Notices

raising compression

Thread Tools
 
Search this Thread
 
Old Jun 3, 2001 | 03:23 PM
  #1  
chris112lee's Avatar
chris112lee
Thread Starter
|
Senior User
20 Year Member
Joined: May 2001
Posts: 139
Likes: 0
raising compression

I have a 91 f-150 w/ a 302. Does anyone know what I can raise the compression ratio to and still be legal. Also what else needs to be changed when raising compression? All responses are apreciated.
 
Reply
Old Jun 4, 2001 | 08:30 AM
  #2  
karljay's Avatar
karljay
Cargo Master
25 Year Member
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 2,281
Likes: 18
From: Northern California
raising compression

You can raise the compression and be legal, but it usually raises the temp and the pollution, so you might end up having trouble passing smog tests. Before you do this, I'd see how much advance your timming can take before it pings on a warm/hot day under load. If your having pinging with a few deg of timming advance, I'd forget about raising the compression, otherwise I'd look to milling the heads as the cheapest way to increase compression.

You might be able to do a head swap with an older head or change the pistons but that's more work and money. I milled down a head on another car to get more compression in an effort in increase the mpg and it helped with that and power was up a tad too. A cam change can help, but that usually means going to a smaller cam.
 
Reply
Old Jun 4, 2001 | 07:52 PM
  #3  
RonBo's Avatar
RonBo
Senior User
20 Year Member
Joined: May 2001
Posts: 113
Likes: 0
raising compression

1) Why do you want to go to higher compression? Power? Performance? Fuel economy?
Things to consider when raising your C.R.
1) Anything over 10.0:1 generally requires high octane to prevent detonation. Super, or turbo charging is basically a dead issue now, unless you want to put extra machining costs in for better cylinder sealing.
1a) Higher compression yields higher concentrations of NOx (formed from heat and pressure in a cylinder)
2) Rule of thumb for raising your CR --- 15 hp/point (i.e going from 9.0:1 to 10.0:1 = 15 hp).
3) Raising the CR is not the optimal way to increase performance.
4) Better cam timing (i.e. duration and lift) enhances the change in CR.
5) Speed density systems (yours) are not very compatible with larger lobe centerline angles/degrees of duration.
I could go on for a long time, but the bottom line is this:
If you change one thing in your system, it affects many other components. Changing one thing, may make the system work worse. You may need to change several items to take advantage of your original change.
An old, but true, statement: Horsepower costs money, lots of it.
 
Reply
Old Jun 5, 2001 | 11:59 PM
  #4  
dinosaurfan's Avatar
dinosaurfan
Cargo Master
25 Year Member
Liked
Loved
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 2,931
Likes: 12
From: SW Michigan
raising compression

 
Reply
Related Topics
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
harvy
Small Block V8 (221, 260, 289, 5.0/302, 5.8/351W)
9
Jan 30, 2011 10:16 PM
turdbird
Ford Inline Six, 200, 250, 4.9L / 300
1
Jun 14, 2005 01:02 AM
weldingfreak
Big Block V8 - 385 Series (6.1/370, 7.0/429, 7.5/460)
1
Mar 11, 2004 08:59 PM
fordtruckin
FE & FT Big Block V8 (332, 352, 360, 390, 406, 410, 427, 428)
6
Mar 31, 2002 12:55 PM
muddawg
335 Series- 5.8/351M, 6.6/400, 351 Cleveland
10
Jan 31, 2002 04:07 PM




All times are GMT -5. The time now is 09:04 AM.

story-0
Ford's 2001 Explorer Sportsman Concept Looks For a New Home

Slideshow: Ford's bizarre fishing-themed Explorer concept has resurfaced after spending decades largely forgotten.

By Verdad Gallardo | 2026-05-12 18:07:46


VIEW MORE
story-1
10 Best Ford Truck Engines We Miss the Most!

Slideshow: The 10 best Ford truck engines we miss the most.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-05-12 13:09:47


VIEW MORE
story-2
2026 Shelby F-150 Off-Road: Better Than a Raptor R?

Slideshow: first look at the 810 hp 2026 Shelby F-150 Off-Road!

By Brett Foote | 2026-05-12 12:50:07


VIEW MORE
story-3
2027 Super Duty Carhartt Package First Look: 12 Things You NEED to Know!

Slideshow: Everything You Need to Know about the 2027 Super Duty Carhartt Package!

By Michael S. Palmer | 2026-05-07 17:51:06


VIEW MORE
story-4
10 Most Surprising 2026 Ford Truck Features!

Slideshow: 10 most surprising Ford truck options/features in 2026.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-05-05 11:17:22


VIEW MORE
story-5
Top 10 Ford Trucks Coming to Mecum Indy 2026

Slideshow: Here are the top 10 Fords coming to Mecum Indy 2026.

By Brett Foote | 2026-05-04 13:49:49


VIEW MORE
story-6
5 Best / 5 Worst Ford Truck Wheels of All Time

Slideshow: The 5 best and 5 worst Ford truck wheels of all time

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-04-29 16:49:01


VIEW MORE
story-7
Ford Super Duty: 5 Things Owners LOVE, 5 Things They LOATHE!

Slideshow: Ranking the 5 things owners love about their Super Duty and 5 things they don't

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-04-29 16:36:49


VIEW MORE
story-8
Every 2026 Ford Truck Engine RANKED from WORST to FIRST!

Slideshow: Ranking all 12 Ford truck engines available in 2026.

By Michael S. Palmer | 2026-04-22 13:32:20


VIEW MORE
story-9
The Best F-150 Deal of Every Trim Level (XL through Raptor)

Slideshow: The best Ford F-150 deal for every trim level (XL through Raptor)

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-04-21 15:59:01


VIEW MORE