SOHC V6 Supercharger

The purpose of this thread is to discuss the design and possible development and installation of a supercharger for my 2000 Sport SOHC V6 engine. I have no first hand experience with forced induction systems and want to learn from forum members that have them on their vehicles. While I don't plan to implement a turbocharger system, there are many problems common to all types of forced induction systems.

The easiest and least expensive solution would be to modify a Ranger SOHC V6 Banshee kit and purchase a used Thunderbird supercoupe positive displacement blower. However, the kit makes no provisions for an aftercooler which I think is beneficial even with only 5 psi of boost.

The Explorer Express supercharger kit includes a quality looking manifold but one is very difficult to obtain.

Once again, there are no provisions for an aftercooler.

I suspect the best solution for me would be a centrifugal supercharger with a water aftercooler. With my oil coolers and remote filters I have very little room in front of the radiator for an intercooler. I am interested in a boost in the range of 5 to 8 psi - enough for a significant performance increase but not so much to adversely impact reliability and require beefing up of engine internals or the transmission/torque converter.

Procharger sells a kit for the 2005 - 2010 Mustang V6.

But the Mustang configuration is opposit to the Explorer - intake on left and battery on right. Also, there is a lot more room between the engine front and the radiator rear on the Mustang than on the Explorer.


Vortech also makes a kit for the Mustang but there are the same problems.

The logical location for a centrifugal supercharger is the same side as the air filter box and intake manifold inlet port. Unfortunately, that is where the alternator is located. I'm investigating the possibility of replacing the belt driven power steering pump with an electric motor driven pump and then relocating the alternator to the old power steering pump location.

 

[2000StreetRod]

Gauges Installed & wired

Today I finished installing the pod dash oil pressure gauge and the wiring for it and the vacuum/boost gauge.

I used trailer type quick connects attached to wires going to the C287 instrument cluster connector for power, ground and illumination.

The power requirement for the oil pressure gauge is minimal (the boost/vacuum gauge is mechanical) and the two added lamps' current is less than the current reduced by replacing the six cluster incandescent illumination lamps with LEDs. Tomorrow I'll start the engine and check the functionality of the meters before installing the cluster. I'll have to use test clips/pins to test the illumination. I installed the red lamp covers since the gauges are in the field of view above the dash. I didn't want them to affect my night vision.

 

[Carguy3J]

If I may make a suggestion, or comment...... I know you are a stickler for details and such, so I'm sort of surprised to see you using those "scotch locks", or trailer quick connects as you call them. I used to use them, until I had many a mechanic, including pro audio guys, and even a former NASACAR crew chief tell me how bad they were. I guess they're ok for temporary installations and testing.
Long term, they are an electrical problem waiting to happen.
For one thing, there is no good way to truly seal them, so moisture can get in and corrode the wires.
More importantly, they have a habit of eventually cutting through wires over time. After all, that's how they install in the first place. Vibration just keeps on doing what they were designed to do.
They are also known for not making really great connections, electrically speaking. Its fine if you are just trying to light up a bulb, or even power a basic car stereo I guess. But, it may create issue when used on wires powering sensors or carrying the data/readings from them, as well as anything else sensitive to voltage drop, current loss, increased resistance readings, etc....
Soldering is the best way to go, once you have your wiring figured out, and know what is staying where. If you think you may need to disconnect or separate something in the future, for maintenance, etc.., then you could use "proper" connectors, such as GM weatherpack terminals, or any of the other oem equivalents. I know the GM weatherpack parts are widely available, but I'm not sure if the Ford equivalent is. The GM stuff is very popular in hot rods/racing applications. Summit, Jegs,etc... all sell it. It makes for a much neater/professional appearance as well.

 

[2000StreetRod]

Valid comments

Your comments are valid and I do have reservations about leaving those connections as they are. I admit to getting lazy when confronted with three splices of four wires in a restricted access location. If the gauges work properly I'll probably solder and shrink wrap the connections (like I did with the gauge pigtails) before installing the cluster. Considering how much effort's involved in removing and installing the cluster doing the connections properly is certainly justified. After all, it's not like I have a deadline to meet for this M90 installation. I started ordering parts in late May 2013 and began removing stock components in mid Sept 2013. That means I haven't driven my Sport for 6 months. No wonder I'm getting impatient.

 

[colintrax]

If I may make a suggestion, or comment...... I know you are a stickler for details and such, so I'm sort of surprised to see you using those "scotch locks", or trailer quick connects as you call them. I used to use them, until I had many a mechanic, including pro audio guys, and even a former NASACAR crew chief tell me how bad they were. I guess they're ok for temporary installations and testing.
Long term, they are an electrical problem waiting to happen.
For one thing, there is no good way to truly seal them, so moisture can get in and corrode the wires.
More importantly, they have a habit of eventually cutting through wires over time. After all, that's how they install in the first place. Vibration just keeps on doing what they were designed to do.
They are also known for not making really great connections, electrically speaking. Its fine if you are just trying to light up a bulb, or even power a basic car stereo I guess. But, it may create issue when used on wires powering sensors or carrying the data/readings from them, as well as anything else sensitive to voltage drop, current loss, increased resistance readings, etc....
Soldering is the best way to go, once you have your wiring figured out, and know what is staying where. If you think you may need to disconnect or separate something in the future, for maintenance, etc.., then you could use "proper" connectors, such as GM weatherpack terminals, or any of the other oem equivalents. I know the GM weatherpack parts are widely available, but I'm not sure if the Ford equivalent is. The GM stuff is very popular in hot rods/racing applications. Summit, Jegs,etc... all sell it. It makes for a much neater/professional appearance as well.

Thank you for the info. Guess I have some to remove

 

[Dono]

There's so many crap connectors out there.
I just finished re-wiring my wifes drl's. Randomly the headlights would turn on and drain the battery.
I took thinks apart tonight and found a cheap relay hooked in to the ignition wire and the headlights with butt and crimp connectors. I'm certain that this issue is fixed (with solder and heat shrink tubing). I'm also sure most of us have a story like this.

I do understand getting tired of the project and wanting to get it done. Carguy may have just saved you future misery.

 

[4pointslow]

wires

Yea, lol, we are all probably guilty of using those connectors at one point or another.

 

[2000StreetRod]

Achieving constant fuel injector pressure

Yesterday I happened to read the following in the 2014 Ford Racing Parts catalog:

"As mentioned earlier, all injector flow rates published in this catalog have been determined at a pressure of 39.15 psi (270kPa) across the injector, but to what does the phrase “across the injector” refer? To understand this fully, we first need to discuss three different methods of measuring pressure. The first is called absolute pressure. This is defined as the pressure relative to a complete vacuum, such as would be found in outer space. For instance, atmospheric pressure (the air we breathe) is typically around 14.7 psi absolute (29.93inHg) at sea level, depending on temperature and weather conditions. An engine that has a vacuum signal of 12 “inches” simply means that the absolute pressure in the intake manifold is 12inHg less than the atmospheric pressure. When you subtract the 12inHg from the atmospheric pressure of 29.93inHg, you are left with a positive pressure of 17.93inHg, or roughly 9 psi absolute as compared to a complete vacuum. Sometimes you will see absolute pressure in psi written as “psia.”

The second is called gauge pressure, which is pressure relative to atmospheric pressure. In general, everyone is most familiar with gauge pressure, because it is what you measure when you check the air in your tires or when you connect a fuel pressure gauge to the fuel rail. An engine which makes 6 psi of boost at sea level is actually equivalent to 20.7 psi absolute, (14.7 + 6 = 20.7). Sometimes you will see gauge pressure in psi written as “psig.”

The third is called delta pressure and is very much like gauge pressure, but instead of being relative to atmospheric, it can be relative to any other pressure, such as the pressure in the intake manifold. Sometimes you will see delta pressure in psi written as “psid.”

When we quote pressure “across the injector,” what we really mean is the delta pressure (or difference) between the fuel rail and the intake manifold. On CRP systems, the rail gauge pressure is constant while the delta pressure varies depending on manifold pressure. This means if a fuel pressure gauge is connected to the rail, the reading it gives will be constant. On CIP systems, the system controls the delta pressure, either by use of a mechanical regulator referenced to the intake manifold (in a traditional or “return” system), or by the use of the FRPT and the PCM (with ERFS). This means that if you connect a fuel pressure gauge to the fuel rail on one of these systems, you will see fuel pressure vary depending on intake manifold pressure. This is because the gauge is measuring gauge pressure, which is relative to atmospheric, but the EFI system is controlling the fuel rail pressure relative to intake manifold pressure which is changing depending on engine load (your right foot) among other things. On a naturally aspirated engine, the manifold pressure at idle is typically around 10 psia, and the manifold pressure at WOT will be atmospheric, so typically at the fuel rail you will see approximately 30 psig at idle and at least 39.15 psig at WOT, depending on whether or not you have ERFS and whether or not it is boosting pressure for one of the reasons mentioned in the previous section. On a forced-induction engine, the highest manifold pressure that the engine can reach will be atmospheric plus the maximum boost your configuration can obtain. This means that to keep 39.15 psid across the injector, the gauge pressure will have to increase by the same amount as the maximum boost. A couple of examples should make these concepts more clear. First, consider a naturally aspirated conventional return fuel (non-ERFS, non-MRFS) EFI system with a mechanical vacuum referenced regulator set at the stock pressure setting. The system will try to keep the pressure across the injector at 39.15 psid regardless of engine load, so if you have a fuel pressure gauge attached to the fuel rail, you will see a maximum pressure of 39.15 psig at WOT if the system is doing its job properly. Now consider a forced-induction engine making a maximum of 10 psig boost, also with a conventional EFI system and mechanical regulator set to the stock pressure setting. The system will still try to keep the pressure across the injector at 39.15 psi, so this time your fuel pressure gauge attached to the rail should read a maximum of 39.15 + 10 = 49.15 psig. If it never gets to 49.15 psig at WOT, your fuel system is inadequate for your engine. You will need to either increase the capacity of the pump, minimize the voltage loss between the pump and the battery or decrease the pressure loss between the pump and the engine through the use of larger lines, etc., and re-test. Do NOT try to “tune around” this type of fuel delivery problem. It will bite you in the long run, and can result in hard to-diagnose problems at best all the way to engine failure at worst. Note that during a WOT event, the fuel pump in the forced-induction engine must supply fuel at a higher pressure than in the naturally aspirated engine. As mentioned in the previous section, this means that the fuel pump supplying the forced-induction engine will have a lower maximum flow rate capability than the fuel pump supplying the naturally aspirated engine. This is a critical concept to grasp because it means that in general, for engines with equal brake horsepower, the fuel pump supplying the forced-induction engine will need to have more capacity than the fuel pump supplying the naturally aspirated engine!"

The air port on my fuel pressure sensor is capped so it is basically fixed at atmospheric pressure. That means the fuel injector delta will vary considerably when the intake manifold varies from 20 in-Hg vacuum to 8 psi of boost. I have decided to remove the plenum and connect the pressure sensor air port to an unused port on the manifold. I had to remove the collapsing silicone tube between the throttle body and the plenum anyway to replace it with a metal one. While I've got more access I'll replace the spark plug wires and spark plugs gapped to 0.044 inch.

My intank fuel pressure regulator opens its bypass at around 62 psi. I've set my electronic fuel pressure regulator for 43.5 psi which will soon be relative to the intake manifold vacuum/pressure. That will achieve a constant fuel injector differential pressure up to 18.5 psi (62-43.5) of boost.

 

[2000StreetRod]

Injector delta pressure PCM switch

I found out there's a switch in the PCM firmware for the 2nd Generation vehicles with the returnless fuel system. If the switch is turned off the PCM assumes that the fuel injector delta pressure will be constant just as it was in the earlier return type fuel systems with the rail mounted fuel pressure regulator. I'm in the process of removing the plenum so I can connect the fuel pressure sensor air port to the intake manifold port.

I removed all of the spark plugs and checked them. The gaps had not significantly increased since they were installed and the insulators indicate I selected the proper heat range. While the plugs were out I performed a compression check. The results below are for a cold engine (hasn't run in several days) with nothing connected to the plenum intake port (WOT equivalent).

* 1 * 2 * 3 ** 4 * 5 * 6
174 178 172 175 162 172

I was a little disappointed in the results. I was hoping all cylinders would be above 180 with less deviation. Since cylinder 5 was the first one I checked I tried it again after the others and it came up to 165. I gapped six new plugs to 0.044 and installed them except for cylinder 5. I poured some SeaFoam into it and will soak and rotate it for a few days to see if the compression improves. If it doesn't, I'll plan for an engine rebuild or replacement in the distant future. That would be a good excuse to increase the displacement to 4.3 liters.

 

[shucker1]

The results below are for a cold engine (hasn't run in several days) with nothing connected to the plenum intake port (WOT equivalent).

It would be interesting to know what your compression is for a warm engine? Perhaps internal parts have shrunk up just a little bit and your losing some compression there?

Just a thought.

 

[QueenCitySleeper]

yep^^^

I always comp test when motor is warm. The rings are not seated when cold especially this time of year. Cyl #5 might be a tad low compared to #2 but it is by no means dead. All it takes is a little carbon on a valve or poor seat in the spark plug port to cause that. If it concerns you that much do a leak down test. If I recall you made good numbers N/A, theres no reason to think your motor is shot. Drive it like you stole it and burn that crap outta there.

 

[2000StreetRod]

vacuum/boost testing

I finally got the plenum removed and enough other things disconnected to get to the fuel pressure sensor. I removed the cap and installed a hose secured with cable ties.

I also removed the only remaining plug in the intake manifold and replaced it with a fitting for the fuel pressure sensor hose.

I decided it would be prudent to perform some testing before reinstalling everything preventing accessibility. I removed the fuel pump relay and powered the fuel pump controller with my battery charger. I used my hand vacuum pump to simulate manifold vacuum and my hand pressure pump to simulate manifold boost connecting each to the pressure sensor air port. I was pleased to observe that the hose did not collapse at 25 in-Hg of vacuum nor burst at 22 psi of boost. Below are the test results.

In-Hg/psi** psi (rail) * delta
** 0/0 ***** 41.3 **** 0
** 5/-2.5 *** 38.7 *** 41.2
* 10/-4.9 *** 36.3 *** 41.2
* 15/-7.4 *** 34.2 *** 41.6
* 20/-9.8 *** 31.5 *** 41.3
* 25/-12.3 ** 28.5 *** 40.8

Boost * psi (rail) ** delta
** 5 **** 46.4 **** 41.5
** 8 **** 49.7 **** 41.7
* 10 **** 52.1 **** 41.1
* 15 **** 57.8 **** 42.8
* 18 **** 60.3 **** 42.3
* 19 **** 61.3 **** 42.3
* 20 **** 62.0 **** 42.0

At 21 psi of boost the rail pressure exceeded the setting for the intank fuel pressure regulator (62 psi) so the pump ran continuously and the pressure only slightly increased. I am pleased with the results showing that my fuel injector delta will always be almost constant for any condition my engine might experience. I hope the PCM assumes if the returnless fuel system switch is off the pressure will be around 41 psi instead of my normal 62 psi.

 

[2000StreetRod]

worn compression rings

The SeaFoam treatment did not help the compression on cylinder 5 so I added a couple squirts of engine oil, rotated the crankshaft a couple times to lubricate the rings and cylinder walls and expell any excess oil and then repeated the compression check. The pressure exceeded 180 psi indicating that either the compression rings are sticking in the piston lands or are worn. I'm going to plan on purchasing a replacement drive train in the next year or so and getting it into good shape. That way I'll have a spares for my Sport or the 4 door Explorer when I buy one. I'll probably also purchase a rebuilt M90 if I like how this one performs. I'm definitely interested in a 4.3 liter engine. With the M90 blower the power increase should be 40 or 50 rwhp. If I could get a short block for $3,000 or so it would meet my cost criteria of $100 per rwhp.

 

[2000StreetRod]

4 cuts to fit

It took me four cuts

before the non-collapsible tube between the throttle body adapter and the post-throttle body coupler would fit.

Tomorrow I'll round off the cuts with a file and install the unit. Kind of a waste of a lot of polished aluminum intercooler tubing but I wouldn't settle for a plastic one from Sceptre.

 

[CDW6212R]

Very nice Dale, I like that.

I will need to do that also to make the air cleaner pipe for mine. Maybe I should wait until I do the supercharger stuff also, and then just make it once. Good idea.

 

[2000StreetRod]

I prefer silicone

I prefer to use reinforced silicone hoses for the main intake but the section between the throttle body and the intake manifold/plenum must be rigid or it will collapse from the vacuum.

It's good to hear from you again Don. When do you plan to start on your supercharger installation? Will it be on the V6 or the V8?

 

[CDW6212R]

Thanks for the welcome back. I've been away from the forum due to my PC and a password issue, but lots of things got piled up.

I finally got to work in my garage, to get my Crown Vic out that has a leaking head gasket(from about 2006). I've gone without use of my garage for that long, and it's getting harder to work outside. With that out of the way, I will get some things done finally.

When I get my Mark VII to a point where it's ready to get painted and not have to work on it with the new paint(engine swap etc), then I'll start on my Mercury. The 347 will go in the car, that's where I planned to eventually put it to begin with. I'll start the KB blower on the 195k mile 302 Mountaineer. If that works out, then I'll work towards having another engine built, likely a 332 I think now.

I applaud everyone's efforts to custom install boost into these trucks, they don't really have the kind of room we'd like. If they did maybe some company might have built something way back when they were the most popular SUV.

You have to fabricate quite a few things in most cases. I hope what you are working with there ends up smoothly, little drama and runs great. I want an intercooler also, so that requires building three special plenums for what I'm planning. I'll set the blower over the driver's valve cover, similar to where it goes on a KB kit for a 94/95 Mustang 302. But I'll have to build plenums to go between the TB and the blower, to the IC, and to the lower intake. Add some brackets, the fuel system, and the heat exchanger etc, and maybe I'll be close. I'd be happy to get into that by Summer.

 

[2000StreetRod]

Idles better

I completed the installation of the metal 45 degree elbow.

When I started the engine it didn't run very well but it's pretty cold today. After it warmed a little I checked the vacuum and it's now 17 in-hg. Apparently the new plugs gapped to 0.044 inch and the new plug wires are good since the engine runs smooth. It sounds pretty mean when I rev it a little.

Before I reinstalled the plenum I tightened all of the valve cover bolts that were accessible and the very small valve cover leak I had on the driver side quit leaking.

Next I need to decide how to route the throttle cable and cut it and the housing to length. Then I have to replace the quick connects for the gauges with soldered and heat shrunk connections. After that I'll install the instrument cluster so I can have a tachometer to perform the step test datalog James needs for the tune.

 

[2000StreetRod]

Gauges rewired

I finished rewiring the gauges today. The photo below verifies that I removed the quick connects and did it the right way.

To avoid working on my knees I placed a two step folding stool where the driver seat normally goes. It was almost comfortable. I didn't have time to test them.

 

[Dono]

your sooo close.
Any eta on the throttle cable?

 

[2000StreetRod]

throttle cable

Tonight I'll read the instructions to learn how to shorten the cable and housing. The housing is braided. I think I have to pull it thru the ferrule to the desired length and then cut it while making sure the center wire is not cut to the same length. There's really no good way to route it. Wherever it's located it will be in the way of access to something else.