Making it a Daily Driver

[Anonymous]

I have a 1969 Mustang with a I6 200 c.i. with a 4 speed (non toploader).

The car was my daily driver for quite a while, but got hit while parked and I am finally giving it some down time and want to improve on the daily driver qualities. I plan on adding power windows (i have to change the windows to 1970 bolt in glass).

The main thing i want to improve is gas mileage. I want to try to get as good of mileage as I can out of my car. I was thinking about doing a turbo or possibly a T5 trans.

Any advice on carb/efi, turbos etc. that would make my car get the best mileage possible (with possible bonus power). would be greatly appreciated.

I bought the falcon performance book, and have to look around and find where i put it.

 

[falcon fanatic]

I think some kind of programmable fuel injection on a well prepped head (cleaned up ports, a good valve job, and raised compression) with a header and exhaust and a t-5 could be made to give decent mileage. As for how to program the FI and ignition for best mileage, hopefully someone else will weigh in.

 

[XFlow_Fairlane]

all EFI will give leaner mix under cruise and part throttle than a carb will. and much better idle once tuned.

what mods do you have now? I would think a header and T5 would be a good upgrade to start with for now and maybe a warmed over head. with my T5 and untuned 5200 (came riht off a pinto with no rebuild) and a duraspark I was getting about 25mpg highway (3.50 gears) if you do alot of highway driving I would look at a 3.2X ranged gear for the rear and a 4cyl T5.

some of that early emissions era stuff (mid 1970's) is great for building a driver motor. duraspark boxes have a start retard so you can run agressive timing and sitll start easy. dual port distributors allow a temp controled vac switch to be hooked up giving the same thing only for colder temps. those 5200 carbs give great milage.

a turbo won't help your milage any. they do hurt it just slightly (but give you much more power back) fuel injection would be a big help. I am working on a 3.8L cfi setup on my 200 right now and I can get it all to bolt on but need to work th ewiring a little right now and not sure how the factory tune is going to be on it.

 

[addo]

69's something of a barge compared to the earlier units. So I reckon fuel economy will always reflect that constraint. In your situation, probably the five speed box first, sensible chassis tuning (not overly fat tyres or excess negative camber) and you could also look at a wideband A/F meter used to dial a 350 Holley in.

Cheers, Adam.

 

[Anonymous]

Couple questions did any of the late model 200 c.i.'s have EFI/5speeds bolted on to them?

And if they did, are they able to be basically bolted on to a 69 (or with minor fabrication).

I do not know all that much, but my dad is very knowlegable and I am going to go to lincoln tech this summer.

Thanks again for all the help =).

 

[wallaka]

No, and no. However, the T5 easily fits with a little help from an a-daptor kit.

 

[Anonymous]

Would you happen to know an approximate cost estimate for changing over to a T5 trans. Also would you recommend buying a new one (saw one selling for like 2 or 3 grand in CJ pony parts catalogue, or is it possible to take one from a fox body mustang?

Also how do you do the EFI conversion?

I also just read about Mike's aluminum headers, I am extremely interested in getting them. Would they work out for getting better mpg if paired with a good cam and carb/efi?

As for current mod's, there really isn't any. I put in a Ignitor electronic ignition to get rid of points (thank god). And it has a 3 row radiator now but other than that it is completely stock.

The engine needs some work cause it has a leaking head gasket and the carb needs a rebuild at least.

BTW, I want to thank everyone here cause everyone is extremely helpful, and doesn't seem to look down at me for my well... inexperience =).

 

[wallaka]

Would you happen to know an approximate cost estimate for changing over to a T5 trans. Also would you recommend buying a new one (saw one selling for like 2 or 3 grand in CJ pony parts catalogue, or is it possible to take one from a fox body mustang?

Also how do you do the EFI conversion?

I also just read about Mike's aluminum headers, I am extremely interested in getting them. Would they work out for getting better mpg if paired with a good cam and carb/efi?

As for current mod's, there really isn't any. I put in a Ignitor electronic ignition to get rid of points (thank god). And it has a 3 row radiator now but other than that it is completely stock.

The engine needs some work cause it has a leaking head gasket and the carb needs a rebuild at least.

BTW, I want to thank everyone here cause everyone is extremely helpful, and doesn't seem to look down at me for my well... inexperience =).

I would definitely go for a junkyard T5. 2 or 3 grand is ridiculous. The ones from the Fox Mustangs work just fine. I think Modern Driveline sells adapters to fit the old 3.03 bellhousings.

The details for the EFI conversion are in the "Turbo, Nitrous, Fuel Injection" part of the forum. Just look and you'll find. This thread is a good place to start. http://fordsix.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=38349

Aluminum head, LOL. Not headers. He also has headers both imported and produced by him, but they are steel, and he is redesigning them to fit better in pre '67 cars. They'll definitely be more efficient than the stock manifold, and could help with mileage paired with the right cam and induction.

Hey, everybody starts somewhere. I didn't know jack when I first got the Comet, but I've come a long way. These guys were more than helpful, and continue to be that way.

 

[Anonymous]

heh.. I meant Heads. As I say I am pretty new to all of this. Actually do know the difference between heads and headers but i guess i mistyped it.

Changing over to EFI seems like quite a difficult task, is the difference really worth it?

As far as the T5, would one from a 4 cyl have any problems with strength?

Ok so as far as estimation of price:
FSP Heads: 1500
FSP Intake: 300
Cam (recommendations?): 200?
Adapter: 200 (the 6 cyl one i saw there)
Trans: 300? (no idea really just saw one on ebay for that)
Parts/bolts/extra costs: 1000
Then EFI/Carb setup: ?


Anything else I would definitely need? What are your recommendations on a cam? How good of mileage do you think it would get? Decent amount of power?

 

[addo]

I really think that it's too gross an assumption that the presence of the new head and intake on an existing shortblock will give you the most worthwhile gains. Not trying to dampen your enthusiasm, but wanting you to see the most enjoyment for your outlay.

It may work; then again the short motor could be worn, unthinkingly rebuilt or mismachined to the point of needing a competent rebuild.

With the T-5 usually goes a 3.25 rear end. It's not necessary, but is a good balance between performance and economy. Also the V-8 five speeders are slowly becoming preferred by more people here; this is due to some different ratios inside.

Regards, Adam

 

[Anonymous]

I believe (I am not positive) that my car was in the low 3's as far as rear gear ratio.

As i said I am really new to this, I don't know what would give me the best gains. I know I want to focus on fuel economy since it is my every day driver.

In your opinoin what would be the best option. I assumed Heads would be a good idea since it was said earlier in the post, and I liked the idea that it would be lighter and perform a little better as well.

The engine was rebuilt a year and a half before I got it, but the guy who owned it didn't know much about it since it was his fathers old car.

 

[GrantD]

Another thing to consider is what kind of money are you really going to save by putting this stuff on your car. All those goodies are great but if you're main goal is to save money on gas you'll probably not come out a head in the long run. A head and headers aren't going to put you in 40mpg range. So I'd say figure out how much money per tank of gas you'd be saving with the the new goodies and use some reasonable estimates for how many tanks of gas you use in a year. Finally figure out how long with those saving it would take you to make up the couple thousand dollars you're talking in parts. 2000 dollars/2.75 gallon is still well over 700 gallons of gas. If you're motivations are for more than saving money by all means hot rod away. Sorry I'm a poor college student I figure this kind of stuff out.

 

[Ron R]

Sounds like one cool ride.
I would get the header from Mike and slap on a 2barrel carb and see what ya think then go from there.

Best of luck
Ron R.

 

[Anonymous]

Well I know that I will not make the money back from gas mileage savings. I will be needing to do change out the carb and take off the heads to change a gasket anyways, and although it wont give me my full money back it will make it a much more enjoyable ride. This is the first time my car has been off the road for a while (I have had it for almost 3 years now, and really only had to do routine maintenance). My focus is on mpg because I don't really want to hot rod it out since it is my daily driver.

The head and all was just an idea. I figured if it mildly increased mpg, it would be worth it due to the improved overall ride as well.

I am sold on the T5 idea, is there any years that have better ratios or anything I should look for? Also how hard is changing the rear gear?

I also thought about doing the power rack and pinoin steering (hearing it gives quite a large reduction in weight, anyone know approximately how much?) And a much nicer overall ride.

 

[Lazy JW]

...
As i said I am really new to this, I don't know what would give me the best gains. I know I want to focus on fuel economy since it is my every day driver...

I really recommend that you do a whole bunch of reading here, going over past posts, etc. Educate yourself first, then decide what you REALLY want.

A T-5 from a four cylinder will hold a mild 200 just fine and it will have a lower first gear which will allow a taller rear gear thus giving better fuel economy. Don't overlook the humble SROD though, it may be an easier and possibly cheaper swap and can equal the T-5 for economy.
Joe

 

[LaGrasta]

Figuring in cost to do all that stuff, you're best bet is a well tuned car, with electronic ignition (Pertronix) and a good gearing/tire combo to help lower freeway rpms. Add an extra 5lbs of air in each tire and you're good to go.

I can't find the link, but somewhere out there is a cost calculator. You punch in the price to do the mods and the cost per gallon of gas and it will tell you how long until you break even.

My 63 is my daily driver and I get in the low 20s. I drive 25 miles one way to work, about 300 a week total.