General Building
Hotshot
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 12,170
Likes: 5
From: The hills of No. Calif.
I'm thinking in the short run, within your price range you could do a cam, headers and exhaust. You have to be careful with your cam selection since you have Speed Density EFI. Make sure you get a cam that is SD friendly. If you have a lot of miles on your engine, you'll probably want to replace the timing chain/gears while you're in there but you can get an economy double roller set for under 30 bucks.
Senior User
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 353
Likes: 3
From: Mid-Missouri
Doesn't do much good to cam an engine if it isn't running properly to begin with.
Fix vaccum leaks - Check between Plenum and intake especially
Replace belts and hoses
Tune-up (plugs / wires / Cap / Rotor / PCV Valve / Air filter / Crankcase Breather / Fuel Filter / check timing)
Check / change all fluids (Diff / Tranny / Tranfer Case / Antifreeze) - Keep it running cool and reduce the friction
Fuel Injection Cleaner
Check fuel pressure
Scan for codes
Oxygen sensor (Every 25K to 30K miles) - They operate slower with age
Oil Change w/ filter (Motorcraft Filter) - Consider Synthetic or Blend
Dual Exhaust (No bigger then 2.125 Dia pipe - consider 2")
Don't open up the exhaust too much. You will lose low end torque and the exhaust will not properly scavenge
Definitely check for timing chain slack - replace as needed (high mileage)
Fix vaccum leaks - Check between Plenum and intake especially
Replace belts and hoses
Tune-up (plugs / wires / Cap / Rotor / PCV Valve / Air filter / Crankcase Breather / Fuel Filter / check timing)
Check / change all fluids (Diff / Tranny / Tranfer Case / Antifreeze) - Keep it running cool and reduce the friction
Fuel Injection Cleaner
Check fuel pressure
Scan for codes
Oxygen sensor (Every 25K to 30K miles) - They operate slower with age
Oil Change w/ filter (Motorcraft Filter) - Consider Synthetic or Blend
Dual Exhaust (No bigger then 2.125 Dia pipe - consider 2")
Don't open up the exhaust too much. You will lose low end torque and the exhaust will not properly scavenge
Definitely check for timing chain slack - replace as needed (high mileage)
Last edited by lmadore; Nov 7, 2005 at 11:28 AM.
