Think this needs to be stuck. And I was going to do a similiar thing myself, just haven't been able to.
Essential Fox Mustang Mods
So you just bought your 5.0 and love it. Its fast and it was cheap, and now they are starting to stand out more and more the older they get. Everyone is so obsessed with engine mods though so often times more important stuff is overlooked till later, or till your car starts over heating and breaking from the added power and headlights dimming after under drive pulleys, or the first time you try to stop quickly and it doesn't happen. Then you put in amps and a stereo, because you cant cruise properly in the 5.0 without music right? Of course not! Till your alternator dies, and the car doesn't run.
These are the suggested mods assuming the regular tuneup and maintenance is already performed and the vehicle is already in good running order (almost necessary given the age of all Foxes) before the engine is dipped into.
Brakes- get rid of the rear drums, and get better front calipers (five lug conversion) you may need wheels depending on which front brakes you go with or if you go with five lug. Here is a site that explains all you need to know. 87-93 Mustang 5.0 Brake upgrade pages. Improve your 60-0 times! or Mustangmotorsport - Mustangs and a whole lot more! good prices on brake stuff
Ford Racing Parts and Accessories at great prices lots of stuff can be found in local classifieds (my favorite) or ebay
Alternator- get rid of the stock one and go for a 3G 130 or more amp unit. Ford Fuel Injection » Installing a 3G alternator you will need the pulley from a 94 mustang GT. If you already have underdrive pulleys, you can no longer use the alternator pulley on the 3G.
PA Performance - You Only Buy Quality Once ! 1.877.471.8010
Chassis- Subframe connectors, weld them in! and good set of shocks and struts will completely transform the ride of your car. new Front and rear lower control arms Ford racing offers these parts new for less than you will spend getting new bushings and ball joints. New rear lower control arms will help to eliminate any wheel hop you may be experiencing, and the fronts will help with potential alignment problems. A new rack and pinion if you have high mileage, and if the tie rod ends are loose. Maximum Motorsports :: The Leader In Mustang Performance Suspension these guys only sell good products. or Ford Racing Parts and Accessories at great prices
Clutch/transmission- Steel front bearing retainer (where throwout bearing rides) on T5s, the stock aluminum one by this time is likely all chewed up and makes for a rough engagement with clutch application. A New Ford clutch cable with quadrant and firewall adjuster will further make for the smoothest clutch operation you have ever felt. The Factory quadrant is ok for factory applications, but if you have any power and you install a heavy pressure plate, then thats when the aluminum quadrant becomes a necessity. Got an automatic? no problem, do a flush and install a shift kit. Despite what you may hear from uneducated people, the AOD is a good transmission, and is stronger than a T5 in most all applications.
Maximum Motorsports :: The Leader In Mustang Performance Suspension .:. Brothers Performance Warehouse .:.
Mustang Parts & Performance - American Muscle
the steel front bearing retainer is a 93 cobra piece, so if you go to the dealer, order one for that.
Performance mods- even before you go into the engine, there is still stuff you can do to improve performance, primarily differential gears, which personally i think is the best thing you can do to your car is torque multiplication mods. There are many ring and pinion choices, but for a street and sometimes track car, the choice is usually 3.55s, 3.73's, 3.90's, or 4.10s. The higher the number the lower the gear.(inversely proportional) also the higher the number, the lower your top speed is, the faster you accelerate, and the higher your cruise rpm will be in overdrive. My car has 3.73s with a T5 and its right at 3K rpm at 90 mph in overdrive.
with different gears comes the need to calibrate your speedo with proper driven or drive gears use this table to decide which gear to use. Speedometer Gear Selector
Automatics- if you have an automatic, you get the same effect as gears without the decreased top speed or higher cruise rpm, with a higher stall torque converter. If you go this route, a stacked plate type cooler is necessary especially if you eliminate the direct drive in your converter. Your stall speed should be determined by your gear ratio and engine combination (where the power band is at). other than that a shift kit will do you right. get one from Baumann. If you are mechanically inclined or do your own work, then there is the 4R70W gear swap into the AOD case, but that is expensive to buy and you need experience with automatics to perform this mod. Visit Click Click Racing or TCCoA Tech Articles for more auto trans tech.
feel free to add to this if you see something that i may have forgotten.:bigthumbsup
These are the suggested mods assuming the regular tuneup and maintenance is already performed and the vehicle is already in good running order (almost necessary given the age of all Foxes) before the engine is dipped into.
Brakes- get rid of the rear drums, and get better front calipers (five lug conversion) you may need wheels depending on which front brakes you go with or if you go with five lug. Here is a site that explains all you need to know. 87-93 Mustang 5.0 Brake upgrade pages. Improve your 60-0 times! or Mustangmotorsport - Mustangs and a whole lot more! good prices on brake stuff
Ford Racing Parts and Accessories at great prices lots of stuff can be found in local classifieds (my favorite) or ebay
Alternator- get rid of the stock one and go for a 3G 130 or more amp unit. Ford Fuel Injection » Installing a 3G alternator you will need the pulley from a 94 mustang GT. If you already have underdrive pulleys, you can no longer use the alternator pulley on the 3G.
PA Performance - You Only Buy Quality Once ! 1.877.471.8010
Chassis- Subframe connectors, weld them in! and good set of shocks and struts will completely transform the ride of your car. new Front and rear lower control arms Ford racing offers these parts new for less than you will spend getting new bushings and ball joints. New rear lower control arms will help to eliminate any wheel hop you may be experiencing, and the fronts will help with potential alignment problems. A new rack and pinion if you have high mileage, and if the tie rod ends are loose. Maximum Motorsports :: The Leader In Mustang Performance Suspension these guys only sell good products. or Ford Racing Parts and Accessories at great prices
Clutch/transmission- Steel front bearing retainer (where throwout bearing rides) on T5s, the stock aluminum one by this time is likely all chewed up and makes for a rough engagement with clutch application. A New Ford clutch cable with quadrant and firewall adjuster will further make for the smoothest clutch operation you have ever felt. The Factory quadrant is ok for factory applications, but if you have any power and you install a heavy pressure plate, then thats when the aluminum quadrant becomes a necessity. Got an automatic? no problem, do a flush and install a shift kit. Despite what you may hear from uneducated people, the AOD is a good transmission, and is stronger than a T5 in most all applications.
Maximum Motorsports :: The Leader In Mustang Performance Suspension .:. Brothers Performance Warehouse .:.
Mustang Parts & Performance - American Muscle
the steel front bearing retainer is a 93 cobra piece, so if you go to the dealer, order one for that.
Performance mods- even before you go into the engine, there is still stuff you can do to improve performance, primarily differential gears, which personally i think is the best thing you can do to your car is torque multiplication mods. There are many ring and pinion choices, but for a street and sometimes track car, the choice is usually 3.55s, 3.73's, 3.90's, or 4.10s. The higher the number the lower the gear.(inversely proportional) also the higher the number, the lower your top speed is, the faster you accelerate, and the higher your cruise rpm will be in overdrive. My car has 3.73s with a T5 and its right at 3K rpm at 90 mph in overdrive.
with different gears comes the need to calibrate your speedo with proper driven or drive gears use this table to decide which gear to use. Speedometer Gear Selector
Automatics- if you have an automatic, you get the same effect as gears without the decreased top speed or higher cruise rpm, with a higher stall torque converter. If you go this route, a stacked plate type cooler is necessary especially if you eliminate the direct drive in your converter. Your stall speed should be determined by your gear ratio and engine combination (where the power band is at). other than that a shift kit will do you right. get one from Baumann. If you are mechanically inclined or do your own work, then there is the 4R70W gear swap into the AOD case, but that is expensive to buy and you need experience with automatics to perform this mod. Visit Click Click Racing or TCCoA Tech Articles for more auto trans tech.
feel free to add to this if you see something that i may have forgotten.:bigthumbsup
1 - 20 of 94 Posts
Fantastic post, this is what I have been looking for!!!!
Fox Body Mustang Restoration and Parts - Fox Mustang Restoration
good source for factory parts
50resto is Your Mustang Parts Source
the one stop shop for mustang stuff 79-current
good source for factory parts
50resto is Your Mustang Parts Source
the one stop shop for mustang stuff 79-current
Here is something else that can help those high mile 5.0's. Replace your fan clutch because if its not working right it will rob you of some horses. I had a 94 with an electric fan but I think all of the older 5.0's had fan clutches.
hey just wondering. i know you said to use the 3g 130 amp alternator but what about the 6g 130 amp alternator? would it still be usable?
I'm sure you can find one that you can use like from an 04 V6 mustang, but think the voltage regulator is inside the alternator and the connector is different, and im not too sure about the dimensions. I just listed the 3G because that is the easiest, most straight forward swap.hey just wondering. i know you said to use the 3g 130 amp alternator but what about the 6g 130 amp alternator? would it still be usable?
This is awesome. Most kids just go intake, and flowmasters and think they have the fastest car in the world. Then they get their butts handed to them by an K20 civic. Ahhh, the good old days!
great post. I was looking for someting like this. Great job!!!! 
The problem with young people is that they tend to go too big with everything and think that everything is supposed to run like it did but only faster and more horsepower! Usually a mess of unmatched bolt ons and poor performance which leads to discouragement.
good post
That's a really good post and I keep telling people AOD's are good I have one in mine and she takes off like a rocket. I think what it is you have make sure you readjust that kick down cable when you swap out things like the throttle body or it will not run right.
That's a really good post and I keep telling people AOD's are good I have one in mine and she takes off like a rocket. I think what it is you have make sure you readjust that kick down cable when you swap out things like the throttle body or it will not run right.
great post lxarlo! I believe the brakes are the first upgrade to perform. The stock fox brakes are a joke. I have performed two upgrades since I have owned this 87. I upgraded to the bigger SVO calipers and had that for a year and once I collected all the parts installed the SN95 spindles, twin piston calipers, drilled/ slotted rotors and now I can stop quick. Definetely worth the time and money spent collecting and installing the parts.
Drew
Drew
:bigthumbsup nice! u got a sticky thread now man! hahaha good post! Brakes are definetly a must have mod on these cars, at least if they are going to be street driven. I still need to do the 3g altenator mod, but to be honest my stock one has been doing fine lately. I got a proform electric fan and it hasn't had a problem with it. However i dont run a stereo anymore either... what evs lol. Laters
Modifcations breaks 1991 Fox
I found my 1991 LX bone stock and would like to keep it that way, but....after last week when I hit the breaks and the peddle went to the floor after the sound of pingggg snappp! The issue was a $7 gear looking part goes between the two pads at the bottom, simple to replace. Hint test the breaks with the drum plate on..LOL!
How much was the after market rear replacement? How difficult was the install?
Michael
I found my 1991 LX bone stock and would like to keep it that way, but....after last week when I hit the breaks and the peddle went to the floor after the sound of pingggg snappp! The issue was a $7 gear looking part goes between the two pads at the bottom, simple to replace. Hint test the breaks with the drum plate on..LOL!
How much was the after market rear replacement? How difficult was the install?
Michael
are you referring to the rear disc conversion? I used all factory parts except for those which were obsolete from ford, such as the 94-95 rear softlines, 93 cobra MC, 93 cobra e brake cables, and the rear hard lines and SS braided line kit, and the prop valve. the install was very easy and straight forward.I found my 1991 LX bone stock and would like to keep it that way, but....after last week when I hit the breaks and the peddle went to the floor after the sound of pingggg snappp! The issue was a $7 gear looking part goes between the two pads at the bottom, simple to replace. Hint test the breaks with the drum plate on..LOL!
How much was the after market rear replacement? How difficult was the install?
Michael
Sweet: i saw myself threw most of these steps key steps to have a good reliable pony.
I want to swap the complete rear axle out of a 99 GT in my 91 Coupe. I am also going to take the front spindles and brakes. Basically I want to swap over to have the four wheel disk set up.
Beside having to replace the master cyl, what other things should I expect to have to change?
Beside having to replace the master cyl, what other things should I expect to have to change?
I want to swap the complete rear axle out of a 99 GT in my 91 Coupe. I am also going to take the front spindles and brakes. Basically I want to swap over to have the four wheel disk set up.
Beside having to replace the master cyl, what other things should I expect to have to change?
Mustangmotorsport - Mustangs and a whole lot more!
read up
Ok, Ok I know that most "kids" go with HP, but with the my 79 I went with rear disks from a turbo coup that I got off of ebay and did the swap myself. I also went with the SVO MC. It was funny the guy at Autozone said it would never work, got it home and it bolted right up and has worked great ever sence. After brakes, then came the intake and exhaust, oh yeah and a 300hp creat engine, then the C4 died. So just because some of us are younger, doesnt mean we dont always do it wrong.
Also, some people cant always afford disk breaks right off the bat. I think Muscle car (maybe horsepower or some show like that) did a rear drum upgrade that shaved like 30ft off of the 60-0 distance. So you can still upgrade the stock breaks, using stock stuff.
Also, some people cant always afford disk breaks right off the bat. I think Muscle car (maybe horsepower or some show like that) did a rear drum upgrade that shaved like 30ft off of the 60-0 distance. So you can still upgrade the stock breaks, using stock stuff.
Thanks alot for the POST I really needed it!
1 - 20 of 94 Posts
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