS1 is cheaper retail to retail then the coyote 5.0. ls1's are hell of a lot easier to find... and the aftermarket support is unbelievably easy to find a lot for them. Plus the ls2, ls7, etc are all derivatives from the lsx concept so afforadbility wise the lsx is the way to go.

But i agree i would much rather have the coyote 5.0 in it.wrenchin.gif

F91

· #16 · Feb 2, 2014

I've seen lightly used Coyotes for 5K. And I am factoring in all of the modifications that you would have to do to put an LS in a new mustang

CodeGT said:
although I agree with you on the more hp which is debatble, the reliability which is debatable, and the whole chevy motor in newer mustang. The LS1 is cheaper retail to retail then the coyote 5.0. ls1's are hell of a lot easier to find... and the aftermarket support is unbelievably easy to find a lot for them. Plus the ls2, ls7, etc are all derivatives from the lsx concept so afforadbility wise the lsx is the way to go.

But i agree i would much rather have the coyote 5.0 in it.wrenchin.gif

CodeGT

· #17 · Feb 2, 2014

F91 said:
I've seen lightly used Coyotes for 5K. And I am factoring in all of the modifications that you would have to do to put an LS in a new mustang

thats not a bad price for used. I don't know how much adapating will be needed to put the lsx in a mustang when we swapped the 5.3 vortech into a jeep cherokee it cost my buddy $6500 for wiring mating the transmission, ecu flashing, and modification, etc to make it fit. I'm assuming this would have to be done if your swapping a 5.0L into the V6 mustangs besides mounting assuming the dimensions are the same?

the t-56 is designed to easily mate to the coyote and the lsx blocks so if you already have a t-56 its easy. Idk about the automatics..but would the v6 auto handle the load of the v8? or would u need a better tranny on top of that?

Also the 5.0L is still relatively knew making parts a little more expensive, and lsx are easy to build stroker kits for if rebuilding the motor.

Norm Peterson

· #18 · Feb 2, 2014

Belanger Racing said:
Come on guys I know you want to chime in on this one just keep it clean. Most of you must of know about this.

I'm more questioning why you'd swap in what's presumably an iron block small-displacement pushrod engine rather than a larger displacement LS3/LS3-based engine (which in all aluminum weighs about the same as a DOHC 5.0). Why not go bigger while staying as light as possible?

In order to trump the 5.0's rev capability you need torque, which means displacement.

I know that the pre-LS SBC into older Mustangs swap was done fairly frequently (and more reasonably when 350/383 SBC torque vs 302/331 SBF torque was the only necessary comparison). Hell, I've got an EFI 355 SBC and there's an available but crash-damaged older Mustang that I might just get around to combining into a Pro-Tourer.

Old hot-rodder at heart.

Norm

Sharad

· #19 · Feb 3, 2014

I wouldn't choose an LS over a Coyote. The coyote is an easier swap and has just as much power potential.

Actually, I know where there's a complete GT500 engine & trans for $7000. That would be perfect for you.

Lynwood

· #20 · Feb 3, 2014

just saying that I loved my LS2 that was in my GTO. So easy to work on. Ive never torn into an engine before and i did a heads cam swap with all the fixins under my carport with few special tools. Im sure the coyote isnt too bad to work on but just a lot more parts. I wouldnt cross breed them though. I like both engines. I like how the coyote screams up top and l like the low end torque of the LS engines.

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