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easy HP upgraes while engine is out?
- Thread starter 91ESport
- Start date
cmnavajo
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- Snohomish, Washington
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- 2000 Explorer Sport
Power mods...
One thing that you could do (or should I say, have done) is port and polish the heads and intake. Porting and polishing the heads and intake means to grind out certain areas and polish the surfaces where the air flows. This process can be rather expensive ($200-$1000+, depending on who does the work and what they do). I say "have it done" because porting and polishing isn't just as easy as grinding and smoothing everything down. If you were to grind off too much metal or grind it out of the wrong places, it will actually have a negative effect on power. A basic rule when trying to build power on an engine is to remember the saying, "more air in and more air out." By porting and polishing the heads and intake, along with a high-flow intake tube (KKM, K&N, etc.) you will allow the engine to bring air in more efficiently. That will help build some power, but to get the most gain, I would suggest installing a performance exhaust (if you don't already have it) such as headers and a cat-back system and possibly a replacement catalytic converter. You may want to check around at any local engine builders or performance-oriented automotive machine shops, and talk to them about porting and polishing your heads and intake. I must warn you though, be cautious of who does the work. It is very important that the porting and polishing is done by someone who knows what they are doing. As I said, if it is done wrong, it can have a negative effect on power. You may want to check with some of their previous customers. If done correctly, you can expect a noticeable gain in power (it still won't feel quite like a torquey V-8) but again, some exhaust work will also bring up the power a little. I am not overly familiar with the 4.0 liter heads so I don't know how much they can be improved (again, talk to the machine shop). Along with porting and polishing the heads and intake, I would suggest that you have the heads decked (to make sure the sealing surface is flat) and have a decent valve job done. A good valve job is pretty important because if the air flow gets too disturbed and turbulent on the valve, the porting and polishing work will lose it's effect. Most shops will probably do a 3-angle job but they may do a 5-angle valve job, which just means the air will flow a little smoother over the valve. There may be quite a difference in the cost of the two and I don't think you would feel the difference of a 5-angle valve job over a 3-angle. You may also want to consider replacing the lifters at this time if your engine has high mileage. You will probably find that some (or all) of these procedures are relatively expensive, but power costs money and if you like power the way I do then it is probably worthwhile. Good Luck!
One thing that you could do (or should I say, have done) is port and polish the heads and intake. Porting and polishing the heads and intake means to grind out certain areas and polish the surfaces where the air flows. This process can be rather expensive ($200-$1000+, depending on who does the work and what they do). I say "have it done" because porting and polishing isn't just as easy as grinding and smoothing everything down. If you were to grind off too much metal or grind it out of the wrong places, it will actually have a negative effect on power. A basic rule when trying to build power on an engine is to remember the saying, "more air in and more air out." By porting and polishing the heads and intake, along with a high-flow intake tube (KKM, K&N, etc.) you will allow the engine to bring air in more efficiently. That will help build some power, but to get the most gain, I would suggest installing a performance exhaust (if you don't already have it) such as headers and a cat-back system and possibly a replacement catalytic converter. You may want to check around at any local engine builders or performance-oriented automotive machine shops, and talk to them about porting and polishing your heads and intake. I must warn you though, be cautious of who does the work. It is very important that the porting and polishing is done by someone who knows what they are doing. As I said, if it is done wrong, it can have a negative effect on power. You may want to check with some of their previous customers. If done correctly, you can expect a noticeable gain in power (it still won't feel quite like a torquey V-8) but again, some exhaust work will also bring up the power a little. I am not overly familiar with the 4.0 liter heads so I don't know how much they can be improved (again, talk to the machine shop). Along with porting and polishing the heads and intake, I would suggest that you have the heads decked (to make sure the sealing surface is flat) and have a decent valve job done. A good valve job is pretty important because if the air flow gets too disturbed and turbulent on the valve, the porting and polishing work will lose it's effect. Most shops will probably do a 3-angle job but they may do a 5-angle valve job, which just means the air will flow a little smoother over the valve. There may be quite a difference in the cost of the two and I don't think you would feel the difference of a 5-angle valve job over a 3-angle. You may also want to consider replacing the lifters at this time if your engine has high mileage. You will probably find that some (or all) of these procedures are relatively expensive, but power costs money and if you like power the way I do then it is probably worthwhile. Good Luck!
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You can also think about changing the cam shaft while the engine is out. You could also switch to roller rockers and lifters, and change the pushrods. Might as well think about it while the engine is out! You can change the exhaust once the engine is back in, so if you really want to do internal engine mods, now is the time to do them.
SteveVB
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Ditto the above replies. Swap out the cam while the engine is out if your so inclined. 98 and up heads will give you a 1 point bump in compression. The extra compression would be a good combo with a cam install, but you may need to up the octane you run though.
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