5.0 HO motors

Are all motors in the 87-91 lincoln LSC the HO ones with the forged pistons and what not? If it doesnt say HO on the intake manifold and is a 87 is it an HO?

 

...and, what exactly is the difference between the HO and then non-HO (hee hee) aside from the fuel injection and the pistons?

 

The first 302 H.O. motor was in the 85 mustang GTs with 4bbl.

H.O.s have 351w firing order
H.O.s have roller cams in them.
H.O.s have forged pistons (not all the same comp ratio) made very cheaply by TRW. They are also METRIC pistons.... so rings are more $$$ than normal.

If it says H.O. it is a H.O., if the firing order is 351w, it is also an H.O.

 

I had an 83 Mustang GT that was factory equipped with a 302 H.O. and holley 600. The stock air cleaner housing had H.O. on it.

 

I have just a slightly adjusted opinion of H.O. forged pistons. I can't see that they are made all that cheaply but they are a bit heavy compared to a typical racing forged piston. Also the only dimension that is metric is the ring widths, the rest is standard old Ford stuff. The result is a little heavy but very strong set of slugs that helped the 5.0 revolution become as strong as it was/is, in that it made supercharging and nitrous injection a viable option over the factory equipped short block.

 

Okay, I know a little about fordsmall blocks but somebody told me the other day that the crank on the HO and nonHO is the same...or at least that you can run a HO cam in a non HO engine by just changing the firing order. Is that true?

If it is, I have a '90 truck motor I will put a HO cam in and drop it into my latest project so I don't have to give up the really sweet HO engine on the shelf.

 

I was wrong, 82 was first year of 302 HO in a fox body. I think 85 may have been the first year of forged pistons until late 92 started using hyper pistons.
You can use any 351w cam in a 302... but then you have a 351w firing order. The stock cams in a HO 302 are pretty good, car craft got 400+ HP with aftermaket heads, headers, and carbed intake with the stock cam.

 

All '88-'92 Mark VII's, LSC or not have the same "final edition" 302 HO (225 HP) as the '87-'94 Mustangs. The '87 Linc HO's didn't have the E7 heads which are fairly good breathers stock and there are a few other differences.


Jan

 

I've heard a better option is the 5.0 from an Explorer because the GT40P heads and the intake manifold flow better. Not sure about the cam or anything. I don't think these are H.O motors, they have good heads and intakes that can be swapped to a H.O.

 

The truck 5.0s prior to 94, did not have a roller cam. However, the bosses were there for the roller cam hold down spider. So, to put the roller HO cam in a non roller truck block, you need the cam, lifters, and hold down spider, and switch to the HO/ 351W firing order. The Explorer heads are to Fords that Vortec heads are to Chevy's.

Karl

 

The only problem with using GT40P's is that the weird sparkplug angle makes it hard to find headers that'll bolt up. Otherwise, they're the best breathing boneyard SBF head around.

Jan

 

all HO's have roller cams? Just wondering

 

All 87(?) and up car, HO or non HO.

 

My 85 Mustang GT 4v HO has a stock roller cam. I don't know if 86 motors had them though.

 

I'm not a big 5.0 Mustang guy, but have always had respect for those cars and the guys run 'em. I like running my cars more than showing them, and if you're like me you've had to race more than a few of these cars & know that there are some fast ones out there.

I used to see guys running nitrous on 100,000+ mile motors at the track on a fairly regular basis. Just beating the shit out of them.

Great motor.

I've always wondered why more people don't go this direction when looking for a cheap motor for a custom or whatever. Not like there's any shortage of wrecked mustangs or LSC's with blown bags or bad anti-locks at the junkyard. I've seen complete running motors ready to bolt up for $400. And thanks to the stang guys there are more cams, heads, and misc speed shit than you could imagine. Gotta be just as cheap as going sbc.

 

Thats why my 64 Rambler is getting a 302/T5.... Plus it looks like an AMC motor.

 

My 87 GT had over 350,000 mile and it still ran strong when I sold it.

For the money, its the best bang for the buck for a Ford motor.

 

Were the 302's in the 89-91 T-birds also the 225 HP HO roller cam motors? -- Chuck

 

Its definately a LOT cheaper, otherwise I WOULD have an SBC sitting in a shopping cart in my garage instead!

But, fords sound better.

 

I don't think the MN12 T-Birds got the 5.0 until 91-93 model years, and I think it was still the standard engine, but it might have been the HO model. The 87-88 Fox birds were defiitely not HO.

Another cheap ford motor to look for in the yard nowadays is the 4.6 DOHC from a Lincoln Mark VIII. 280 HP stock, and I've seen running Mark VIIIs for sale under $2K

 

quick question:
is there a quick and dirty way to tell whether the motor has a 28 oz or 50 oz balancer on it- say, without decoding part numbers or something?? I thought that I had seen lincolns listed as having the 50 oz balancer originally(????).
Thanks in advance.

 

In 1980 all ford small blocks went to the 50 oz balance.....just look at the code it very easy.......all you need are the first two numbers......like..........C3...... 1963........ford kept the code pretty much the same......C....1960......D.....1970.......E......1980......and the last number is the last part of the year.........and the letters go on from there.....that is a easy spot way..........

 

They are easy to tell apart once you study them for a minute or two. Go to your local Ford dealer and ask if you can check out an E4TZ-6316-B. This is a 50oz balancer. Look closely at the counterweight area and make note of the size and thickness. Once you become familiar you will be able to tell the difference between a 28 and 50oz balancer at a glance, since the 50's counterbalance weight will be visibly much larger.

 

ALL H.O. engines air intakes face the passenger fender...........all non H.O. engines air intakes face the driver side fender......IN PASSENGER CARS.......

all super coupes are supose to be the H.O. engines......being in a lincoln the trans are the same as the ones in the mustangs but are made to shift softer.........(hey its a lincoln).............all H.O. engines have forged pistons but the ones used in 1986 are true flattops with no valve relefs so you are limited to cam lift and valve size unless you fly cut them...........every H.O. i have seen has had it on the intake but certain year lincolns may not have had them.......the stock cam shaft specs with stock 1.6 rockers is ......444/.444 it is a 266 cam........

 

Throtle body size, upper and lower intake, roller cam, double roller timeing chain, tube headers from the factory(mostly for looks don't flow that much better than a set of cast iron one but weigh hardly anything)TRW forged pistons....basicly about it......