[slo89notch]

i have an 89 notch im putting a carb'd 302 in
well the engine is in need of rebuild so i was wondering
while doin the rebuild what should i do now before the engine goes in the car?
for now the plans are basicly a stock rebuild along with .03 over bore to make it a 306 (need's bored and honed bad so why not go .030 over)

im doing this on a tight budget so the cheaper the better so far
i plan to order a summit rebuild/ring kit (all the bearings gaskets rings and everything needed for the rebuild)

any recomendation on a cheap set of pistons
also i'd like to throw a mild cam in it while im in there
there a good cheap cam out there that i can run on a basicly stock engine and heads (just bored .030 over, headers,600cfm carb maybe an aluminum intake if i can find one for cheap as well)

also from what i understand the carb'd 302 is factory rated at like 180hp 260ft-lbs? i'd like to make 220-250crank hp and say 300ft-lbs is that a reasonable goal? (about the same power output of a stock fuel injected 5.0)

car is just going to be used for a daily and maybe a couple laps around the road course from time to time

 

[slo89notch]

one more thing is there any real gains to be had from doing a mild port and polish of the stock heads? (when i say mild i mean mild just basicly cleaning up any casting flash and polishing and and gasket matching. just basicly something to keep me busy while waiting for parts to get back from the machine shop and such)

also howmuch is it going to cost to have my block bored .030 over?
and i was thinking of milling my heads down a bit to raise the com ratio a little bit (i think stock is like 8.6to1 or something? maybe get it up around 9.5to1?

 

[hoffmabo]

Dont touch your stock heads...get some gt40s from an explorer to stay cheap

 

[fogged306]

Here it costs 185 for a bore job. I'm sure it varies from area to area but I would try to keep it close to that. Having it tanked and magnafluxed is a good idea while you're at the machine shop to clean it up and check for cracks. Stock compression is about 9.1:1. If you mill the heads a little you can bump the compression some, but like mentioned above, I really wouldn't spend any money on stock heads. Look for some GT-40s if you're on a budget. Much better head and will net you more of a power increase than milled home ported e7 heads.

Speed pro has cheap pistons. I actually have a set on some eagle rods that I'm selling cheap of you're interested. Spun a main bearing so the rods need to be checked and resized if needed, but they're most likely in good shape still and only have about 1500 miles on them. I shut it down quick after the main went and I don't think the rod had a chance to trash the bearing and rattle around yet.

 

[slo89notch]

Here it costs 185 for a bore job. I'm sure it varies from area to area but I would try to keep it close to that. Having it tanked and magnafluxed is a good idea while you're at the machine shop to clean it up and check for cracks. Stock compression is about 9.1:1. If you mill the heads a little you can bump the compression some, but like mentioned above, I really wouldn't spend any money on stock heads. Look for some GT-40s if you're on a budget. Much better head and will net you more of a power increase than milled home ported e7 heads.

Speed pro has cheap pistons. I actually have a set on some eagle rods that I'm selling cheap of you're interested. Spun a main bearing so the rods need to be checked and resized if needed, but they're most likely in good shape still and only have about 1500 miles on them. I shut it down quick after the main went and I don't think the rod had a chance to trash the bearing and rattle around yet.

howmuch would u be looking to sell the pistons and rods for?
are there rings on the pistons?

as far as the gt40 heads go i had planned on going gt40 heads or some afr's or something down the road but for now im just trying to get the engine together cheap as possible (car has an extremely tired 2.3 in it now and im pretty sure the head gasket is on it's way out, and i can't see spending the money to put another 2.3 in it and the money spent on a 88hp 2.3 could get me 220-250hp 302?)

but so far a basicly stock rebuilt 302 punched .030 over
stock intake manifold,stock cam,carb ect. ect.
maybe a lil cleaning up of the stock heads just for something to do (and should give me a couple extra hp and sound nice for when i get a better set of heads and go to sell them as "ported and polished 302 heads" i'll probably get a couple bux more for em to put back in to the car) any idea of rough power estimates? im hoping for about 200hp 275ft-lbs (at the crank)
i think it's rated for like 185hp 260ft-lbs or something like that from the factory? and i figured i'd probably gain a couple over that with the extra couple cubes. probably going to end up throwing on some sort of aluminum aftermarket intake manifold and possibly a mild cam along with a lil smoothing of the stock heads after the engine has been installed and other things are taken care of with the car but thats down the road.

the engine is going to be mated to a 4cyc trans so i don't wanna do to much work and be tempted to have to much fun and break the tranny before i can find a t5 for the small block

also howmuch could i exptect to spend on a set of gt40 heads and what would i expect to gain from the heads alone (20-30hp?)

like i said i have future plans for the car (and hopefully eventually a rev happy 331 stroker with say about 400-450whp) but for now im trying to put the engine together on the cheap to just get rid of the stock 2.3
then after that i can worry about making power for now it's just going to be a nice lil mild dd

 

[fogged306]

You may get lucky and get some dummy who will pay more for a ported set of E7 heads, but for the most part, most people who have been around mustangs for a bit, know that E7 heads are pretty much pointless to buy in any form. I couldn't even sell a set on CL for $50 one time.

Yea there's rings on the pistons. Probably take $200 shipped for them.. although I just remembered I had them balanced, so I have no idea how that will work out unless you use the crank they were balanced with (I do have that too but it needs to be turned), or have them re-balanced with your crank. Probably would want to ask a machinist about that if you're serious about buying them.

GT-40 heads should go for less than $300 if there's been no work done to them. If you find a set that's had better springs installed and the valves and seats cleaned up then maybe a little above $300.. but in the end, you can also get a good set of used aluminums for $800 +/- a bit. Much more worth the money spent. Couldn't tell you the gains for sure on your combo, but probably in that general area that you mentioned. With the right cam, valvetrain, and intake, GT-40 parts have been known to put over 300 to the wheels. I'm sure someone who has actually bought and played around with the GT-40 heads can give you a better idea of prices on them than I can.

Those extra 4 cubes will net you about 3-4 hp. You gain literally nothing from going .030 on a stock stroke 302. Only do it if you need to clean up the walls. You'll probably end up with near stock numbers with what you've mentioned parts wise. I really don't know much about the carb'd 302's but a factory EFI car will make more than 200hp and about 300ft lbs at the crank. I would assume with a properly set-up carb, you could get close.

 

[slo89notch]

You may get lucky and get some dummy who will pay more for a ported set of E7 heads, but for the most part, most people who have been around mustangs for a bit, know that E7 heads are pretty much pointless to buy in any form. I couldn't even sell a set on CL for $50 one time.

Yea there's rings on the pistons. Probably take $200 shipped for them.. although I just remembered I had them balanced, so I have no idea how that will work out unless you use the crank they were balanced with (I do have that too but it needs to be turned), or have them re-balanced with your crank. Probably would want to ask a machinist about that if you're serious about buying them.

GT-40 heads should go for less than $300 if there's been no work done to them. If you find a set that's had better springs installed and the valves and seats cleaned up then maybe a little above $300.. but in the end, you can also get a good set of used aluminums for $800 +/- a bit. Much more worth the money spent. Couldn't tell you the gains for sure on your combo, but probably in that general area that you mentioned. With the right cam, valvetrain, and intake, GT-40 parts have been known to put over 300 to the wheels. I'm sure someone who has actually bought and played around with the GT-40 heads can give you a better idea of prices on them than I can.

Those extra 4 cubes will net you about 3-4 hp. You gain literally nothing from going .030 on a stock stroke 302. Only do it if you need to clean up the walls. You'll probably end up with near stock numbers with what you've mentioned parts wise. I really don't know much about the carb'd 302's but a factory EFI car will make more than 200hp and about 300ft lbs at the crank. I would assume with a properly set-up carb, you could get close.

ok sounds good and ya only reason im going .030 over is because the engine is actually out of a demo car and the rings are toast (thats how i got a 302 for $80 complete minus the alt. and the front accessory mounting plate)
so i figured i'd just have the block re bored and honed .030 over to take care of any damage that may have been done.

 

[HMERacing]

ok sounds good and ya only reason im going .030 over is because the engine is actually out of a demo car and the rings are toast (thats how i got a 302 for $80 complete minus the alt. and the front accessory mounting plate)
so i figured i'd just have the block re bored and honed .030 over to take care of any damage that may have been done.

I picked up an 89 roller 302 that was rebuilt and had ported and port matched E7 heads minus the intake and accessory stuff for 150.00.
The guy was buying a forged 306 from a friend and was trying to come up with the last bit.

 

[slo89notch]

sounds like a good deal, idk im new to the v8 domestic world
but far from new to goin fast
my last car (that i would still have if it werent for financial reasons)
was an 88 t-bird turbo coupe thats why i got the 89 notch i couldn't afford another turbo coupe but i figured one fox chassis car is as good as another and my notch fixed the t-birds achilles heel, that thing was so damn heavy the notch honestly feels clost to 800lbs or so lighter just having a hard time getting used to the lil ole 2.3 without the kick it had with a hx35 running 18psi and burning tires on command and sideways at my whim(i actually had every intention to find a totaled turbo coupe and to a complete drivetrain swap but their almost impossible to find for under $3500)