performance heads

[88mudder]

Are there any 2.9 performance heads out there on the market? Link me to them if you know where to find them. All ive found is stronger heads than stock..

 

[holyford86]

the stronger heads are the "performance" heads. Heads that flow better than stock are not mass produced for the 2.9.

 

[bandit]

ive seen them in a dart catalog before and i think edelbrock sells them too

 

[derekj]

They are stock specs but they do make good stuff.

http://www.worldcastings.com/prods_pages/heads/srford.htm

Derek

 

[Ranger44]

Alabama Cylinder Heads:

http://www.acheinc.com/ford.html

Think they are stock spec also, but brand new castings.

 

[bottledgt]

2.9 performance...wow

 

[AllanD]

And what exactly are "performance heads" supposed to do on a 177CID engine that already produces as much power per/CID as a 5.0 "Cobra" engine?

I suspect that once again that someone is asking for "more power" when what they REALLY want (and just don't know it) is "more TORQUE".

and being brutally honest in regards to "more torque" there are two ways to get it:
a)More displacement (larger engine)
b)forced induction (Supercharger, turbocharger, Nitrous Oxide(aka "supercharger in a bottle))

If you believe that a 2.9 is "insufficient" then a bigger engine is what
you REALLY want.

If you are sufficiently competent to "improve" an engine in any material way
it should be far easier for you to swap something bigger in.

Easiest swap? a 4.0
Next easiest? a 5.0.

If you just want more "pull" or Acceleration have you considered a gearing upgrade?

Believe me (though I doubt you will) any "improvements" you manage to do in a 2.9
will be a disappointment compared to a friend with an identical truck that does an engine swap.

Wanna take my 4.0 powered '87 for a spin?

My truck with a 4.0 accelerates better with a ton of coal in the bed than the 2.9 truck did empty.



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[fordwheelinman]

I had thought about finding heads for my 2.9 that im rebuilding. Its been bored .060 over so i was looking for better flow. Unable to find anything simply, i just took the heads off the motor (the new casting) and had them ported, then i polished out the ports to reduce the amount of ridges, edges, and smoothed the casting to try and help increase the flow a little bit. If you really want more power, id suggest a complete rebuild with an over bore for increased displacement, porting/polishing a set of newer cast heads, and adding a torquer cam from any number of cam suppliers. I hope to be purchasing a torquer cam for mine, that is unless dad gets tired of it sitting in pieces and i have to throw in what i have.

 

[88mudder]

i already done the 5.0 swap in a different truck. I was just trying to get some options on getting some power out of the 2.9. Im always up for a challenge. I dont believe ppl that say 2.9's cant get alot of power from upgrades. Bullshit. Im not here to argue, just stating my opinion.

 

[AllanD]

i already done the 5.0 swap in a different truck. I was just trying to get some options on getting some power out of the 2.9. Im always up for a challenge. I dont believe ppl that say 2.9's cant get alot of power from upgrades. Bullshit. Im not here to argue, just stating my opinion.

What's "bullshit" is the juvenile belief that many seem to have that because of some minute difference in their personal execution of the "improvements" that the laws of physics will allow them to do things that others already know won't happen.

I'm not saying that you have that problem but you do seem to be denying that way too many others do....

Can you improve the power? Yes, you can.
The problem is that to do so invariably is at a compromise somewhere else.
in essence you can have low end torque OR top end power but you cannot have both.

Yeah, you can sorta split the difference by careful modifications (increasing compression) but then you need to run more expensive high octane fuel.

Reality is an unforgiving bitch so many avoid her and live in fantasy land.

Basically what I'm saying is what few really understand at a gut level
that is there is no such thing as a free lunch.

And while that the "diminishing returns principle" might not always win
but it's as hard to avoid as the mississippi river when traveling
coast to coast on I-80

And as I'm fond of saying everyone ASKS for "power"
but what they really want is "torque", and the simple
fact is that many simply don't know the difference.

Different cylinder heads cam chigher compression etc are not going to turn a 2.9 into an Indycar engine and even if it did you wouldn't like it.
Believe me you really wouldn't. Not unless you wanted to drive in low range at highway speeds



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[almostclueless]

AllanD is right on as usual

 

[odie1969]

for more performance mods you can always find a murker scorpio and pull that 2.9l that has a turbo set up from factory(i beleive), but good luck finding one in the states but if you do the motor is the same block and everything should bolt right in.

 

[AllanD]

for more performance mods you can always find a murker scorpio and pull that 2.9l that has a turbo set up from factory(i beleive), but good luck finding one in the states but if you do the motor is the same block and everything should bolt right in.

No, Ford never turbocharged the 2.9 engine.

there was a TwinCam 4-valve version of the 2.8, but being honest in a
ranger you wouldn't like it any more than you'd like an SHO engine in an
explorer, they were high revving autobahn burners that were great
for cruising at 80-120mph but essentially worthless for any other purpose.

The Scorpio version of the 2.9 is a little better than a Ranger/Bronco2 2.9 engine.... you want the truth? 4hp, that FOUR horsepower more in the
scorpio (In europe it was called the Grenada) and to get that 4hp you have to rev the engine an additional 200rpm to get the (unchanged) peak torque.

the quest for "power" from a 2.9 goes from wishful thinking to grasping at straws, sadly the only straws worth grasping at are in junkyards on another continent....

So I'll say Bzzzzzzt!!! game over we have no winners, thank you for playing.

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[mhughes165]

it is possible to build a 2.9 wiht a respectable amount of power and torque.....is it easily achievable...no....i have done it in the past but running sunoco 93 octane at all times gets rather expensive....only reason i did it is b/c i believe in getting the best out of the engine that ford put in the truck from the factory....and just a thought, but has anyone ever noticed the similarity in 2.9 upper intake to and aftermarket intake for a turbo ricer?? just a thought....im sure the 2.9 could handle minimal boost about 7psi, and itll give u a nice bit of umph as well, just have fun with the custom turbo setup....