I bought my truck a few months ago and I've been noticing the 302 really doesn't have much power. I've done a tune up - oil, tranny fluid, new wires, cap, rotor, spark plugs, air filter, TPS sensor and still it is a dog. My brother just picked up a 1990 f150 ECLB with the 302 in it and I can tell it has a lot more power than mine. I do have an exhaust leak on the passenger side but would that really cause that much of a performance issue? Any other ideas that I could run by the truck to see what is causing it to be so slow? It's got 3.55 gears in it with 31x10.50s. Some ideas that I may need to check (cross referenced from you guys) would be PCV valve, clogged cat, etc. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated!

 

That's unique that his '90 seems to have more power than yours. His would have a flat tappet cam, and not a roller cam, as yours is. His is Speed Density and I'm not sure when the truck 302's got MAF, whether it was start, mid, or late of '94. If yours is MAF, then it would also have a better cam than his.

Timing can hurt you if its been retarded any. It's best to make certain its at least 10° BTDC and if so, try bumping it to 12,13, as long as you don't get any ping or spark knock.

An exhaust leak can be detrimental to performance as it gives a false reading for the O2 sensor. If original cats and Exhaust, spring for new Hi-Flow cat and 2.5 exhaust. Adding shorties or long tubes would be the way to go if doing any exhaust work, period!

Also, what gearing does your brother have? What tires? Your 31's are a struggle on the 302 with 3.55 gearing. If you had 235's, it wouldn't seem as bad, but aesthetically, its not as pleasing as 31's, I know.

As far as ignition parts, there's no Voo-Doo involved, and I only run Motorcraft. MSD is JUNK, and I have no information for Accel as all that other junk is pointless when you have problems down the road. I run Ford 9mm plug wires and Autolite Copper gapped at 0.055. Timing is advanced to °15. Motorcraft ignition coil, cap and rotor.

Others will chime in and as always, your results will vary...

 

Thanks for the reply timber. My truck is MAF. I have read alot as far as cams and all that go so it should be performing decent compared to the 1990.

I've read that the 3.55 gears are hurting some performance with the 31s, but theres now way I'm going smaller I'll see if I can get everything else taken care of and we'll see if it is actually the tires.

I'll have to see about the timing, a buddy of mine down the street has a timing light so I'll read about how to check and adjust. What symptoms would I get as far as pinging or spark knocking? My truck has rust so it'll be hell to change the exhaust but that'll be my next move. I'd like to get some long tubes for the low end torque but read that it'll be tough and not sure yet on which ones to get.

 

With the 302 and 31s, in overdrive youll be killing your mileage with lugging on slight hills and such. Unless you keep it at highway speeds (65+) mostly, then youll just have to deal with the lackluster acceleration/torque. If you live in the country and usually hit 65 max., then 4.10s would be a worthwhile upgrade.

 

I feel like I have the same problem. Lack of power, I've done a lot of things tiring to get more power. I noticed your post was back in May? Have you done anything with your timing????? Any Fixes that will help me out, I've got a 95 f150 5.0