Increasing Horse Power Question
Thread Starter
|
Junior User
Joined: Jun 2011
Posts: 58
Likes: 0
Increasing Horse Power Question
I have a stock 1992 Ford F150 Nite thats needs some mild upgrades to increase its torque, mpg, and/or horsepower. What upgrades do you recommend? It is a 4x4 with 5.0 302 and a 5-speed.
FTE Legend
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 31,930
Likes: 1,499
From: Ottawa, Ontario
That motor needs a cam badly and no other change will have as much effect on engine power. It's not that expensive to do a cam swap but it is quite a bit of work, figure on about $300 for the cam and another $50 or so for a gasket set and a whole day to do it.
Depending what cam you pick and how your truck is currently setup a gearing change is the next best upgrade, you want 4.10's for tires up to about 31" and 4.56 or higher the bigger you go from there.
Depending what cam you pick and how your truck is currently setup a gearing change is the next best upgrade, you want 4.10's for tires up to about 31" and 4.56 or higher the bigger you go from there.
Senior User
Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 242
Likes: 0
if you do a cam you need to grind the exhaust ports out two match the gasket at the very least the best bang for the buck is a new set of heads the cheapest jump is a new cam but is also necessary. tell us what you do and your results
New User
Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 12
Likes: 0
take your heads to a good machine shop and have them built most decent head shops can tell you what would be the best for youe engine, and its usually cheaper to get your old heads built than to buy a new set of built heads. If there is a Dover cylinder head near you they do great work
FTE Legend
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 31,930
Likes: 1,499
From: Ottawa, Ontario
And with a flat tappet motor a cam change is easily the best bang for the buck, you can have a cam and lifter set and the necessary gaskets to change it for $200-$250, while rebuilt heads are gonna cost $500 alone.
Senior User
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 205
Likes: 1
I agree with ostrx250 based on my observations.
I'm no expert on the 5.0 for trucks, but my friend had a '93 Mustang GT and the single improvement that gave him the greatest gains was porting and polishing the heads... Now, I'm sure that the cam in the truck engines is made for longevity and greatest torque at certain rpm. I imagine that changing the cam would make a noticeable difference and probably works great in conjunction with good heads.
Everything else he did (which was a lot, including the cam) did very little difference in power. All this was checked on the dyno.
I'm no expert on the 5.0 for trucks, but my friend had a '93 Mustang GT and the single improvement that gave him the greatest gains was porting and polishing the heads... Now, I'm sure that the cam in the truck engines is made for longevity and greatest torque at certain rpm. I imagine that changing the cam would make a noticeable difference and probably works great in conjunction with good heads.
Everything else he did (which was a lot, including the cam) did very little difference in power. All this was checked on the dyno.
FTE Legend
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 31,930
Likes: 1,499
From: Ottawa, Ontario
Yeah that's key, the truck cams are designed that way and as a result are very restrictive compared to even the stock HO cam.. and particularly with the early EFI motors. In fact the HO cam is a great way to unleash quite a bit of HP on the cheap with these truck motors.
Trending Topics
Fleet Owner
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 20,786
Likes: 1,751
From: Kentucky
Yeah that's key, the truck cams are designed that way and as a result are very restrictive compared to even the stock HO cam.. and particularly with the early EFI motors. In fact the HO cam is a great way to unleash quite a bit of HP on the cheap with these truck motors.
FTE Stories
Ford Trucks for Ford Truck Enthusiasts
Top 10 Most Expensive Ford Trucks Ever Sold on Bring a Trailer
Joe Kucinski
2027 Ford Super Duty Buyer's Guide (Every Model, Engine, & Package)
Brett Foote
Top 10 Ford Truck Tragedies
Joe Kucinski
AEV FXL Super Duty - the Super Duty Raptor Ford Doesn't Make
Brett Foote
Lobo Vs Lobo: Proof the F-150 Lobo Should Be Even Lower!
Michael S. Palmer
Ford's 2001 Explorer Sportsman Concept Looks For a New Home
Verdad Gallardo
10 Best Ford Truck Engines We Miss the Most!
Joe Kucinski
2026 Shelby F-150 Off-Road: Better Than a Raptor R?
Brett Foote
2027 Super Duty Carhartt Package First Look: 12 Things You NEED to Know!
Michael S. Palmer
Senior User
Joined: Nov 2008
Posts: 498
Likes: 0
Depending on your budget and timeline, this is the beginning of a long journey. If your not in a hurry there are always good deals to be had.
I went to Carlisle and picked up an Explorer intake for $50. H.O. cams can be had nothing. A switch to Mass air?
But depending on your mechanical skills, you can do them all yourself in progression. The big 4 are exhaust, intake, heads and cam. Most people develop their mechanical ability and confidence by progressing in that order of improvements.
Have fun.
I went to Carlisle and picked up an Explorer intake for $50. H.O. cams can be had nothing. A switch to Mass air?
But depending on your mechanical skills, you can do them all yourself in progression. The big 4 are exhaust, intake, heads and cam. Most people develop their mechanical ability and confidence by progressing in that order of improvements.
Have fun.
Postmaster
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 4,558
Likes: 2
The 92 5.0 has a small cam , so yeah a cam will help a bunch , the mustangs use the same heads as the truck but use the HO cam , so they make more HP , the 5.0 intake is fine , long tube headers will help and are a must if you upgrade the heads , and should be one of the first upgrades , exhaust , cam , heads and gearing will all help.....Lew
FTE Legend
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 31,930
Likes: 1,499
From: Ottawa, Ontario
If your truck is MAF the Ford E303 is hard to beat in terms of peak HP but.. it'll be a complete dog below 3000rpm so you will also need steep gears(4.10-4.56) in the rear axle.
