I hate to have to break the news to you all...but...I have to sell my Camaro. It pains me to do so...I truly love that car...I'm going to make sure whoever I sell it to will take care of her though. She deserves it.. I've gotta call Summit and get my coil sent back and get me a refund or credit from Summit... That's the bad news.. There's a very good reason why I had to sell the car though....today I picked up...yes, hate me if you must....a Ford. [dramatic music and lightning in background]. We can either be beggars or choosers....it depends on money..I'm a beggar, so...I can't be picky on what I can choose. My heart still beats for GM and I bleed Chevy, but I'll be driving a Ford. Yes, the much-infamous, much-hated Ford....the one, the only, fox body Mustang.

Well, here's the details y'all..sorry! 1991 5.0 HO GT...repainted burgundy w/ gray body panels, Saleen wing, replacement LX taillights. 3.73 rear end, mild cam, aftermarket Cobra intake, plugs, cap and rotor, wires, equal length headers, true dual exhaust with an X pipe and dual Flowmasters cut off past the muffler, no turndowns... That's all I know so far... Bad part..it's an automatic..but it's still 100x louder and hopefully faster than the old trusty RS.

So...in short though..let's not make this goodbye. Even though I'll be losing my thirdgen, I still love the cars and plan to have one in the future. Don't think because the car will be gone that I won't be on the boards anymore... I'm gonna hang around and help people out....you just won't see me starting posts anymore.

Thank you, ALL of you for all of your help...I don't know what I would do without this site. Ok, yes I do...I'd still be paying mechanics to do everything..like my starter. :P This site has done a lot of good for me and others, and I hope it will continue to do so... I'll be around.

-Brooks

 

sorry to hear the camaro has to go, you must have got some deal on the fox body...

 

Try $3000

 

Hey , nothing wrong with stangs in my book . I joke sometimes about ford , but when it comes down to it , I do like the trucks and mustangs . When I got my camaro , the girl that sold it to me cried when I was leaving with it !!!! But , she did tell me she thought it was in good hands . This girl gave me her addy and told me to write her and send pics of the car one day . I've gotta find that addy one day !!!!

HEY , you can still post when you have problems with your stang ! We'll help ya !

 

I look at it this way..at least it's American. And being the red blooded American that I am....is she hot??

 

I was thinking the EXACT same thing after I typed that , hey atleast is an American car !

 

that car runs in the 14s easy to , maybe faster

 

Yeah...I haven't gotten even close to down on that gas pedal...driving it home with no license plate and no insurance, you gotta watch your back ya know? Lol... I just wanna see what it can do with that motor and rear end....... And ya know, maybe I will come back now and then with Stang problems...the cars are a world apart, but there are some master mechanics here, so... I gotta learn about that damn 5.0 now..I dont even know what kind of fuel injection it is, or whether it's an SOHC or OHV engine..I assume OHV but ya never know....

 

I dont think ford started making the SOHC until a little later on , but I could be totally wrong !

 

Well, I know the MODULAR SOHC is a new thing..thats the 4.6 liter...but as far as plain jane SOHC, dunno....

 

Simple common sense is same applies to that ride.
It's the 302 Roller motor.
Test timing chain for stretch.
Dristributor Cap off, breaker bar on crank
Check play to movement from crank.
Replace if stretched.
Same time, new water pump, new oil pump.
Fords have bad oil systems.
GM oil designs is far superior.
That'll help that mill go many more miles.
Upgrade ignition.
Tackle fuel issues.
Toss in exhaust.
You're done.
Will last about another 50K-75K miles, easily after that "engine in car, rebuild" & full of power.
You'll have trouble keep rear tires planted!
Smart Move.
You found out you've reached the end of F Body V-6 power output/ownership & appied your efforts to the right chassis, your next V-8 powered ride.
Smart.

 

Thanks Karl..I'll get cracking on that once I get the car on the road and can get a good feel for it... Gotta get that speedometer fixed first thing, so the tranny shifts properly and the torque converter will lock.

Exhaust is already done by the way....equal-length headers, X pipe, dual flowmasters cut off with no tailpipes or turndowns, and no cats. It's LOUD.

Ignition, well he claims he did it, but it looks fairly old..so... I'm checking all of it out very soon...applying a lot of the same rules I used with the F-Body...some things are just universal.

And thanks man.. I really, REALLY hate to have to get rid of the Third Gen..it really does pain me because I put so much heart and soul into that car.....but sacrifices must be made in the way of upgrading. A v8 is a V8.....

 

Gotta get that speedometer fixed first thing, so the tranny shifts properly and the torque converter will lock.

Explain please.

THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT I HAVE HAPPENING TO MY FIREBIRD!!
Speedo wiggles at that "number/lockup/nonlock up range (30-45mph)".
DRIVES ME UP A WALL!

Need I only lube the speedo cable or just replace it or switch speedo heads.....

 

Well from what I was told from my grandpa who's owned several Fords in his life, the transmission takes its shifting cues from the speedometer. If the speedometer isn't working properly, transmission shift points are all wrong...usually too early. Example...driving the Mustang home, I hit 3rd gear at 900-1000 rpms...

And not only did the 3.73 gears the guy threw in throw the speedometer off, but it doesnt operate correctly now. No way to even use it, it's off by so much. Let's say doing 30 mph, it'll jump between 40 and 60. 45 mph, jumps between 60 and 90 or so. Highway speeds, reads between 120 and 140.

And I don't know crap about speedometers..sorry.. I'm just giving this one to a local shop I've been to before..they're real honest..I'm just gonna say 'take it and fix it'. I don't know enough about the car to start messing with it.

 

And Karl..on my Camaro, the speedo does this... Sits at 0 for a while until you've either driven it for like 30 mins or so, or really dog it around...then it'll jump all over the place AROUND the speed I'm doing for a while. To keep it from locking and unlocking the torque converter over and over again, I installed the TCC manual lockup. So when I hit 40, I flip the switch and just let the speedometer tweak on its own and keep the converter locked. Worked for me....one less irritation to worry about.

 

Diagram
Parts used
Product purchased
HELP
I thought this was might/have been the problem.
Mine is a 1985 version & cable driven speedo.
YOURS
is kinda easy.
Your speedo gears on back of tranny, replaced with right parts, will "correct" your problem.
It's the "Start" of the chain for solution.

 

We will probably see you around on the boards I hope. I sold my F-body back in July and still come the board off and on, to help those, and read up. Although I do plan on buying another 3rd gen, I just don't know when.

This place is addictive, and its hard to stop coming too. So good luck with you next ride; the GT.

 

I bought a new car in about 2 1/2 months ago and I'm still here all the time, although my Camaro is broken down in the driveway...

 

Your new Stang sounds like a nice piece.

 

Ha ha...well, horsepower is addictive and it's got a lot on the maro. Problem is it shifts too early. Speedo linked problem. Tested her today..shifts, WOT, at 3500. Before it hits its power peak, which is why it's so slow. When I held it down in low gear (1st) and exited a turn, the thing revved up to 5500-6000 and the POSI rear got all squirly on me..almost hit a mailbox. Got home and was like 'so THAT'S why it seems to slow....' One problem at a time.

By the way..the exhaust system is 3 in. Which explains why bottom end power is nil. Seems to have a hard time even breaking traction..and that's with a 3.73 rear...although it DOES have balding ZR's in the back

 

MINE DOES THE SAME THING !!!

Last semester on the way to school , I started hearing a grinding noise , I looked down and the needle was going back and fourth from about 40-90 back and fourth , making this grinding noise , then all of a sudden it stopped !!! AND the noise stopped !

 

Weird.... Yeah it kinda makes me mad that my Camaro's speedometer is messed up, and the Stang's is too! But..the Stang still has a cable speedometer...damn Ford and their being behind in technology. So..it could be a bigger pain...

 

.

 

And Karl..on my Camaro, the speedo does this... Sits at 0 for a while until you've either driven it for like 30 mins or so, or really dog it around...then it'll jump all over the place AROUND the speed I'm doing for a while. To keep it from locking and unlocking the torque converter over and over again, I installed the TCC manual lockup. So when I hit 40, I flip the switch and just let the speedometer tweak on its own and keep the converter locked. Worked for me....one less irritation to worry about.

Please offer me details about this item.
Sounds like my solution, too.
Especially in town as I'll never know I loose 1 MPG.
Would you please send me a wiring diagram & switch requirements?
THANKS!

 

Soooo easy to do..there's a tech article for it on thirdgen as a matter of fact. Here Just run two wires to a switch, install it somewhere, and link the two upper, outermost boxes on the ALDL. As soon as current goes between them, it locks the TCC. It'll force lock in any gear except first obviously.

 

SO EXCELLENT!

 

Isn't it though? Saved me a LOT of irritation..... Supposedly leaving it locked through a drag run will cut a tenth off your ET...but I wouldnt do it..too hard on the converter.

 

I would think you should be able to smoke 'em pretty good. I don't think 3 inch exaust would kill your bottom end.

 

You just need to lube the speedo cable. The grease is worn out, and as the cable turns, it hits the side of the sheath- which interrupts the speedo cable- which makes your needle jump. It's easy, I did it to a friend's '87 Camaro. I don't think you'd want to force the torque convertor to go into lockup, it might do more harm than good.

Here's a message where I explain how to do it, from https://www.thirdgen.org/techbb2/sho...hreadid=110106

The guy gave me a tube of speedometer lube, it was made by Napa, I never thought to write the part # down. Not sure if it's special lube, or if another "common" type of lube will work. I do remember the tube saying something about silicone, though.. and the tube was blue.

A worn-out switch on the brake pedal can also cause intermittant TCC operation. My switch is shot, I don't go into lockup often.. sometimes if I tap the brake pedal lightly a few times, the switch works again, and I go into lockup- until the next time I hit the brakes.

Nixon1, good luck with the new car.

 

That's TWO for speedo cables
One here & one in tranny section!
Who'd da thought a stupid speedo cable would cause this problem.
I can remove cable from Speedo or from tranny end?
I'm sure the lube stuff is quite easy to score.

 

85.....I've always preached no bigger than 2.5 in exhaust, even for the Z-28's here...and the Mustangs are no different. Talked to the people on the board...unless you're heavily modified, 3 is too big...2.5 in. is ideal. I haven't tried punching the gas from a standstill but I will say this...idle to 3500 rpms, at WOT, my little 6 cylinder Camaro should be able to run right beside the Mustang. But 4000 rpms and up the Mustang tears off like I can't believe. (It's the first V8 I've ever driven)

 

Hey Nix, email me the details on your Camaro... I'm looking for another so I can take mine off the road and rebuild the engine!

I'm in Wildwood (Where I75 + Turnpike meet), so I'm fairly 'local'.

Just email me full specs on the Camaro (year, tranny, mods, etc) and your asking price on her, ok?

Doward_@hotmail.com

Thanks, John

 

Ford exhaust rules.
You have a little motor
It's only a 302.
You're pushing about 300 HP, if lucky.

You can buy prefabbed 2 1/2" stuff & install at home.
BUT be sure to buy a cross over pipe and use it.
You'll gain more bottom end torque. For no true extra exhaust cost. Ford incorporated that feature in their factory rides. GM did not.
You can go UP TO 2 1/2" from headers to end.
You have tons of exhaust system manufactures for your business.
JBA makes primo stuff, fairly priced, as do most mailorder places.
This will bring the torque back to the 3,000 RPM range where it's most needed.

Take off your current 3" sized stuff & sell it for helping pay for best stuff ya can install at home.
I'll bet you could sell that 3" stuff for about $100 to someone.

Plan on shocks next.

Do you still have that lightweight aluminum spare tire wheel set up?
Find a spare of that from a 80's Thunderbird trunk & use that for Drag Racing as the extreme weight transfer ya seek! Those spare tire/wheel things weight like 2/3 of the usual wheel weight.

 

congrats on the new ride, even if it is a f*rd

My best friend in MD swears by them, but is always crashing them and/or fixing them. He just wont come on over from the dark sie to Pontiac .

You're gonna have sheesh loads of aftermarket crap to dive into, including the $100 or so new aluminum driveshaft. then threr's paxton, etc.......the list goes on.

 

Dow, email's on the way.

Karl, Doubt it's 300 horses. Stock is supposed to be 225....so I figure 250-275 conservatively. And...aren't X pipes expensive as hell?? I'd like to keep the X pipe idea but only at 2 1/2....

Project 85, The aftermarket's gonna be the best part. I don't like Ford..but I can't deny the horsepower and market for it..so...it'll be tweaked out in a year or two.

 

You'd be surprised how INEXPENSIVE the CORRECT Exhaust system is, in the long run.
Have fun shopping

 

Yes. As ked said swap that 3 inch out for a 2.5 inch. 3 inch is good for turbo and SC setups, pushing the gases out quicker, where a N/A engine does not have the driving force to push it out, and it becomes to thin when leaving booging the engine.

As soon as you get the chance, please post pics of your 91 GT. I mean I don't like Fords at all, and mustangs even less, but I respect that their still american, and I would love to see some photos of your latest purchase.

 

BELIEVE ME, I am WELL AWARE of the exhaust setup problems. Lol...everyone on these boards that mentions having a 3 in. system or has it in their profile, I just wanna smack them on the forehead. I cannot STAND it, because I KNOW how much power I'm losing.

BUT, first I have to get my hi-beam switch working properly again..it's broken...and fix my left wiper connection..left stopped moving today and right just flopped back and forth smacking it.. And I have to get my speedometer fixed because it's causing the transmission to shift extremely prematurely, not to mention the converter won't go into lockup because of it, which is building excess trans heat....AND it's nice to know what speed you're going! Then I need to buy a fan switch because the fan is wired to the fuel pump...meaning it's a bitch to get warmed up and it doesn't go much past 165 or 170...very cold running, considering it's a BRAND NEW fan AND radiator setup. So many things to do....so little time and money...

Joe, I'm taking pics tomorrow. Tried to earlier today but apparently it has to be high noon with the sun directly overhead and I have to be at an exact even angle with the car for the photos to come out. :P This digital camera SUCKS...barely works anymore.

 

Got pics..getting engine ones soon but it's nothing impressive looking. I created a new thread for them.