Cammed PI engine swap safe to run without tune?

kvoriley

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(97 Mustang GT) I was going to hold off until the summer, but it might not be ideal too... I have a 04 pi engine that I had the heads cleaned up and put Comp 270's in. I was going to try and make it until the summer with my npi engine because I am away at school and it is my DD, but now the intake manifold is cracked and leaking badly, and I feel that the engine itself could go any day now lol. I was wondering if I finished degreeing the cams and put my PI engine in and drove it for awhile would it be safe without a tune? Would it even be driveable? I won't have money to have it dyno tuned for awhile... So I don't know if I should just temporarily put the PI intake manifold on my NPI engine and pray that it lasts until the summer, or swap the PI engine and drive it until I can get a tune?
 

punched281

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I put some cams in my car and it ran. May run a little rough and may have to be driven a certain way but I would think it would be fine. But as far as not having the money to tune it, I would wait. What if you do need it tuned? Then you are just having it sit there till you can afford it.

My girls mustang hasn't had a tune and we did heads cam and intake and she runs like a rapped ape... Little tricky to set off in it after it sits idling but not too bad...
 

duff daddy

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(97 Mustang GT) I was going to hold off until the summer, but it might not be ideal too... I have a 04 pi engine that I had the heads cleaned up and put Comp 270's in. I was going to try and make it until the summer with my npi engine because I am away at school and it is my DD, but now the intake manifold is cracked and leaking badly, and I feel that the engine itself could go any day now lol. I was wondering if I finished degreeing the cams and put my PI engine in and drove it for awhile would it be safe without a tune? Would it even be driveable? I won't have money to have it dyno tuned for awhile... So I don't know if I should just temporarily put the PI intake manifold on my NPI engine and pray that it lasts until the summer, or swap the PI engine and drive it until I can get a tune?


I had a pi head/npi swapped 270 cammed car and It will run but it wont run well. I had to up the injectors from stock to at least a 30, and upped the fuel pump from stock to a walbro 255. My car would BARLEY run with those upgraded fuel items, and stock MAF. Yet you may not go as far as I did.


Personally dont do it unless your going to do it right. Throw the manifold on for now RTV it and get it ready for when you can do it right.
 
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kvoriley

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I had a pi head/npi swapped 270 cammed car and It will run but it wont run well. I had to up the injectors from stock to at least a 30, and upped the fuel pump from stock to a walbro 255. My car would BARLEY run with those upgraded fuel items, and stock MAF. Yet you may not go as far as I did.


Personally dont do it unless your going to do it right. Throw the manifold on for now RTV it and get it ready for when you can do it right.

I think I will just slap the pi intake on the old engine. Sounds like the only way to go for now. But I was going to go for 24lb injectors I figured they would be enough?? And I was also planning on swapping the fuel pump just because.

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duff daddy

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30lb injectors would be best (gives you room to move, and keep it away from max duty cycle of the injector)
255 walbro - new is 70.00 .... stupid not to do it
I used a Lightning MAF which I got new in box for 90.00 ......

With the amount of air volume the cams will use (over 48-6000) these will be the best for you. Where were you a few years ago, you could have had my whole set up for little moneys.
 
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kvoriley

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30lb injectors would be best (gives you room to move, and keep it away from max duty cycle of the injector)
255 walbro - new is 70.00 .... stupid not to do it
I used a Lightning MAF which I got new in box for 90.00 ......

With the amount of air volume the cams will use (over 48-6000) these will be the best for you. Where were you a few years ago, you could have had my whole set up for little moneys.

In college with no car lol. On okay I will look into it. I'm pretty sure I can get some used 30lbers for cheap.
 
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kvoriley

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Pi intake swap it untill summer. Save money for the tune while you wait

Agreed. I am starting to wonder if I should even put this engine in my car now. It needs almost everything. New transmission, rear-end needs rebuilt.... I might try and look for a better roller, (possibly a 99 and newer) that has a good trans, rear-end, and doesn't need as much body work as mine does now... I might just throw the pi intake on it and sell it this summer and find something else. Haven't made a final decision yet lol.
 

Ninety8stang

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(97 Mustang GT) I was going to hold off until the summer, but it might not be ideal too... I have a 04 pi engine that I had the heads cleaned up and put Comp 270's in. I was going to try and make it until the summer with my npi engine because I am away at school and it is my DD, but now the intake manifold is cracked and leaking badly, and I feel that the engine itself could go any day now lol. I was wondering if I finished degreeing the cams and put my PI engine in and drove it for awhile would it be safe without a tune? Would it even be driveable? I won't have money to have it dyno tuned for awhile... So I don't know if I should just temporarily put the PI intake manifold on my NPI engine and pray that it lasts until the summer, or swap the PI engine and drive it until I can get a tune?

My car ran with comp 270s without a tune. Drove it like that for a while until I could get all the bugs worked out of my swap. Just out of curiosity, did you check PTV with those cams because mine definitely hit piston without valve reliefs.
 
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kvoriley

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My car ran with comp 270s without a tune. Drove it like that for a while until I could get all the bugs worked out of my swap. Just out of curiosity, did you check PTV with those cams because mine definitely hit piston without valve reliefs.

Not yet degreeing them and checking for PTV is next on the list

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nightfire

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You aren't going to be doing any damage with an unturned cam swap, so "safe" doesn't apply here. It is the driveability that takes a major gut-punt. Like mentioned above, it will run like crapola.
 

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30lb injectors would be best (gives you room to move, and keep it away from max duty cycle of the injector)
255 walbro - new is 70.00 .... stupid not to do it
I used a Lightning MAF which I got new in box for 90.00 ......

With the amount of air volume the cams will use (over 48-6000) these will be the best for you. Where were you a few years ago, you could have had my whole set up for little moneys.

This is completely unnecessary and a waste of money. 90% of all mod motor cam-swapped Mustangs on the road are running and performing beautifully on the stock fuel system.
 
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kvoriley

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You aren't going to be doing any damage with an unturned cam swap, so "safe" doesn't apply here. It is the driveability that takes a major gut-punt. Like mentioned above, it will run like crapola.

Yeah I'm putting the pi intake on right now lol

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nightfire

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Yeah I'm putting the pi intake on right now lol

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Just fyi, Justin @ VMP could give you a base tune for your cam swap. I had his base tune for my highly modified built/procharged car and it ran great. A simple cam tune should be nothing for him. His tunes are a cheap $100. You give him the entire rundown on your mods including cam specs.

A PI intake swap will give you NOTHING in the seat-of-the-pants feel. You will be disappointed
 

96blak54

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Agreed
The poor tiny 4.6l just doesnt have the means to move your butt in a way a 5.4l does ;) ..lol

All the power is on top of the gears.
 
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kvoriley

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Just fyi, Justin @ VMP could give you a base tune for your cam swap. I had his base tune for my highly modified built/procharged car and it ran great. A simple cam tune should be nothing for him. His tunes are a cheap $100. You give him the entire rundown on your mods including cam specs.

A PI intake swap will give you NOTHING in the seat-of-the-pants feel. You will be disappointed

Yeah I know I'm not worried about power gains. I just need the car to get me by until the summer. I think I'm just going to wait and have it tuned and done right all at the same time. I put the intake on last night, and I'm getting somewhat of a rough idle and a studder coming off of idle. I triple checked everything and it seems to be fine. But I also have not drilled the hole for the other coolant temp sender. I did reuse the plenum gasket, so I am going to check for leaks later today. I'm hoping that's the issue.
 
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kvoriley

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Agreed
The poor tiny 4.6l just doesnt have the means to move your butt in a way a 5.4l does ;) ..lol

All the power is on top of the gears.

And yeah lol... I just about did a 2v 5.4 swap, but I couldn't pass up the steal of a deal for the 4.6 I found.
 

duff daddy

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This is completely unnecessary and a waste of money. 90% of all mod motor cam-swapped Mustangs on the road are running and performing beautifully on the stock fuel system.
This is where you get to prove it, find out how much fuel you will need, then show me the duty cycle of a stock injector....ALSO you forhet his 97 is return so its different then the 99+ cars. All the parts I listed can be had for under 100 each. I pegged a stock maf with those cams at 6250..

Do your math and prove me wrong
 

Willis_98GT

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I ran mine for about a half a year untuned. Exact same build.

It died a lot, I got used to it though and nothing wrong with bumping the gas petal a little more then you normally would.

If you have the opportunity to do it tho just do it right. get it tuned so you can get the best of what you're doing.
 

nightfire

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This is where you get to prove it, find out how much fuel you will need, then show me the duty cycle of a stock injector....ALSO you forhet his 97 is return so its different then the 99+ cars. All the parts I listed can be had for under 100 each. I pegged a stock maf with those cams at 6250..

Do your math and prove me wrong

I don't need to waste my time. I entered the mod motor game back when you were still learning to walk. You also "pegged your MAF" with just cams? You just don't sound like you know what you're talking about
 

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