[2_tone_notch]

hey everyone.ive had my 88 notch for about 2 months now and i love the car to death.when i bought it,it had sat for over a year.i went to look at it popped a battery in and it fired right up.i bought it,and drove it home 25 miles with no problems.now i still drive it everyday,and it still runs good,but.....it doesnt feel like it has the power it should considering it has a fresh tune up and some mods done to it.when i first bought it i threw a tiiming light on it to see where it was set at.the base timing was retarded a little bit so i turned it up to 12 degrees btdc.i am running 93 octane at all times in this car.when i did this though i got a weird grinding/popping noise from the motor.i turned the timing back down a little and it started to go away more and more.mods on the car are as follows:

cai,off-raod h-pipe,flows,pro products 65mm tb w/ stock egr plate,and 3:73s out back.with these mods in a notch i would think really low 14 1/4s should be attainable,yet when i raced my buddys near stock 90 gt we were dead even.this is my 5th fox body and that was his first,my brothers raced in nmra real street and all my friends have mustangs so i know its not me lol.it just doesnt have the pull it should have.it does run alot better when its kool out but that race with my friend was at night in about 65 degree weather.it blew my mind that he kept up with me.do any of you mustang lovers have any suggestions?? every tune up part on the car i can think of is new,im running good gas,and engine doesnt smoke or anything??? any advise would be greatly appreciated.

[Sonic Blue 85]

I would suggest installing the 65mm EGR spacer, then matching the intake to the 65mm gasket. Just make sure you do not get any metal shavings down in the intake. Also check and possibly adjust the TP voltage, set it between .92-.97v at idle. Some other ways to pick up some some more power, put some under drive pullies, an electric fan on it and an adjustable fuel pressure regulator experiment with fuel pressure. Taking the car to a shop that can clean the injectors and have them cleaned would probably also help out. I would have the injectors cleaned or replaced before adjusting the fuel pressure. Then look for a better intake such as a cobra intake since you already have the 65mm TB. You should not expect your car to run much quicker than your friends car, since you both have 5.0 fox bodies and you said his is near stock, meaning not stock and the mods you have will not increase your power much, the gears will help the most. Getting the car tuned will get you the most from your combo.

[TheBocSez]

If I am reading right, some of your issues began when you adjusted timing. Its possible that on a 20 year old car, the rubber between the rings of the harmonic balancer have slipped and the TDC mark is no longer true TDC hence your timing could be way off. Just a thought.

[johnc]

you should convert to mass air. that year is speed density.

[2_tone_notch]

all very good ideas.the biggest thing i found wierd when i raced my buddy was i have a 3:73 gear but his was stock.the only other mod his has is a bbk cold air kit.i think most of it has to do with not having the mtching egr spacer to the tb.should i just go back to the stock tb untill i get a spacer?? also how do i adjust the tps voltage??? thanks guys

[littlebeeper]

switch to MAS, speed density won't give you as much return for your mods as a Mas will. also grap a test light and run the engine codes and see what you have. maybe something is not where it supposed to be. a engine temp sensor or somethign simple like that could cause power loss and a rich condition. I say grab a test light cause the 88's don't have a check engine light to count the flashes, lest mine doesn't. i have to check the codes with a test light plugged into the test port. there are various write ups on how to do this all over the mustang forums. hope this helps you some

[Sonic Blue 85]

I would go back to the stock TB, until you get the spacer. To adjust the TP voltage measure the voltage between the green and black wires, then loosen the TP screws to adjust it then retighten them once you have it adjusted.

[Sonic Blue 85]

The speed density cars do have check engine lights and as long as you don't do anything that causes the engine to loose vacuum, it will probably run faster with speed density. Even if you do install a larger cam, heads or intake you can still tune the speed density system with a chip and even if you do have MAF you should still have it tuned with a chip. The stock tune in any of the ECMs speed density or MAF are not very good once you start changing parts, there is much to be gained over the stock tune, even with stock parts.

[2_tone_notch]

awesome info guys.thanks.ill give some of these things a try and let you know what i come up with.

[littlebeeper]

i have an 88, no light there. wire is there but no bulb for the light. you have to put in a light in the cluster. check step #7 in post #3 i've been all in this car and did lots of searching on it. it sat for 8 years and ran like crap when i got it running. god luck to you. hopefully mine will be up and running after the timing cover, injectors, water pump and radiator are swaped out guess we both need luck 1988 Mustang mass air conversion, what do I need? - Ford Mustang Forums