Forged rebuild or swap?

Alien

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So yeah my 96 town car (100k) had the runs/diarrhea (oil leak) for a little while before finally taking a dump. I kept adding oil but recently the leak got incredibly huge and before it stopped running on a highway off ramp. It sounded like a Ferrari briefly before it died. You know that mechanical metallic sound and it was revving really high. Awesome experience.

So yeah my cars intestines are welded together, but I wasn't really mad because I already had plans to swap it out for a 5.4 or a modular crate motor, but that was going to be in a few months not now.

So now I was looking at 5.4's and they are pretty cheap probably about $500 for an oily dirty one and 1200-2400 for a nice low mileage or rebuilt one. I was also looking at the v10's from the Ford trucks because they bolt right in given that you move the motor mounts up 1 and 1/4 inches and cut the driveshaft 2 inches. But those cost way more and I think if I did that I would also want to change the tranny.

Anyways I looked up rebuild kits and found that most of them are about 1000 bucks with forged internals! I was as of now ready to spend about 2 grand maybe more. I was thinking 1000 for the kit, 8-14 bucks per hole to bore it out, and 600-1000 to resleave it, but I can get it done for the lower end of that spectrum, maybe even 500. And then my mechanic will reassemble it for 200. I can pop it back under the hood with the help of my friend for free.

It almost sounds worth it to have a forged modular engine for less than 2 grand. And I still have a few hundred left to spare in case it costs more.

What do you guys think? Am I missing something? Its either that or $1200 for a dirty oily 5.4 that will probably have to be rebuilt soon anyway. Wouldn't forged last way longer? I think it would add to its value as well if I am going to sell the car.

Any thoughts welcome.
 
you are gonna need the electronics to run a different engine than what is in there now.
 
holy cow the v10s are heavy. way too much weight for the front of a car.
are you planning power adders? if not, why build up the engine so much?
just ditch the iron SOHC motor for the more powerful, lighter mark viii DOHC motor. all aluminium and like 70 more hp.
no need to screw around with motor mounts or strange transmissions. i've seen several mark viii motors dropped into thunderbirds and cougars so i'm sure it would work in a town car.
 
Can't I just use the same sensors and run a piggy back though? Also I'm kind of weary of just throwing a used motor in there. I guess its not bad but I know I am going to prefer to rebuild it. So why not rebuild this one instead of buying one to rebuild. I figure a rebuilt engine like that will be pretty much a new engine with all those shiny forged parts. I won't have to worry for a while about repairs if I get a used engine. Plus a super low miles forged engine will probably add to the value of the car.
 
holy cow the v10s are heavy. way too much weight for the front of a car.
are you planning power adders? if not, why build up the engine so much?
just ditch the iron SOHC motor for the more powerful, lighter mark viii DOHC motor. all aluminium and like 70 more hp.
no need to screw around with motor mounts or strange transmissions. i've seen several mark viii motors dropped into thunderbirds and cougars so i'm sure it would work in a town car.

The v10 is 140 pounds more. I kind of shied away from that idea though because I think its going to get hugely expensive. Maybe in the future I will build another town car and call it the super town car. I was thinking about the Mark viii motors but the 5.4 has more low end torque which sounds better to me for a heavy car than more (not by much) horsepower and high end at that. But checking out the prices of the mark engine its starting to look juicy.
 
I guess I need to make some calls and find out if it bolts right up with no or minimum modification. I doubt it won't bolt right up though.
 
Oh yeah, P.S., I am looking on upping the power on this baby but I don't want to go too much past 400, and I want it super reliable.
 
hmm.
i suggest something like what driller just did. he took a 5.0 modular block, put a 5.0 stroker kit in it, and came out to 5.3 liters.
most recent dyno sheet showed about 330 hp and torque, but looks like with tuning he just might hit 400 hp. thats as much power as a stock 5.4 and still no iron block!
only 5.4 aluminium block i know of is the ford gt block.
 
I'd go with a cleaner used 5.4 which although a good bit heavier will give you more low end torque which is what our cars like best. I went the opposite route with my 93 Crown Vic with a 4-valve engine for a Marauder, but I think that the bang for the buck is getting low end on these cars. FWIW.

VIc
 
I guess the 5.4 has some issues with the spark plugs due to poor head design or something like that. Does anyone know anything about this or know of some discussions on this?
 
If I go with the 5.4, will I need to find a computer for it? Will the mpg indicator and the gauges work? How does that work?
 
The original engine is a 4.6 SOHC, right?

If you want more cubes (torque), you can do a Ford Racing 5.0L modular block with the same heads, intake and accessories. If you want more, you can build a stroker and bump it up to 5.3L. Your choice of rotating elements and compression. The bonus is the 5.0L modular block has the same deck height as the 4.6L and will require minimal modifications.
 
You want a lot of power but heavy cars really need torque. I don't know if you'd even be able to use 400hp any better in real road conditions than a tweaked 5.4 which is a lot of engine for a Town Car. Sure it has more weight, but with some better breathing it could really move your car. Shorty headers is how I'd go along with a Marauder MAF. You won't want to keep wide exhaust all the way to the back because that will up the higher end but might reduce low end torque. You should figure out which you want.

I am plunking a DOHC Marauder engine into a early Crown Vic and it is the opposite. With long tubes and an x-pipe it will wind up high in the revs but will act very differently in daily driving than a 5.4 SOHC. Even the 4.6 SOHC has better low end grunt than the more powerful 4.6 DOHC. I'd figure out what you want as an end result in terms of driving experience, and then dial it in with the engine of choice. In a lighter car like the early Aeros you can get away with less low end, especially with steep rear axle gearing, but with a heavier Town Car I'm pretty sure I'd want more displacement and off the line acceleration that comes with torque.

The second option of forged internals is great if you want to go with a blower. But that's going to cost you a pretty penny and might explode the budget, not to mention fuel costs. Stay away from the DOHC engines unless you're ready to deal with different fuel intake systems... that's what has held my project up, trying to doctor various fuel rails and now awaiting a custom designed fuel line from tank to injectors. Swapping engines can be sweet and simple or a real ordeal, don't fail to examine the fit and compatibility as they far outweigh imagined performance gains. My fast car is parked, and isn't winning any races, one slightly slower might be fun to drive instead of to gaze at...

Vic
 
You want a lot of power but heavy cars really need torque. I don't know if you'd even be able to use 400hp any better in real road conditions than a tweaked 5.4 which is a lot of engine for a Town Car. Sure it has more weight, but with some better breathing it could really move your car. Shorty headers is how I'd go along with a Marauder MAF. You won't want to keep wide exhaust all the way to the back because that will up the higher end but might reduce low end torque. You should figure out which you want.

I am plunking a DOHC Marauder engine into a early Crown Vic and it is the opposite. With long tubes and an x-pipe it will wind up high in the revs but will act very differently in daily driving than a 5.4 SOHC. Even the 4.6 SOHC has better low end grunt than the more powerful 4.6 DOHC. I'd figure out what you want as an end result in terms of driving experience, and then dial it in with the engine of choice. In a lighter car like the early Aeros you can get away with less low end, especially with steep rear axle gearing, but with a heavier Town Car I'm pretty sure I'd want more displacement and off the line acceleration that comes with torque.

The second option of forged internals is great if you want to go with a blower. But that's going to cost you a pretty penny and might explode the budget, not to mention fuel costs. Stay away from the DOHC engines unless you're ready to deal with different fuel intake systems... that's what has held my project up, trying to doctor various fuel rails and now awaiting a custom designed fuel line from tank to injectors. Swapping engines can be sweet and simple or a real ordeal, don't fail to examine the fit and compatibility as they far outweigh imagined performance gains. My fast car is parked, and isn't winning any races, one slightly slower might be fun to drive instead of to gaze at...

Vic

So what did you end up doing for the fuel rails? What about the fuel line how much did that cost to custom make?
 
The original engine is a 4.6 SOHC, right?

If you want more cubes (torque), you can do a Ford Racing 5.0L modular block with the same heads, intake and accessories. If you want more, you can build a stroker and bump it up to 5.3L. Your choice of rotating elements and compression. The bonus is the 5.0L modular block has the same deck height as the 4.6L and will require minimal modifications.

I found this on craigslist http://southbend.craigslist.org/pts/2530238436.html seen a similar set up before? That manifold would have to go off tops.
 
I found this on craigslist http://southbend.craigslist.org/pts/2530238436.html seen a similar set up before?

No... not the same 5.0 and it will not work without much modification and a new EEC and wiring harness.

The Ford Racing Boss Modular 5.0L block is a 4.6L deck height and a 94mm cylinder bore. It is cast in Ford's Cleveland plant using a proprietary iron mix to yield the strongest casting possible.

This block reuses everything from your stock ... 4.6L V8, all you need to supply is a new set of larger pistons and brand new 5.0 is complete.
 
I've been contemplating the 5.4 swap as well.

This is a great source of information on all that would be required for the swap. It's much easier than one might suspect, but not quite as cheap.

Read up.
 

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