5.4 ?????

voidfinger · Jan 4, 2008

lol, i want that gut busting torque though but still have good street manners... which a car with low end torque would have so you wouldn't have to get into it to get it to goo.... but maybe a 125 or 150 shot would help it out lol. But yea Jrgunn, thats what i was originaly planning... lol ask red haha

Jrgunn5150 · Jan 4, 2008

Sorry, that shoulod read bottom 13, and I mean easy, with great manner's, no need to spray it to get it going either, it should have 300 lb/ft off idle

r3dn3ck · Jan 5, 2008

V said:
well red do you think a 5.4 4v would be able to hit the 500hp mark n/a? I think so with around 11:1 compression, worked heads, cams, matching intake, and all the right stuff

Yep. You can do it and have it be a streetable (barely) car. It's going to be expensive to get the level of working to the heads and block that needs to be done and the cams will be on the radical side but it'll tear up the tarmac. Don't forget you're going to be looking at a 8000rpm engine. The bottom end will lose something but you'll need 4.30 gears anyway so it evens out. The car will be brutally fast. I'd expect to knock down high-10's to mid-11's if you can drive it to them. Al Papito does 9's on a full race combo.

voidfinger said:
lol, i want that gut busting torque though but still have good street manners... which a car with low end torque would have so you wouldn't have to get into it to get it to goo.... but maybe a 125 or 150 shot would help it out lol. But yea Jrgunn, thats what i was originaly planning... lol ask red haha

Torque has to be respected. It's 1000000x easier to spin out now than it was and it takes some practice not to bark the tires at ever stop light. All hope of being subtle is lost with the 5.4. On the upside it pulls as hard at 5500rpm as it does at 1500rpm and gets 22-24mpg on the highway.

Jrgunn5150 said:
So basically the 5.4 combo I outlined? If you can't run a bottom without even trying, so sell it and get a Veetek lol.

you can run a high 12 on an 87 octane tuned 5.4 2v with stock headers and adapter plates. ANY bolt-on only makes things better. It's traction that's the issue. Drag radials are a really good idea for the track.

r3dn3ck · Jan 6, 2008

check the san francisco bay area craigslist... there's a 5.4 specific blower kit HELLA cheap on it in the auto parts section.

Say thank you... that's a fuggin killer deal. I was going to buy it for resale.

15psi should be over 500rwhp.

For anyone interested in a 4v combo, I have a theoretical combo that's really stout, including head flow requirements, cam specs, and exhaust specs. Should be good for 450rwhp.

josh0092002 · Jan 8, 2008

real quick, lol is the 5.4 nothing more than stroked out 4.6 basically? ive been wondering that see how the 2 engines have the same bore an everything else but stroke? am i wrong in saything that??? :santa_undecided:

voidfinger · Jan 8, 2008

5.4 has a taller deck hight and a longer rod. different crank also i think. Thats about it. So it fills with more air into the cylender... so 0.8 Liters. :santa_afro:

Jrgunn5150 · Jan 8, 2008

josh0092002 said:
real quick, lol is the 5.4 nothing more than stroked out 4.6 basically? ive been wondering that see how the 2 engines have the same bore an everything else but stroke? am i wrong in saything that??? :santa_undecided:

Basically, you've got it, like Voidfinger said, it's in a tller block to accomodate it.

r3dn3ck · Jan 9, 2008

The 4.6 uses a pretty decent 3.5" stroke on a 9" deck motor. The 5.4 has just over a 10" deck height.

An interesting note, the 5.4 uses a hugely long 6.658" connecting rod. That's longer than just about any rod ever used on a production v8. That includes big blocks. This also gives you an outstanding 1.6:1 rod/stroke ratio. If you've ever heard the term "long rod stroker" the 5.4 is exactly that.

Dalamar · Jan 9, 2008

R3dn3ck - great info man. I just read through this thread.
Props for going a different rought. this swap seems like a very good option for more power without a million mods.

I agree with you on the: (MM torque arm traction ROCKS baby!)
love the traction of mine, it's levels above the modified 4-link.
I drove my car around a bit NA with the stroked 4.6 and it has much better low end torque and curve. totally agree with you on the usable power curve and torque. lives up to shelby's addage: HP sells cars, Torque wins races.

few questions for you:
What is the added weight in swapping to the 5.4 motor?
did you have to change your front suspension any to accomidate?

and lastly - what do you use to clean the rubber off your rear bumper - that is a PITA.

Definately keep us updated on your car!

r3dn3ck · Jan 11, 2008

Dalamar said:
R3dn3ck - great info man. I just read through this thread.
Props for going a different rought. this swap seems like a very good option for more power without a million mods.

I agree with you on the: (MM torque arm traction ROCKS baby!)
love the traction of mine, it's levels above the modified 4-link.
I drove my car around a bit NA with the stroked 4.6 and it has much better low end torque and curve. totally agree with you on the usable power curve and torque. lives up to shelby's addage: HP sells cars, Torque wins races.

few questions for you:
What is the added weight in swapping to the 5.4 motor?
did you have to change your front suspension any to accomidate?

and lastly - what do you use to clean the rubber off your rear bumper - that is a PITA.

Definately keep us updated on your car!

Total weight added is about 70lbs including extra fluid capacity, block weight and the intake adapter plates if used. My HPS intake added another 22lbs over the plastic PI intake. 90% of the added weight was centered behind the spindles so it distributes pretty well. I'm on 350# coilover springs still. I'm going to put the 375's on but they're not necessary. The front feels just a tiny tiny bit softer on bumps but the roll and nosedive haven't changed at all.

I've never had much problem with rubber on the bumper. I try to keep the burnouts pretty short or stay in motion. I've found that a little Ronsonol lighter fluid (for Zippo and Ronson type lighters) helps to break the grip it has with a little soaking on a paper towel.

Jrgunn5150 · Jan 11, 2008

If you know ahead of time, wd-40 keeps it off.

AaRoN · Jan 11, 2008

J.R. said:
If you know ahead of time, wd-40 keeps it off.

I'll have to try that!

Awesome build btw!

josh0092002 · Jan 11, 2008

iam sure this has been asked but cant remember. with just the regular swap, is it necessary to up grade the trany, driveshaft, rearend, axles. or anything, if so what do u all suggest. an what are the limits to the stock drivetrain.

voidfinger · Jan 11, 2008

I don't think you would have to change anything...

josh0092002 · Jan 11, 2008

so as far as a stock 5.4 2v swap, no drivetrain changes need to be made? when are the stock components no good, seeing how the 5.4 makes lots more tq. now would it just be a good idea to upgrade the axles, to keep from snaping them?

Jrgunn5150 · Jan 11, 2008

josh0092002 said:
so as far as a stock 5.4 2v swap, no drivetrain changes need to be made? when are the stock components no good, seeing how the 5.4 makes lots more tq. now would it just be a good idea to upgrade the axles, to keep from snaping them?

Not a bad idea, but no, it's never necessary to upgrade anything unless it breaks. An auto is more than up to the task, and the rear end won't mind unless it getting clutch dumps on slicks.

r3dn3ck · Jan 12, 2008

josh0092002 said:
so as far as a stock 5.4 2v swap, no drivetrain changes need to be made? when are the stock components no good, seeing how the 5.4 makes lots more tq. now would it just be a good idea to upgrade the axles, to keep from snaping them?

This depends HEAVILY on how you drive it. If you're going to flog it hard, then replace the axle shafts and upgrade your clutch to a stage 2 unit. Your tranny can hold a lot of power but like anything if you whip it hard enough or suddenly it'll die. Auto trans guys should install an auxiliary fluid cooler and I like Redline light shockproof gear oil for the back.

Treat it like you would a blower car. If you had a huffer boosting your motor would you launch at 5000 rpm? Probably not cuz you'll frag something. Thing is you don't need to upgrade right off the bat. I've flogged mine pretty hard for about 40 consecutive days and it's been a trooper. Other guys I know with the swap do just fine on stock drive train bits. Some even do drag strip time, most are street warriors. They have little trouble as long as they keep their heads screwed on straight.

RedandBlackgt · Jan 12, 2008

Just a quick question will the 5.4 clear the master cylinder?

Jrgunn5150 · Jan 12, 2008

Yes, puling the valve cover with it there might be challenging though.

r3dn3ck · Jan 13, 2008

mine cleared the MC when we dropped it in from the top. Requires a little wiggling and you DEFINITELY need a load leveler on your cherry picker to drop it in from the top but it clears the MC with about an inch to spare. The 4v motors are a little tighter fit. I designed a set of small spacers for the k-member for 4v swaps. Use .4" for the k-membere and .2" for the tranny mount.