I know you guys are probably tired about hp questions, but does anyone know the stock hp/torque for a '96 T-bird w/ 4.6?

 

fordflaresides,

The pre '99 (non PI heads) 4.6L was rated @ 220 HP for the trucks. The cars had, I believe, different intake design etc. and were rated 10 to 15% higher.

 

For 1994, the first model year Thunderbird that had the 4.6L SOHC V8, through 1995, the engine produced 205HP@4500RPM and 265lbs/ft of torque@3200RPM. From 1996 to 1997, the MN12 Thunderbird's last year, the engine produced 205HP@4250RPM and 280lbs/ft of torque@3000RPM.

For comparison, in case you're interested, the 5.0L OHV V8 used in the Thunderbird from 1991-1993 produced 200HP@4000RPM and 275lbs/ft of torque@3000RPM. The supercharged 3.8L OHV V6 used in the Thunderbird Super Coupe from 1989-1993 produced 210HP@2000RPM and 315lbs/ft of torque@2600RPM. From 1994 to the Super Coupe's final year in 1995, this engine produced 230HP@4400RPM and 330lbs/ft of torque@2500RPM. The base 3.8L OHV V6 used in 1989 and 1990 could produce 120HP@3600RPM and 205lbs/ft of torque@1600RPM. From 1991-1995, this engine enjoyed a performance increase to 140HP@3800RPM and 215lbs/ft of torque@2400RPM. And finally, from 1996 to 1997, thanks in to the EEC-V computer which replaced the EEC-IV after 1995 but was in use with 4.6L SOHC V8 equipped Thunderbirds since 1994, the 3.8L OHV V6 produced 145HP@4000RPM and 215lbs/ft of torque@2750RPM.

The year to year output of these engines should be close to Mustangs of the same years, where the usage of a given engine applies. The Thunderbird was discontinued before PI heads debuted so their 4.6L SOHC V8 never enjoyed the major performance gain that the Mustang did in 1999.

How's that for tired?

 

the 96 tbird 4.6 is the same motor as the 96 mustang gt 4.6.

Same deal.

Another tccoa member?

 

I thought the '96 Mustang had a 10HP edge over Thunderbirds of the same year? Ehh, probably doesn't matter much anyway. Even if the Mustang didn't have the advantage in performance at the engine it would still be faster because it would weigh less than a Thunderbird of the same year. I don't even have a V8 and my car weighs close to two tons (over two tons when I'm driving ). Aside from that, any of these early modular V8s were pretty weak until the PI heads came around.

And no, I'm not a member of TCCOA, although I have been to their website many times. What I do want though is a general Ford website like what GMInsidenews is for GM fans. Ford Truck Enthusiasts is great and all but I want to see something that covers all Ford vehicles. And not Ford Forums, that has too much of an Australian influence.

 

The Mustang makes a bit more power because the intake is tuned different and has true dual exhaust where as the Birds and Cougars have 2 into one back into 2 exhaust pipes.

 

Ha! I knew it. Ten more horsepower in the '96 Mustang over Thunderbirds of the same year, that means 215 total. After the Thunderbird departed in '97, I think they upped the horsepower by ten again for a total of 225 for the '98 model year before switching over to the PI head in '99 for the big boost. But, again, big deal. The Mustang would've been faster anyway, unfortunately.

 

it all depends what you put in your thunderbird. Mines enough to scare a few mustangs

 

Well, duh! The discussion was on what numbers the engines produce stock. Although I do like to see Thunderbirds that are faster than Mustangs, that's the way it should be; the T-bird came out ten years before the Mustang in 1955 and yet the Mustang has always gotten preferencial treatment in the area of performance ever since it came out. What's up with that?

 

That's because the T-Bird in 58 turn into a cruise ship. They got way too big.

 

Well sure, but the original Thunderbird was built to be a Corvette killer, which it did a good job of too, outselling the Corvette 23 to 1 in its first year. Given, the original C1 wasn't much to talk about compared to today's C6 but you can't get to six without starting with one first. It would've been interesting to have seen the Thunderbird evolve through the years the way the Corvette did though, being the company's top performer and all. Oh well, you can't change the past, but hopefully the next Thunderbird will be built to avoid the mistakes made back then.