Getting ready to rebuild my 5.0, what mods to do?

[imq707s]

I've got a 97' Mountaineer (same as an X) with a 5.0 in it. It's got over 120,000 miles on it and is starting to get a little weak. I use it to pull my boat and race car all the time. I'm thinking about pulling the motor out this winter and doing a full rebuild (bore .030" over, new pistons/rings, bearings). I figured that while I've got the motor out of the truck, it would be a good time to do some mods to it.

I've built a bunch of sb Chevy motors for drag cars, but I've got limited experiance with fuel injected 5.0 motors. Can I do any porting/polishing to the heads without having to get the computer reprogrammed? What about putting in a little hotter cam? Will that require computer work also?

I know that I want to build low rpm torque for pulling, but a little top end HP increase would be great also.

Instead of messing with a new cam and porting the heads, would I be better off with doing a stock rebuild and adding a supercharger?

Any advice would be great. Thanks :exporange

 

[blk mk8]

the best thing to do is buy a built 347 short block from ford and then put some aluminum heads on it. that will give you the torque for towing you want. you need bigger headers though something bigger then 1.5 inch headers either custom or modified. other wise you will never see your true potenial.

 

[CDW6212R]

Hello, you can do countless things. For a general rebuild, buiy a high quality kit to save money. You can port or polich the heads, and/or change cams.
You probably should get a bigger MAF, intake hose, and FPP headers. There are only two header choices, one of them is 1.5" at $789.

If you didn't know it Fords need exhaust port help. A cam will be close to $200, but you can reuse the roller lifters. All of the Ford cams will hurt the bottom end, becasue they have a lot more intake duration. Try using a cam with an intake duration @.050 in the teens(212-216), with as much exhaust duration as you can get with it. This will help the top end, but not affect the low speed torque as much.

You might play with the compression ratio if you are willing to buy premium. Stock is less than 9:1, and 9.5 would be much better. If you do that, get help with choosing a cam that is compatible. The wrong cam/compression combination can kill performance(pinging, forcing lowered timing).
A stroker short block can be had for less than $2500. Add $1000 for aluminum heads.
Add another trans cooler, in parallel with any other(not radiator) cooler. Have someone install the TransGo shift kit. For the 4R70W its only $100, and it is very involved. The time is worth it.
Good luck,
DW

 

[CDW6212R]

Also, if you are taking it apart, have the trans rebuilt. You mentioned towing, most people suggest not towing in overdrive.
The overdrive in all of the Ford AOD's(1980-present) uses the two weakest links. The direct drive clutches are as good as they get in the AODE's and newer, but the overdrive band can be helped with the Supercoupe overdrive servo, piston, and spring. The three should be around $50, and install as a set, into any AOD, AODE, or 4R70W.

 

[imq707s]

Thanks for all of the info, but nobody said anything about getting the computer reprogrammed......will I need to do that if I do any engine work?

 

[Bronco638]

From racing Shelbys (w/289s), I'd suggest a good high volume oil pump and a windage tray. You might even want to run an oil cooler, too. And, as mentioned, getting the heads to breathe would be an enormous help.

 

[mrboyle]

The best thing you can do to any engine is to have the rotating assembly ballanced. It is the best money you can spend on a rebuild. It increases the engines efficiancy, lifespan, performance and reliability.

 

[blk mk8]

um yes never build a engine with out balencing it. like i said you can buy a motor from ford that will pretty much drop in. this is the eaiest thing to do. if not just buy the parts and build it your self. i would recomend you do the tranny but make shure you do the newest updates for it and dont use any AOD parts in the newer tranny. there is a complete list of upgrade tranny parts for your using factory parts from newer cars availible on WWW.tccoa.com it was written up by a very well respected ford tranny tech. this tech is also the one who trained Brian H from apten and created the software SCT uses. this is the holy grail of the AOD-E/4R70-W factory upgrading. there are 4000 pound t-birds using this formula going low 11's with over 550 hp and 500 tq. i recomend if you want to go all out that you go through every thing but if you just want to do some minor stuff then go with a nice baumann shift kit and mild engine rebuild, yes a good chip would be nice.

 

[CDW6212R]

With anything beyond the stock specs you should buy a chip to zero in on the best performance(don't rely on the factory compromises that are built into all stock PCM's).

The 4R70W shares or can interchange virtually all of the internal components. Improvements have been made along the way, and thus later models(never mind what engine) have all improvements to date.
One exception though are the overdrive actuating components. The overdrive in all of these cousin 4 speeds is applied by the overdrive servo, piston, and spring. Ford has made three sizes, starting with the useless "C" servo. The "B" servo was first used only in V8's and heavy vehicles. With the Thunderbird Supercoupe, Ford made the "A" servo, which has more apply strength. Many police Crown Vics have burned out fourth gear, and they all have "B" servos.
No one knows why Ford makes many bad decisions, but I would never build a high performance(towing included) AOD, AODE, or 4R70 without the "A" servo. The three parts drop in, and holding power of fourth gear is much better. The cost of around $50 is very cheap insurance.

TransGo is the only trans company that makes "shift kits" that have any significant effect on part thottle characteristics. Their stuff makes the transmission much more sensitive to pedal force. The trans doesn't simply downshift "quicker," it more quickly decides to downshift. It takes very little throttle pressure to make it downshift. Its a lot more fun to drive in normal usage.
Good luck,
DW

 

[blk mk8]

http://www.baumannengineering.com/aodsupgr.htm
this website has a complete break down of all the ford trannies.

it says here
"Overdrive servos are easy to install once the valve body is removed, with the procedure being detailed in the AOD valve body recalibration kit instruction manual. The overdrive servo in the AOD-E/4R70W is completely different than the AOD and is always adequately sized. Therefore, no overdrive servo upgrades are necessary for AOD-E/4R70W transmissions. "

check out this website as they are very good with trannies. i personaly only sell and install there shift kits and order all of my tranny parts from them. my tranny in my 4R70W was just rebuilt with parts from these guys.

 

[CDW6212R]

There is some missunderstanding on many levels here, mine included. I have rebuilt a 1997 4R70W from a police car, and I didn't change the servo. I wasn't building for higher performance, and I didn't notice any difference when I removed and reinstalled those servo parts. They may be different, but I doubt it. There function is very simple, and the size relates to holding power of the band. The largest will undoubtedly be the best. The "A" servo is the largest factory part, and the aftermarket piece that is available is only slightly bigger. It is much more expensive though; its billet alluminum.

No offense intended, but I choose to use the best parts available, nevermind what the factory says, or some manual. One fact the is not commonly known is that TransGo is the first company to have a "shift kit." They had SysKo(system correction)kits for the AOD before anybody else had anything for them. Most of the other companies learned what they know from starting with the TransGo parts, and then made less complicated and hopefully better shift kits. I have installed many different AOD-4R70W kits, from Art Carr, B&M, Level 10, Baumann, to TransGo. The TransGo kits are always more complicated, they have more parts, and the all around performance is better.

The difference is that TransGo first makes a correction kit for a transmission, and then they consider making a "shift kit" for it. The first thing they do is to fix all known factory problems, quirks, etc. Their priority is the total functioning of the trans, not just WOT shift points and harshness. I believe their philosophy will result in longer lasting transmissions than others shift kits.
But, the last I heard is that they don't deal with the public anymore, so word of mouth is their only advertising. I have talked with the owner many times. He just got tired of trying to explain the difference between shift harshness, and longevity. People only consider WOT shift feel, while many other characteristics of a transmission are equally important to reliability.

Best wishes no matter what route you choose
DW

 

[Billy177]

i would get some high compression pistons some gapless rings an e303 cam or some quality 1.7 rockers and quality bearings and stuff