Donor?

[AudioPro]

I am having motor trouble. So I have decided I am just going to swap the motor, ECM everything but I don’t know what I should find as a donor. Mustang or Explorer? And why? I want to go HO

[87_crown_vic]

have you tried checking codes on the car? if you get a different motor, i would go with a 1997 explorer engine and swap all your brackets and stuff onto it.

[gadget73]

A few things to consider either way: If you're using a 1997+, you need the headers designed for a gt40p head. You also need to consider emissions. Not all 97 Exploders have internal EGR passages, so you might have issues with that. Since you live in Floridia, you can just cheat and leave the vacuum line disconnected for the egr valve to disable it. Also need to locate a Lightning egr spacer so the throttle cable will bolt up. The timing cover and oil pan need to be changed to the Panther stuff. I'd also upgrade the valve springs while its out.

Mustang motors need a different water pump, and maybe a timing cover. Seems hit or miss on that point, depends on the specific motor. Headers can be any sbf header or even stock manifolds if you want. need to have the stock panther egr spacer machined out to work with the larger throttle body.

Overall, its a bit more work for the Explorer motor, but they have the best factory heads and one of the best factory intakes Ford ever produced, and will make more power because of it.

[AudioPro]

have you tried checking codes on the car?

would not work. not compuer trouble. motor has about 170,000 miles on it, I think it has had two oil changes, could not see the push rods, only the top of the rockers, because of the sluge. liffters are knocking bad. cheeper to find a donor, than rebuild

[AudioPro]

forgot to say I have a 1987 Grand Marquis. sorry I know that changes everything

[AudioPro]

would a Mercury Mountaineer be just as good for a donor.

[AudioPro]

Ok I have to confess. For years I have been a GM man. I have had many carbed 350’s. Then I bought a Taurus SHO and never looked back. So if my questions seem a little easy for some you can now understand, I am going FORD.

It seems a little hard to find an egr plate. Could I just use the throttle cable from the explorer? Headers for a mustang or explorer? Upgrade valve springs to stronger rate or OEM?

[mrltd]

EGR spacers are very rare. The only larger ones tha work are from 93-95 SVT Lightnings. A 1996 Explorer or mountaineer is the best donor motor wise, unless you can find a dirt cheap 93-95 lightning motor....

[351wcrayz]

BAH!!!!!!!
I have a 91 Crown vic that has logged somewhere in around 350k, and just now is havin a cam/lifter replacement.....Thats me tho....Your car, your wishes, best O luck to ya mang!

-Wes

[85crownHPP]

wont you need the MAF conversion also to get the full potential of the explorer motor???

[AudioPro]

BAH!!!!!!!
I have a 91 Crown vic that has logged somewhere in around 350k, and just now is havin a cam/lifter replacement.....Thats me tho....Your car, your wishes, best O luck to ya mang!

-Wes

income tax around corner. wife says "change the motor", I don't argue when I can get what I want.

[AudioPro]

wont you need the MAF conversion also to get the full potential of the explorer motor???

I am going to try to find a salvage donor. if not I am going to get the wiring.

[AudioPro]

EGR spacers are very rare. The only larger ones tha work are from 93-95 SVT Lightnings. A 1996 Explorer or mountaineer is the best donor motor wise, unless you can find a dirt cheap 93-95 lightning motor....

Could I use my lopo EGR plate and get it bored out? I have been looking for a lightning motor. might not quit looking

[85crownHPP]

I wanna see a box with a 351 lightning motor in it!!!

[gadget73]

Could I use my lopo EGR plate and get it bored out? I have been looking for a lightning motor. might not quit looking

can't bore it out enough to use with an explorer intake. I don't think it will seal properly anyway. If you use an HO intake, you can use the bored stock spacer but a stock HO intake doesn't flow what the Explorer piece does. You can probably have a stock lower ported out to flow comparably to an Explorer intake, and that would work just fine.

Other options would possibly involve an aftermarket spacer, and get someone with a bit of fabricating ability to make a bracket to bolt your throttle cable bracket to. It can't be that hard just looking at the thing. I'm thinking someone with a brake and some metal cutting tools can probably come up with a suitable bracket without too much trouble.

Explorer cables won't work. They use a single throttle cable, and the intake has this big elbow thing on it. The throttle body faces straight forward. You need 2 cables, one for the throttle, and one for the transmission. You actually end up cutting the lever off the Exploder throttle body, and attatching the one from your stock TB. The Explorer throttle body is 65mm, the stocker is 50mm.