[raininrandall]

I am the proud owner of a 1976 Mustang II Cobra wit ha 171 cid, 2.8L V6. I am trying to find products to "beef it up." Any help and/or recommendations from experienced people is welcome. I am new to this generation of Mustang, so be prepared to answer a lot of stupid questions that I will undoubtedly ask. Please put all responses in the simplest form so I can understand it. Thanks for your help

[AtlanticBlue99]

I moved this thread for you since the v6 section is for the 1994+ v6 mustangs, and you are more likely to see responses here.

Welcome to ModdedMustangs!

[psycho bob]

if you're not against changing out the engine then go with that.

[spec_mize]

yes the 302 or 351 will mount in place with no problem. i dont think you even have to change the wire harness. be careful in doing this however. the mustangii is so light that it is easy to pull the front end off the ground. if you go with a stock 302 dont go bigger than a 650cfm 4 bbl otherwise youll flood the valves.

[78mach1]

does it have the stock 4 speed?....or is it automatic?

i would swap it over for a 5.0, you can make more power easier with less money, and they are pretty popular so finding anything for them is simple

you can pull a harness out of a v8 one for a few bucks, then get different motor mounts and you should be set

but welcome to the mustang II community (its a small community on this fourm)

[Horseshoeing]

It may be small, but its growing. You can help it grow by letting other Mustang II's owners know about us.

[78mach1]

hey you horseshoeing, what do you drive?

[Fez]

I put a 5.0 HO in my '75 Ghia back in the 80's. Sure made for a different car! I was tired of being beaten by Hona preludes and the like, it never happened again! Do you have the experience to make this swap. It is relatively easy but parts may be harder to find used and it was a tight fit even by the factory. You may also have to consider any emissions laws in your state.

[78mach1]

Originally Posted by Fez I put a 5.0 HO in my '75 Ghia back in the 80's. Sure made for a different car! I was tired of being beaten by Hona preludes and the like, it never happened again! Do you have the experience to make this swap. It is relatively easy but parts may be harder to find used and it was a tight fit even by the factory. You may also have to consider any emissions laws in your state.

mustang II`s (like mine) came with a 5.0 in it........its not a tight fit......

[Blue_coyote]

While not usually cheap, the Cologne V6 as used in the II CAN be a fun little bugger.

The one I have pushes more HP than any of the 302's Ford put in a II

Offenhauser made a decent 4bbl intake, they came from the factory with solid lifters and gear driven timing, and a quality rebuild can net you at least 200 reliable HP and a redline in the 7500 RPM range. The only reliability issues I've run into with 2.8's over the years are the dreaded oil seepage and keeping head gaskets from blowing out after long-term abuse

When I ran that engine in my old Bronco II it was kinda fun spanking Fast & Furious ricer wannabe's in a V6 powered chop top, thoroughly rednecked trail pig on 32" mudders...

[stang74shelby]

Originally Posted by Blue_coyote While not usually cheap, the Cologne V6 as used in the II CAN be a fun little bugger. The one I have pushes more HP than any of the 302's Ford put in a II Offenhauser made a decent 4bbl intake, they came from the factory with solid lifters and gear driven timing, and a quality rebuild can net you at least 200 reliable HP and a redline in the 7500 RPM range. The only reliability issues I've run into with 2.8's over the years are the dreaded oil seepage and keeping head gaskets from blowing out after long-term abuse When I ran that engine in my old Bronco II it was kinda fun spanking Fast & Furious ricer wannabe's in a V6 powered chop top, thoroughly rednecked trail pig on 32" mudders...

Well if u have access, the europeans made a 2.8 turbo V-6 and a 3.0 turbo V-6 for the Ford Sierra (Merkur xr4ti) and the Ford Capri..... so u can get lots of power from a 6, had a friend with a turbo 2.8 pushing 450 horse in a sierra (cosworth clone)