Horse Sense: A question that often looms over anowner's head is whether or not to notify his insurance company of anengine change. The insurance company we called said if you want your new5.0 engine insured, it's best to fess up.
There comes a time in every Mustang enthusiast's life when he realizesthe power harnessed by the stock motor is nice, but just not enough.We're all guilty of wanting more and more horsepower as time passes. Thecar we fell in love with, although cool as ever, needs some help to getus over the horsepower hump. A supercharger, some nitrous, and all theother regular bolt-ons seem to do it for most of us. We can go from a225hp car to 350 screaming ponies in a matter of a few weeks.
Those who unwittingly purchased a V-6 Mustang instead of a V-8 start outin a considerable hole. You know who you are. It doesn't matter whetheryou bought the car new or used--you own it now, and you've got to makethe best of it. Admitting your mistake will help you take the first steptoward more power.
Here are some of the necessary...
Here are some of the necessary parts for this conversion, minus theexhaust system--which you will also need to attain. Pictured here is theelectrical EEC harness, the EEC computer, the mass air tube, thethrottle cable, and the heavy-duty clutch from RAM.
That first step is an engine swap. If you've been pondering thepossibilities of swapping your anemic 3.8 V-6 for a potent 5.0 V-8,we're here to show you how. With the help of Ford Racing PerformanceParts and the handy work of Tim Matherly of MV Performance in Statham,Georgia, we'll have your Mustang terrorizing the neighborhood with itsnew set of lungs in no time. Apart from the obvious benefit of increaseddisplacement, swapping to a V-8 engine will enable you to take fulladvantage of the multitude of speed parts designed for injected 5.0s,such as the aforementioned supercharger, nitrous, heads, and other finegoodies.
We compiled all of the necessary parts (see the sidebar The Part NumbersGame) for this conversion, and the following pages will highlight ourengine swap, as well as all the parts needed to make this swap possible.We're giving you a good foundation as to what's involved rather thanstep-by-step instructions. Whenever you deal with a swap that involvesEFI, it requires at least a basic knowledge of Ford electronics. Inother words, don't try to do this by yourself over the weekend, andespecially not on your daily driver. According to Tim, "A project likethis isn't the hardest in the world, but you do have to know what you'redoing."
The Part Numbers Game
Here are all the part numbers you'll need when ordering or locating theparts for your 3.8- to-5.0 swap.
Mass Air Conversion Kit: M-9000-A51 (manual trans) or M-9000-B50 (auto trans)*
Main electrical harness: M-12071-C302*
Sensor and relay package: M-12701-D302*
Universal Safety Clutch Housing: M-6392-C*
Heavy-Duty Clutch: Choice Optional
Smog Equipment**
DUAL-EXHAUST SYSTEM: Choice Optional
Fan Speed Control Module: F4ZF-128577-AA*
* Obtain new from Ford or used from donor car
** Must obtain from donor car
 Once all the necessary cables...  Once all the necessary cables and wires have been disconnected, the 3.8engine can be lifted out and laid aside... |  ...Although Tim is an experiencedtechnician,...  ...Although Tim is an experiencedtechnician, he still needs to gather his thoughts and go over the nextfew steps in his mind, so he won't forget anything. He then begins byremoving the V-6 A/C lines, which are different from the V-8's. |  Tim unveils the EEC computer,...  Tim unveils the EEC computer, which is located in the passenger-sidekick panel. This V-6 computer will need to be removed, along with theV-6 electrical harness. |