Performance Tuning

Project Turbo Zetec

Time to start on a new project... With the white '89 LX mostly done, I figure I should do some serious damage with a new project...

Thus enters Project Turbo Zetec with the purchase of a 1998 Ford ZX2 2.0 Litre Zetec four cylinder engine for $1000. I plan on building the engine into a serious showcase of what madness I am capable of. The picture on the left is of the engine as it arrived, minus the protective wrapping. The picture to the right is after I got it mounted onto the engine stand.

It took my Dad and myself to maneuver the engine on to the stand, but I was able to pick it up and move it so I could work on getting the stand's snout mounted. Spec. weight is 255Lbs, but I will weigh it as soon as everything is mounted up and ready to put in the car, target weight is 275 Lbs. with the turbo.

August 2000: The car

An ugly duckling, just begging to be resurrected into a lithe steed. She is a 1991 Ford Mustang LX coupe, 2.3 automatic with 3.73 gears and a dual plug distributorless ignition featuring mass air fuel injection.

I had it for less than one week before installing a 1998 SN95 Mustang GT front suspension and brake system I bought for $500 at a swap meet. It features '98 GT k-member, longer A-arms, struts, 11" disc brakes, and a rack and pinion. The rear axle will be replaced soon with a Turbo Coupe unit with SN95 axles and rotors. I'm going to have a set of 17's (three spoke design) powdercoated black to look like '93 Cobra R rims below.

She'll get some body work, the front fenders are shot, the trunk lid is showing some rust, there is a nice ding on the drivers side rear wheel well, two spots of rust randomly spread on the body, and the rear corners of the door jams are rusted. Hey, what do you expect for $1000?

A view I hope to show a few people...

I got in a deal for a one-off exhaust flange, dig on it.

To the left is the exhaust side of the engine, the driver's side on a RWD car, the front of a FWD car. The new exhaust flange I got (Thanks, Bruce) is bolted on and ready for tubing and the turbo flange. It was cut with a waterjet, or a very high pressure "beam" of water that cuts just like a laser, but is much cheaper in operation. The right hand picture is the intake side. Below are close ups of the exhaust port and intake port, respectively. Notice both are siamesed and are narrower as they get closer to the face of the head.

Also of interest is the secondary aluminum webbing below the crank centerline, and the separate oil sump. This improves the Zetec's bottom end strength, reducing block flex and noise in general.

This is the '98 GT K-member and what it will look like when in the car!

This is a shot of the intake (passenger side of a RWD, rear on a FWD). It's an ugly little beast full of 90°(+) bends, and it has no place on a turbo engine, so that was the last time it will ever be mated with the head, functionally. Tthe dual overhead cams will aid significantly in power production with the turbo. The Zetec has a Variable Cam Timing system that I may will eliminate, it's a part of the emissions system on this particular model. Adjustable cam gears will take the place of the stock gears.

To the left is the head with cam cover removed. The left hand cog/cam is the exhaust cam with the VCT servo on the front (top of picture) of the cam, and the cam position sensor at the rear of the engine on the very end of the cam. Below the exhaust cam is where the coolant manifold/thermostat housing bolts. This is going to be an interesting part of my project because the housing is going to be very close to the firewall of a Mustang, so I may have to mount the engine forward of the transmission's stock mounting position. I will probably end up cutting into the firewall to put the engine further back than the 2.3 so as to get the engine behind the K-member and front axle centerline.

To the right is the bottom end of the engine. The aluminum secondary support is what is on top of the picture. It is oriented left side to the rear of the engine (where the transmission mounts, the crankshaft pully is at the bottom of the picture). This secondary webbing has a cast-in windage tray, which gives the block more strength, reduces oil foaming, keeps oil off the crankshaft, and prevents oil from sloshing as well as keeping noise low.

You might be able to see in the left pic there is a little gap down there, and it presents a little problem, but the 2.3 has a dust shield that may protect the transmission from debris, but I am a little worried about drag and "catching" things I don't want to, tearing the trans out... I will see how well I can adapt the T5 later when I have another unit, this bellhousing was loaned from my Mustang when I blew up yet another clutch, thank god it was free.

Here are some images of the 8.5 " clutch and flywheel that were reinstalledin the Mustang. I will be using the bigger 9 " clutch found in Thunderbird Turbo Coupes for the Zetec engine. This gives you a pretty good ideal of what everithing looks like.

The Zetec 2.0 is a very compact engine. The 16 valves and dual overhead cams should provide much better breathing characteristics than the old Pinto motor (2.3) ever could. I am going to start with a performance build up to get the engine ready to recieve some major boost (20-30 psi, depending). On the wish list is a set of 8.0:1 forged pistons, Crower connecting rods, Total Seal gapless rings, ARP head studs, main studs, and other fasteners, a custom Garrett T03/T04 hybrid turbo with TO4 0.50 A/R compressor and TO3 0.48 A/R turbine. A custom exhaust manifold, and supply lines for oil and water to and for the turbo. I am still trying to figure out what Type of EFI system I am going to run. Some possiblities For EFI are Haltech, Electromotive, Motec, Pectel or SDS.

I plan on using a Ford F-450 SuperDuty Powerstroke diesel's Charge-Air Cooler mounted parallel with the ground beneath the nose, a T5 transmission via a 2.3 bellhousing with modifications, all in the '91 Mustang LX notchback (AKA. trunk) possibly with a Capri nose for cooling, relocated battery and whatever else I can throw in the trunk, the '98 SN95 suspension with an 8.8 rear, 16X7.5 inch '94 Mustang rims with roadrace tires (possibly BFG G-force KD's) if I don't upgrade the front brakes to 13" cobra units, fender flares, maybe Capri in origin, maybe fiberglass, a modest wing for downforce, and whatever other dementia I can conjure up. The main reason I chose the Zetec engine is because of the weight advantage. A dressed Zetec weighs 255 Lbs, compared to the turbo 2.3's weight of 450 Lbs. This will be a road race and open track car, I would like to enter one of the open road races in Nevada in 2003. This hopefully will be a very unique and competitive car.

More pictures and information will be coming in the future.