i was "researching" on cars.com and it says that in 2002, Ford made a 4.0L V6 with 222 hp from the factory... is this legit? if so where the heck can i get this engine???

 

My guess is no. I think they're rated at 207 hp.

 

yea it said there was 2 4.0's one with 222 and one with 207.
but it was only in 2002

 

There was a SOHC 640 engine in Australian and Canadian LR3 and it made 216 hp and 269 ftlbs of torque but I don't know if it was similar to the SOHC 4.0 in Rangers.

I'm Rangers the 4.0 was always only rated at 207hp.

 

oh. well heres the link if anyone wants to look:
http://www.cars.com/go/crp/research....=183&year=2002

 

The 4.0L in the 2002/2003 Ranger Thunderbolt, post-production modified by SLP, was advertised at 222HP. The only changes from the regular 207HP version were a dual outlet catback exhaust and a cone paper air filter in a fibreglass cold air box. The Thunderbolt was a Ford sanctioned conversion and could be bought new through Ford dealers with a factory warranty.

http://www.pickuptrucks.com/html/sto...underbolt.html

http://www.pickuptrucks.com/html/sto...rbolt2003.html

 

ha interesting...

 

[QUOTE=rwenzing;1258276]The 4.0L in the 2002/2003 Ranger Thunderbolt, post-production modified by SLP, was advertised at 222HP. The only changes from the regular 207HP version were a dual outlet catback exhaust and a cone paper air filter in a fibreglass cold air box. The Thunderbolt was a Ford sanctioned conversion and could be bought new through Ford dealers with a factory warranty.[QUOTE]

u the man.

 

I also believe the sohc in the explorer had different power ratings at some point

 

you could easily get that power or more with a tune and similar mods. Probably more power no problem with no knock.

 

Yep. Between my tuning, K&N FIPK, and dual outlet magnaflow I'm making quite a bit more power.

Rich

 

Great read.

This article proves to me that an exhaust and intake do make more power. All the people out there that state that the FIPK's and similar intakes along with exhaust dont help are wrong.

 

IN the case of a 4.0L ranger this is true. But many people *assume* this to be true on all cars. In truth it just depends on how good the OEM intake and ehausts really are.

Yesterday I was seeing "248hp" on my scanguage. I didn't have it back when I was stock so I can't give a true apples to apples comparison.

My power improving mods as of yesterday were: 27deg timing vs 15 stock, 94 octane fuel, ASP underdrive pulley, e-fan, K&N fipk, after cat exhaust, and denso IT20 spark plugs. So..248hp - 207hp = 41hp improvement.
IMO that's not a deadly accurate comparison.. but I do think it's in the neighborhood of what I've actually gained from the mods.

Rich

 

41hp is a pretty good gain. Like you said it might not be 100% accurate but it gives you a good guess on what you are dealing with.

Those numbers prove to me that the mods that we do to our trucks is worth it.

 

I agree. Anyone whos seen how small the stock exhaust piping is compaired to a nice 2.5" aftermarket one can make the same conclusion.

btw, a stock fx4 runs 16.4-16.5 in the 1/4. My best ever with the current mods has been a 15.5@86mph I usually run 15.7s though.
Add 60hp worth of nitrous and I've gone 14.54@93mph

Rich

 

I've seen 265 HP on my scangauge so I don't really trust the HP gauge anymore.

 

It got a bit heated in the other thread. But "horsepower" is only a math calc.
Personally I don't like to use the term. I prefer timeslips.

Rich

 

I have always thought they were like 205, the sohc that is.

 

I agree with everything you've said Rich. Just one thing. Let's not just leave it at "bigger is better."
We'll have guys running out and trying to fit 5" exhaust pipes on their Rangers. LOL

Here's an excellent site on exhaust "theory."

http://www.nsxprime.com/FAQ/Miscella...austtheory.htm

 

**If** they keep the stock cats.. no worries on piping size down stream.

Now if a guy removed the cats.. then yes back pressure can become a factor. And it would be even more noticeable on a short stroke engine like these 4.0Ls. But.. in my *first hand experience* the loss is usually only seen below 1800rpms or so. Just depends on the stroke of the engine.

In a prefect world we have exhaust piping that grew in crossectional diameter by about 2% every 5" or so.

Rich

 

Nick, from your link:

"An engine needs some backpressure to run properly!" Nonsense. A muffler can no more "make" horsepower than Wile E. Coyote can catch roadrunners. Any technician with any dyno experience will tell you that the best mufflers are no mufflers at all!"



This is not completely true. Now I'll give them this.. its a very subtle thing to address. And w/o knowing the science behind it.. as well as the wide range of power a engine needs to make.. people tend to swing to one side or the other. Just like the 5" exhaust example you kid about. Or *others* would think that OEM is the best. Well.. it really depends on what your goal is. Is your goal to add as much top end power as is possible? Is it mpg? Or is it what most of us want.. a nice grumble, some power increase, and keeping it legal?

Stock exhaust manifolds are perfect.. ***for the flow rates deemed as needed by the OEM*** They perfectly match the exhaust port. They grow in crossectional area. And they stand up to the heat better than anything else possibly could. (cast iron)

Now consider what I said. flow rates deemed as needed by the OEM They don't have the exact same goal as do most guys wanting to increase top end power. Thier goal is to make the engine last 150k miles, be as quiet as is possible, have good mpg, and make the best power where most people use it. (1300-2500rpms)

OK.. so people "know" that headers make more power. Well.. with any hi-po mod there are always trade offs as well as other things in the exhaust system that have to be accounted for. You gotta remember it's a *system*. If you change just one part.. it effects the rest. Maybe for good.. maybe not.
It all depends on what your trying to do.

For us lowly ranger guys.. an aftercat thats piping size is the same as the last cats pipe size.. is as good as it'll get for a simple "bolt on" solution.

Headers, high flow cats, no cats, materials, and pipe diameter really need to be tailored for the intended use.

My 4.0L ranger has a magnaflow after cat w/a single 2.5" mid pipe. IMO this is perfect for a daily driver and the 1/4 mile dragracing I do a couple times a year.

My lightning.. has 1.75" primaries, 3" collectors, no cats, an X-pipe to balance pressures, and dual 3" pipes to the tips. All to support the air flow from 800hp while dragracing. If this were intended to be a strictly street vehicle.. I'd have done 1.625 primaries, 2.5" collectors, high flow cats, X-pipe, and 2.5" pipes out.

Setting exhaust up for top end power.. and for daily street use are two different goals.

Rich

 

Both torque and horsepower ARE BOTH calculations, and not accurate at all!!

Timeslips aren't accurate either due to the traction variable, the dyno (engine or chassis) would be the best.

 

In absolute facts.. that's true. You can't measure twist w/o a known length of lever. And a know gravatational pull at that distance away from the center of rotation.

However.. it's commonly accepted math that is tangible. I have a TQ wrench and use it often.



Horsepower however is ABSOLUTELY NO DIFFERENT than say.. mule power. Or.. dog power... or maybe mouse power. It means nothing of substance to us here and now in 2009.
It simply is a math calc to make uneducated people understand the power an engine can provide vs something they could grasp. Like horses for the uneducated people people several hundred years ago.



Peace.. and let it go mr stalker.

Rich

 

I was talking about the scangauge measurements...totally useless!!!

Did you blow the engine up in your Lightning? where did you come up with the 800HP (horsepower?) number? How about some photos!!

 

Rich: I had an interesting experience I thought you would like to hear.

My best friends son is my age, and has a stock 3.0 escape with 90,000 miles. It died on him one day and they had it towed to my house. I scanned the computer and it said it had "5 bad coils" and I was like "no way, how can 5 coils go bad at once". Anyways I took the intake apart and placed checked the coils by hooking them all in the one known good spot, and they all fired just fine. (so I knew it must not be the coils, and something was wrong with the computer) - It turns out the computer did go bad, so we got a new computer, and had to let the dealer initialize and marry it to the gem module and cluster (since the dealer basically only has that software).

Turns out after this things ran fine. But in 2 days he came by saying it fell flat on its face again, and wouldn't go past 25 miles per hour. He drove it back to the dealer (I wasn't around) and it coded a 420 and 430 for bad cats. When I got the phone call that something went wrong again and heard it was a 420 and 430 I immediately thought that the cats were shot because it wasn't firing correctly since the computer had been fried. Turns out I was right, and the cats were completely collapsed inside causing it to have so much backpressure it wouldn't go past 25mph.

Now to the good part:
Dealer said "1800$ for new cats". I said "I'll try something different".
I took the y-pipe off of the front 2 cats, and let it swivel down. I used my cutting wheel to cut the cats open, and a screwdriver to knock the platinum brick out. I took off the rear cat and ran a 3 foot long screwdriver through, and blew it out with my air compressor. I made sure there were no loose pieces of brick inside, and that all of the brick had been removed before putting things back together and re-welding those front converters back up. Everything being reinstalled, I put 2 spark plug defoulers on each o2 bung, to fool the computer into thinking the converters were there, so it wouldn't throw any codes. (So he could pass emissions, it is an old Evo/STi trick)

I expected the thing to run funny, so we started her up and it sounded pretty much like stock would sound. No loud rumble, no loud rev noise. We went for a ride around the neighborhood and it drove fantastic. He told me "it never has ever run this good". This was really surprising to me as people around here say how Ford's with a stock tune and no converters don't run right. Granted I didn't measure anything on a dyno, but based off of the smiles on his face he really liked the way it ran. And when I drove it it seemed really happy having no converters, and I would never guess based on the performance that anything at all was wrong.