[92mustang04yfz]

I was just wondering how people are hitting 6500 rpms in these 2.3 mustangs when my rev limiter hits in around 6000?

[OHC230]

Either they have a performance chip or tuner device, or they are early carburated versions with no rev limit. Generally, you need a fairly aggressive cam profile and the right valve springs to support the cam and a few other mods, to even have the need to turn the engine at that speed. There's just no point in turning 6,000 RPM if your peak HP is at 5,000.

[92mustang04yfz]

i gotcha how are you running 6400?

[OHC230]

Very well so far. I had some help from an Esslinger head with a copper head gasket, 11.4:1 compression, MSD 6AL ignition with a dash mounted timing control, a Gutted and ported upper and lower intake, a re-ground Ford Motorsport A-237 cam, Speedway header, a lot of fussing with the ECU tuning via a Shiftmaters EEC tuner, bigger injectors and a 3"-2.5" exhaust with 3" MagnaFlow converters, a K&N filter element. I think that's pretty much it.

So, what are you building? It sounds like you are thinking about building a high revving motor.

[92mustang04yfz]

I just want to build up this little 4 cylinder cuz i always have people talking crap saying dang that little piece is slow!! and i would just like to show them up in a 4 cylinder!

[92mustang04yfz]

And i was also thinking you have these Honda civics which are also 4 cylinders but yet they can hit 8000 rpms? I was wondering what makes them so much different since they are 4 cylinders also.?

[OHC230]

Well, the thing to grasp here is: while HP "is" a function of engine speed, the opposite is "not necessarily true. Most Honda engines are fairly small in displacement and most

feature a bore/stroke relationship that favors a higher engine speed. Another reason has to do with the engines ability to pump the mixture in and out and Honda

has over the years, hired some very high end engineering firms to help with this task. The result is: a very small displacement engine that works very efficiently. Your Ford 2.3

was designed in the early 70’s, yes I said early 70’s, it takes a while to develop an engine, well anyway, considering when it was developed, it is a remarkable piece of

engineering and can withstand incredible amounts of abuse, for very little $$. Tell you what, go ahead and price a 300 HP N/A Honda motor and tell me what you find out, or

even a 200 HP N/A motor. I will bet that both of those cost way more than mine did and I will guarantee that they do not produce the same amount of torque as my motor.

[92mustang04yfz]

Alright thanks for helping me out i am just starting to get into cars i have always been into four wheelers....And this does make since to me so thanks again!

[OHC230]

Good deal. I think that if you stick with us Ford enthusiasts, you will find that we are an easy going bunch, unlike some other car owners, who like to argue and fight and all that other crap.

I am working on some new information and some cool new mods, for shade tree mechanics. I also have a bunch of "how to" articles and pictures to help others get their cars running strong, which I plan on posting in the coming months, including some real cylinder head flow test data and some computer fluid modeling on 2.3 heads.

[92mustang04yfz]

Is your mustang a dual plug? And that ecu tuning i see in your signature it that like a chip?

[blaten22]

Since you've done the head swap OHC, have you given thought of stroking it to 2.5 if its worth it?

[92mustang04yfz]

But i dont think he is keeping that head on it?

[OHC230]

Is your mustang a dual plug? And that ecu tuning i see in your signature it that like a chip?

No it was originally a single plug head. The Esslinger head is also a single plug design, but features a superior combustion chamber design, which works very well in a high cylinder pressure environment.

As for the EEC tuner, it functions like a chip, but is fully programmable.


Since you've done the head swap OHC, have you given thought of stroking it to 2.5 if its worth it?

If you can find a good deal on a 2.5, I would go ahead a grab it. If I had to give you an average HP gain which you could see, using the 2.5 crank, I'd say that you should see a 5% increase accross the board.

92mustang04yfz is correct, I was not planning on keeping the Esslinger head on this car for long, but I don't have a lot of free time these days, so it may be a while before I'm done with my iron head porting. I am sitting on another Esslinger 2.7L crank, I'm thinking about getting the pistons and rods to go with it. I estimate it would add at least another 20 HP to my engine.

[92mustang04yfz]

Originally Posted by OHC230 Is your mustang a dual plug? And that ecu tuning i see in your signature it that like a chip? No it was originally a single plug head. The Esslinger head is also a single plug design, but features a superior combustion chamber design, which works very well in a high cylinder pressure environment. As for the EEC tuner, it functions like a chip, but is fully programmable. Since you've done the head swap OHC, have you given thought of stroking it to 2.5 if its worth it? If you can find a good deal on a 2.5, I would go ahead a grab it. If I had to give you an average HP gain which you could see, using the 2.5 crank, I'd say that you should see a 5% increase accross the board. 92mustang04yfz is correct, I was not planning on keeping the Esslinger head on this car for long, but I don't have a lot of free time these days, so it may be a while before I'm done with my iron head porting. I am sitting on another Esslinger 2.7L crank, I'm thinking about getting the pistons and rods to go with it. I estimate it would add at least another 20 HP to my engine.

Dang your making that much power just think if you did go with the Esslinger 2.7L crank, along with the head and with the pistons and rods to go with it and a twin turbo setup! HAHAHA!

[OHC230]

Well, I was making about 600 HP in my Merkur with a single turbo and it was/is something else.

[89Bullitt]

Originally Posted by 92mustang04yfz I just want to build up this little 4 cylinder cuz i always have people talking crap saying dang that little piece is slow!! and i would just like to show them up in a 4 cylinder!

Put a turbo on it, and tell them to eat your dust

[OHC230]

Put a turbo on it, and tell them to eat your dust

A lot of cars all ready do eat my 4 cyl Mustang dust.

As for the turbo, I have been there and done that, so many times, It would be so easy for me, I have virtually every part needed to do the swap, but I really felt like doing something different this time. Besides, I all ready have a 600 HP 2.7L Merkur XR4ti.

I am by no means done, with my search for emissions friendly power. I am seriously thinking about putting in a 2.7 crank with some 5.7" rods. I believe that this would bring my car close to 240-250 hp, if I also performed a bit of tuning. Right now, I am working on the intake manifold, to see what if any gains can be found. I am definitely making more power with some recent mods, I think that I might be close to 220 HP now, but I am not ready to go back to the dyno just yet.

[92mustang04yfz]

Hey ohc lets see in inside look at your mustang like the interior dash and all that good stuff, like pictures.

[OHC230]

Well I could do that, but it would take time away from other stuff that I'm working on, which will benefit you guy's more: like a camshaft and head porting tutorial. I swear, we will get to my car later, I'm working on something really different for it. In the mean time, I am setting up a CFD model of the 2.3L head ports, so we can see what's going on inside these things in 3D, through the eye's of the computer. I just finished scanning the exhaust port to day, off a stock 88 head, Wait till you see it.